ARLINGTON -- Walking off the field during batting practice for Game 2 of the World Series on Saturday, Alek Thomas received an invite from David Ortiz to the set of the "MLB on FOX" pregame show. Following a chat with Thomas and Thomas' teammate Tommy Pham, the Hall of Famer pulled out custom T-shirts that read “MY DAWG” in bold red letters.
“You my dawg,” Ortiz told Thomas. “And when I consider you my dawg, this is what I do for my people. I got a present for y’all. My dawgs!”
It was a stamp of approval from a longtime postseason legend in Ortiz, one of Thomas’ idols growing up. A few hours later, the 23-year-old D-backs outfielder continued what has been a successful October of his own, with his offensive contributions helping Arizona to a 9-1 win over the Rangers at Globe Life Field that sent them back home with the Series even.
Thomas collected a pair of hits, including a booming 99.1 mph double to lead off the seventh that set the table for a two-run frame that provided the D-backs some important insurance runs at the time before they broke it open over the final two innings.
Much has been made about the other dynamic hitters in Arizona’s lineup, and there are a lot of them, starting with Ketel Marte, Corbin Carroll and Gabriel Moreno. But Thomas is earning the right to be mentioned on that same level. Through 14 postseason contests, Thomas is tied for the team lead with four home runs, while his .871 OPS ranks second on the D-backs behind Marte, who continued his red-hot run by extending his postseason hitting streak to an MLB-record 18 games.
“Being able to say that you not only played in the World Series but made an impact has been pretty cool,” Thomas said. “It’s a good feeling being able to help the team out. It’s definitely a boost of confidence.”
Considering the Rangers were sending left-hander Jordan Montgomery to the mound for Game 2, D-backs manager Torey Lovullo was inevitably asked pregame to explain the decision to include the lefty-swinging Thomas in the starting lineup.
It was a fair question. Thomas entered the night 11-for-82 (.134) against left-handers this season -- playoffs included -- and he didn’t start any of Arizona’s three games against left-handed starters in the National League Championship Series.
For one, much of Arizona’s success this year has come on the strength of its defense. Lovullo did not want to lose out on having a Gold Glove finalist in Thomas patrolling center field. But Thomas had also faced Montgomery earlier this season and felt like he saw the ball well against him, going 1-for-4.
“I started against Montgomery two times before and I had a feeling that maybe I would start again,” Thomas said. “I saw my name in there and was like, ‘Let’s go.’ I was happy about that.”
The narrative on Thomas entering this postseason was that he was a glove-first outfielder. After all, hitting woes led to a demotion back in May to Triple-A Reno, where he spent a whole month adjusting his stance to combat the struggles, particularly against left-handed pitching. Those improvements have shown up all of October, continuing on Saturday night with his two hits off Montgomery.
Oh, and the stellar defense? That was also on display in the ninth when he raced back with ease to track down a well-struck ball by Corey Seager that carried an expected batting average of .520.
“It’s always tough to go up and down. I can’t speak highly enough about how he handled it,” D-backs hitting coach Joe Mather said of Thomas’ May demotion. “He’s a young hitter, so it’s not strange that there were hurdles. Since he’s been back up, he’s been able to get over them.”
As the World Series now shifts back to Chase Field for the next three games, expect to see more of Thomas in the D-backs’ starting lineup, starting with a likely Game 3 matchup against right-hander Max Scherzer.
“I’m feeling good up there, and I’m just going to keep on riding it out,” Thomas said. “Hopefully, I can make things happen.”