The MLB playoffs are currently going on, and it’s down to the last 4 teams. The Atlanta Braves are facing the NL favorites, Los Angeles Dodgers, and in the American League, the Red Sox are taking on the Houston Astros. The Dodgers beat the San Francisco Giants, which had the most wins in baseball, to move on to the NLCS. While the Braves won their best-of-five, against the NL Central Champions, Milwaukee Brewers. After the season ending injury to the Braves, superstar centerfielder, Ronald Acuna Jr., the team was in no form to make any kind of playoff run. They traded for key pieces before the deadline of this season, and it seems to have paid off. The Dodgers also used the deadline to pick up starting pitcher Max Scherzer, and one of the fastest players in baseball, Trea Turner. 

In the American League, the White Sox could not hold on as they lost to the Astros in 4 games. The Red Sox were entered as a Wild Card team, and have pushed their way past the New York Yankees, and Tampa Bay Rays. The Astros pitching staff shut down the White Sox offense in the ALDS, as they keep on surprising the league, with every win they get. Unlike the NL, it seems like it’s a 50/50 tossup on who wins this series. Both teams have been hot in the playoffs and have pitched well throughout the entire season. For the Dodgers-Braves series, almost everyone is leaning on the Dodgers side, but with the Brave’s luck this season, they could end up in the Fall Classic. 

The Dodgers won the World Series last year, after not winning one since 1988. The Red Sox last won in 2018 against Los Angeles. The last time the Braves won a championship was back in 1995, defeating the Baltimore Orioles. In 2017, the Houston Astros won the World Series, but 3 years later in 2020, we found out that Houston cheated their way to winning the championship. They used many forms of cheating including trash cans, buzzers, whistling, and cameras. 2017 wasn’t the only year they cheated. In the 2019 World Series, The Astros faced the Nationals, but lost in 7 games. Later, video evidence proved those seasons were cheated. 

After the shortened season in 2020, baseball fans have waited for a full 162 game season for a while. We are about to have one of the most anticipated World Series in a long time. This season was full of ups and downs for every team in the league. It all comes down to which team can be the luckiest in the end.