The 14 Best World Series in MLB History

October baseball is rivaled by few spectacles in sports. The World Series still remains full of tradition even as we approach its 120th edition.

Not always does the actual series live up to the lore of the teams playing in it, though. The 1998 New York Yankees, for example, were one of the greatest squads in baseball history, but cruised to a 4-0 sweep of the San Diego Padres.

Other years though, the soap opera storylines of the Fall Classic more than live up to the hype.

1.  Cubs Win! (2016)

Baseball has a legacy of curses, and the Curse of the Billy Goat tantalized the Chicago Cubs for decades. The team went 108 years without winning a World Series, but 2016 would be the first time in a lifetime anyone would get to see their beloved Cubbies claim a title.

It came in epic fashion, too. The Cleveland Indians also hadn’t won a World Series in decades, and were trying to break a spell dating to 1948. The series went seven games, and Cleveland down to its final outs, Rajai Davis would hit a game-tying home run to send Game 7 to extras. A rain delay would give the Cubs time to regroup, and a Ben Zobrist double in the 10th would help deliver him not just World Series MVP, but the Cubs their first championship since 1908.

2. The Big Red Machine Beats Boston (1975)

The 1975 World Series is best known for Carlton Fisk’s iconic “Fenway Wave” of his Game 6 home run, but the series was one of the best ever played.

Boston was trying to break its own Curse of the Bambino and win its first World Series since 1918, while the Reds were coming off of a 108-win season. The teams traded wins through the first four games before Cincy took a 3-2 lead after a Game 5 win. Game 6, a 12-inning affair Boston won with the Fisk homer, is considered one of the best World Series games ever played. But the Reds would bounce back from a 3-0 deficit in Game 7, winning the game, 4-3, and taking home their first of consecutive championships.

3. Morris and Puckett Save the Twins (1991)

A World Series that goes seven games is going to etch its place in history as is, but dramatics in the final two games can take it to the next level. Take the 1991 World Series.

The Atlanta Braves had the foot on the gas against the Minnesota Twins on the heels of a 14-5 win in Game 5 in Atlanta. Game 6 would go to extras tied at 3, when Braves Game 1 starter Charlie Leibrandt entered the game to face Twins star Kirby Puckett. A walk-off solo homer sent the series to Game 7, when Jack Morris pitched an epic 10-inning shutout that saw Minnesota win the series on a Gene Larkin single.

4. The Diamondbacks End the Yankee Dynasty (2001)

Ten years after the dramatics of the ‘91 World Series, the 2001 Fall Classic lived up to the hype. The Arizona Diamondbacks, just three years into their existence, defeated the New York Yankees, serving as one of the biggest upsets in baseball history.

The series carried extra drama in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. New York was looking for its fourth championship in a row, and risked falling behind 3-1 in the series going into the ninth inning of Game 4. But a ninth-inning Tino Martinez game-tying home run sent it to extras, and Derek Jeter hit a walk-off as the clock struck midnight into November. Third baseman Scott Brosius would follow with a game-tying home run in the ninth the following night.

The Diamondbacks, however, were aided by heroic pitching performances from Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling, who would be named co-MVPs. Game 7 saw Arizona come from behind in the ninth, tie the game, then win the series on a bloop single from slugger Luis Gonzalez.

5. Bill Buckner (1986)

All you have to hear is the name, and you know exactly what World Series we’re talking about.

The 1986 World Series was an electric seven-game affair between two ring-hungry squads, the Boston Red Sox and New York Mets. The Sox had New York down to its final out multiple times in the 10th inning of Game 6, when a routine ground ball off the bat of Mookie Wilson dribbled through first baseman Bill Buckner’s legs, allowing the Mets to force a Game 7. They would also trail, 3-0, in the final game, but eight unanswered runs allowed the Mets to clinch their second World Series ring.

6. The Pirates Walk It Off (1960)

Every kid who picks up a baseball bat dreams of hitting a World Series-winning home run in their backyard. Bill Mazeroski lived that dream.

The Pittsburgh Pirates and New York Yankees traded blows over a seven-game series in 1960, landing at Forbes Field for the decisive final game. Ralph Terry would come into the game in the bottom of the ninth, knotted up at 9, when Mazeroski would step to the plate. He’d send the ball into the left field stands, winning the World Series for the Pirates. It is the lone championship-winning home run in a Game 7 in baseball history, and the one moment Mickey Mantle himself said made him cry in the agony of defeat.

7. The Florida Fish Win It All (1997)

The Florida Marlins had only been around for four years when they squared off with the Cleveland Indians in the 1997 World Series, but that didn’t matter at the end of seven games.

The Marlins snuck into the playoffs as the National League Wild Card winner and dropped 22 runs in the first three games against the Indians. Cleveland would force Game 7 with a 4-1 Game 6 win in Miami, but a sac-fly in the ninth inning from Craig Counsell forced it to extra innings. Edgar Renteria would become the hero for the Marlins in the 11th inning, driving in Counsell on a bases-loaded single to win it all. It would be Hall of Fame manager Jim Leyland’s lone World Series ring.

8. Angels in the Outfield (2002)

The 2002 season brought a rebrand for the Anaheim Angels, and maybe a little luck as well. Anaheim’s 4-3 series win over the San Francisco Giants is one of the most unlikely in recent memory.

The Giants were led by Barry Bonds, the greatest hitter of his generation, one season removed from breaking the single-season home run record. San Francisco took a 3-2 lead in the series, and was up five runs in Game 6 with just eight outs to go. But the infamous rally monkey drummed up a comeback for Anaheim fueled by a three-run home run from Scott Spiezio. The Angels would rally to win, 6-5, and eventually, would take the series in Game 7.

9. David Freese Saves the Series (2011)

There is one name Texas Rangers fans hate to hear: David Freese.

The 2011 Fall Classic would see St. Louis slugger Albert Pujols hit three home runs in Game 3, but that would be largely overshadowed. The Rangers were one strike away from their first World Series title in Game 6, when Freese lifted a triple over the head of Nelson Cruz to knot the game at 7. In extras, Freese would get another at-bat, and this time shoot a home run to center to force Game 7. There, the Cardinals would win, 6-2, and Freese would take World Series MVP honors.

10. The Astros Fulfill the Prophecy (2017)

In 2014, the Houston Astros were one of the worst teams in baseball. But because of their pipeline of prospects, sportswriter Ben Reiter predicted they would win the World Series in 2017.

He was right.

The Astros found themselves in a slugfest with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and were down by three runs twice in Game 5. But a five-hour game saw Houston squeak away with a 13-12 win in 10 innings before the Dodgers knotted the series at 3 the next game. The Astros would march into Dodger Stadium in Game 7, and aided by George Springer’s MVP play, would win their first World Series (though they would be condemned in the years that followed for stealing signs during the run).

11. Brooklyn Beats the Bronx (1955)

The Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Yankees were destined to fight forever during the 1940s and 1950s, and the Dodgers finally squeaked a win out in 1955.

This was the fifth time in a nine-year span the two teams would battle it out in the World Series, but the Yankees had claimed dominance to that point. A back-and-forth series would come down to Game 7, when Johnny Podres got the ball on the hill for the Dodgers. He’d toss a complete-game shutout (his second of the series) in a game Brooklyn would take 2-0, earning him the inaugural World Series MVP Award. It was also the lone championship of Jackie Robinson’s career, capped by his memorable Game 1 steal of home plate.

12. Touch ‘Em All, Joe (1993)

Though the 1993 World Series didn’t go seven games, it was an all-timer for its dramatics alone.

The Toronto Blue Jays were chasing their second straight World Series title, but ran into a talented Philadelphia Phillies squad. Toronto took a 3-1 series lead after a 15-14 Game 4 win that saw them score six runs in the eighth to stun Philly. The Phillies would rally back with a 2-0 home win in Game 5, before heading north of the border. Their closer Mitch Williams was tasked with holding a 6-5 lead into the ninth inning, but served up a three-run homer to Joe Carter, etching him in history as one of two men to hit a World Series-winning home run.

13. The Nationals Become Road Warriors (2019)

Home-field advantage is supposed to mean something in sports, but it meant absolutely nothing in the 2019 World Series between the Washington Nationals and Houston Astros. That’s because every game was won by the road team.

The Nationals had never won a World Series (in Washington or Montreal as the Expos), and the Astros were heavily favored to win their second championship in three years. Nats ace Stephen Strasburg was superb in the series, notching two wins and eventually MVP honors. The Astros carried a 2-0 lead into the fifth inning of Game 7, when a short rally allowed former All-Star Howie Kendrick to smack a go-ahead home run to give the Nationals a lead they’d never surrender.

14. The Yankees Top Robinson’s Dodgers (1947)

By 1947, Jackie Robinson’s historic desegregation of baseball made the Brooklyn Dodgers one of the most followed teams in the sport. So it was only perfect he would get a chance to make history in the World Series.

The 1947 World Series was a war between the Dodgers and their cross-borough foes the Yankees, with three of the seven games being decided by one run. Game 4 saw Cookie Lavagetto walk it off with a double for the Dodgers, but the two teams would trade wins in the next two. Joe Page would come in as a reliever for the Yankees in Game 7, toss five innings of one-hit ball, and New York would win the series 4-3.