After barely sneaking into the MLB postseason, the Arizona Diamondbacks are now heading to the World Series after defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in a seven-game National League Championship Series.
The Diamondbacks made history en route to being crowned NL Champions, becoming just the second team in MLB history to reach the World Series despite having a negative run differential during the regular season, joining the 1987 Minnesota Twins per ESPN Stats & Info.
While the Twins had the higher run differential (-20), the Diamondbacks weren’t too far behind (-15). In other words, the Diamondbacks run to the World Series is a true underdog story like no other.
The Twins went on to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games in 1987 to win the World Series. Now, the Diamondbacks will hope to repeat history when they face the Texas Rangers.
Game 1 of the World Series will take place on Friday, Oct. 27 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.
Despite the negative run differential during the regular season, the Diamondbacks found a way to finish with a winning record (84-78) and barely sneak into the postseason. They narrowly beat out the Chicago Cubs by one game for the third and final Wild Card spot in the NL playoffs.
Now, they find themselves just four wins away from winning their first World Series in over two decades. The starting pitchers for Game 1 have yet to be announced, but the Rangers enter the series as considerable favorites according to sportsbooks.
However, the Diamondbacks have been counted out all season and now find themselves in the World Series, so fade them at your own peril.
