The 2018 Major League Baseball (MLB) World Series came to an end Sunday night with the best team in baseball taking the title of World Series Champions.

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Saying the Boston Red Sox are the best team in baseball is not an opinion; the team won more 2018 regular season games than any other team at 108. In fact, Boston is only the fourth team in MLB history to end the regular season with exactly 108 wins, and they continued the streak of 108-win teams taking the series. The last time this happened was in 1986 when the New York Mets had a record of 108-54 and, coincidentally, beat Boston in seven games to take the series.

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Along their quest to become World Champions, Boston battled and defeated the only other two teams who won 100 or more games in the 2018 regular season, the Houston Astros and the New York Yankees. Simply saying Boston beat these two teams is an understatement, for they only lost one game against Houston and one against New York, two series that contributed to Boston ending with an impressive 2018 postseason record of 11-3.

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The third and final loss for Boston in the 2018 postseason was game three of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers (LAD). Hosted at Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles, game three went on to become the longest postseason game in MLB history, ending in the bottom of the 18th inning. The crowd of blue roared as LAD first baseman Max Muncy rounded the bases after hitting a walk-off home run to shallow left-center field.

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The home run pitch to Muncy was delivered by Red Sox pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, who has since become a fan favorite for his hard work and determination. Though credited as the losing pitcher, Eovaldi threw 97 pitches over six innings of relief in game three for Boston before allowing the home run. To put this in perspective, 97 pitches over six innings, while giving up only one earned run, is considered a solid outing, and is roughly equivalent to the expected performance of a starting pitcher. Eovaldi stated before the start of game five that he was ready if needed, although any pitcher delivering a similar performance would be granted five-days rest before again taking the mound. Rookie Red Sox manager Alex Cora stated after game three that inning 18 would have been the last for Eovaldi.

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Cora began his managerial career in the 2018 season with the Boston Red Sox. Last season, he was hired as the bench coach for the Houston Astros, with whom he received his second World Series ring. He earned his first, and only ring as a player, back in 2007 playing for, you guessed it, the Boston Red Sox. After securing the title Sunday night, Cora became the fifth rookie manager in MLB history (six have tried) to lead his club to a World Series victory.

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There is no debate that each team had some respectable pitchers. The Dodgers had their ace, Clayton Kershaw, as well as Walker Buehler, Hyun-jin Ryu and Rich Hill as their starting rotation. The Red Sox rallied behind four pitchers who were used as starters and in relief; Chris Sale, Nathan Eovaldi, Rick Porcello and David Price.

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Price entered the 2018 postseason with an 0-11 career postseason record as a starting pitcher. He tossed six scoreless innings against the Houston Astros to earn his first postseason win, which advanced his team to the World Series. He ended the 2018 postseason with a record of 3-1, earning his third 2018 postseason win Sunday night after striking out five batters over seven innings. Price had retired 14 consecutive batters before walking the first batter he faced in the top of the 8th inning. He was then replaced by reliever Joe Kelly, who went on to strike out the side. Chris Sale was called upon to close the game, for which Boston was leading 5-1, and did so by retiring the side, striking out the last two batters.

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Kershaw has spent all eleven years of his professional career with the Dodgers. However, the former NL MVP, seven-time All-Star and winner of three Cy Young awards is known to struggle in the postseason, entering the 2018 postseason with a postseason record of 4-7. He ended the 2018 postseason with a record of 2-3, allowing nine runs over eleven innings in two starts against Boston. In addition, he has now given up eight home runs in elimination games, the most in history.

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The last time the Dodgers won the World Series was in 1988, and some active Dodgers players stressed their concerns of being “stuck in the shadow of 1988,” as they felt they were being held to the standards of that team. “Most of these guys weren’t even alive yet. We respect history around here; obviously, as a franchise, we might have the most history of any team, really. But at the same time, yeah, we’re sick of it. We’re sick of hearing about it. I mean, it’s up to us to change that. But all the highlights that you see, all the other stuff, we’d like to create some of our own,” said Kershaw.

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In game five Sunday night, the Red Sox hit a home run in three consecutive innings, the last of the streak coming off the bat of first baseman Steve Pearce, who, following the win, was named the MVP. Pearce started his professional career in 2007 with the Pittsburgh Pirates. His journey to becoming the 2018 World Series MVP was anything but easy, as he played for eight teams before singing with the Red Sox, including every team in the American League East.

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Boston secured their title of the best team in baseball, overcoming the cheating accusations against the Houston Astros, rumors pertaining to the use of foreign substances by pitchers and the almost universal hatred for Dodgers shortstop Manny Machado, as well as outfielder Yasiel Puig.