I'm on the record calling the 2014 World Series the worst match up in the history of the sport, which is a statement supported by numerous advanced statistics. but perhaps it's time to re-calibrate our expectations of a MLB team. In my youth, the best teams rolled out offensive juggernauts that featured six or seven elite hitters. The juggernaut Yankees teams during their dynasty come to mind first, but we also saw the Indian's teams in the mid-90s (Albert Belle and Manny Ramirez would've been enough to carry a team, but they had five other dudes who could rake too), Seattle when they featured Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriguez,and lastly the curse breaking Red Sox lineup in 2004. These teams hit the ball hard, and it often went very far.
San Francisco has Buster Posey, Hunter Pence, and a bunch of other no name hitters, but in today's pitching dominated climate, that doesn't matter. Madison Bumgarner delivered a historic World Series performance that our first reaction is to devalue because of the lack of hitting, but that ultimately isn't fair. We're tired of being a baseball grump. The Giants are the fifth team in MLB history to win three titles in five years, which is remarkable. We still think the '98 Yankees or '04 Red Sox would smash them to smithereens, but we're still tipping our cap to the Giants.
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