Philadelphia's J.T. Realmuto pointed heavenward while touching home plate after hitting the go-ahead home run during Game 1 of the World Series and then gave thanks to the Lord above during a nationally televised post-game interview.
Realmuto's 10th-inning solo homer helped propel the Phillies to a 6-5 win over Houston on Friday and completed a stunning comeback that saw the Astros jump out to a 5-0 lead. Realmuto, the team's catcher, finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs.
A SOLO HOME RUN TO LEAD OFF THE 10TH 🔥
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) October 29, 2022
J.T. Realmuto drove in the game-tying runs. Now, he gives the Phillies the lead in extras.
🎥 @MLB pic.twitter.com/NvDfyPTIUZ
Game 3 in the series is Monday night in Philadelphia on Fox. The series is tied 1-1.
"I'm just so thankful for this opportunity," Realmuto said during a post-game interview on Fox. "I thank God for being able to come out here and play this wonderful game for a living. I just can't say enough about my teammates tonight. They were incredible. The bullpen was amazing. The way we fought back in that game after being down five to nothing – that's just a Phillies win right there."
Realmuto's home run on a 3-2 count with no outs barely cleared the right-field wall, silencing a vocal crowd at Houston's Minute Maid Park. He finished 1-for-4 in the Phillies' 5-2 loss in Saturday's Game 2.
"All I was trying to do was get on base," he said of the home run. "I was trying to see some pitches early on. Maybe he'd walk me. But it got to a 3-2 count, got a good pitch to hit. Luckily, I was able to put a good swing on it."
Realmuto, a 31-year-old MLB veteran, often references his Christian faith.
His Twitter bio reads, "Following Jesus Christ and chasing the dream!"
"It's extremely important to me in life to know that the first thing I am … before I'm a father, before I'm a baseball player, the No. 1 thing I am is a follower of Christ," he said in 2020 on the Faith on the Field Show podcast.
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Michael Reaves/Staff
Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chronicle, the Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.
