The 2023 World Series is underway with the Texas Rangers and the Arizona Diamondbacks tied at 1-1 in the best of seven series.

My family and I got tickets last minute and attended game one. Before that day I had no idea the World Series were taking place or that the Rangers were in it. In fact, a lot of people are paying less attention to the series this year. Few people outside of Dallas and Phoenix really care about this year’s championship. 

A mix of the irrelevant players and the historically unsuccessful teams have made this year’s series unpopular. The Rangers have never won the championship, and the Diamondbacks haven’t been in it in more than 20 years.

Baseball used to be America’s sport and now only 9% of Americans consider it to be their favorite sport to watch. The World Series this year is expected to receive half as many views as it did 30 years ago. The MLB has attempted to regain popularity by adding a pitch clock to make the game more entertaining and avoiding Sunday games that conflict with the NFL and has had some success. MLB viewership is up 7% from last year.

So far, the series has actually been exciting. Game one on Friday ended with a Ranger’s walk off home run in the 11th inning, but then in game two on Saturday the Rangers lost 9-1. They play again tonight in Arizona.

The atmosphere at Globe Life Field during game one was very exciting. Fans went crazy at every fourth ball. Strangers in red and blue embraced each other after every base hit. Ranger fans have been waiting more than ten years to see their team back in the World Series. 

Whether you’re a baseball fan or not, the World Series is tradition and history is being made and you might have some fun following along.