Toronto slugger George Springer is back in the lineup as the Blue Jays try to clinch a World Series victory over the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers in game six on Friday.

Springer, the 2017 World Series Most valuable Player during his stint with the Houston Astros, was reinstalled as the Blue Jays' leadoff hitter for the game at Rogers Centre after missing the past two contests due to strained muscles on his right side suffered in game three.

"He's ready to go," Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. "He may look uncomfortable on a couple (of swings) but I think we all have reassurance from all of the testing that he'll be able to tolerate it."

Despite Springer's absence, the Blue Jays won games four and five in Los Angeles to take a 3-2 lead in Major League Baseball's championship series.

Facing elimination and desperate to spark an under-performing offense, the Dodgers tweaked their lineup.

Manager Dave Roberts bumped slumping Mookie Betts down another spot to fourth in the lineup and inserted Miguel Rojas into his starting lineup for the first time in the series.