This past week has been a very intense one for all baseball fans following the World Series. Semifinalists included the Houston Astros, Texas Rangers, Arizona Diamondbacks and the Philadelphia Phillies. Texas and Houston faced each other in the semifinals with the best of 7. The Rangers began with a lead, then the Astros took it, and after the sixth game the wins were all tied up. In the final game, the Rangers had won drastically with 11 runs while Houston only scored 4. As for the Diamondbacks, the Phillies were in the lead then Arizona was able to come back. After tying up the games, the Diamondbacks were able to win the best of 7 and go on to the World Series championship game. Many people are deciding to bet on the Diamondbacks considering their impeccable record this season. However, despite their outstanding playing, stats show that the Rangers have a somewhat significantly higher chance of winning. That being said, the Rangers lost their catcher on Monday, which could leave Arizona for the win due to the absence of such a significant player. If Arizona does end up winning, it would be their first World Series since 2001. If Texas wins, it will be their first World Series won in MLB history. The Diamondbacks have been able to develop very good stats, with 56.83 created runs, 51 of which were successful.¹ They also have an overall batting average of .231 and an incredible fielding percentage of .988.¹ Based on player stats, it seems that the Diamondbacks need to go with their pitcher Brandon Pfaadt because of his 22 strikeouts, the most on the team.¹ Hitting wise, it seems that the more important player would be Zac Gallen with a total of 24 hits in all.¹ The Rangers on the other hand have even higher statistics with 73.64 created runs, 71 one of which were successful.¹ Their batting average ranks higher, at a .265 being 2nd in the league, along with an incredibly small increase in fielding percentage at .989.¹ Though stats are more clearly toward the Rangers, people are still rooting strong for the Diamondbacks in hope that they win after 22 years.

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