Baseball: Two opposing teams of nine players each compete using a ball and a bat. The point of the game is to circle three bases, laid out in diamond pattern, and cross a "home plate" in order to score runs. The field of play is broken down into fair and foul territory. Fair territory is situated between two white foul lines at the periphery of the field.
A team wins the game by scoring more runs in than they allow the other team.
There is no tying in baseball. Games continue indefinitely until one team wins.
Teams are broken into "home" and "away" dugouts at the side of the field.The home team takes the field first and bats last, allowing them the advantage of trying to score the winning run.
World Series
Major League Baseball is broken down into two leagues, American and National. Each league is broken down into three divisions, East, Central and West, and one Wild Card, which is the team with the fourth best record after the three division winners.
At the end of the regular season, these teams play a series of playoff rounds versus each other in the hope of reaching the World Series, which pits the National League Champion against the American League Champion.
The team with home field advantage in the World Series plays four games at home, and the other three games at the field of its competitor.
The Road to the World Series
The Boston Red Sox and St Louis Cardinals have met twice in the World Series, in 1946 and 1967. The Cardinals won both championships in seven games.
Boston Red Sox: five World Series titles. Last title, 1918. The Red Sox are this year's Wild Card champion from the American League East. They played the American League West champion Anaheim Angels in the division series and beat the Angels three games to none.
Boston faced its fiercest rival, the New York Yankees, in the American League Championship Series, a best-of-seven championship round with the winner moving onto the World Series. Boston went down three games to none before coming back and winning the next four games to reach the World Series. The feat had never before been accomplished in the history of the professional game.
St Louis Cardinals: nine World Series titles. Last title, 1982. The Cardinals are this year's National League Central division champion.They faced Los Angeles in the first round and beat the Dodgers three games to one. St Louis followed a similar path to the World Series by mounting a dramatic comeback against the Houston Astros. Down three games to two, the Cardinals won games six and seven to win the National League Championship and advance to face the Red Sox.
Schedule: Game 1: Boston, Oct 23rd; Game 2: Boston, Oct 24th; Game 3: St Louis, Oct 26th; Game 4: St Louis, Oct 27th; Game 5: St Louis, Oct 28th; Game 6: Boston, Oct 30th; Game 7: Boston, Oct 31st