2013 World Series Championship

Lore & Background

The Red Sox won the first game at Fenway Park on October 23, followed by the Cardinals winning the second game on October 24 to tie the series, 1–1. The series then moved to Busch Stadium, where the Cardinals won the third game on October 26 to gain a 2–1 lead. The Red Sox won the fourth game on October 27 to tie the series at 2–2, then won the last of three games at Busch Stadium on October 28 for a 3–2 lead. The series then moved back to Fenway Park, where the Red Sox decisively won the final game on October 30, becoming the World Series champions for 2013.

This was the fourth meeting of the Cardinals and the Red Sox in the World Series (previously meeting in 1946, 1967, and 2004). It was also the first World Series since 1999 to feature two teams with identical regular season records. Winning in six games, the Red Sox clinched their third World Series championship since 2004. David Ortiz was awarded the World Series Most Valuable Player Award.

He became the first non-Yankee to win three World Series titles with one team since Jim Palmer (Baltimore Orioles 1966, 1970, and 1983). This was the last time a championship was clinched on a team's home field until 2020 (the designated home team clinched in 2020, but at a neutral site).

Reader's Guide

The top-seeded Red Sox opened the playoffs by defeating the fifth-seeded Tampa Bay Rays in four games in the Division Series. Then in the American League Championship Series, the Red Sox defeated the third-seeded Detroit Tigers in six games to win their 13th American League pennant.