Seager named World Series MVP, becomes 4th player to win it twice

PHOENIX -- As a reward for helping the Rangers claim their first World Series title, Corey Seager earned his second Willie Mays World Series Most Valuable Player Award presented by Chevrolet.

• All-time World Series MVP Award winners

Seager, who also won the honor with the Dodgers in 2020, finds himself in exclusive company after the Rangers finished off the D-backs with a 5-0 win in Game 5 of the World Series on Wednesday night at Chase Field.

Seager is just the fourth player to win multiple World Series MVP Awards, joining Hall of Famers Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson and Reggie Jackson. Only Seager and Jackson -- who won the 1973 honor with the A's and the '77 award with the Yankees -- accomplished the feat with different teams.

“Yeah, I mean, I don't think you can ever fathom that,” Seager said. “It's a pretty special group to be part of.”

But in typical Seager fashion, he mostly deflected the praise.

“It truly is incredible, but it's not just me, man,” Seager said. “What this team did and how we competed and all the guys in there rallying, we don't really have one leader.”

Seager homered in three of the five games in the 2023 Fall Classic. He went 6-for-21 (.286) with three home runs, one double, three walks, six RBIs and six runs scored.

“I don't know what else to say about the man; he's just incredible,” said Rangers manager Bruce Bochy. “He's a guy you want up there, obviously.”

Added teammate Travis Jankowski: "It's insane. He's just the best player on the planet.”

It all started with Seager’s series-altering smash in Game 1. Trailing by two in the bottom of the ninth, Seager clubbed a game-tying two-run homer that sent the Globe Life Field crowd into a frenzy. Adolis García walked it off two innings later.

After Texas dropped Game 2, Seager got the club back on track with a clutch two-out, two-run homer in the third inning of Game 3 at Chase Field. That proved to be the decisive moment in a 3-1 victory.

One night later, Seager put the stamp on a five-run second inning when he blasted another two-out, two-run shot to help the Rangers seize control en route to an 11-7 win in Game 4.

Then, with the Rangers being no-hit through six innings in Game 5, Seager poked a ball through the left side for a leadoff single in the seventh. He scored what proved to be the game-winning run on Mitch Garver's single.

“The biggest takeaway for me is just how calm and how present he is at all times, no matter if we're getting beat really bad or we're up a lot,” rookie Evan Carter said after Game 3. “Just how calm and how he is where his feet are. I really envy that. I really try to emulate that in my own game.”

This, obviously, is not the first time we've seen Seager shine on the national stage.

Along with his two World Series MVP Awards, Seager was also named the MVP of the 2020 National League Championship Series. Of course, the '20 NLCS and World Series MVP Awards came as a member of the Dodgers -- though both series were played at Globe Life Field in a bubble due to the coronavirus pandemic.

"I played with him in L.A., and I saw how special he was,” said Rangers starter Max Scherzer, who spent the 2021 stretch run with the Dodgers. “He's just the freakin' Terminator out there, demolishing balls. Now, I come here and see him doing the same thing, but somehow better. He just goes out and does MVP stuff every day."

Following that 2021 season, Seager signed a 10-year, $325 million deal with the Rangers. His departure from the NL West was a welcome sight for D-backs manager Torey Lovullo, against whose club Seager hit .301 with 42 extra-base hits, 42 RBIs and a .915 OPS in 80 games from 2015-21.

"I actually sent Seager a limousine to take him to the airport and bring him to Texas when I heard he was going," Lovullo said prior to Game 5. "I wanted him out of the NL West so bad."

Wait, really?

"No, of course not," Lovullo said. "But I was thinking about it. I'll get you the nicest ride to get on that plane to get out of here and go to Texas."

• Players with best postseason performances

Not only did Rangers fans welcome his arrival with open arms, but it turns out Seager was far from done being a thorn in the D-backs' side.

With his latest Fall Classic heroics, Seager is now tied with Albert Pujols, George Springer and Alex Bregman for sixth on the all-time postseason home run list with 19.

Seager also sits one ahead of "Mr. October," the only other position player with multiple World Series MVP Awards. That said, 10 of Jackson's 18 postseason homers came in the Fall Classic, while Seager has hit six of his 19 on the game's biggest stage.

With his latest haul, Seager’s list of career accolades now includes two World Series titles, two World Series MVP Awards, the 2020 NLCS MVP Award, the 2016 NL Rookie of the Year Award, two Silver Sluggers and four All-Star appearances.

Just 29 years old, Seager has eight years remaining on his current deal to add to his -- and the Rangers’ -- trophy case.

“This is nothing other than winning games,” Seager said. “It doesn't matter who the guy is, how you do it. When it comes down to the World Series, it's about winning four games. And that's what we did.”