As the sun rises over the United States of America, many of us have questions regarding the future. Who will lead us into a post-COVID World? When will my job come back? Can I see my family on Thanksgiving? The simplest of questions all coming back to the same answer: We don’t know.

One thing we do know is who will be representing the American League in the World Series.

It took all seven games of the ALCS to decide a winner but the Tampa Bay Rays have advanced to the World Series, defeating the Houston Astros 4-2, in a decisive Game 7.

It seemed early on that the Rays had the upper-hand in the series, jumping out to a 3-0 lead, outscoring the former World Series champs 11-5 in the process. The Rays bats and defense bailed out some surprisingly average Rays starting pitching, but as their Ace Tyler Glasnow took the mound to seal the deal and send them to the World Series, Houston woke up.

As Houston climbed back into the series, taking each game at a time, the Astros bats finally broke out, much to the chagrin of every non-Astros fan. The offensive explosion that came from Houston, coupled with their continued excellence on the mound, was a recipe for success. Averaging five runs a game, the Astros pulled themselves even, forcing a winner-take-all Game 7.

But now, an American League Champion has emerged.

Almost a decade before that game, the Joe Maddon managed Rays advanced to the 2008 World Series, by defeating the Red Sox 3-1. After taking the defending World Champs the distance in the ALCS, the Rays couldn’t quite get past the Phillies, dropping the series in five games.

And now, after a hard-fought win in the League Championship, the Tampa Bay Rays will return to the World Series for the first time in over a decade. How will their fare against the winner of Braves/Dodgers NLCS? Only time will tell. But tonight? They are celebrating in Tampa Bay.