During the 1973 postseason, Mets right-hander Tom Seaver fanned 13 Reds in the first game of the NLCS and then sat down a dozen Athletics in the third game of the Fall Classic. Exceptional strikeout tallies for the time, but probably not that surprising. After all, the 28-year-old had already won a Rookie of the Year Award, had already claimed one Cy Young (and would receive his second a couple of weeks after his high-K outing against Oakland), had already led the NL in strikeouts three times (including 1973), was well on his way to one of the greatest careers that has ever sprung from the mound. This narrative – only big-time, established pitchers putting up multiple high-strikeout games in a single postseason – has held steady whether it be Randy Johnson in 2001, Justin Verlander in 2012 or Tarik Skubal in 2025. This narrative had held steady, that is, until 22-year-old Trey Yesavage, the owner of three career Major League starts and a TOTAL of 16 strikeouts in those efforts, barreled through the postseason doors.
*Blue Jays @ Dodgers, World Series Game 5*
Trey Yesavage fanned 12 in a spectacular seven innings and picked up the win as Toronto defeated Los Angeles, 6-1.
~The right-hander became the 12th pitcher in World Series history to reach at least 12 K’s and draws a special spotlight for a pair of reasons (or a pair of spotlights, if your prefer) – he’s the youngest of the 12 and the only one of the dozen to crank out all those K’s without issuing a single free pass.
→On the first matter, Yesavage – 22 years and 93 days old – bypassed Ed Walsh. The Hall of Famer was 25 years and 145 days old when he struck out 12 in a two-hit shutout to lead his White Sox past the Cubs in Game 3 of the 1906 World Series.
→With regard to walks issued, the range now goes from zero for Yesavage to six by Walter Johnson in Game 1 of the 1924 World Series. Anyway, here’s the full list of the high-K hurlers, organized by whiffs.
| Player | K's | WS Gm | Age (Years-Days) | BB |
| Bob Gibson | 17 | 1968, G1 | 32-328 | 1 |
| Sandy Koufax | 15 | 1963, G1 | 27-276 | 3 |
| Carl Erskine | 14 | 1953, G3 | 26-293 | 3 |
| Howard Ehmke | 13 | 1929, G1 | 35-167 | 1 |
| Bob Gibson | 13 | 1964, G5 | 28-338 | 2 |
| Ed Walsh | 12 | 1906, G3 | 25-145 | 1 |
| Bill Donovan | 12 | 1907, G1 | 30-360 | 3 |
| Walter Johnson | 12 | 1924, G1 | 36-333 | 6 |
| Mort Cooper | 12 | 1944, G5 | 31-220 | 2 |
| Tom Seaver | 12 | 1973, G3 | 28-333 | 1 |
| Orlando Hernández | 12 | 2000, G3 | 35-013 | 3 |
| Trey Yesavage | 12 | 2025, G5 | 22-093 | 0 |
~Yesavage’s 12 strikeouts established a new bar for his personal postseason résumé, outdoing his 11 strikeouts in Game 2 of the 2025 ALDS. He’s the eighth hurler to have multiple outings with 11+ K’s in a single postseason, joining Tom Seaver (1973), Kevin Brown (1998), Randy Johnson (2001), Cliff Lee (2010), Justin Verlander (2012), Max Scherzer (2013) and Tarik Skubal (2025).
~Yesavage’s full effort – 7.0 innings, three hits and a run, all those strikeouts and that zero in the walks column – worked out to a Game Score of 79. The number reflects the best any Blue Jays starter has ever done in a World Series contest and makes Yesavage the eighth-youngest hurler to post up that high. In the former lens, his 79 toppled Jimmy Key’s 71 from Game 4 of the 1992 Fall Classic, when the southpaw allowed a run in seven-and-two-thirds innings with five hits, six strikeouts and no walks. In the latter perspective, Yesavage links to a quartet of Hall of Famers and some other memorable names and efforts.
World Series Game Score of at least 79 – Youngest Pitchers
1966, G2 Jim Palmer posts an 82 at the age of 20 years and 356 days
2010, G4 Madison Bumgarner posts an 80 at the age of 21 years and 91 days
1905, G2 Charles Bender posts an 85 at the age of 21 years and 158 days
1985, G7 Bret Saberhagen posts a 79 at the age of 21 years 199 days
1916, G2 Babe Ruth posts a 97 at the age of 21 years and 246 days
1966, G3 Wally Bunker posts an 80 at the age of 21 years and 256 days
1921, G2 Waite Hoyt posts an 83 at the age of 22 years and 27 days
2025, G5 Trey Yesavage posts a 79 at the age of 22 years and 93 days
~Take the ball for a start in a Game 5 with the World Series knotted at two games apiece – this is a heavy burden. In terms of starters to approach this crucible and come through with a win in their pocket, Yesavage again commands a bit of notoriety. He’s the youngest to do all of this within a best-of-seven format.
Youngest World Series Game 5 Starters to Record a Win When the Series is Tied 2-2
→In Game 5 in 1921, Waite Hoyt, at the age of 22 years and 31 days, allowed one unearned run in a complete game to lead his Yankees to a 3-1 win over the Giants. *In 1921, the series was being played to a best-of-nine, however.
→In Game 5 in 2025, Trey Yesavage, at the age of 22 years and 93 days, allowed one run in seven innings to lead his Blue Jays to a 6-1 win over the Dodgers.
→In Game 5 in 1997, Liván Hernández, at the age of 22 years and 245 days, allowed six runs (five earned) over eight innings and his Marlins defeated the Indians, 8-7.
→In Game 5 in 1978, Jim Beattie, at the age of 24 years and 103 days, allowed two runs in a complete game to lead his Yankees to a 12-2 win over the Dodgers.
→In Game 5 in 1996, Andy Pettitte, at the age of 24 years and 131 days, worked eight-and-a-third scoreless innings to lead his Yankees past the Braves, 1-0.
Perhaps making Yesavage’s task a little more navigable, Davis Schneider and Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. opened the top of the first with back-to-back homers.
~Schneider – making his first World Series start as his team’s leadoff hitter – produced the 27th leadoff homer in Fall Classic history and the very first for a Blue Jays batter. Tying Schneider’s and his team’s circumstances to the past, he is linked to Gene Woodling in Game 5 in 1953. Like Schneider, Woodling – playing for the visiting team (the Yankees) – was the very first batter of the game. Like Schneider’s Blue Jays when he stepped to the plate, Woodling’s Yankees found themselves in a 2-2 series scenario. There is one other World Series leadoff home run that also fits these circumstances of coming from a visiting player with his team facing the prospect of going down three games to two in the series: Detroit’s Davy Jones in Game 5 in 1909 (ultimately, a loss for Jones’ Tigers). Adding a little more sinew to the link between Schneider and Woodling, both homers came in victories and both at the expense and sadness of the Dodgers.
~With Guerrero, Jr. immediately following Schneider with a home run of his own, the pair became the very first to open a World Series with back-to-back jacks.
~For Guerrero, Jr., the longball marked his eighth of the 2025 postseason, tying Barry Bonds (2002), Carlos Beltrán (2004), Nelson Cruz (2011), Corey Seager (2020), Adolis García (2023) and Shohei Ohtani (2025!) for the second most in any single postseason. In 2020, Randy Arozarena clubbed 10.
~Guerrero’s solo homer pushed his RBI tally this postseason to 15 – the most ever for a Blue Jay and tied for the 23rd most for any player in any postseason.
~The first baseman’s 1-for-3, homer and two walks effort pushed his total bases and times on base tallies for the 2025 postseason to 54 and 40, respectively. Only two players have posted a 40-40 postseason in these two categories, Guerrero, Jr. and Barry Bonds in 2002. Let’s take a wider look at the two:
Bonds in 2002: 44 TB, 43 ToB, 11 XBH (8 HR), 27 BB .356/.581/.978/1.559 in 17 Games (74 PA)
Vlad in 2025: 54 TB, 40 ToB, 11 XBH (8 HR), 12 BB .415/.506/.831/1.337 in 16 Games (79 PA)
Ernie Clement went 1-for-3 with a run and an RBI in the Blue Jays’ win.
~The third baseman extended his 2025 postseason hitting streak to 11 games. He’s the 20th to hit safely in at least 11 straight within the confines of a single year. For now, here’s his company with exactly 11:
2000 Edgardo Alfonzo for the Mets – bats .333 during his streak
2003 Iván Rodríguez for the Marlins – bats .333
2012 Marco Scutaro for the Giants – bats .432
2020 Michael Brantley for the Astros – bats .356
2021 Eddie Rosario for the Braves – bats .465
2021 Ozzie Albies for the Braves – bats .304
2022 Bryce Harper for the Phillies – bats .455
2025 Ernie Clement for the Blue Jays – bats .340
~Clement has 25 hits in the 2025 postseason, tying Marquis Grissom (1995), Darin Erstad (2002), David Freese (2011) and Jose Altuve (2019) for the fourth most in any single postseason. He, and they, trail Randy Arozarena (29 in 2020), Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. (27 in 2025!) and Pablo Sandoval (26 in 2014).
Blue Jays outfielder Addison Barger was 2-for-3 with a walk and is OPS’ing .971 in his 2025 postseason. He is one of three Blue Jays with at least 50 plate appearances and an OPS of at least .900, joining Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. (1.337) and Ernie Clement (.928). There are 14 examples of a team concluding its postseason with at least three players fitting these two statistical bars, with the 2009 Phillies having five for the most (Ryan Howard, Carlos Ruiz, Chase Utley, Shane Victorino and Jayson Werth). There is one previous Blue Jays group to make the cut – the 1993 roster had Roberto Alomar, Paul Molitor and Devon White fit the double-bill.
Dodgers starter Blake Snell took the loss, surrendering five runs over his six-and-two-thirds innings. The southpaw did rack up seven strikeouts, leaving him with 39 for the 2025 postseason. He’s one of 15 players to have at least that many in one year, tied with the Dodgers’ Walker Buehler (in 2020) and the Blue Jays’ Trey Yesavage (in 2025!) at that exact number. In matching Buehler, Snell also tied for the franchise best in any year. Curt Schilling, with his 56 in 2001, leads everyone.
Dodgers outfielder Kiké Hernández homered to move into the top-20 all-time for postseason homers. His 16 tie him for 19th all-time with Carlos Beltrán and his current teammate, Freddie Freeman. 11 of his 16 have come with Los Angeles, putting Hernández into a tie with Duke Snider and Shohei Ohtani for the fourth most for the franchise, behind Max Muncy’s 15 and the 13 from Justin Turner and Corey Seager.
Thanks to Baseball Reference and its extraordinary research database, Stathead, for help in assembling this piece.
Roger Schlueter
As Sr. Editorial Director for Major League Baseball Productions from 2004-2015, Roger served as a hub for hundreds of hours of films, series, documentaries and features: as researcher, fact-checker, script doctor, and developer of ideas. The years at MLB Production gave him the ideal platform to pursue what galvanized him the most – the idea that so much of what takes place on the field during the MLB regular and postseason (and is forever beautifully condensed into a box score) has connections to what has come before. Unearthing and celebrating these webs allows baseball to thrive, for the present can come alive and also reignite the past.