Former Washington Nationals Superstar Shining Bright on Biggest Stage
The Washington Nationals are only five years removed from winning the first World Series Championship in their franchise's history.
Almost all of the members of that team are gone, either through free agency, trades, or retirement, but the memory remains as the team toils through yet another rebuild.
A key member of that World Series team finds himself right back in the thick of the Fall Classic, superstar outfielder Juan Soto.
Soto, 25, debuted with the Nationals at the ripe age of 19, quickly becoming one of the biggest stars in the sport on the back of his phenomenal eye for the zone and the polarizing "Soto Shuffle."
Six years later the superstar is on the brink of free agency, and he has not even reached his prime yet.
He has helped lead the New York Yankees back to the World Series for the first time since they won it all back in 2009 against the Philadelphia Phillies, and his spectacular offense has continued to shine throughout this postseason.
Through 11 games this October, Soto is batting .350/.460/.700 with six extra-base hits, nine walks, and seven strikeouts across 50 plate appearances.
If you are unaware of Soto's game, having more walks than strikeouts is a normal occurrence for him, and not just the product of a small sample size.
He has been a vital piece of the Yankees' offense through the first two games of the World Series as well, despite the team losing both, as he has hit .429/.556/.857 with one extra-base hit (a home run), two walks, and no strikeouts in nine plate appearances.
Soto has done everything that he is capable of doing to help New York win that coveted 28th World Series Championship, but baseball is the ultimate team sport and one man alone can not carry his entire team to victory.
Soto is making the case for himself to be the highest-paid player in the history of MLB (not named Shohei Ohtani) in free agency this off-season, and he has done more than enough to claim that title throughout his career, this regular season, and this run in October.
This is no random occurrence either, as Soto has batted .285/.381/.550 throughout his career in the postseason, with 18 extra-base hits, and 30 RBI.
Soto is one of, if not the best all-around hitter in the game today, and after shining bright on the biggest stage in baseball yet again, he will most definitely be paid that way in the coming offseason.
