In Major League Baseball, the National League Division Series (NLDS) determines which two teams from the National League will advance to the National League Championship Series. The Division Series consists of two best-of-five series, featuring each of the two division winners with the best records and the winners of the wild-card play-offs.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are an American professional baseball team based in Los Angeles. The Dodgers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West Division. Established in 1883 in Brooklyn, New York, the team joined the NL in 1890 as the Brooklyn Bridegrooms and used several other monikers before finally settling on the name Dodgers in 1932. From the 1940s through the mid-1950s, the Dodgers developed a fierce crosstown rivalry with the New York Yankees as the two clubs faced each other in the World Series seven times, with the Dodgers losing the first five matchups before defeating them to win the franchise's first title in 1955. It was also during this period that the Dodgers made history by breaking the baseball color line in 1947 with the debut of Jackie Robinson, the first African American to play in the Major Leagues since 1884. Another major milestone was reached in 1956 when Don Newcombe became the first player ever to win both the Cy Young Award and the NL MVP in the same season.
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is the younger of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major league status. It is sometimes called the Junior Circuit because it claimed Major League status for the 1901 season, 25 years after the formation of the National League.
The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team has played its home games at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California.
The Freeway Series is a Major League Baseball (MLB) interleague rivalry played between the Los Angeles Angels and the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Angels are members of the American League (AL) West division, and the Dodgers are members of the National League (NL) West division. The series takes its name from the massive freeway system in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, the home of both teams; one could travel from one team's stadium to the other simply by driving along the Santa Ana Freeway. The term is akin to Subway Series which refers to meetings between New York City baseball teams The Yankees and The Mets. The term "Freeway Series" also inspired the official name of the region's NHL rivalry between the Los Angeles Kings and the Anaheim Ducks: the Freeway Face-Off.
The American League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. The division has five teams as of the 2013 season, but had four teams from 1994 to 2012, and had as many as seven teams before the 1994 realignment. Although its teams currently only reside along the west coast and in Texas, historically the division has had teams as far east as Chicago and Minnesota. From 1998 to 2012, the AL West was the only MLB division with four teams.
The National League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. This division was created for the 1969 season when the National League (NL) expanded to 12 teams by adding the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos. For purpose of keeping a regular-season of 162 games, half of the teams were put into the new East Division and half into the new West Division. Within each division, the teams played 18 games each against their five division mates, and also 12 games against the teams in the opposite division, totaling 162 games. Prior to 1969, the National League had informal, internal divisions strictly for scheduling purposes.
The 2005 American League Championship Series (ALCS), the second round of the 2005 American League playoffs, which determined the 2005 American League champion, matched the Central Division champion Chicago White Sox against the West Division champion Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The White Sox, by virtue of having the best record in the AL during the 2005 season, had the home-field advantage. The White Sox won the series four games to one to become the American League champions, and faced the Houston Astros in the 2005 World Series, in which the White Sox swept the Astros in four games to win their first World Series championship in 88 years; as a result of the 2005 All-Star Game played in Detroit, Michigan at Comerica Park on July 12, the White Sox had home-field advantage in the World Series. The series was notable both for a controversial call in Game 2 of the series, and the outstanding pitching and durability of Chicago's starting rotation, pitching four consecutive complete games; the +2⁄3 of an inning Neal Cotts pitched in the first game was the only work the White Sox bullpen saw the entire series.
The 2005 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim season was the franchise's 45th since its inception. The regular season ended with a record of 95–67, resulting in the Angels winning the American League West title for the second consecutive season, their fifth in franchise history.
The 2002 Anaheim Angels season was the franchise's 42nd, and it ended with the team's first American League pennant and World Series championship.
The 1969 Major League Baseball season was contested from April 7 to October 16, 1969. It included the third Major League Baseball expansion of the decade, with the Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos, San Diego Padres, and Seattle Pilots each beginning play this season. The season was also celebrated as the 100th anniversary of professional baseball, honoring the first professional touring baseball team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings of 1869.
The 1995 American League West tie-breaker game was a one-game extension to Major League Baseball's (MLB) 1995 regular season; the California Angels and Seattle Mariners met to determine the winner of the American League's (AL) West Division. It was played at the Kingdome in Seattle, on October 2, 1995.
The 2009 Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim season was the franchise's 49th season. The Angels began the season as the two-time defending American League West champions.
The Los Angeles Angels are a professional baseball team based in Anaheim, California. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The "Angels" name originates from the city that was their original home, Los Angeles, and was inspired by a minor league club of the same name. The Angels were established in 1961, and have played their home games at Angel Stadium since 1966.
The 2004 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2004 season. The winners of the League Division Series would move on to the League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
The 2005 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2005 season. The winners of the League Division Series would move on to the League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
The 2009 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2009 season. The winners of the Division Series would move on to the League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
The 2014 Major League Baseball postseason was the playoff tournament of Major League Baseball for the 2014 season. The winners of the Division Series would move on to the League Championship Series to determine the pennant winners that face each other in the World Series.
