A guide to the World Series for Yankees fans

The World Series is officially upon us, and unfortunately for the Yankees, so is their offseason. With the Astros and Nationals going toe-to-toe with each other on the biggest stage, who should Yankees fans cheer on?

Washington Nationals

Many, many Yankees fans will root for the Nationals. As long as they can beat the Astros, that’s all people will care about. But for other reasons than the rivalry between the New York and Houston, you should want the Nationals to win is because it’s the first time in franchise history that they’ve made it this far. In fact, their NLDS win over the Dodgers was the first time they’ve ever made it past the first round! What makes it even crazier about this feat is that Baseball Reference gave them a 0.1% chance to win the pennant in May. Never say die.

Of course, the Nats have young stud Juan Soto, who is an emerging star in the league. When Bryce Harper packed his bags for Philadelphia, Soto’s role on the team became a lot bigger, and he’s done an excellent job in embracing that. He even won the Wild Card Game for his team with a go-ahead base-hit in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Not only is Soto a fantastic talent, but so is Victor Robles. Anthony Rendon is even a National League MVP candidate. Robles is a magician on defense and Rendon can do basically everything. Their shortstop Trea Turner is a speedster on the basepaths. He finished second in the NL with 35 stolen bases. Ryan Zimmerman, also known as Mr. National, has been a staple in the organization for the last 13 years and was the Nationals’ first ever draft pick. If anyone on that team deserves a ring, it’s him.

Washington has made it to the World Series by mainly using Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg, and Patrick Corbin. All three have entered in relief at some point during the postseason, which goes to show that they trust those three more than their bullpen at times. We watched the Yankees try to out-bullpen the Astros, and it didn’t necessarily work. Maybe the strategy is to use your starters as relievers instead?

Finally, their rally cry is “Baby Shark.” It all started when outfielder Gerardo Parra used it as his walk-up song in June. Ever since, it’s become a thing the fans love to do. This is pretty cool, I guess?

Houston Astros

I know, I know. There’s no way a Yankees fan should want the Astros hoisting their second Commissioner's Trophy in the last three years. Though, one way to look at it could be that Yanks fans could say “at least they lost to the team that won.”

When Jose Altuve hit the walk-off bomb to send his team to the World Series (Aaron Boone style), Brett Gardner recovered the baseball and gave it to Astros bullpen catcher Javier Bracamonte. Gardy had nothing but nice words to say to him—Aaron Judge too. If you’re looking for a reason to support the ‘Stros, Judge and Gardner telling them to represent the AL well could be a reason.

Another reason could be that the World Series could determine what Gerrit Cole does in free agency. If they win, he may be more inclined to test the market and leave for more money with a ring on his finger. If Houston loses, he could want to stay and finish what they started.

Besides that, there’s not much that a Yankees fan could latch onto and cheer for the Astros.