My 2023 World Series Prediction
We’ve officially made it to the World Series! The 2023 Major League Baseball Postseason has been very exciting so far, featuring tons of offense, stellar pitching, and shocking upsets. After starting with twelve teams, we’re down to the final two: the Texas Rangers and the Arizona Diamondbacks. In this blog, I’ll recap how Texas and Arizona got here and give my prediction for the series!
How they got here: Texas Rangers
Texas entered the Postseason as the American League’s number-five seed after falling just short of a division title. To start the Postseason, they traveled to Tampa Bay and took on the Rays in the wild card series. It was all Texas, as they cruised to 4–0 and 7–1 wins to sweep the Rays and move on. Next, they traveled to Baltimore to play the Orioles in the division series. Once again, it was all Rangers, as they won 3–2, 11–8, and 7–1 to sweep Baltimore. Things were going smoothly for Texas, that is until they got tougher.
After two straight sweeps, Texas took on the team that won their division, the Houston Astros, in the championship series. Houston won the World Series last season, so they were looking to repeat. Things got off to a great start, as the Rangers won 2–0 and 5–4 on the road and took a 2–0 series lead. Many were curious if the Rangers would ever lose but weren’t prepared for what was next, as the Astros stole the momentum back. Houston won three straight games on the road, by scores of 8–5, 10–3, and 5–4 to take a 3–2 series lead back home. However, the Rangers still prevailed, winning 9–2 and 11–4 in the final two games to win their first American League pennant since 2011. The road team won all seven games in the series, with the only other time that happened being the 2019 World Series.
How they got here: Arizona Diamondbacks
Arizona’s story is like that of Texas. They entered the Postseason as the National League’s number six seed, as the final team overall to clinch a spot in the bracket. However, that didn’t stop them from pulling off upsets. They started their run with a sweep of the Brewers in Milwaukee, winning 6–3 and 5–2 to move on to the division series. Next was the Los Angeles Dodgers in the division series. Arizona dismantled them, winning 11–2, and 4–2 twice in a three-game sweep to go to the championship series. However, as Texas experienced, things were about to get a lot tougher.
Their next opponent was the team who represented the National League in last year’s World Series, the Philadelphia Phillies, who just took down the 104-win Atlanta Braves for the second consecutive year. Arizona was challenged immediately, losing 5–3 and 10–0 in their first two games in Philadelphia. Going back home, the Phillies had the momentum, until the Diamondbacks stole it, winning the next two games 2–1 and 6–5 to even the series. The Phillies were finally able to take down the Diamondbacks in Arizona in game 5, as they won 6–1 and took a 3–2 series lead back to Philadelphia. With their back against the wall, Arizona won the next two games 5–1 and 4–2, stole the pennant from Philadelphia, and advanced to their first World Series since 2001.
What a crazy run it’s been for both teams to get to this point, giving us a fun World Series matchup! My prediction for the series is Texas in seven, but who do you think will win? I should also note that Arizona won the regular season series three to one. Regardless of the result of the Fall Classic, I think we’re in for some fireworks and action to close out a great MLB season!
An article that inspired me to write this blog: https://www.espn.com/espn/betting/story/_/id/38736932/world-series-betting-tips-picks-2023-mvp-texas-rangers-arizona-diamondbacks
