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MLB World Series 2017 Live Stream - Houston Astros vs Los Angeles Dodgers
MLB World Series Live Stream - The 2017 World Series will consist of two 100-plus-win teams for the first time since 1970. The Houston Astros, after coming back from a 3-2 deficit to the New York Yankees in the ALCS, will look to win the franchise’s first championship since they joined the MLB in 1962. The Los Angeles Dodgers, a historic franchise, are finally back in the World Series after 29 years. Let’s look at how these two elite teams will fare in the World Series. Watch MLB World Series 2017 Live stream - Houston Astros vs Los Angeles Dodgers Live Stream free online on your PC, laptop, Mac, I-pad, Tab, Ps4/3, I-phone Android or any other online device.

MLB WORLD SERIES LIVE STREAM: http://worldseries-live.com/

Offense -
If you’re an unbiased observer, this is the series that you wanted. As far as position player fWAR (Fangraphs WAR calculation), these are the two best teams in baseball. The Astros combined for 33 fWAR with the best offense in baseball and the Dodgers combined for 30.1 fWAR with a solid offense and one of the best defensive teams in the league.
The Astros made a lot of quality contact this season. They had one of the league’s lowest strikeout rates at 17.3 percent and hit 238 home runs. They battled .282 as a team with a .309 BABIP, which highlights the season-long contact quality, and finished well above everybody else in baseball with a 121 wRC+, which is weighted runs created plus, a metric that grades offenses relative to league average with adjustments put in for park factors. The Dodgers had a 104 wRC+, so the Astros offense graded out at 17 percent better than Los Angeles’s, when accounting for park factor and other adjustments. That is a sizable gap, to say the least. The Astros were 41 points better in the slugging percentage department and 12 points better in the OBP department. That is why there is such a big gap.
The Dodgers were the most patient team in baseball, though. They drew a walk in 10.5 percent of their plate appearances. As a result of all of the deep counts, the Dodgers did strike out five percent more often than the Astros. A 22.3 percent K% was still only tied for 11th, though, so that speaks to have much strikeouts have risen and how little they matter in the grand scheme of things.
One of the most important offensive factors in this series is that the Astros tied for the highest wRC+ in all of baseball with a 120 mark against left-handed pitching. Their .347 wOBA was second only to the Detroit Tigers. Houston had the lowest K% against lefties at just 16.7 percent. The Indians were second at 17.6 percent, so it was a big gap. Houston’s prowess against southpaws is a big deal with Clayton Kershaw and Rich Hill setting the tone for the Dodgers in this series. In terms of the Dodgers, they were fifth in wOBA at .337 and fourth in wRC+ at 109 in this split against lefties, so they fared pretty well in their own right. That is relevant because they’ll see Dallas Keuchel in Game 1.
The Astros were tops in the league against righties, with a 122 wRC+ and a .349 wOBA. The Dodgers were just three percent better than league average in that split with a 103 wRC+ and a .327 wOBA. The Dodgers drew a lot of walks, but only had a .290 BABIP in that split. Their SLG was 49 points behind the Astros, so contact quality was a bit of an issue.
We don’t want to read too much into postseason sample sizes, but it is fair to point out that Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve basically kept the Astros alive throughout the ALCS. Others woke up later in the series and Yuli Gurriel had a few big hits, but Houston relied heavily on those two players. Considering they are two of the best in baseball, that isn’t a bad thing. The Dodgers have gotten balanced offense throughout the lineup in the playoffs thus far. The status of Corey Seager will be a big deal. He missed the NLCS with a back injury. He’s had some time to rehab it and get treatment. It would be a surprise to see him left off of the World Series roster.
The edge has to go to the Astros here. Minute Maid Park does slightly favor offense, but Dodger Stadium certainly does not, so we’ll have to see what, if any, impact that has on the Houston offense, but nobody in baseball hit better than the Astros away from home and that includes 27 games in Seattle, Anaheim, and Oakland, where offense is tough to come by.
Why The Houston Astros Might Win The Series -
The Astros offense has been the best in all of baseball this year – most runs scored, highest OPS, AVG, OBP, SLG, and most productive outs. A huge part of the Astros’ offensive success has been on the shoulders of Jose Altuve, who, in my opinion, should be named the AL MVP – you could make a decent argument for Aaron Judge as well. After struggling through the first five games of the ALCS, the Astros’ offense woke up and put away the Yankees for good.
Since coming over from the Detroit Tigers, Justin Verlander has proved that he’s still one of the best pitchers in the league and a likely future Hall of Famer. Since being acquired by the Astros, Verlander (including the postseason) has gone 8-0 with a 1.39 ERA and 59 K in 51.2 IP. In his past 10 postseason starts, Verlander has posted a sparking 1.77 ERA. He basically saved the Astros’ season with seven brilliant innings in their must-win game six. In elimination games, Verlander has upped his scoreless streak to 24 innings, tying the MLB record with Madison Bumgarner. The Astros’ starting rotation has been solid – they really needed to be since their bullpen has been shaky.
One blip with the Astros’ postseason run has been their bullpen. Other than closer Ken Giles and Lance McCullers, the Astros’ bullpen has been a mess, albeit in a small sample size. The bullpen will need to turn things around as they’re well aware of how unhittable the Dodgers’ bullpen has been.
With Hurricane Harvey ravaging the city of Houston, nothing would be sweeter than the team winning its first World Series in franchise history.
Why The Dodgers Might Win The Series -
After finishing with the best record in the MLB, the Dodgers haven’t missed a beat this postseason, only losing one game on route to their first World Series appearance since 1988, when they won it all. The Dodgers’ biggest strength this postseason has arguably been their bullpen, with no starters being required to be used in relief thus far. Collectively, the Dodgers’ bullpen has allowed only four runs in 28.2 IP while recording 32 K, 2 BB, and only a .125 AVG.
The Dodgers’ offense has also been on fire, with Justin Turner, Chris Taylor, and Yasiel Puig leading the way. All three individuals have posted playoff OPS figures above 1.000, with Turner being the guy to really watch out for. In Turner’s postseason career, he’s 14-20 with runners in scoring position. Additionally, his 1.113 postseason OPS trails only Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig.
It always feels like we’re missing something when talking about the Dodgers without mentioning Clayton Kershaw. While Kershaw hasn’t been as good as his regular season numbers, he’s been dependable. With a bit of pressure off his shoulders having now made it to the World Series, he should be in for a vintage Kershaw performance. The rest of the Dodgers’ starters haven’t been too shabby either.
The Dodgers have home-field advantage, posted the best record in the MLB, and seemingly have no real flaws. If they’re able to execute, they should add another World Series Championship their historic franchise.