George Springer swings his way into the history books

George Springer is at it again for the defending World Series champion Houston Astros.

The 2017 World Series Most Valuable Player got the 2018 postseason started where he left off in the previous Fall Classic, showcasing the home run swing that propelled the Astros over the Dodgers last year.

With the Astros nursing a 2-0 lead in Game 1 of the Division Series against the AL Central champion Cleveland Indians on Friday afternoon, Springer led off the bottom of the fifth inning with a towering home run off the left-center field facade at Minute Maid Park.

With that shot, the All-Star slugger with Puerto Rican and Panamanian roots became only the third player in baseball history to hit a home run in five consecutive playoff games. He joins a short list that includes his former Puerto Rican teammate Carlos Beltrán, who accomplished the feat in 2004 during his first of two productive stints with the Astros.

The Mets’ Daniel Murphy set the record for consecutive postseason games with home runs in 2015 with six.

Springer started his impressive home run streak by becoming the first player in history to homer in four consecutive World Series games last year when he hit five to tie Reggie Jackson (1977) and Chase Utley (2009) for the most homers in a Fall Classic.

The leadoff home run in the fifth inning also made Springer the Astros’ all-time leader in postseason extra-base hits; with his 15th, Springer passed Lance Berkman in the Houston history books.

Springer, 29, set the bar quite high last year when he set a World Series record for extra-base hits with eight and total bases with 29 to help the Astros win their first World Series title.

Featured Image: Loren Elliott / Major League Baseball