COLUMN: Yankees-Dodgers World Series bringing back MLB's glory
Major League Baseball’s 120th annual Fall Classic kicks off Friday between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers in a heavyweight battle. After several seasons of the World Series being headlined by underdog stories, this year it’s all about the star power.
“Usually in a World Series, if you had Mookie Betts and Juan Soto, those would be the headliner,” said MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred.
With MVPs Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani at the forefront, this should be the most monumental World Series in years.
This series will be more than just a string of baseball games, it has a chance to put baseball back on the map.
Baseball has seen a dip in popularity as younger audiences have gravitated toward more action-packed and quicker games like basketball and football. But with the momentum that this dramatic postseason has given the sport, a back-and-forth series would be a perfect finale for this season.
Game six of the National League Championship Series between the Dodgers and the New York Mets was bumped from FOX’s main channel to Fox Sports 1 because a new episode of “The Masked Singer” was running. Something that would have never happened in the past and surely won’t happen during this series.
For some reference, there are seven players between the two teams on track to reach the Hall of Fame one day, five different MVP winners and a combined whopping 10 All-Stars from this season. It’s the biggest brands, the biggest markets, the best players and the wealthiest teams that make this one so special.
The Yankees were atop the American League virtually all season behind the dynamic duo in the middle of the order of Aaron Judge and Juan Soto. They entered the postseason as the American League’s top seed before dominating a pair of AL Central opponents, the Kansas City Royals and the Cleveland Guardians in 4 and 5 games, respectively. Now, for the first time in 15 years, they play for a championship in hopes of bringing glory back to the Bronx.
Similarly, the Dodgers were the best in their league seemingly all season long despite several injuries to key pieces in its starting rotation like former All-Stars Clayton Kershaw and Tyler Glasnow and former top pitching prospect Gavin Stone. Their best record in all of baseball gives them the home-field advantage in this series as they look to win their second title this decade.
Both teams have constructed their teams in similar ways, and that’s by spending a whole lot of money, as both teams are in the top 5 of the league for team payroll this season.
With the parity that has existed in the postseason over recent years, it is rare to have a matchup between the absolute best the league has to offer, but that is the case here. Two teams that match up evenly against each other in just about every facet of the game. All baseball fans should enjoy this one, even the rival fans of these two teams. Sit back and enjoy a World Series that will never be forgotten.
I would tell you to get out to the stadium and see one of these games live, but the cheapest ticket is sitting around $1000.
