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The Red Sox finished off the ALCS on Thursday night, winning their fourth in a row to close out the series in a run that included three wins in three days on the road. As was the case for their entire run through the 2018 season, this series victory was a total team effort. They got huge performances from every corner of their roster, and every win featured multiple heroes. There was one player to step up night in and night out, however, and he was just awarded with the ALCS MVP.
Even before this game starter, everyone was pretty sure that Jackie Bradley Jr. was going to win this award if they were able to close out the victory on Thursday. They were, and they did. Bradley didn’t do anything particularly great in this game, though he did draw a big walk to load the bases in the second inning. He played a huge role in the first three wins, however. In Game 2, he had a massive bases-clearing double to catapult Boston to victory. In Game 3, he had the grand slam that broke the game open and allowed the Red Sox to cruise through the final two innings. Then, in Game 4, he had the go-ahead two-run homer. Pretty good for a guy who some wanted to see traded just a few months ago.