The Boston Red Sox are the 2013 World Series Champions after defeating the St. Louis Cardinals four games to two. The two teams last met on this stage almost a decade ago when the Red Sox swept the Cardinals to end their famous World Series curse of 86 years.

Coming off of an awful 2012 season, the Red Sox fired veteran manager Bobby Valentine after just one season, after winning only 69 games and finishing last in the American League East. Under new coach John Farrell, Boston won 97 games in 2013, best in the AL, as order and respect was restored in the team’s clubhouse.

Boston also acquired veteran players like Shane Victorino, Mike Napoli and Jonny Gomes, who would all play a pivotal role in the Red Sox’s run to the World Series. Spearheaded by a fantastic pitching staff, Boston led the division all season and surprised no one when their clutch hitting propelled them past last year’s AL Champion Detroit Tigers in the American League Championship Series.

In the World Series, the Red Sox were down 2-1 after three games and were looking at what seemed like a daunting task of winning at least one of the remaining two games in St. Louis. Boston would continue to fight though, winning both Game 4 and 5 by a couple of runs, as they were able to take the series lead back home to Fenway Park.

In Game 6, the bats came alive for the Sox, as they rallied in the third and fourth innings to score six runs. Shane Victorino had two hits and four runs batted in. This proved to be more than enough for starter John Lackey, who held St. Louis to just one run as Boston closed out the series in front of their home fans for the first time since 1918.

Red Sox designated hitter David Ortiz won the World Series Most Valuable Player Award, after having a .668 batting average, the second highest in World Series history. By the time Game 6 came around, St. Louis was afraid to pitch to him, intentionally walking him three times. Just a couple of years ago many thought Ortiz had reached the end of his career, but he proved them wrong by becoming the third oldest World Series MVP in history.

St. Louis won it all in 2011, but after losing long-time manager Tony LaRussa and star slugger Albert Pujols, many believed the Cardinals would be in rebuilding mode over the next few years. However, they found themselves back in the World Series with their strong pitching and situational hitting, falling just short late in the series when it mattered most.