Who Each MLB Fanbase Should Root for in the 2017 World Series
If you're not a fan of the Houston Astros or Los Angeles Dodgers, your team has packed it in for the year and you might already be looking ahead to the 2018 MLB season.
You could watch the World Series as a baseball fan without any rooting interest in either club, but where's the fun in that?
We've taken a crack at picking which team each of the 28 fanbases without a representative should root for when the World Series begins Tuesday night.
In some cases, it was a simple matter of cheering on a former player such as Braves fans with Evan Gattis and Rays fans with Logan Forsythe.
Other teams took more digging, though.
Is the lopsided trade that sent Kenny Lofton from Houston to Cleveland some 26 years ago reason enough for Indians fans to pay it forward by temporarily jumping on the Astros' bandwagon?
I don't see why not.
What follows is a fun look at some connections that each eliminated team has to the two World Series participants.
AL East
1 of 6
Baltimore Orioles: Los Angeles Dodgers
The Orioles may not have a recent vested interest in either team, but they do have the Dodgers to thank for their first World Series title back in 1966.
The O's tossed three shutouts at the Dodgers in a four-game series sweep, and Frank Robinson took home World Series MVP over a Sandy Koufax- and Don Drysdale-led Dodgers squad.
Boston Red Sox: Houston Astros
Red Sox fans will have a chance to see future manager Alex Cora in action in what will be his final days as bench coach for the Astros after he agreed to a three-year deal to replace John Farrell.
Cora also spent parts of four seasons with the Red Sox during his 14-year MLB career and was a utility infielder on the 2007 squad that won the World Series.
The 42-year-old has just one year of coaching experience, as he previously served as an analyst for ESPN following his retirement in 2011.
New York Yankees: Houston Astros
The Dodgers/Yankees rivalry is not what it used to be, but at its peak, it was one of the best in pro sports.
The teams met in the World Series six times in a span of 10 years in the late 1940s and early 1950s, and they've matched up 11 different times in the Fall Classic—most recently in 1981.
With a young Yankees team on the rise and the Dodgers seemingly built for long-term success, it's a rivalry we could see renewed in the years to come.
Tampa Bay Rays: Los Angeles Dodgers
Logan Forsythe was a fan favorite during his three seasons with the Rays as he went from a utility infielder to one of the most productive offensive second basemen in the league.
The 30-year-old was traded to the Dodgers this past offseason for pitching prospect Jose De Leon and will split time with Chase Utley at second base in the World Series.
Toronto Blue Jays: Los Angeles Dodgers
Finding a connection between either team and the Blue Jays was tricky, so this one is a bit of a stretch.
But Blue Jays fans can credit the Dodgers for an ill-advised 1987 trade that sent infielder Mike Sharperson to Los Angeles for a young right-hander by the name of Juan Guzman.
Guzman went on to win 76 games in parts of eight seasons in Toronto while coming up big in the postseason, where he went 5-1 with a 2.44 ERA in eight starts to help the team to World Series titles in 1992 and 1993.
AL Central
2 of 6
Chicago White Sox: Houston Astros
As the White Sox undergo the early stages of what figures to be a lengthy rebuild, seeing the Astros suiting up in the World Series should bring back fond memories of 2005.
The South Siders steamrolled the Astros in the World Series that season, sweeping them in four games behind terrific pitching and two of the unlikeliest home runs in MLB postseason history off the bats of Scott Podsednik and Geoff Blum.
The chance to reminisce about those moments should be enough to add a few more fans to the Houston corner.
Cleveland Indians: Houston Astros
Willie Blair and Eddie Taubensee.
That's all it cost the Indians to acquire speedy outfielder Kenny Lofton from the Astros prior to the 1992 season.
Lofton would go on to play 10 seasons with the Tribe, hitting .300 and swiping 452 bases while posting 48.5 WAR with the team.
Reason enough for Indians fans to pay it forward and root for the Astros to win it all?
Detroit Tigers: Houston Astros
This is one of the more obvious choices.
There are still plenty of Justin Verlander fans in Detroit after he spent the first 12-and-a-half seasons of his career in a Tigers uniform.
The 34-year-old won Rookie of the Year, Cy Young and MVP awards during his Tigers tenure and helped lead the team to World Series appearances in 2006 and 2012.
And if the prospects that were acquired in that August trade—most notably Franklin Perez, Jake Rogers and Daz Cameron—can reach their respective ceilings, it will help the impending rebuild tremendously.
Kansas City Royals: Houston Astros
There are plenty of Royals fans who still have a soft spot for Carlos Beltran and would love to see him win a ring.
The 40-year-old slugger was a second-round pick by the Royals in 1995, and he won AL Rookie of the Year honors in 1999.
Kansas City traded him to the Astros in 2004 ahead of his impending free agency, and he's now back for a second go-around in Houston on a one-year deal.
Might he end his career where it started by re-signing with the Royals this winter?
Minnesota Twins: Los Angeles Dodgers
Twins fans can thank the Dodgers front office for not pushing harder to acquire Brian Dozier this offseason, despite well-reported interest.
Unwilling to move the All-Star second baseman for a package built around Jose De Leon, the Twins instead wound up holding on to Dozier, who was once again among the most productive hitters in the AL.
Without his .856 OPS, 34 home runs and 4.4 WAR, the Twins likely wouldn't have made that surprise run to a wild-card spot.
AL West
3 of 6
Los Angeles Angels: Houston Astros
The Freeway Series is more of a geographical rivalry than anything else, but it's still enough of a rivalry to have a name. That's something, right?
The Astros were also nice enough to pass on Mike Trout at No. 21 in the 2009 draft. The Dodgers didn't have a pick until No. 36, so they don't get credit for letting the generational talent fall into the Angels' laps.
Oakland Athletics: Houston Astros
Josh Reddick was a fan favorite during his five seasons with the A's, winning a Gold Glove Award and posting 16.8 WAR during his time with the team. Now he'll be the starting right fielder for the Astros in the World Series.
The A's also lost to the Dodgers in the 1988 World Series, a postseason that gave us the famous Kirk Gibson home run that Oakland fans are forced to rewatch every October.
That's plenty of reason for them to pull for the Astros.
Seattle Mariners: Los Angeles Dodgers
If you're a Mariners fan, are you happy to see Chris Taylor succeeding elsewhere or upset that he never reached his potential in Seattle (86 games from 2014 to 2016)?
We'll go with the former and say Mariners fans should pull for the Dodgers as the 2012 fifth-round pick has emerged as a true difference-maker atop the lineup and in center field.
Setup man Brandon Morrow also has Mariners ties. He was Seattle's first-round pick in 2006 before being traded to the Blue Jays for reliever Brandon League—another eventual Dodger.
Texas Rangers: Los Angeles Dodgers
Yu Darvish turned out to be well worth the six-year, $56 million deal and $51.7 million posting fee it cost the Rangers to sign him when he made his way stateside from the Nippon Ham Fighters of the Japanese League.
Now he's pitching alongside Clayton Kershaw, Rich Hill and Alex Wood in the Dodgers rotation, and he'll give Rangers fans a familiar face to root for when he takes the mound in Game 3.
The Astros and Rangers also dealt with unpleasantness earlier this season when the benches cleared during a May series in Houston, so there's no love lost between those two clubs.
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NL East
4 of 6
Atlanta Braves: Houston Astros
Admit it, Braves fans, you miss El Oso Blanco.
Evan Gattis came out of nowhere in 2013 as a 26-year-old rookie who took a circuitous path to MLB success, hitting 21 home runs and endearing himself to fans as an old-school slugger with a "grip it and rip it" approach.
After two seasons with the Braves, he was traded to the Astros in the deal that sent Mike Foltynewicz the other way. Gattis undoubtedly still has plenty of backers in Atlanta.
Miami Marlins: Houston Astros
The Marlins and Dodgers endured a bench-clearing incident earlier this season when Ross Stripling threw a pitch behind Giancarlo Stanton in retaliation for outfielder Brett Eibner's plunking the previous inning.
Miami manager Don Mattingly, who managed the Dodgers from 2011 to 2015, took offense to L.A.'s swinging on 3-0 counts with a five-run lead in that game and voiced his displeasure to the media afterward.
Kenley Jansen's recent trip to free agency is also a sore spot here.
The All-Star closer was the Marlins' top offseason target before he reupped with the Dodgers on a five-year, $80 million deal that was reportedly less than the Marlins offered, per Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports.
New York Mets: Houston Astros
You'd better believe Mets fans haven't forgotten that Chase Utley slide that left Ruben Tejada sidelined with a broken leg.
The Mets still came out on top in that 2015 NLDS matchup on their way to winning the NL pennant, but that hasn't stopped fans from booing Utley every chance they get.
Philadelphia Phillies: Los Angeles Dodgers
Mets fans might not like Utley, but he's nothing short of a legend in Philadelphia.
The 38-year-old racked up 61.5 WAR in his 13 seasons with the team, making six All-Star Game trips, winning four Silver Slugger Awards and helping lead the team to five division titles and a World Series win in 2008.
Utley also posted a .902 OPS with 10 home runs and 25 RBI in 46 career postseason games with Philadelphia. He'll forever be a fan favorite in Philly.
Washington Nationals: Houston Astros
The Dodgers ended the Nationals' season in the 2016 NLDS.
They also ended the then-Expos' season in the 1981 NLCS, although that's probably of little consequence to fans south of the Canadian border.
Still, there's no negative link between the Astros and Nationals since the latter franchise moved from Montreal to Washington in 2005, so those two season-ending losses are enough to put Nationals fans squarely in Houston's corner.
NL Central
5 of 6
Chicago Cubs: Houston Astros
Once time passes, Cubs fans will be able to look back and realize the better team won the 2017 NLCS.
Those wounds are a little too fresh to expect any North Siders to root for the Dodgers in the World Series, though.
There's something to be said for the whole "beaten by the best" mindset, but it's safe to assume Cubbie blue won't shift to Dodger blue this October.
Cincinnati Reds: Houston Astros
Where would the Big Red Machine have been without Joe Morgan?
The Reds acquired the Hall of Fame second baseman from the Astros prior to the 1972 season, and he promptly went from average everyday player to legitimate superstar.
In his eight seasons with the Reds, he made the NL All-Star team every year, won a pair of NL MVP awards, helped the team to three NL pennants and two World Series titles and posted 57.8 WAR.
Without that eight-player trade that sent Lee May to Houston, those great Reds teams might not have happened.
Milwaukee Brewers: Houston Astros
The Brewers swung a deal with the Astros at the 2015 trade deadline that signaled the beginning of rebuilding efforts in Milwaukee.
Carlos Gomez and Mike Fiers went to Houston in exchange for four prospects.
Domingo Santana (.875 OPS, 30 HR, 85 RBI) and left-hander Josh Hader (35 G, 12 HLD, 2.08 ERA, 12.8 K/9) were included in that package, and both played a significant role in the team's 2017 success.
Thanks, Houston.
Pittsburgh Pirates: Los Angeles Dodgers
There's not much of a link between the Pirates and this year's participants, but there are two former Pirates suiting up in the series—Charlie Morton (HOU) and Tony Watson (LAD)
Morton had his moments in Pittsburgh, but his three-year, $21 million extension signed in December 2013 was largely a bust.
On the other hand, Watson was one of the league's best setup relievers during his seven seasons in Pittsburgh, as he made good as a ninth-round pick and earned an All-Star trip in 2014.
Advantage to Watson and the Dodgers.
St. Louis Cardinals: Los Angeles Dodgers
The Dodgers and Astros have both eliminated the Cardinals from the playoffs in the last 20 years, but it's the 2005 NLCS that still stands out above other postseason meetings.
The Cardinals won an MLB-high 100 games that season and made short work of the Padres with a three-game sweep in the NLDS. They were the clear favorites while facing an 89-win Astros team with the NL pennant on the line.
However, after taking Game 1, the Cardinals dropped three straight, including a pair of heartbreaking one-run losses. The Astros eventually took the series in six games.
The Chicago White Sox then swept Houston in the World Series, leaving Cardinals fans to wonder what could have been.
NL West
6 of 6
Arizona Diamondbacks: Houston Astros
Diamondbacks fans have not forgotten the Dodgers' celebration in the Chase Field swimming pool when they clinched the NL West title in 2013.
In fact, the D-backs and Dodgers rivalry has had plenty of heated moments over the years, including a memorable brawl that saw coaches Don Mattingly, Alan Trammell, Mark McGwire, Kirk Gibson and Matt Williams all involved.
That the D-backs signed Zack Greinke away in free agency also didn't help the situation.
Colorado Rockies: Los Angeles Dodgers
Any diehard Charlie Culberson fans out there?
The utility infielder, who stepped into a bigger role in the NLCS with Corey Seager sidelined due to a strained back, spent 2013 and 2014 with the Rockies, but it wasn't exactly a memorable tenure.
A better reason for Rockies fans to root for the Dodgers might be the fact that the Astros have two talented pitchers the Rockies let slip through the cracks: Collin McHugh and Will Harris.
Both players were lost for nothing to waiver claims, and no one likes to be reminded of those that got away.
San Diego Padres: Houston Astros
The Padres have their own contentious recent history with the Dodgers.
Benches cleared when the teams met in June, and managers Dave Roberts and Andy Green were both ejected after they had to be separated.
It all started when Dodgers starting pitcher Alex Wood accused Padres outfielder Jose Pirela of stealing signs from second base. Wood then allegedly threatened to hit Padres outfielder Manuel Margot, who was in the batter's box at the time, as a result.
San Francisco Giants: Houston Astros
The Dodgers and Giants have one of the best rivalries in all of sports. Enough said.
All stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, unless otherwise noted.
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