ATLANTA — The city of Atlanta is knee deep in the World Series. Now as he prepares to take the mound for the Atlanta Braves, all eyes are on New York native Ian Theodore Anderson.
Anderson has had an explosively successful career in Major League Baseball so far. After all, the 23-year-old from Rexford, New York debuted within the major leagues just 14 months before the time of this writing. The third overall pick in the 2016 MLB draft, Anderson is now the starting pitcher in Game 3 of the World Series.
The Atlanta Braves and the Houston Astros are tied 1-1. With 22 years on the clock since the Atlanta Braves’ last World Series outing, the pressure is on.
Atlanta’s own Truist Park will be hosting Game 3 of the World Series Friday Oct. 29 at 8:09 p.m. ET.
Historically, as reported by MLB, tie breaking winners of Game 3 go on to win the World Series 65% of the time. Once more with feeling, the pressure is on. Anderson’s matchup against fellow rookie starter Luis Garcia has since become a topic of discussion.
Houston Astros pitcher Luis Garcia will be making his first Fall Classic appearance on Friday. As Garcia earned the Astros a ticket to the World Series by pitching over five scoreless innings in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series, the Venezuela native is sharing the spotlight with Ian Anderson Friday night. As reported by the MLB, this will be the eighth time that rookie starters have been matched up in World Series history.
The Atlanta Braves’ lineup is nothing if not star studded. First basemen Freddie Freeman is the 2020 National League Most Valuable Player, and outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. was putting on a brutalizing offense at the plate before his post season ending injury. That being said, the team has won six of the seven postseason games that Anderson has started in. As Game 1 starter Charlie Morton is out of the World Series, having suffered a fractured right fibula, Ian Anderson’s place in the spotlight has only grown.
Still, all pitchers must start somewhere. Anderson first made his mark at Shenendehowa High School in Clifton Park, New York. The powerful right-hander muscled his way to the third overall pick of the 2016 MLB draft, marking only the sixth time a high school right handed pitcher has done so.
That, however, is all in the past. Now all eyes are on Truist Park, down at the mound, looking hopeful towards Ian Anderson as the Atlanta Braves fight for their first World Series win since 1995.