Since 1903, the World Series are the biggest stage in baseball with the traditional matchup between the American League and the National League champions. Even though the Fall Classic represents a tremendous history, there hasn't been always a trophy for the winner.
Before the start of the World Series in the beginning of the 20th century, there were some official cups awarded in baseball which served as strong precedents. At the same time, we have to consider that, nowadays, the Commissioner's Trophy isn't the only prize awarded during such an important sporting event.
If you're already thinking about how many World Series trophies are there, in this article you can check out that number and why, some of them, aren't even right now in the United States.
How many World Series trophies are there?
The first thing you need to know is that there have been 46 World Series trophies. Although the Fall Classic began in 1903, the trophy was first awarded in 1967 when the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Boston Red Sox. Prior to that year, the tradition was to deliver each player a ring as the greatest symbol of victory. No trophy, just rings.
Nevertheless, we can find two precedents before the existence of the World Series: the Dauvray Cup (1887-1893) and the Temple Cup (1894-1893 in the National League postseason). Although the actual trophy appeared in 1967, the prize got its name as Commissioner's Trophy until 1985. Another important stat is that in 1994, there was no trophy awarded because of the MLB strike. Of those 46 trophies, two of them are located outside of the United States considering the Toronto Blue Jays won the championship in 1992 and 1993.
During the World Series, there's also an individual trophy. The Willie Mays Most Valuable Player Award goes to the best performance during the Fall Classic. The MVP award is voted by journalists and officials covering the series on site. In 2017, the trophy got Willie Mays' name to honor his extraordinary legacy.
