5 Reasons You Should Be Excited About The World Series

This isn't your average list - this is what people actually want to talk about. 

Because who won the 1972 World Series isn't the key to a great conversation,

The Last Night’s Game Team

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1. The Washington Nationals and the Houston Astros are playing in the 115th World Series. The Nationals are hoping to win their first ever franchise World Series and the Astros are striving for their second title win after winning their franchise first in 2017. The Astros are favored to win but the Nationals were fighters all season, so it’s anyone’s guess. (At the time of publication the Nationals are up 1-0 in the series). YOU'LL NEVER FORGET YOUR FIRST

2. There are a lot of good luck charms that have come into play for the Washington Nationals, who started off the season in the dumps (19-31 to be exact). Luck came in the form of the song "Baby Shark" and a four-legged friend. First, Gerardo Parra changed his walk-up song for his kids to the song we all love to hate, "Baby Shark." He broke out of a hitless slump and the song became a rally cry for the team. Then there’s Ryan Zimmerman, who adopted a rescue dog named Penny before the postseason and they went on to crush it after that. UNDERDOGS DOO DOO DOO DOO DOO DOO

3. While the regular season saw balls fly out of the park at a record rate, this series is not likely to reflect that because these two teams boast some of the best pitchers in the league. When it comes to hitters at the plate, keep in mind that when the games are in an American League ballpark (Astros’ stadium) both teams will play with a designated hitter (DH), a batter specifically designated to hit in the place of the pitcher. When the teams play at the home of the Nationals, the designated hitter won’t exist as the National League does not play with a DH. A pitcher has to hit. WHO DOESN'T WANT TO CALL IN A SUBSTITUTE SOMETIMES? 

4. Your medical terminology for the day - Heterochromia iridis. That’s the condition that causes Nationals starting pitcher Max Scherzer to have two different color eyes. One is blue and the other is brown. THE EYES HAVE IT

5. Who says you have to be big and burly to be a professional athlete? Well, whoever did has never met Jose Altuve. Altuve is the Astros second baseman and has been the hero of the postseason. And he stands at 5’6.” Besides who needs to be big when your big, burly athlete friends in the Houston area have your back? The other Houston teams are in full support of their baseball team with players from the Houston Rockets (NBA – National Basketball Association) and Houston Texans (NFL – National Football League) supporting the team from the stands throughout the playoffs. Texans player J.J. Watt made the official “Play Ball!” call before last night’s game. STAND AS ONE

5 Things You Need To Know About The 2017 World Series

The World Series is the biggest thing in baseball besides the trend of players having unruly beards.

Break out the beard conditioner and round the bases,

The Last Night’s Game Team

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Five Things You Need To Know About The 2017 World Series

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Houston Astros

1. Stealing a base isn’t easy but their effort equals your reward. If any player steals a base during the World Series, Taco Bell will hand out free tacos on November 1st. No pressure but America likes free tacos.

2. The hurricane devastation weighs heavy on the minds of both teams. The Astros have been part of the relief efforts and want to win to help their devastated city. Many players from both teams call Puerto Rico home and have been doing their best to help with its relief efforts.
 

3. The Astros are considered the underdog. In the team’s history, they have only been to one World Series. (They lost). The Dodgers have the biggest payroll in baseball but won their last World Series in 1988, when most of their players weren’t even born yet.

4. If Dave Roberts can lead the Dodgers to a World Series championship, he would be the first coach of Asian descent to win a World Series. He would also be the second African American coach to accomplish the feat.
 

5. Texas Governor Abbott and California Governor Brown made a friendly wager on the series. If the Dodgers win, Texas will have to send over a six-pack of Houston-brewed beer and Texas barbecue. If the Astros win, California will send over wine from the regions impacted by the wildfires.

The necessities. The Dodgers won last night in game one. They also had the best regular season record therefore, they have home field advantage. That means the first two and the last two games of the best-of-seven series will be played at Dodger stadium.  SCHEDULE

There’s more where that came from

Why Steph Curry is learning the costly lesson of putting his money where his mouth is, who was crowned the king of soccer and what is a designated hitter and why should I care? READ MORE

The Rundown: Special Edition - 5 Things to Know About the World Series

The World Series begins tonight in Cleveland with the Chicago Cubs taking on the hometown Cleveland Indians. This series is a true battle of teams and cities who have been waiting a long time for a World Series title.

Batter up,

The Last Night’s Game Team

PS- We will still have our regularly scheduled "Five Things to Know" tomorrow morning. Twice in one week - try to contain your excitement. 

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Five things to know about the world series

1. This is a best-of-seven series that will start with Game One and Two in Cleveland, the next three in Chicago and the final two in Cleveland, if necessary. The Cubs represent the National League and the Cleveland Indians the American League. (Full schedule here). 
2. The Chicago Cubs haven’t won a World Series since 1908 (108-year drought) and the Cleveland Indians since 1948 (68-year drought).  
3. Many consider the Cubs the best thing since sliced bread, although the last time the Cubs won the World Series sliced bread hadn’t even been invented. There were also only 46 states, the Titanic had not been built and the NFL (National Football League), NBA (National Basketball League) and the NHL (National Hockey League) did not exist.
4. The Chicago Cubs had the best record in baseball this season but the Cleveland Indians have home-field advantage because the American League won the All-Star Game.
5. Budweiser is the official beer of the MLB (Major League Baseball) postgame celebration, no other is beer allowed. Per MLB postgame celebration rules, only two bottles of champagne are permitted per player during locker room celebrations (which no one actually adheres to) and should be used mostly for spraying and not drinking. Blasphemy!

Overtime

• Both teams have their own hellion. One is Charlie Sheen and the other a goat. If you remember the movie Major League, Sheen played the “Wild Thing” who pitched for the Indians. Sheen offered to channel his old character and throw out the first pitch at one of the World Series games. The Indians declined saying "we’ve chosen people who actually played baseball." #winning. The Cubs story involves the curse of a goat. Yes, a smelly goat was the reason behind the curse on the team. To read the infamous billy goat story click here.  

Sideline stat

• The team that hosts Game One has won the World Series 57% of the time.  

Coaches’ corner

• While in Cleveland the two teams will play by American League rules using a designated hitter (that means pitchers don't bat - another player bats in their place). When the games are played in Chicago the teams will play by National League rules where the pitcher will hit. Pitchers dedicate so much time to practicing pitching that they're not known for being great batters. You can read more about the designated hitter here.