The Atlanta Braves are World Series champions for the first time since 1995, but it wasn't easy. This team had to overcome numerous hurdles in order to be crowned the kings of baseball. Not only did they take down the mighty Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers along the way, but the Braves truly faced adversity the entire year.

First, their ace Mike Soroka suffered a setback, reinjuring his Achilles. That was a blow in itself, but Atlanta would then cringe in July when superstar Ronald Acuna Jr tore his ACL running down the first baseline. At that point, absolutely nobody could've predicted this team would be champs on November 3rd.

But, other players stepped up. The Braves had five guys with 20+ homers, and three with more than 30 in Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies, and Freddie Freeman. Don't forget, Atlanta was only a 88-73 team during the regular season and sat at .500 for a whole four months. Frankly, the NL East was miserable which is part of the reason they easily won their division. But, it didn't matter. The Braves came ready to prove a point in October after blowing a 3-1 series lead against the Dodgers in the 2020 NLCS.

The resiliency of this squad is unmatched. Credit also needs to be given to GM Alex Anthopoulos, who went out and made some key moves at the trade deadline which paid off big-time in the playoffs. Eddie Rosario and Jorge Soler were brought in and proved to be game-changers. Rosario made history in the championship series, hitting .560 in six games with three long balls. As for Soler, he was the star of the show in the Fall Classic, winning WS MVP with three home runs and the series-clinching bomb in Game 6 on Tuesday night that literally left the ballpark in Houston.

Also, we can't forget the Braves lost their ace, Charlie Morton, in Game 1 after breaking his leg from a line drive. Brian Snitker's squad didn't waver though, receiving valiant efforts from Ian Anderson and their entire bullpen who kept a potent Astros offense at bay.

The Braves were handed so many obstacles in 2021. But their character shined through. It's crazy to think they won it all without one of the best players in the game in Acuna Jr, but Atlanta did it.

What a story.