Where The Hell Did Addison Barger Come From?

Addison Barger... a 25-year-old Popeye-armed, handsome outfielder, is seemingly gifted by the baseball gods. Last night, in game one of the World Series between the Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers, Barger hit a grand slam in the sixth inning and things were Blown Wide Open (shout out to Big Wreck, who were great at the Phoenix Thursday night).

Barger isn't only the first Blue Jay to hit a grand slam in a World Series game, but he's the first player ever to hit a pinch-hit grand slam in the World Series. 1,642 pinch-hitters later!

But where did he come from? Barger started the 2025 season in Buffalo, playing for the AAA Bisons. He got into 69 MLB games for the Jays (nice!) in 2024, his rookie season, and last night he hit his first career grand slam off Dodgers pitcher Anthony Banda.

He was pinch-hitting for Davis Schneider, who revealed after the game that Barger slept on his couch the previous night.

There's something happening here. I can't explain it, but it's a beautiful thing.