paragraph_text: The 1955 World Series matched the Brooklyn Dodgers against the New York Yankees, with the Dodgers winning the Series in seven games to capture their first championship in franchise history. It would be the only Series the Dodgers won in Brooklyn, as the team relocated to Los Angeles after the 1957 season. This was the fifth time in nine years that the Yankees and the Dodgers met in the World Series, with the Yankees having won in 1947, 1949, 1952, and 1953; the Yankees would also win in the 1956 rematch.

paragraph_text: The Yankees upset the heavily - favored Cleveland Indians 3 -- 2 in the ALDS to advance. This is the Yankees' 16th appearance in the ALCS, and their second as a Wild Card. Their last ALCS appearance came in the 2012 American League Championship Series where they got swept by the Detroit Tigers. They had won in eleven of their previous fifteen appearances. This is the sixth straight year in which an AL East team has made it to the ALCS.

paragraph_text: Dustin Luis Pedroia (born August 17, 1983) is an American baseball second baseman for the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball (MLB). He is a four - time All - Star and an American League (AL) Most Valuable Player award winner, who has also received four Gold Glove Awards and a single Silver Slugger award.

paragraph_text: Among second basemen, Ryne Sandberg, who played 15 seasons with the Chicago Cubs in his 16 - year career, owns the most Silver Sluggers with seven wins, including five consecutive from 1988 to 1992. Three other National League players have won the award four times. Jeff Kent (2000 -- 2002, 2005) won three consecutive awards with the San Francisco Giants before adding a fourth with the Los Angeles Dodgers; Craig Biggio, who played his entire career with the Houston Astros, won the award four times as a second baseman (1994 -- 1995, 1997 -- 1998) after winning another as a catcher. Chase Utley followed Kent's last win by capturing four consecutive awards (2006 -- 2009). Three American League players are also four - time winners at second base. Roberto Alomar won the award at the same position with three different teams (Baltimore Orioles, Toronto Blue Jays, Cleveland Indians). Julio Franco won four consecutive awards (1988 -- 1991) with two different teams, and Lou Whitaker won four awards in five years (1983 -- 1985, 1987) with the Detroit Tigers. José Altuve and Dee Gordon are the most recent winners.

paragraph_text: Wayne Gretzky won the award a record nine times during his career, eight consecutively. He has been named MVP more times than any other player in the history of the other three North American major professional leagues (Major League Baseball (MLB), National Basketball Association, and National Football League). Barry Bonds is second, having won the MVP award seven times in the MLB. Gretzky and his Edmonton Oilers teammate Mark Messier are the only players to win the Hart Trophy with more than one team.

paragraph_text: MVP voting takes place before the postseason, but the results are not announced until after the World Series. The BBWAA began by polling three writers in each league city in 1938, reducing that number to two per league city in 1961. The BBWAA does not offer a clear - cut definition of what ``most valuable ''means, instead leaving the judgment to the individual voters.

paragraph_text: The Astros clinched their first division title as a member of the American League West division, and first division title overall since 2001. They also became the first team in Major League history to win three different divisions, the National League West in 1980 and 1986, the National League Central from 1997 -- 1999 and 2001, and now the American League West in 2017. On September 29, the Astros won their 100th game of the season, the second time the Astros finished a season with over 100 wins (the other time was in 1998). They finished 101 -- 61 (with a 21 - game lead in the division), and faced the Red Sox in the second round of the AL playoffs. The Astros defeated the Red Sox three games to one, and advanced to the American League Championship Series against the New York Yankees. The Astros won the ALCS four games to three, and advanced to the World Series to play against the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Astros defeated the Dodgers in the deciding seventh game of the World Series, winning the first championship in franchise history.

paragraph_text: Over his career, Brady has won two league MVP awards, five Super Bowls, and four Super Bowl MVP Awards. A 12 - time Pro Bowler, Brady has also twice led the NFL in passing yardage. As of November 2017, he currently owns the third - highest career passer rating (97.9) among quarterbacks with at least 1,500 career passing attempts. He has thrown for more passing yards and touchdowns than any quarterback in NFL postseason history; he also has won more playoff games than any other quarterback. As a result of his highly successful career, Brady is rated among the greatest quarterbacks of all time.

paragraph_text: José Miguel Cabrera Torres (born April 18, 1983), commonly known as Miguel Cabrera and nicknamed "Miggy", is a Venezuelan professional baseball player. He is the first baseman for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Since his debut in 2003 he has been a two-time American League (AL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) award winner, a four-time AL batting champion, and an 11-time MLB All-Star. He has played at first and third base for most of his major league career, but primarily played left and right field before 2006. He claimed the 17th MLB Triple Crown in 2012, the first to do so in 45 seasons.

paragraph_text: The son of former MLB catcher and longtime Boston scout Joe Stephenson, Jerry Stephenson spent 36 years as a Major League scout with the Dodgers (1974–94) and Red Sox (1995–2009) before his retirement to part-time status after the season. His son Brian Stephenson, a former minor league pitcher, is a regional crosschecker for the Dodgers — the third generation of the family to serve as an MLB scout.

paragraph_text: The Dodgers as a franchise have won six World Series titles and 22 National League pennants. 11 NL MVP award winners have played for the Dodgers, winning a total of 13 MVP Awards, Eight Cy Young Award winners have pitched for the Dodgers, winning a total of twelve Cy Young Awards. The team has also produced 18 Rookie of the Year Award winners, twice as many as the next closest team, including four consecutive from 1979 to 1982 and five consecutive from 1992 to 1996.

paragraph_text: Robinson had an exceptional 10 - year MLB career. He was the recipient of the inaugural MLB Rookie of the Year Award in 1947, was an All - Star for six consecutive seasons from 1949 through 1954, and won the National League Most Valuable Player Award in 1949 -- the first black player so honored. Robinson played in six World Series and contributed to the Dodgers' 1955 World Series championship.

paragraph_text: Mays won two National League (NL) Most Valuable Player (MVP) awards, ended his career with 660 home runs - third at the time of his retirement and currently fifth all - time - and won a record - tying 12 Gold Glove awards beginning in 1957, when the award was introduced.

paragraph_text: The 2017 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2017 season. The 113th edition of the World Series, it was played between October 24 and November 1. The series was a best - of - seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion Los Angeles Dodgers and the American League (AL) champion Houston Astros. It was sponsored by the Internet television service YouTube TV and officially known as the World Series presented by YouTube TV.

paragraph_text: Drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2nd round of the 1984 MLB amateur draft, Scott made his Major League Baseball debut with the San Diego Padres on June 25, 1991. His final game in the major leagues came on July 2, 1997. His first professional season was in 1984, playing for Los Angeles' rookie league Great Falls Dodgers. He played his last professional season in 2001, playing for the New York Yankees' Triple-A Columbus Clippers.

paragraph_text: Willie Mays World Series MVP Award George Springer, 2017 World Series MVP Given for Annual Most Valuable Player of the World Series Country United States Presented by Major League Baseball History First award 1955 Most recent George Springer, 2017 Houston Astros

paragraph_text: As of 2018, NL players have won the award 27 times (including one award shared by two players), and American League (AL) players have won 30 times. Baltimore Orioles players have won the most awards for a single franchise (with six); players from the Cincinnati Reds, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants are tied for the most in the NL with five each. Five players have won the award twice: Willie Mays (1963, 1968), Steve Garvey (1974, 1978), Gary Carter (1981, 1984), Cal Ripken, Jr. (1991, 2001), and Mike Trout (2014, 2015). The award has been shared by multiple players once; Bill Madlock and Jon Matlack shared the award in 1975. Two players have won the award for a game in which their league lost: Brooks Robinson in 1966 and Carl Yastrzemski in 1970. One pair of awardees were father and son (Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr.), and another were brothers (Roberto Alomar and Sandy Alomar, Jr.). Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim became the first player ever to win the MVP award in back - to - back years in the 86 - year history of the MLB All - Star Game when he accomplished the feat in both 2014 and 2015. Alex Bregman of the Houston Astros is the most recent MLB All - Star Game MVP, winning the award in 2018. Only six players have won the MVP award in the only All - Star Game in which they appeared; LaMarr Hoyt, Bo Jackson, J.D. Drew, Melky Cabrera, Eric Hosmer, and Alex Bregman.

paragraph_text: The Dodgers -- Yankees rivalry is a Major League Baseball (MLB) rivalry between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees. The Dodgers are a member club of the National League (NL) West division, and the Yankees are a member club of the American League (AL) East division. The rivalry between the Dodgers and Yankees is one of the most well - known rivalries in Major League Baseball. The two teams have met 11 times in the World Series, more times than any other pair of teams from the American and National Leagues. The initial significance was embodied in the two teams' proximity in New York City, when the Dodgers initially played in Brooklyn. After the Dodgers moved to Los Angeles in 1958, the rivalry retained its significance as the two teams represented the dominant cities on each coast of the United States, and since the 1980s, the two largest cities in the United States. The Dodgers currently lead the regular season series 7 - 6. Although the rivalry's significance arose from the two teams' numerous World Series meetings, the Yankees and Dodgers have not met in the World Series since 1981. They would not play each other in a non-exhibition game until 2004, when they played a 3 - game interleague series. Nevertheless, games between the two teams have become quite popular and draw sellout crowds.

paragraph_text: The Dodgers as a franchise have won six World Series titles and 21 National League pennants. 11 NL MVP award winners have played for the Dodgers, winning a total of 13 MVP Awards, Eight Cy Young Award winners have pitched for the Dodgers, winning a total of twelve Cy Young Awards. The team has also produced 17 Rookie of the Year Award winners, including four consecutive from 1979 to 1982 and five consecutive from 1992 to 1996.

paragraph_text: Curtis Granderson Granderson with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2018 Toronto Blue Jays -- No. 18 Outfielder Born: (1981 - 03 - 16) March 16, 1981 (age 37) Blue Island, Illinois Bats: Left Throws: Right MLB debut September 13, 2004, for the Detroit Tigers MLB statistics (through July 7, 2018) Batting average. 252 Hits 1,711 Home runs 328 Runs batted in 893 Runs 1,145 Stolen bases 152 Teams Detroit Tigers (2004 -- 2009) New York Yankees (2010 -- 2013) New York Mets (2014 -- 2017) Los Angeles Dodgers (2017) Toronto Blue Jays (2018 -- present) Career highlights and awards 3 × All - Star (2009, 2011, 2012) Silver Slugger Award (2011) AL RBI leader (2011) Roberto Clemente Award (2016) 2 × Marvin Miller Man of the Year Award (2009, 2016)

Question: When was the last time the team that won the American League East in 2017 and the Dodgers met in the championship event that precedes the MLB MVP award?
Answer: 1981