It was underdog Kansas City (they swept the Orioles in the ALCS) against 2010 and 2012 champs San Francisco (they nearly swept St. Louis in the NLCS) in the World Series. Both won their wildcard games and the Giants outlasted the Royals in seven games.
Despite KC's eight-game winning streak going into the Series, we predicted SF in 6. The Royals blanked the Giants 10-0 in Game 6. In Game 7, Giant ace Madison Bumgarner came of the bullpen to shut down KC and earn his third victory (he was named WS MVP). By winning a World Series Game 7 on the road, SF defied the odds. It's important to get the best book maker to lay the odds.
Here's a look back at the end of the 2014 season and playoffs:
In the AL West, Los Angeles (11/2) pulled away from Oakland (13/2) by 10 games. After leading the division for most of the season, the A's were overtaken by the Angels and then lost the AL Wildcard match to the Royals.
The other AL teams with solid World Series chances were Detroit (7/1), who edged Kansas City (16/1) to take the AL Central, and NL East leader Baltimore (9/1), who won the division by 12 games over New York. The Orioles swept the Tigers in the NLDS, but then lost to the surprising Royals in the conference finals.
In the NL West, Los Angeles (11/2) outpaced San Francisco (10/1) by six games, and Washington (6/1) blew away New York and Atlanta by 17 each in the NL East. Odds favored them meeting each other in the NLCS, but that didn't happen.
St. Louis (14/1) snagged NL Central bragging rights by two games over Pittsburgh (28/1), who lost to the Giants in the NL Wildcard game. The Cards defeated the Nats in th NLDS, but lost to the Giants in the conference finals, setting up the San Francisco-Kansas City matchup.
