REGIONAL #21:  This was an interesting distribution of contestants, with four terrible squads in the top half of the bracket, and four good teams in the bottom half.  Among the latter were the 1980 Phils, NL pennant winners and World Series champs despite being ranked according to ELO numbers as only the 7th best team in the majors that season.  Accordingly, they weren’t even ranked as regional favorite despite being the only pennant winner; that honor went to the 1982 Dodgers, who won 88 games to finish second in the NL West.

The initial first round matchup was between the first-year expansion 1961 Angels, and a seemingly worse 1979 Blue Jays team who lost 109 games and had the distinction of being ranked as one of the 25 worst teams of all time.   The 91-loss Angels looked like a dynasty by comparison, and Ryne Duren shackles the Jays on four hits while Steve Bilko contributes a homer and 5 RBI en route to a 7-2 win.  In another matchup between two bad teams, the recently expanded 1970 Expos dispatched the 1978 Braves, who had no expansion excuses in losing 93 games; the Expos relied on homers from a couple of Rons–Brand and Fairly–in the 7-5 win.  In an all-Dodgers first round game, the 1972 Dodgers and Don Sutton squeaked by the bracket favorite 1982 Dodgers in a 4-3 win, overcoming two solo homers by Pedro Guerrero to do so.  Finally, the pennant-winning 1980 Phillies make a rapid exit when the 1970 Yankees jump out to a quick lead on a first inning Jake Gibbs 2-run homer and Fritz Peterson hangs on to the lead as the Yanks win 4-2.  

The first semifinal game is a tight one as the 1961 Angels, led by their senior citizens like Ted Kluszewski and Earl Averill, jump to a 5-0 lead in the first inning against Steve Renko and the 1970 Expos.  However, the Expos chip away at Angels starter Eli Grba until they break out in the bottom of the 7th when a pair of Bobs, Bailey and Wine, combine for three runs and the Expos tie up the game 6-6.  The Angels summon reliever Tom Morgan to try to keep the game in reach, but C John Bateman raps an RBI single in the 8th and the Angels keep coming up empty against Renko, who only allows three hits after his ill-fated 1st inning, and the Expos head to the finals with a 7-6 come from behind win.  The second semifinal is not as close, as Claude Osteen holds the 1970 Yankees to only five hits, while the Yanks manage to commit five error and the 1972 Dodgers waltz to the finals with a 4-1 win, led by a 2-run Steve Garvey homer. 

That sets up a final matching the #3 seeded 1972 Dodgers against the #7 seed 1970 Expos, who most felt only made the finals courtesy of one of the weakest draws in the tournament thus far.  However, the Expos surprise the late-arriving Dodger Stadium crowd by jumping out to a quick lead on a 2-run homer in the top of the first from Bob Bailey.  However, big hits from Bill Buckner and Willie Davis give the Dodgers a 4-3 lead in the 4th, chasing Bill Stoneman, but the onslaught continues and the Dodgers walk away with an 8-3 win and the regional title.