The Atlanta Braves shut out the Houston Astros on November 2 to win the 2021 World Series, its first franchise victory in over 20 years. The best of seven series only lasted six games as Atlanta pounded the Astros with explosive hitting and kept the Houston team’s bats silent with masterful pitching. The exciting series capped off an MLB season characterized by by top class talent and competitive matchups. This past season was filled with extremely talented players, teams, and newcomers who have shown that the future of the MLB is bright. It is always a shame when the season comes to an end, however, there are many exciting playoff games and series to look back upon. 

This historic MLB season was a sign of normalcy returning to sports after a year influenced by the pandemic. The empty stadiums, neutral sites, and shortened schedules that characterized the 2020 season were but a distant memory. Leading up to the playoffs, several teams pushed for contention all the way up to the final day of the regular season. In the end, ten teams, including four wild card teams, made it to the postseason knock-out tournament. Over the course of 29 days and several intensive matchups, the pool was narrowed from ten teams to one, with the Atlanta Braves crowned as MLB champions of the 2021 season. 

A few of the most memorable match ups throughout the playoffs include the Tampa Bay Rays vs. Boston Redsox, L.A. Dodgers vs. Atlanta Braves, and Astros vs. Red Sox. The Red Sox defeated the Rays in four games ending in Boston. This series came as a big shock to the baseball world as the Rays were large favorites and the Red Sox were a wild card team. Standout players for the Red Sox included Kike Hernandez and Rafael Devers, as Boston’s impressive hitting took down the Rays. The Dodgers and Braves faced off in the NLCS, with Atlanta emerging as eventual winners of the six game series. Braves players with impressive performances throughout this series included Freddie Freeman and Joc Pederson. Another notable series was when the Astros faced the Red Sox, with the Astros ultimately winning themselves a spot in the World Series.

In the end, the Braves defied the odds, going from an 0-4 losing streak to start the season, to winning the World Series. This is the team’s fourth World Series and it’s first since 1995. Game One was in Houston but the Braves came out on top with a score of 6-2. During the game, Braves pitcher Charlie Morton actually broke his leg in the middle of an inning and continued to thr 16 more pitches. The next few games went back and forth between the two teams until Game Six, with the Braves up 3-2 in the series. The action in Game Six, which was played in Houston, began with Jorge Soler’s monster three-run home run shot in the third inning off of Houston starter Luis Garcia that was hit so far it left the ballpark. The Braves made little errors in the field and looked very dangerous at bat. The Astros were unable to match their performance and notch hits against the strong Braves defense. Eventually, the Braves beat the Astros by a score of 7-0 to become 2021 World Series champions. 

This exciting World Series was a perfect ending to this season and all baseball fans are already counting down the days until next season begins!