2013 World Series
The 2013 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2013 season.[1] The 109th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the American League (AL) champion Boston Red Sox and the National League (NL) champion St. Louis Cardinals; the Red Sox won, 4 games to 2 to win their eighth championship. The Red Sox had home field advantage for the series, based on the AL's win in the 2013 MLB All-Star Game on July 16.[2] This was the first World Series since 1999 to feature both number one seeds from the AL and NL. The Series started on October 23, 2013, ending with Game 6 on October 30, 2013.
2013 World Series
October 23–30, 2013
Fenway Park (Boston)
Busch Stadium (St. Louis)
David Ortiz (Boston)
John Hirschbeck (crew chief), Mark Wegner, Dana DeMuth, Paul Emmel, Bill Miller, Jim Joyce
Red Sox: David Ortiz
Cardinals: None
Fox (United States)
MLB International (International)
Joe Buck, Tim McCarver, Ken Rosenthal and Erin Andrews (Fox)
Gary Thorne and Rick Sutcliffe (MLB International)
Dan Shulman and Orel Hershiser (ESPN)
Joe Castiglione and Dave O'Brien (WEEI)
Mike Shannon and John Rooney (KMOX)
Boston Red Sox over Detroit Tigers (4–2)
St. Louis Cardinals over Los Angeles Dodgers (4–2)
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).[3][4] It was also the first World Series since 1958 to feature two teams with identical regular season records. Winning in six games, the Red Sox clinched their first World Series championship at their home field of Fenway Park since 1918,[5][6][7] and the most recent edition where the championship was clinched by the home team until the 2022 World Series (before that, the Dodgers won the 2020 World Series as the designated home team, but at a neutral site). David Ortiz was awarded the World Series Most Valuable Player Award.[8][9] He became the first non-Yankee to win three World Series titles with one team since Jim Palmer (Baltimore Orioles 1966, 1970, and 1983).
Broadcasting[edit]
Television[edit]
Fox televised the series in the United States and Canada, with Joe Buck calling play-by-play and Tim McCarver handling color commentary. This was McCarver's 24th and final World Series broadcast (including four with ABC and four with CBS prior to his joining Fox in 1996), as he had announced that he would retire from the network's lead crew following the season.[105][106] Working with Buck and McCarver were field reporters Ken Rosenthal and Erin Andrews.[107]
Pregame coverage was handled by host Matt Vasgersian, joined by regular analyst Harold Reynolds. They were joined by special guest analysts A. J. Pierzynski of the Texas Rangers (his third consecutive World Series as a guest analyst), and Jimmy Rollins of the Philadelphia Phillies.
A partnership with Fox Sports featured Pearl Jam as the November artist of month for all entities within the Fox Sports domain and licensed 48 songs from their catalogue to play during the 2013 World Series. The group's music was included in anything from "opening teases and commercial bumpers to montages, as well as additional promotional inventory across Fox prime-time and cable."[108]
Major League Baseball International syndicated the television coverage outside Canada and the U.S., with English-language commentary provided by Baltimore Orioles play-by-play announcer Gary Thorne and ESPN analyst Rick Sutcliffe.