The 107th World Series begins tonight. Here's why you should be watching.
Look at Prince Fielder! He's excited!
Image by Lucy Nicholson / Reuters
Tonight the baseball gods move one step closer to naming their champion, whebn the 107th World Series gets under way. If you have even a passing interest in sports, drama, or fat guys named "Prince," you're not going to want to miss it.
Hey, I see you giving me the side-eye. "Jack, Baseball is boring. This season's been going on for 36 years already. Can't we just ignore it? Basketball comes back next week, and the NFL's great." No! Baseball isn't boring — BAD baseball is boring. This will not be bad baseball. And believe it or not, this season has only lasted seven months. I know, I was surprised too. So no, you can't ignore it. In fact, here's five reasons you should make sure to tune in tonight (and throughout the whole series).
Two of the greatest players alive lead the Tigers.
Justin Verlander is the greatest pitcher alive. Full stop. The conversation begins and ends with him. Major League Baseball hasn't seen this kind of dominance in quite some time, and he's shown little sign of slowing down. Yet despite years of crazy success, when he takes the mound tonight in Game 1, he'll be looking to redeem one of his greatest failures. The last time Verlander pitched in the World Series was his rookie year, when he got rocked in Game 1 by the St. Louis Cardinals. He's a must-watch pitcher without any extra motivation. With it? He may literally destroy the Giants tonight. They may not even be able to play a Game 2 after the damage JV delivers to them.
And that's just on the defensive side of the ball. On offense, Miguel Cabrera is coming off a season where he became the first player in nearly 50 years to win the Triple Crown. The only thing Miggy loves more than crushing baseballs is alcohol, and the winner of the World Series is going to douse themselves in a lot of champagne. Would you want to stand between Miggy and a ton of champagne? I didn't think so.
Image by David Maxwell / Getty Images
The Giants are comeback kids.
After trailing the St. Louis Cardinals three games to one, the Giants won back-to-back-to-back games with their, um, backs against the wall. This is a team that most had counted out heading into their matchup with the Reds in the divisional series, yet here they are. They're underdogs again, and so far that's been a position they have very much enjoyed. How can you ever tune out of this series? Even if the Giants fall behind, they could, at any time, be about to go on an another epic run.
Image by Mark Humphrey / AP