Commissioner's Trophy (MLB)

This article is about Major League Baseball's championship trophy. For the award known as the Commissioner's Trophy from 1970 to 1984, see Major League Baseball All-Star Game MVP Award. For a list of Commissioner's Trophy winners, see List of World Series champions. For the similarly named historical award, see Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award.
The current design of the Commissioner's Trophy (since 2000)

The Commissioner's Trophy is presented each year by the Commissioner of Baseball to the Major League Baseball team that wins the World Series. Recent trophy designs contain flags representing each team in North America's top two leagues, the National League and the American League.[1][2] The two participating teams in that year's World Series were previously represented by two press pins set on the base of the trophy. It is the only championship trophy of the four major sports and Major League Soccer in the United States that is not named after a particular person[3] (contrasting with the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup,[4] the National Football League's Vince Lombardi Trophy,[5] the National Basketball Association's Larry O'Brien Trophy, and Major League Soccer's Philip F. Anschutz Trophy).[6]

History

See also: World Series

Although it did not receive its current name until 1985, the trophy was first awarded in 1967, when the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Boston Red Sox.[7] Before that year, the champion of the World Series did not receive an official trophy.[8] A new Commissioner's Trophy is created each year, much like the Lombardi Trophy and the O'Brien Trophy; in contrast, the Stanley Cup is passed from champion to champion.[9] Before 1997, the trophy was presented to the winner in its locker room; starting with that season, the presentation happened on the field if the champion clinched the title in its home stadium.[8] Since its inception, the only year that the Commissioner's Trophy has not been awarded was 1994, when the players' strike ended the season on August 11, resulting in the cancellation of the entire post-season.[10] The New York Yankees have won the most Commissioner's Trophies (seven World Series wins since 1967).[11] The St. Louis Cardinals hold the record for the most trophies won in the National League (four wins).[11]

Design

The current trophy was redesigned in 1999 for the 2000 World Series and made by Tiffany & Co. The original trophy was designed by Lawrence Voegele, of Owatonna, Minnesota.[9] The trophy is 24 inches (61 cm) tall, excluding the base, and has a diameter of 11 inches (28 cm).[1] It weighs approximately 30 pounds (14 kg)[12] and is made of sterling silver. The trophy features 30 gold-plated flags, one for each of the Major League teams, which rise above a silver baseball covered with latitude and longitude lines that symbolize the world.[9] The baseball also contains 24-karat vermeil baseball stitches.[1] The base contains an inscription of the signature of the commissioner,[1] as well as the words "Presented by the Commissioner of Baseball".[12] The new design was presented for the first time at the conclusion of the 2000 World Series, won by the Yankees.[11]

Trophy designs

By franchise

Team Trophies Seasons
New York Yankees 7 1977, 1978, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2009
Oakland Athletics 4 1972, 1973, 1974, 1989
St. Louis Cardinals 4 1967, 1982, 2006, 2011
Boston Red Sox 3 2004, 2007, 2013
Cincinnati Reds 3 1975, 1976, 1990
San Francisco Giants 3 2010, 2012, 2014
Baltimore Orioles 2 1970, 1983
Detroit Tigers 2 1968, 1984
Kansas City Royals 2 1985, 2015
Los Angeles Dodgers 2 1981, 1988
Miami Marlins 2 1997, 2003
Minnesota Twins 2 1987, 1991
New York Mets 2 1969, 1986
Philadelphia Phillies 2 1980, 2008
Pittsburgh Pirates 2 1971, 1979
Toronto Blue Jays 2 1992, 1993
Arizona Diamondbacks 1 2001
Atlanta Braves 1 1995
Chicago White Sox 1 2005
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 1 2002

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Phillies Announce World Series Trophy Tour Presented by Teva Pharmaceuticals and Comcast SportsNet". PR Newswire Association. January 9, 2009. Retrieved May 18, 2009.
  2. ↑ "Tiffany & Co. Sports Trophies". Tiffany & Co. September 30, 2015. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  3. ↑ Terwilliger, Wayne; Peterson, Nancy and Boehm, Peter (2006). Terwilliger Bunts One. Globe Pequot. p. 233. ISBN 0-7627-4310-7.
  4. ↑ Shea, Kevin (August 22, 2004). "Stanley Cup Journal". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  5. ↑ Vander Velde, Jessica (January 24, 2009). "Vince Lombardi Trophy for Super Bowl winner on display at NFL Experience". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
  6. ↑ "December 2004: Picture This". National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved October 17, 2008.
  7. ↑ Rhodes, Greg; Castellini, Robert (2007). Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame Highlights. Clerisy Press. p. 81. ISBN 1-57860-300-5. Retrieved May 18, 2009.
  8. 1 2 "5 Things You Didn't Know About The World Series Trophy". WBZ-TV. October 31, 2013. Retrieved December 25, 2014.
  9. 1 2 3 Scheiber, Dave (October 22, 2008). "Rays shots". St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved May 18, 2009.
  10. ↑ Zirin, David (August 18, 2004). "The MLB Strike - 25 Years in the Making". Buzzle editorials. Retrieved May 2, 2008.
  11. 1 2 3 "Playoff and World Series Stats and Results". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 19, 2009.
  12. 1 2 "World Series trophy profile". MLB.com. Major League Baseball. December 5, 2008. Retrieved September 30, 2015.

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