Sports – FiveThirtyEight — 2021 World Series RSS



The Braves Turned A Lost Season Into A Championship

After a season when things seldom came easy, the Atlanta Braves finally changed that script for good on Tuesday night, dispatching the Houston Astros 7-0 to clinch their first World Series crown in 26 years. The title was a culmination of one of the most mercurial campaigns by any champion, but the Braves also proved […]

Continue reading



Go With The Analytics … But Say You Went With Your Gut

First, we discuss a take that the Atlanta Braves’ decision to pull Ian Anderson after five innings in Game 3 of the World Series was absolutely no fun and hurt baseball because people would have tuned in to watch a potential no-hitter. We think this is weird for a number of reasons, not the least […]

Continue reading



This World Series Comes Down To Which Astros Team Shows Up

Going into the World Series, our forecast model offered up a rare prediction: a perfectly 50-50 championship tossup between the Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves. Atlanta disrupted that balance with a 6-2 win in Game 1, overcoming the loss of starting pitcher Charlie Morton (whose leg was fractured on a comebacker in the second inning) […]

Continue reading



It’s A Toss-Up Between The Braves And Astros

First, we take a look at the World Series between the Houston Astros and the Atlanta Braves, which appears evenly matched according to our model. Whatever happens, there will be takes about how Houston’s appearance cleanses (or doesn’t) its recent record of cheating, but there is a lot to be learned from the Astros’ success […]

Continue reading



Astros Or Braves? Flip A Coin For This World Series.

A year ago, the Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves came oh-so-close to meeting in Arlington, Texas, for MLB’s COVID-19-bubble World Series. Both teams took their respective league championship series to do-or-die Game 7s, but each fell short. This time around, nothing could get in their way: The Astros turned around the ALCS in a hurry […]

Continue reading