When Will Smith of the Dodgers faced Will Smith of the Braves, the internet was the big winner.
The Will Smith-on-Will Smith matchup the baseball world was waiting for appeared during Game 5 of the NLCS, and it was more glorious than you could have imagined.
When the Los Angeles Dodgers catcher named Will Smith lined up at the plate to face the Atlanta Braves reliever named Will Smith, Smith came out on top.
The one in blue, for the record.
Will Smith’s three-run home run on Will Smith gave the Dodgers new life
Twitter, of course, had a field day with the at-bat. The name may not be super uncommon, but it’s not every day a pop culture crossover like this happens.
As far as records can show it, it was the first time a pitcher and batter with the same name faced each other in the postseason. Smith should hold onto the title of the only batter to hit a home run on a pitcher with the same name for quite a while.
Aside from the jokes, the hit was a huge moment for the Dodgers.
They fell behind the Braves 2-1 in an elimination game when Smith came to the plate with two outs and two men on. With the series at 3-1 in Atlanta’s favor, there would be no coming back from a loss on Friday night.
Smith, the batter, had two hits and two RBIs in his 16 at-bats against the Braves before Friday. The home run was his first ever in the postseason.
As for Smith, the pitcher, he’s not having the greatest season for the Braves. His regular-season ERA was 4.50 in 18 appearances. His performance in the postseason had been better with no runs given up in the five previous outings.