Fittingly, Game 1 of the World Series was the first of the 2023 postseason that needed extra innings to decide. Powered by two dramatic home runs late, including the walk-off deep fly from the red-hot Adolis Garcia, the Texas Rangers came from behind to top the Arizona Diamondbacks, 6-5.
Here are three takeaways from a wild one in Arlington.
Walk-off HR helped Garcia make postseason history
Garcia’s 11th-inning walk-off home run not only lifted the Rangers to a critical Game 1 victory, but it also helped the sharp-hitting outfielder make postseason history. With two RBI on the night, Garcia has 22 for the playoffs, which sets a new MLB mark.
In the first inning, Garcia tied the record held by David Freese (2011), singling home OF Evan Carter to help give the Rangers an early 2-0 advantage.
The ALCS MVP has gone deep in five straight postseason games and now trails only Daniel Murphy (6, 2015) for the longest streak in baseball history. Garcia also extended his postseason RBI streak to seven games, knocking in 17 runs over that stretch.
Garcia is only the second player to hit a walk-off home run in their World Series debut, joining Dusty Rhodes (1954), per OptaStats.