69 Fun Facts About World Series

In which year was the first modern World Series played?

The first modern World Series was played in 1903, two years after the American League declared itself a major league and began raiding National League rosters.

Which team won the first modern World Series?

The Boston Americans came back from a 3–1 deficit to win five games to three; the franchise was later renamed the Red Sox.

The 1904 World Series was never played because the owner of which club refused to take part?

Owner John T. Brush snubbed the upstart American League; the Giants relented and played (and won) in 1905 under new rules.

What is the prize handed to the World Series winner?

The Commissioner's Trophy is made new each year and kept by the champion, unlike hockey's single travelling Stanley Cup; its flags represent the 30 MLB clubs.

A players' strike wiped out the World Series in which year?

The 1994 strike cancelled the Series for the first time since 1904; the Montreal Expos owned baseball's best record when play stopped in August.

From 1919 to 1921, the World Series used which format?

The Series went best of nine for those three postwar years; the experiment was then dropped and the best-of-seven format returned in 1922.

Which team beat the scandal-tainted Chicago White Sox in the 1919 World Series?

Cincinnati took the series 5–3, and the result has been an asterisk in the record book ever since.

Which gambler allegedly led the fix of the 1919 World Series?

Arnold Rothstein, the New York gambler, bankrolled the fix; first baseman Chick Gandil handled the players' side, a story told in the book and film Eight Men Out.

Who banned the eight 'Black Sox' players from baseball for life?

Kenesaw Mountain Landis, the former federal judge who became baseball's first commissioner, banned the eight for life even though a jury had acquitted them.

The Red Sox drought blamed on the Curse of the Bambino ran from 1918 until which year?

Boston ended the curse in 2004, becoming the only MLB team to win a seven-game series after losing the first three games, then sweeping the World Series.

Whose error let Mookie Wilson's grounder roll through his legs in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series?

Bill Buckner, Boston's first baseman, let the grounder through after a Bob Stanley wild pitch had tied the game; the Mets won Game 6 and then the Series.

Who was named MVP of the 1986 World Series after leading the Mets with nine hits?

Knight scored the winning run in Game 6 and homered in Game 7; the Mets then let him leave as a free agent that winter.

Who pitched the only perfect game in World Series history, in Game 5 of 1956?

Don Larsen, knocked out in the second inning of Game 2 three days earlier, used a no-windup delivery to retire all 27 Dodgers.

Which catcher leaped into the pitcher's arms after the final out of the 1956 perfect game?

Yogi Berra jumped into the pitcher's arms after a called third strike on pinch-hitter Dale Mitchell; the photo became one of baseball's most famous images.

Bill Mazeroski's ninth-inning home run in Game 7 of 1960 won the title for which team?

Mazeroski's blast gave the Pittsburgh Pirates the title in the only World Series Game 7 ever ended by a home run, against a New York team that outscored them 55–27.

Who is the only World Series MVP ever chosen from the losing team?

Bobby Richardson, the New York second baseman, drove in 12 runs in 1960 even though his team lost Game 7 on a walk-off homer.

'The Catch' in Game 1 of the 1954 World Series robbed which Cleveland hitter?

Vic Wertz's deep drive was caught over the shoulder in the Polo Grounds' vast center field, and Cleveland, winners of 111 games that year, was swept in four.

In 2017 the World Series MVP award was renamed in honor of which player?

Willie Mays never won the award himself; it was created in 1955, the year after his famous catch in the 1954 Series.

The first World Series MVP award, in 1955, went to which Brooklyn pitcher?

Podres shut out the Yankees in Game 7 to give Brooklyn its only championship before the move to Los Angeles.

Which pitcher won the World Series MVP award twice, in 1964 and 1967?

Bob Gibson took the award in 1964 and 1967, winning the deciding Game 7 each time; he went 7–2 with a 1.89 ERA in World Series play.

Whose three home runs in Game 6 of the 1977 World Series earned him the nickname 'Mr. October'?

Reggie Jackson hit three homers on three swings off three different pitchers in Game 6, the first three-homer Series game since Babe Ruth 49 years earlier.

Babe Ruth's 'called shot' in Game 3 of the 1932 World Series was hit at which ballpark?

The called shot came at Wrigley Field in Ruth's tenth and last World Series; Lou Gehrig quietly hit .529 with three homers in the same sweep.

Which Cubs pitcher threw the pitch that Babe Ruth supposedly called in 1932?

Root insisted to the end of his life that Ruth never pointed at the bleachers, saying he would have knocked him down if he had.

The 1927 World Series is the only one to end with the winning run scoring on what?

Game 4 of 1927 ended on a wild pitch by Johnny Miljus that scored Earle Combs, completing a sweep by the 110–44 'Murderers' Row' team that featured Ruth's 60 homers.

The 1969 'Miracle Mets' upset which 109-win team in five games?

The Mets, in their eighth season, became the first expansion team to win a division, a pennant and a World Series.

Who managed the 1969 Miracle Mets?

Hodges had been a star first baseman on the Brooklyn Dodgers; he died of a heart attack less than three years later, at 47.

Which team won five World Series in a row from 1949 to 1953?

The New York Yankees won five straight from 1949 to 1953 under Casey Stengel, after the same franchise had taken four in a row from 1936 to 1939.

How many World Series titles had the Yankees won by the end of the 2025 season?

The Yankees' 27 titles through 2025 came from 41 World Series appearances, the last championship in 2009 over Philadelphia.

Which National League club has won the most World Series?

The St. Louis Cardinals own 11 titles, the most of any National League club; their first came in 1926 and their 1940s teams added three more.

Which MLB franchise had never appeared in a World Series through the 2025 season?

Seattle reached the ALCS several times, including after a 116-win season in 2001 and again in 2025, but never the Series.

Through 2025, which of these teams had played in a World Series but never won one?

The San Diego Padres lost both of their World Series, in five games in 1984 and in a four-game sweep in 1998.

In 1992 the Toronto Blue Jays became the first team outside the US to win the Series, beating whom?

Toronto beat the Atlanta Braves in six games in 1992, then repeated in 1993 against Philadelphia, the only expansion club with back-to-back titles.

Joe Carter's Series-ending home run in 1993 came off which Phillies reliever?

Mitch Williams, the Phillies' closer nicknamed 'Wild Thing', gave up the homer; it was only the second Series ever ended by a home run, 33 years after Mazeroski's.

What was the final score of Game 4 of the 1993 World Series, the highest-scoring Series game ever?

Toronto won 15–14 after Philadelphia led 14–9 in the eighth; the 29 combined runs set a Series record, and at 4 hours 14 minutes it was then the longest game too.

Jack Morris's ten-inning shutout in Game 7 of 1991 won the title for which team?

Jack Morris's 1–0, ten-inning win gave the Minnesota Twins the 1991 title; both pennant winners had finished last in 1990, a first for league champions.

Whose 11th-inning walk-off home run in Game 6 of 1991 forced a Game 7?

Kirby Puckett, who had also robbed Ron Gant with a leaping catch earlier in Game 6, homered off Charlie Leibrandt in the 11th to force Game 7.

Whose 11th-inning single won Game 7 of the 1997 World Series for the Florida Marlins?

Édgar Rentería's single off Charles Nagy scored Craig Counsell; the Marlins were the first wild-card champion, and owner Wayne Huizenga sold off the roster within months.

Which team won the 2001 World Series in only its fourth season of existence?

The Arizona Diamondbacks, who began play in 1998, won a seven-game Series in 2001, the only championship by a Phoenix team in the four major men's leagues.

Whose bloop single off Mariano Rivera won Game 7 of the 2001 World Series?

Luis Gonzalez's bloop over the drawn-in infield scored Jay Bell; the Series had been pushed into November by the delay after the September 11 attacks.

Which two pitchers shared the 2001 World Series MVP award?

Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling accounted for all four of their team's wins, Johnson taking Game 7 in relief; it was the first shared award since 1981.

The 2005 Chicago White Sox ended an 88-year drought by sweeping which team?

The White Sox swept the Houston Astros, who were in their first World Series, and finished the 2005 postseason 11–1.

From 2003 to 2016, what decided home-field advantage in the World Series?

The winner of the All-Star Game earned home field from 2003 to 2016, a reaction to the tied 2002 game; from 2017 the better regular-season record decided it.

Which team won the World Series in 2010, 2012 and 2014?

The San Francisco Giants' 2010 title was the franchise's first since 1954 and its first since leaving New York; 2012 and 2014 followed in even years.

How many years had the Chicago Cubs gone without a title when they won in 2016?

The Cubs' 108-year wait, from 1908 to 2016, was the longest title drought in North American pro sports; it ended with a ten-inning Game 7 in Cleveland.

Who was named MVP of the 2016 World Series?

Ben Zobrist's go-ahead double came in the tenth inning of Game 7, right after a 17-minute rain delay; he hit .357 for the Series.

The 1908 Cubs were the first team in World Series history to do what?

The Cubs' 1908 win made them the first to win back-to-back titles; Game 5 drew a record-low 6,210 fans and lasted 1 hour 25 minutes, the fastest Series game ever.

What was unprecedented about the 2019 World Series between the Nationals and Astros?

Washington won Games 1, 2, 6 and 7 in Houston and lost all three at home; it was the city's first title since the 1924 Senators.

Which pitcher was MVP of the 2019 World Series after two wins for Washington?

Stephen Strasburg won Games 2 and 6 with a 2.51 ERA; Howie Kendrick's two-run homer off the foul pole in Game 7 then gave Washington the lead for good.

The entire 2020 World Series was played at which neutral-site ballpark?

Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, hosted every game with attendance capped at about 11,500; Justin Turner was pulled from Game 6 after a positive COVID test.

Who is the only player to win World Series MVP in both leagues (2020 and 2023)?

Corey Seager was MVP with the Dodgers in 2020 and the Rangers in 2023, the latter the first title in Texas franchise history.

Which starter opened the combined no-hitter in Game 4 of the 2022 World Series?

Cristian Javier threw six no-hit innings before three relievers finished the first combined no-hitter in postseason history, only the second no-hitter of any kind in a World Series.

Who, at 73, became the oldest manager to win a World Series in 2022?

Dusty Baker, 73, won in his 25th season as a manager, after losing the Series with San Francisco in 2002 and Houston in 2021.

How many road games did the Texas Rangers lose during their 2023 postseason run?

Texas lost 0 road games, going 11–0 away from home, a postseason record; it was the franchise's first title since it began as the expansion Washington Senators in 1961.

Who hit the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history, in Game 1 of 2024?

Freddie Freeman, playing on a sprained ankle, then homered in each of the first four games and drove in 12 runs, tying the Series record.

Which pitcher was MVP of the 2025 World Series with three wins and a 1.02 ERA?

Yoshinobu Yamamoto won Games 2 and 6 as a starter and then Game 7 in relief on no rest, as the Dodgers became the first repeat champion since 2000.

Who hit the go-ahead home run in the 11th inning of Game 7 of the 2025 World Series?

Will Smith homered off Shane Bieber in the 11th; Miguel Rojas had tied it with one out in the ninth, and Smith's was the first extra-inning homer in any Game 7.

In which year was the first scheduled World Series night game played?

The first scheduled night game was Game 4 of 1971 at Pittsburgh's Three Rivers Stadium; the last daytime Series game came in 1987 at the Metrodome.

Which injured Dodger hit a two-out, ninth-inning walk-off home run in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series?

Kirk Gibson, hobbled by injuries to both legs, homered off Dennis Eckersley in his only plate appearance of the Series; Los Angeles beat Oakland in five.

What interrupted the 1989 World Series between the A's and Giants?

An earthquake, the 6.9-magnitude Loma Prieta quake, struck at 5:04 pm before Game 3 as broadcasters were on air; Oakland completed a sweep when play resumed ten days later.

Which umpire's blown safe call at first base in Game 6 of the 1985 World Series became infamous?

Don Denkinger called Jorge Orta safe in the ninth though replays showed him out; Kansas City rallied to win that game and took Game 7 by 11–0 in the all-Missouri 'I-70 Series'.

Who in 1984 became the first manager to win a World Series in both leagues?

Sparky Anderson, who won with Cincinnati in 1975 and 1976, then led the 1984 Tigers wire to wire, only the third team ever to do so.

David Freese's game-tying triple and walk-off homer came in Game 6 of which World Series?

St. Louis was down to its last strike twice that night; two games earlier Albert Pujols had hit three homers in a game.

George Springer's 2017 MVP performance tied the record with how many home runs in one Series?

George Springer's 5 homers tied the single-Series record; the two teams combined for 25, smashing the old record of 21, and MLB later found Houston had stolen signs all season.

Which pitcher won two games alongside Bill Dinneen in the first modern World Series?

Cy Young, then 36, went 2–1 with a 1.85 ERA in the Series while Bill Dinneen won three games, cheered on by the fans known as the Royal Rooters.

What was the name of the 1894-97 postseason series between the National League champion and runner-up?

The Temple Cup, donated by club owner William Chase Temple, was played from 1894 to 1897 after the 1884–90 NL–American Association championship series ended.

Which World Series was the first to be broadcast on radio?

The 1921 Series, the first carried on radio, was also the Yankees' first appearance, two seasons after they bought Babe Ruth's contract from Boston.

The Giants' 2010 title ended a drought nicknamed after which New York landmark?

The 'Curse of Coogan's Bluff', named for the hill above the Polo Grounds, was broken in 2010, the Giants' first title since 1954 and the first since moving west in 1958.

Which Blue Jays radio announcer shouted 'Touch 'em all, Joe!' after Joe Carter's 1993 walk-off homer?

Tom Cheek, the Blue Jays' original radio voice, made the call as Carter's three-run shot turned a 6–5 deficit into an 8–6 win, the first come-from-behind Series-ending homer.

Which 39-year-old first baseman was MVP of the 1979 'We Are Family' World Series champions?

Willie Stargell, 'Pops', hit .400 with three homers in the 1979 Series, including the go-ahead shot in Game 7, after sharing the NL MVP that year.