The World Series is the annual autumn competition for the championship of major league baseball. The modern World Series began in 1903 and has been played annually with the exceptions of 1904, when it was cancelled because of a boycott and confusion over the rules, and 1994, when it was cancelled because of a player's strike.
The World Series is played between two teams: the American League and the National League champions. Although it is call the “World Series” there is only one team that is not located in the United States – the Toronto Blue Jays. Baseball is a major sport in Cuba, Dominican Republic, Japan, South Korea and Venezuela. Despite these countries not being part of the “World” Series, they each have representatives in major league baseball.
The first World Series, or "Series" as it's commonly known, was in 1903 and was won by the American League's Boston Americans over the National League's Pittsburgh Pirates. The Series was a best-of-nine event in 1903, 1919, 1920 and 1921. The Series has been a best-of-seven championship (the first team to win four games is the world champion) in the other years.
The first two games of the Series are played in the home ballpark of the team awarded home-field advantage; the next three games are in the other team's ballpark, and the final two are back in the first team's ballpark. Starting with the 2003 World Series, the league that wins the mid-season All-Star Game has been awarded home-field advantage. The teams playing in the World Series are decided by the play-offs after the regular season has ended.
The American League's New York Yankees have won the most Series: 26 through the 2008 season, including five straight in 1949-53.
Japanese baseball also has its own "World Series," as do colleges and Little League baseball; only the Little League World Series is truly international with the Asia-Pacific, Canada, Europe, Latin American and Middle East/Africa regions represented. The term world series has also been applied in other sports or games, often used in the title of a championship.
The 2009 World Series between the New York Yankees and the Philadelphia Phillies was won by New York, 4-2.
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