MLB Season Review
The 2019-20 MLB Major League Baseball season has come to an end. This season of MLB witnessed several miracles, such as the historic championship of the dark horse Nationals, the most home run numbers in a single season, and more.
Nationals' first ever championship
From the beginning of the team, the Washington Nationals have been a typical underdog team. Not to mention the World Series championship, the team has only made the playoffs a handful of times. When the time came in 2012, the Nationals finally welcomed the talented player Bryce Harper. Under Harper's leadership, the Nationals made the playoffs four times in six years. Unfortunately, due to the thinness of the team, all four playoff appearances ended up in the round. Rookie head coach Dave Martinez stepped in in 2018. Harper's contract expired in the offseason, and perhaps believing there was no way out by staying here, he accepted a $330 million sky-high deal from fellow division rival Phillies and left Washington. This added to the belief that the Nationals would continue to sink. And the Nationals' performance in the regular season did confirm the prediction. Until May 24, when the team played its 50th game, the record was still 19 wins and 31 losses, not even a 40% winning percentage. Many critics were even sure the Nationals would not make the playoffs. However, the Nationals' performance has improved since then, and the team finally got a wild card. They won the wild card game against the Brewers 4-3. After advancing to the playoffs, the Nationals' first opponent was the traditional powerhouse Dodgers. After falling behind twice, the Nationals tied the game twice and trailed 1-3 in the eighth inning of Game 5, but then scored two runs in a row to tie the game, and finally came out of the gates in an extended inning with a bang. Heading into the World Series, the Nationals were up against the Houston Astros, who had the top regular season record. The Astros' 2019 regular season embodied a dominance that could rank in the top 10 all-time after equivalent conversions. The disparity in power had even led the owner of a Houston furniture store to bet $3.5 million with the bookies on the Astros winning the World Series. But the visiting Nationals took advantage of the Astros' mistakes to beat their opponents in 2 straight games and take a 2:0 series lead. Although the Astros rallied in the next 3 games to push the total back to 3-2, the Nationals again played like the dark horse they are and finally took home their first ever championship trophy in Houston.
Major League Baseball guns rumble
Major League Baseball knocked out 6,105 home runs in 2017. That number rose 9 percent to 6,770 by the 2019 season. Half of the league's teams set new records for home run numbers in club history, including the Twins, Yankees, Astros, Dodgers, Athletics, Cubs, Braves, Brewers, Red Sox, Mets, Reds, Nationals, Rattlers, Padres and Indians. Among them, the Twins hit 307 home runs in the season, far surpassing the previous record of 267 home runs by a single club. The Kansas Royals' George Soros hit 48 home runs in the season, setting the club record for most home runs by a player and the major league record for a Cuban-born ballplayer. The Mets' Petr Alonso hit 53 home runs, the most ever by a rookie player. 273 players in Major League Baseball hit double-digit home runs in the 2019 season and 24 teams hit 200+ home runs, both numbers are the most ever.
