ARLINGTON, Texas — Evan Carter, the Texas Rangers' star rookie outfielder, stepped to the plate Friday night in Game 1 of the World Series, doing something no one else in baseball has done in 71 years.
Batting third in the Rangers' lineup, Carter, at 21 years and 59 days old, became the youngest player to bat third in a World Series Game 1 since Mickey Mantle in 1952.
But Carter wasn't just there for the pomp and circumstance.
Instead, he drilled a double to the right-centerfield gap and scored Corey Seager from first base, giving the Rangers a 1-0 lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Adolis Garcia followed with a single to score Carter from second base, and the Rangers led 2-0 early.
Carter's double extended his postseason on-base streak to 13 games, the first 13 postseason games he's ever played.
Carter has collected at least one hit in 12 of the 13 games, and he reached on a walk in the other.
Carter after his first-inning double was hitting .325 in the postseason with a .460 on-base percentage and eight extra-base hits; seven doubles and a homer.
Carter, who entered 2023 as the Rangers' top minor-league prospect, was called up to the majors in September, just shortly after he turned 21. He impressed the club immediately, batting .306 with five homers and 12 RBI over the Rangers' final 23 games.
Carter also provided an immediate defensive upgrade in left-field for the Rangers.
Carter's early success has also been a scouting victory for the Rangers, who drafted him 50th overall in 2020. Carter, who was a high school player in Elizabethton, Tennessee, was committed to play college ball at Duke, but he wasn't considered a top 50 or even top 100 prospect at the time.
But he quickly rose through the ranks of the Rangers' farm system, starting in Double-A Frisco this year before getting promoted to Triple-A Round Rock, and then to Arlington.
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