Corey Seager named 2023 World Series MVP after heroic Fall Classic performance

November 2, 2023

Texas Rangers veteran shortstop Corey Seager has been named the 2023 World Series after he helped lead his team over the Arizona Diamondbacks in five games.

The Rangers took down the D-Backs in Game 5 on Tuesday night, 5-0, where Arizona’s starter Zac Gallen had a no-hitter going through six innings.

But who else to break it up than Seager in the top of the seventh inning, hitting a single that would lead to a Mitch Garver RBI single to score him for the first run of the game for either team.

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Corey Seager #5 of the Texas Rangers reacts after hitting a home run in the ninth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks during Game One of the World Series at Globe Life Field on October 27, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

It’s how Seager has been all series long: Getting hits in the right moments to elevate his team.

That began in the bottom of the ninth with one out and a runner on base in Game 1 back in Texas. The Rangers were down 5-3, and Seager absolutely launched a pitch from Diamondbacks closer Paul Sewald into the right field seats to tie the game.

RANGERS WIN WORLD SERIES FOR FIRST TIME IN FRANCHISE HISTORY

Adolis García would walk it off with a homer of his own in the 11th, giving Texas its first win on the road to their first World Series title in franchise history.

Corey Seager #5 of the Texas Rangers runs to third base in the seventh inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks during Game Five of the World Series at Chase Field on November 01, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Harry How/Getty Images)

But Seager has been in this position before, winning it all with the Los Angeles Dodgers during the shortened 2020 season. He was named World Series MVP then, hitting .400/.556/.700 in the six-game series with two homers and five RBI.

In this series, Seager went 6-for-21 with all of his hits at one point being home runs, totaling three over the five games. He had six runs scored and six RBI as well. Seager went 2-for-4 with a walk and a run scored in the Game 5 victory.

Seager’s World Series MVP trophy also puts him next to one of the players synonymous with postseason baseball in MLB history. The only two-time World Series MVP position player was Reggie Jackson, famously known as “Mr. October,” who secured it in 1973 with the Oakland Athletics and the 1977 New York Yankees.

Corey Seager #5 of the Texas Rangers celebrates after hitting a home run in the ninth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks during Game One of the World Series at Globe Life Field on October 27, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Seager’s just the fourth player ever to win two World Series MVP trophies. Pitchers Sandy Koufax and Bob Gison have multiple MVP trophies for the Fall Classic as well.

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For the entire postseason, beginning with the Rangers’ victory over the Tampa Bay Rays up to now, Seager had a .318 average with a .451 on-base percentage and 1.133 OPS along with six home runs, 18 runs scored 12 RBI in 66 at-bats.

Scott Thompson is a sports writer for Fox News Digital.

Sam Bankman-Fried ‘doubled down’ by buying Binance’s stake in FTX — US prosecutors

Reporters News Wire

November 2, 2023

Federal prosecutors claimed Sam “SBF” Bankman-Fried “doubled down” on using customers’ funds when he purchased Binance’s $2 billion stake in FTX in 2021. According to United States government attorneys, Bankman-Fried paid for the buyout with funds from FTX customers.

The prosecution is delivering its closing arguments on Nov. 1 at the Southern District Court of New York, where Bankman-Fried’s trial has been taking place since Oct. 3. Jurors in the case reportedly heard from Assistant U.S. Attorney Nicolas Roos:

“The defendant had a choice: Come clear or double down? He doubled down. Here’s when he doubled down. He used customer money to buy back FTX’s stock from Binance. […] It cost $2 billion.”

In 2019, Binance invested in FTX through a strategic partnership. Two years later, in 2021, Bankman-Fried sought to buy back FTX’s shares, paying its competitor $2.1 billion in Binance’s BUSD stablecoin and FTX Token (FTT).

Additionally, prosecutors went through other payments and purchases allegedly made by FTX with customer funds, including millions of dollars in political donations, luxury real estate in the Bahamas, and venture capital investments.

“He spends on K5 — here is the payment document, signed by the defendant. Nishad Singh said it was a bad idea. The guy who ran K5 hung around with celebrities,” Roos said in reference to K5 Ventures, a venture capital fund focused on early-stage startups.

K5 entities received $700 million in investment from FTX in 2022. Alameda Research, FTX’s sister company, also invested $300 million in K5 Global. According to prosecutors, FTX’s customer deposits were the source of the funds. Roos continued:

“The defendant knows Alameda can’t repay the debt. Nishad sees the giant hole and freaks out. The defendant, not so much. He has come to terms with it. He wanted to use the money. He did use the money. He had the arrogance to think he’d get away with it.”

Bankman-Fried’s defense has argued that FTX’s own funds — whose revenue swelled from $89 million in 2020 to $1.02 billion in 2021 — were used for venture investments, political contributions and property purchases. According to his defense team, the $8 billion gap between FTX and Alameda Research was caused by a lack of risk management and trading mistakes by Alameda.

Bankman-Fried faces seven counts of fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud and could spend up to 115 years in prison if found guilty. The defense is expected to begin its closing arguments on Nov. 1, just before the jury renders its final verdict.

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