The World Series is often the most exciting time to be an MLB fan: the two best teams of each league battle it out to see who’s the best among the best.
It often results in spectacular games, raucous crowds, and wild celebrations.
These three recent Fall Classics, however, have a special place in fans’ hearts.
3. 2014, San Francisco Giants Vs. Kansas City Royals
The San Francisco Giants won their third World Series championship in a span of five seasons by defeating the tough Kansas City Royals four games to three, in seven games.
People remember this as the Madison Bumgarner series.
At the time, the southpaw was perhaps the best and most dominant postseason weapon in the whole league.
He looked unhittable every time he stepped on the mound.
Bumgarner allowed just one run over seven strong innings in Game 1, then returned in Game 5 to pitch a complete-game shutout to put the Giants up 3-2 in the series.
After the Royals tied the series 3-3 by taking Game 6, Bumgarner threw five scoreless innings in relief in Game 7 to help San Francisco secure the win.
He did that on two-days rest, further solidifying his postseason legend.
Hunter Pence, Joe Panik, Pablo Sandoval, and Michael Morse were on that Giants’ team, plus the recently retired Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford, and Brandon Belt.
The 2014 World Series was a wild affair between two solid teams, but San Francisco ended up prevailing over a top team that would win it all a year later.
2. 2011, St. Louis Cardinals Vs. Texas Rangers
The 2011 World Series had a little bit of everything: sloppy baserunning, timely hits, impressive home runs, and back-and-forth affairs with multiple lead changes and tied scores in crucial games.
Led by Tony La Russa, the St. Louis Cardinals took the Fall Classic in seven games, scoring their first title since 2006.
Game 6 was the pivotal one.
Texas was up 3-2 in the series and got to the ninth inning up 7-5.
They had their closer, Neftali Feliz, on the mound, and David Freese was in the batter’s box with two runners on and two outs.
Down to his last strike, he roped a game-tying triple that Cardinals fans still remember vividly if they close their eyes.
Josh Hamilton homered with a man on board to give the Rangers a two-run lead in the tenth, but Lance Berkman drove two in with a single in the bottom part of that inning to send the game to the 11th frame.
Freese, once again, was the hero in the bottom of the 11th with a game-winning blast to tie the series, one that the Cards would win with a 6-2 Game 7 victory.
On This Date: David Freese's walk-off home run forced a Game 7 and helped the Cardinals win the 2011 World Series. pic.twitter.com/sDCAFrMzan
— ESPN (@espn) October 27, 2018
1. 2016, Cleveland Indians Vs. Chicago Cubs
Game 7 of the 2016 World Series may go down as the best ever.
It was a Chicago Cubs 8-7 victory over the Cleveland Indians, but boy, it was filled with emotion and anxiety.
The Cubs were up 5-1 in the fourth inning, but Cleveland would slowly start to creep back into the game.
With a 6-3 lead in the eighth inning, Cubs manager Joe Maddon brought his closer, Aroldis Chapman, to help him get out of a jam.
Chapman notched eight outs in Game 6, so fatigue was an issue.
Brandon Guyer hit an RBI double and Rajai Davis then hit the most unlikely of homers to tie the score at six.
World Series Game 7, down 2 in the 8th…
Then Rajai Davis made the @Indians fans go WILD 😮#LiveOnFS1 | #OpeningDayAtHome pic.twitter.com/v2CZpzBAJW
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 27, 2020
The Cubs hadn’t won a World Series since 1908, and Cleveland was on a dry spell since 1948.
One of the streaks would be over after a very untimely rain delay.
The Cubs scored a couple of runs in the top of the 1oth frame, and the Indians were just able to cross the plate once, ending the game in favor of Chicago.
That game was worth every second spent in front of the TV during the whole series.
Ben Zobrist was the MVP for the Cubs, and a golden generation formed by Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, and others finally got their trophy.
