The World Series has long been a 2-3-2 format, and when a team loses its first two games on the road, a home clincher is impossible. That’s how it happened for the Dodgers in 1955, 1965 and 1981. In all three of those championship runs, they recovered to sweep their home games, then wrapped things up on the road in Game 6 or 7.

In a winner-take-all Game 7 for the ages, the Los Angeles Dodgers bested the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 in an 11-inning classic in the early morning hours Sunday to become back-to-back World Series champions.

It’s one thing to lose and quite another to lose over the course of six hours and 39 minutes. That’s a draining defeat, the kind of loss that can invite all kinds of second-guessing, self-loathing and seeds of doubt.

From catching Z's to firing up the coffee pot, here's how the Dodgers and Blue Jays recovered from the second-longest game in World Series history.

The Los Angeles Dodgers stunned the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 7 of the World Series, picking up a 5-4 extra-inning comeback win to repeat as champions and deny the Jays their first title in 32 years.

With Game 4 of the NLCS rapidly approaching, the Los Angeles Dodgers find themselves a game away from the World Series, where they will face off against the Toronto Blue Jays or the Seattle Mariners for the right to become back-to-back World Series champions.

Digesting the moments, memories and history lessons from a Game 7 — and World Series — that kept us riveted from start to finish.

The Los Angeles Dodgers won their second straight World Series in dramatic fashion Saturday night, taking Game 7 by a 5-4 score in 11 innings at Rogers Centre. The game was an instant classic, and the Dodgers became the first team to win back-to-back championships since the New York Yankees in 1999 and 2000.

Will Smith homered in the 11th inning after Miguel Rojas connected for a tying drive in the ninth, and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 in Game 7 Saturday night to become the first team in a quarter century to win consecutive World Series titles.

The Philadelphia Phillies lost the National League Division Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers Thursday night. The extra-innings thriller was everything one could hope for in a playoff series, but the Phillies once again fell short of the ultimate goal.

Los Angeles overcame 3-0 and 4-2 deficits and escaped a bases-loaded jam in the ninth to become the first repeat champion since the 1998-2000 Yankees.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have shuffled their slumping lineup for Game 5 of the World Series on Wednesday, notably moving Mookie Betts down in the order for the first time in four years and benching Andy Pages.