The 2017 World Series is officially underway and with certain teams eliminated, it seems to be lacking a true underdog story.
I feel a little checked out on this World Series, especially compared to 2016.
Maybe it’s because I was rooting for the Arizona Diamondbacks and the New York Yankees and they were both eliminated. Maybe it’s because there isn’t a 108-year-old curse on the line.
Or, maybe it’s because I love a good underdog story and I feel like we’re watching two powerhouses go at it.
The Los Angeles Dodgers have no doubt been a juggernaut in the 2017 season, which has been building for the last four years. Even with a September skid, they ended the regular season with 104 wins.
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But, the Astros won 101 games and have been on a pretty consistent tear all season. They had a skid at the end of the season too, but some are saying it was intentional. I’m not sure I can get behind that conspiracy, because four more wins and they would have secured home field advantage for the World Series.
With the new set-up, the All-Star Game no longer determines home field advantage (which I hate, but that’s not what this is about).
Regardless, I’m less impassioned about this World Series than previous ones. It bears repeating that I had high hopes for at least the Diamondbacks or the Yankees. Those hopes and dreams were crushed, some with brutal force.
But, I took to Twitter to see if anyone else was feeling this underdog debacle, because I’ve seen arguments that each team is an underdog and neither team is.
First and foremost, the Vegas odds are in favor of the Dodgers, but have the odds ever been even? I doubt it. That doesn’t mean that one is necessarily an underdog over the the other.
According to Vegas, the Astros are.
— Mark Seidel (@_MarkSeidel) October 25, 2017
But, the Dodgers also have home field advantage. The home teams in the 2017 postseason are 25-7. That has some thinking the Dodgers are going to take it.
Game One had its perks: a pitching duel, three homeruns, double plays, strikeouts. But, personally, I wasn’t emotionally invested in the game. Not even my dislike of the Dodgers had me into it.
I’m hoping Game Two will bring some intensity and draw me back in.
Until then, vote in the poll for who you think the World Series underdog truly is.
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