ADRIAN FLORIDO, HOST:
The World Series starts tomorrow night, and the Toronto Blue Jays are in it for the first time since they won the Series back in 1993. And Toronto is absolutely buzzing. Here's fan Breanna Needham.
BREANNA NEEDHAM: It's the only Major League Baseball team in Canada. So there's a huge amount of national pride, I think, that goes into people supporting the Blue Jays that other teams in the MLB don't necessarily have.
AILSA CHANG, HOST:
Dimitra Doufekas' family owns Chick-N-Joy, a hole-in-the-wall chicken joint that's been operating and supporting their Blue Jays since 1977.
DIMITRA DOUFEKAS: It kind of mimics our store. We're kind of off the beaten path, and we've been around for 48 years. And kind of like the Blue Jays, we're a little bit of an underdog.
FLORIDO: Torontonians aren't shying away from that underdog status, but they are hoping for the best anyway. And lifetime fan Joe Wolfond believes.
JOE WOLFOND: If you've been watching this team this season, they have proven, like, at every single step that they are worth believing in. And I'm not saying they're going to win the World Series. They are up against an absolute juggernaut in the Dodgers. But I think if any fan had watched that and, like, is still feeling like this team doesn't have the kind of intangible characteristics that define unlikely champions, then I don't know what else they would need to see.
CHANG: We'll see how it all plays out, starting tomorrow night in Toronto.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "OK BLUE JAYS")
THE BAT BOYS: (Singing) OK. OK. Blue Jays. Blue Jays. Let's. Let's. Play. Play. Ball. It's a beautiful... Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
