Despite being constantly minimized to just "small-market" teams, you shouldn't be surprised to see a Tampa Bay Rays vs. Milwaukee Brewers World Series. Even with their low payrolls, neither team is void of star power and, in fact, both are titans.
These are the teams with the best records in their respective leagues this season, with the Brewers at 103 wins and the Rays at 98. It is a heavyweight bout that we don't always get these days. Remember, the World Series was simply between the teams with the best record in each league until 1969, when the leagues implemented the League Championship Series.
Still, when only four teams made the playoffs, matchups between the teams with the best record in each league were common. Once the wild card was introduced in 1995, the extra playoff teams invited more upsets. This season now marks just the sixth World Series in the Wild Card Era with two No. 1 seeds facing off.
Here's how the previous five transpired: The year after MLB canceled its season due to a labor fight, the best team in baseball resided in Cleveland at 100-44, a full 10 games ahead of the second-best team. That would be the Braves, who went on to win the World Series in six games. Five of the six games were one-run affairs, with the lone outlier being a 5-2 Braves win in Game 4.
Tom Glavine had a 1.29 ERA in his two starts to win MVP, while Greg Maddux had a 2.25 ERA. The Braves homered eight times, including three from Ryan Klesko. The dynasty Yankees won 98 games that regular season, but the Braves, with 103 wins, had the best MLB record.
No matter, the Yankees dispatched Atlanta with a four-game sweep, outscoring the Braves 21-9. Mariano Rivera had a win and two saves to win MVP, Derek Jeter hit .353, and Roger Clemens, David Cone and Orlando Hernandez were dominant on the mound. More than a decade passed before two top seeds squared off again.
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