Bo Bichette picked off first base after strike call in World Series Game 3

LOS ANGELES — We have our first disputed call of the 2025 World Series, a late strike signal that created a mess on the bases for the Blue Jays.

Daulton Varsho was in a 3-1 count at the plate in the top of the second inning, with Bo Bichette standing at first, when Dodgers starter Tyler Glasnow delivered a pitch that looked high and out of the zone for ball four, so Varsho turned, hesitated and tossed his bat toward the Blue Jays†dugout.

Not so fast. Home-plate umpire Mark Wegner signaled strike two just as Varshoâ€s bat left his hand, and Bichette had already followed Varshoâ€s lead, bouncing off first base thinking Varsho had drawn a walk. After a quick throw to first base by Glasnow, Bichette was called out. Varsho eventually drew a walk, but the Blue Jays ended up stranding runners on the corners without scoring in an inning in which they sandwiched a walk between two singles.

“I think [Bichette] thought it was a ball,†Blue Jays manager John Schneider told FOX during an in-game interview. “I think a runnerâ€s assumption, obviously, is the umpire is telling Varsh that it was a ball — for him to throw his bat like that. So itâ€s a weird play. You donâ€t want that to come back to bite you, but you wanna kind of let the players decide whatâ€s going on.â€

This was a tough blow to the Blue Jays, who could have plated a run and pushed Glasnowâ€s pitch count even higher than the 26 pitches they forced through two innings. If this juggernaut Dodgers team has any weakness, itâ€s their bullpen, so the Blue Jays†No. 1 goal this Series has been to chase the starters.

“Markâ€s a great umpire, been doing it a long time,†Schneider said. “Very delayed call, pretty deliberate. He just didnâ€t say anything, so Varsh assumed it was a ball and Bo assumed. I just asked him, in this environment, can he be a little bit quicker or give a little bit of clarity so everyone kind of knows whatâ€s going on.â€

This moment also snuffed out the early momentum from Bichette, who laced a 3-1 sinker for a single straight back up the middle, an encouraging sign as the star shortstop — who is playing second base in the Fall Classic — tries to play through a left knee sprain that still isnâ€t 100%.

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