Former Belmont University baseball All-American
Matt Beaty will take part in the 2020 World Series as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Dodgers will face American League Champion, the Tampa Bay Rays, with Game 1 of the World Series set for Tuesday night from Arlington, Texas.
During the National League Championship Series against the Atlanta Braves, Beaty reached base in all three plate appearances, including becoming the first player in baseball history to reach base via hit by pitch twice in the same game as a non-starter.
Beaty is just the second Belmont alumnus to appear on a World Series roster, joining Dwight Bernard who played for the Milwaukee Brewers in the 1982 World Series against St. Louis.
Beaty is on the Dodgers' playoff roster for the second consecutive season.
The Dresden, Tenn. native recorded 11 hits in the 2020 season with the Dodgers, with two home runs and five runs batted in. Beaty has a .375 career postseason batting average.
On August 16, Beaty recorded a season-best in runs, hits and total bases. He went 3-for-4 at the plate with six total bases and scored two runs, hitting his second home run and RBI of the season to help the Dodgers defeat the Los Angeles Angels 8-3. His three-hit performance was the fourth time in his Major League career where he collected at least three hits.
After being selected by the Dodgers in the 12th round of the 2015 MLB Draft, Beaty became an MiLB.com Organization All-Star and earned the Texas League Player of the Year as a member of the Tulsa Drillers.
Following his move to the Triple-A level with the Oklahoma City Dodgers, Beaty became the first Belmont player to play in a Major League Baseball game since Bernard in 1978 when he made his Major League debut on April 30, 2019. Beaty finished his rookie season with a .265 batting average, adding nine home runs and 46 RBIs to help the Dodgers to the National League West Division Title.
Beaty made the 25-man postseason roster, seeing action in all but one game in the National League Division Series against the eventual World Series champion Washington Nationals.
At Belmont, Beaty started his collegiate career by earning a spot on the All-Atlantic Sun Freshman Team while helping the Bruins to its second NCAA Regional Appearance in program history in 2012. Holding a .352 batting average as a junior in 2014, Beaty capped off his collegiate career with All-OVC First Team honors as a senior in 2015.
His .382 batting average with 12 home runs and 76 RBIs in 2015 also earned him a spot on the Second Team for the NCBWA and Louisville Slugger All-American teams, collecting ABCA All-South Region Second Team honors in the process.
Beaty currently holds top 10 spots in hits, doubles, triples, home runs, at-bats, RBIs and walks in the Belmont Baseball career record book.