The World Series is the championship series of Major League Baseball and the culmination of the sport's postseason each October. Since the Series takes place in mid-autumn, sportswriters many years ago dubbed the event the "Fall Classic". The St. Louis Cardinals are the current (2006) World Series champions.
The World Series is played between the winners of the American League and National League, which currently includes 30 clubs based in certain U.S. and Canadian cities. The modern World Series has been an annual event since 1903, with the exceptions of 1904 and 1994. Baseball has employed various championship formulas since the 1860s. When the term "World Series" is used by itself, it is usually understood to refer to the "modern" World Series exclusively.
The World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff. Best-of-seven has been the format of all the modern World Series except in 1903, 1919, 1920 and 1921 when the winner was determined through a best-of-nine playoff. The Series winner is awarded the World Series Trophy, as well as individual World Series rings.
The New York Yankees have played in 39 of the 102 Series up to and including 2003 and have won 26 World Series championships, which is far more than any other Major League franchise. The St. Louis Cardinals have won ten championships, which is the second most all time and the most for any National League team. The Cardinals also hold a 3 Series to 2 edge against the Yankees in Series play, the only one of the "classic eight" National League teams to lead the Yankees overall.
The first modern World Series was held between Boston of the American League and Pittsburgh of the National League in 1903. Boston won the series 5 games to 3, helping to establish the new league's credibility. However, the next year, the National League champion New York Giants refused to play the American League champions (Boston again) because of the alleged "inferiority" of the American League, along with the legitimate claim that there were no formal or standard rules for this championship (a factor which had helped kill the 1880s version of the Series). In response, the World Series was instituted in 1905 as a permanent institution, through which the leagues would "meet annually in a series of games for the Professional Base Ball Championship of the World.
Until 1969, teams reached the Fall Classic merely by having the best records in their respective leagues. If two teams were tied for the best record at the end of the scheduled season, the winner of a head-to-head "pennant playoff" game between the two teams was declared winner of the "pennant" (league championship), and thus represented the league in the Series.
See Also :-
World Cup
The Baseball World Cup is an international tournament in which national baseball teams from around the world compete. It is sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation.
World Baseball Classic
The World Baseball Classic, sometimes abbreviated WBC, is an international baseball tournament, first held in March 2006. It is sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball, the Major League Baseball Players Association, and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world. The second World Baseball Classic is scheduled to take place in 2009, with subsequent tournaments held every four years thereafter.
College World Series
The College World Series is the culmination of the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship which determines the NCAA Division I college baseball champion. It takes place in June of each year. Since 1950, the tournament has been held at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska; earlier tournaments were held at Hyames Field in Kalamazoo, Michigan (1947-48) and Wichita, Kansas (1949). The name is derived from that of the Major League Baseball World Series championship.
The World Series is played between the winners of the American League and National League, which currently includes 30 clubs based in certain U.S. and Canadian cities. The modern World Series has been an annual event since 1903, with the exceptions of 1904 and 1994. Baseball has employed various championship formulas since the 1860s. When the term "World Series" is used by itself, it is usually understood to refer to the "modern" World Series exclusively.
The World Series championship is determined through a best-of-seven playoff. Best-of-seven has been the format of all the modern World Series except in 1903, 1919, 1920 and 1921 when the winner was determined through a best-of-nine playoff. The Series winner is awarded the World Series Trophy, as well as individual World Series rings.
The New York Yankees have played in 39 of the 102 Series up to and including 2003 and have won 26 World Series championships, which is far more than any other Major League franchise. The St. Louis Cardinals have won ten championships, which is the second most all time and the most for any National League team. The Cardinals also hold a 3 Series to 2 edge against the Yankees in Series play, the only one of the "classic eight" National League teams to lead the Yankees overall.
The first modern World Series was held between Boston of the American League and Pittsburgh of the National League in 1903. Boston won the series 5 games to 3, helping to establish the new league's credibility. However, the next year, the National League champion New York Giants refused to play the American League champions (Boston again) because of the alleged "inferiority" of the American League, along with the legitimate claim that there were no formal or standard rules for this championship (a factor which had helped kill the 1880s version of the Series). In response, the World Series was instituted in 1905 as a permanent institution, through which the leagues would "meet annually in a series of games for the Professional Base Ball Championship of the World.
Until 1969, teams reached the Fall Classic merely by having the best records in their respective leagues. If two teams were tied for the best record at the end of the scheduled season, the winner of a head-to-head "pennant playoff" game between the two teams was declared winner of the "pennant" (league championship), and thus represented the league in the Series.
See Also :-
World Cup
The Baseball World Cup is an international tournament in which national baseball teams from around the world compete. It is sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation.
World Baseball Classic
The World Baseball Classic, sometimes abbreviated WBC, is an international baseball tournament, first held in March 2006. It is sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball, the Major League Baseball Players Association, and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world. The second World Baseball Classic is scheduled to take place in 2009, with subsequent tournaments held every four years thereafter.
College World Series
The College World Series is the culmination of the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship which determines the NCAA Division I college baseball champion. It takes place in June of each year. Since 1950, the tournament has been held at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, Nebraska; earlier tournaments were held at Hyames Field in Kalamazoo, Michigan (1947-48) and Wichita, Kansas (1949). The name is derived from that of the Major League Baseball World Series championship.
