The Atlanta Braves were crowned World Series champions after winning the Fall Classic over the Houston Astros in six games, and outfielder Jorge Soler is taking home an extra piece of hardware after he was named World Series MVP.
To understand why Soler — who hit second as the designated hitter at Minute Maid Park — earned the honor, just take a look at the damage he did to the home run ball he launched to put the Braves on board in the third inning:
StatCast projected the blast — which came off of an 83.4 mph cutter from Luis Garcia — traveled 446 feet and flew off of the bat at 109.6 mph. It was a last-chance effort in the inning, too, as Soler had a full count and there were two outs. But rather than back down, he ended up giving Atlanta a 3-0 advantage.
Of course, Soler did much more than launch one home run — after all, he wasn’t named Game 6 MVP.
Over the course of the series, he slashed .300/.391/.800 with three home runs, six RBIs and scored six runs. All three of his home runs gave the Braves the lead, making him the sixth player in MLB history to have that many go-ahead dingers in the World Series.
It’s hard to argue all of with that.
