Fan News

When you have two teams playing for a championship, the hope is the play on the field is clean to determine who is best without having to focus on mistakes being made. 

The 2013 World Series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox hasn't followed that formula. It is tied one-all heading to St. Louis following two defensive miscues by the Red Sox in Game 2 that led to three runs for the Cardinals. 

We came into the 2013 World Series expecting a dramatic, drawn-out battle between the Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals. With the teams tied at a game apiece and the action shifting to Busch Stadium, that's exactly what it's shaping up to be.

The Cards probably won't win three straight and bring the Fall Classic to a premature conclusion, but they should at least take command with two victories at home.

Let's review their greatest advantages going forward.

Contrary to what it may seem, the Seattle Mariners are a mess at first base. 

Justin Smoak was supposed to be Seattle's first baseman of the future, but has been wildly inconsistent, even getting demoted to Triple-A for stints in each of the past two seasons. The relegations have helped, but he hasn't made great strides in his offensive game. 

The San Francisco Giants have overpaid once again. This time, Tim Lincecum is the benefactor of the Giants' generosity.

The MLB Rookie of the Year Award can be a lottery draw or a done deal. Wil Myers of the Tampa Bay Rays and Jose Fernandez of the Miami Marlins might as well start celebrating early because they deserve the coveted honor.

Careful: The question posed above might just be a trick one. But we'll get to that in a bit.

First, let's remind readers what Carlos Beltran and David Ortiz have done so far this October in helping get their respective teams, the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox, to the 2013 World Series.

With the World Series starting up on Wednesday, the rumors are starting to swirl about some big names in the MLB, and a few of them could be heading to new teams for the 2014 season.

This is how you want it if you're a baseball fan. The two best teams during the regular season are facing off in the World Series.

Both the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox finished with identical 97-65 records, earning the top seeds for the playoffs in their respective leagues. Often you see the giants get slain before they can make it to the Fall Classic.

This is only the third time since 1994 that the No. 1 seeds in both leagues have gotten this far, via ESPN Stats and Info.

Once considered to be the best starting pitcher in all of Major League Baseball, the past two seasons haven't been kind to Tim Lincecum.

But that didn't stop the San Francisco Giants from signing "The Freak" to a two-year contract extension: 

CBS Sports' Jon Heyman provides some further details about the contract:

When the St.