2007 World Series
Boston Red Sox World Series Champions

The World Series is the championship series of Major League Baseball and the culmination of the sport's postseason each October.

The World Series is played between the winners of the American League and National League. The Series winner is determined through a best-of-seven playoff (except in 1903, 1919, 1920 and 1921 when the winner was determined through a best-of-nine playoff) and is awarded the World Series Trophy, as well as World Series rings. Baseball has employed various championship formulas since the 1850s. The modern World Series has been an annual event since 1903, with the exceptions of 1904 and 1994.

The first World Series was between the Boston Americans of the American League and the Pittsburgh Pirates of the National League in 1903. Boston won the series 5 games to 3, establishing the new league's credibility. The next year, the National League New York Giants refused to play the Americans because of the "inferiority" of the American League. In response, the World Series was instituted in 1905 as a permanent manner by which the league's would "meet annually in a series of games for the Professional Base Ball Championship of the World ."

Until 1969, teams reached the Fall Classic merely by having the best record in the league. If another team was tied for the best record at the end of the season, the winner of the head-to-head series of the two teams was declared winner of the pennant and thus represented the league in the Series.

The division of each league into two divisions for the 1969 season changed the road to the Series. The winners of the East and West divisions of each league would meet in a best-of-five (later best-of-seven) League Championship Series to determine the winner of the pennant. The division was based on the premise that there were too many teams in the league to have one division.

Yet another change occurred in 1995 with the expansion of the Major Leagues and the establishment of the Central Divisions. Because of this, a fourth playoff team had to be added. It was called the "wildcard". Under the new format, the team with the highest winning percentage in the league would face the wildcard in the best-of-five first round, or Division Series and the two remaining teams would face each other. However, teams from the same division are not allowed to meet in the Division Series. In the event this were to occur, the wildcard would play the team with the second best record and the remaining two teams would face each other. The winners of the two Division Series would play in the League Championship Series for the right to play in the World Series.

The "World" appellation has stuck despite the fact that only teams in the two major leagues, which happen to cover only the United States and Toronto, Canada, actually participate. At the time the term was first used, baseball at the major league level was played only in the United States. While some would contend that there is no reason to believe that the World Series winner is a significantly better team than any club team outside Major League Baseball, no challenges have been made by other leagues in the last ninety years. Moreover, virtually all the best international players — from the Pacific Rim, Latin America, the Caribbean, and elsewhere — play on Major League rosters, with the notable exception of Cuban nationals, due to the political situation between the USA and Cuba (and even despite this barrier, many of Cuba's finest ballplayers have defected to the United States to play in the American professional leagues).

A persistent myth is that the "World" in "World Series" came about because the New York World newspaper sponsored it. Baseball researcher Doug Pappas refutes that claim, demonstrating a linear progression from the phrase "World's Championship Series" (used to describe the 1903 series as well as some of the 19th-century postseason series) to "World's Series" (a term first used in the 1880s and which persisted for decades) to "World Series". Furthermore, investigation of the New York World for the relevant years revealed no evidence of the supposed sponsorship.

All Major League Baseball Products shown on this web site are Licensed Products. They are made by Dixie Seal and Stamp or Rico Industries

License Plates are 6 by 12 inches in Size
Frames are designed to fit all standard size license plates
Frames will fit most Cars and Trucks