Just Who Is This Michael Wacha Guy?

Thursday night, the St. Louis Cardinals evened the 2013 World Series at 1-1, with a 4-2 victory over the Red Sox. The winning pitcher for the Cardinals was rookie sensation Michael Wacha. The 22-year-old has been lights out in the postseason, tallying a 4-0 record, with a 1.00 ERA. Wacha became only the fourth rookie to win a postseason MVP award, after defeating Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw twice in the NLCS.

During the regular season, Wacha appeared in 15 games, posting a 4-1 record, with an outstanding 2.78 ERA.

Prior to the 2013 playoffs, Wacha was not very well known anywhere outside of St. Louis. With this in mind, here is a quick snapshot of exactly where this phenom came from.

Wacha was born in Iowa City, Iowa, but would later attend high school in Texarkana, Texas, where he starred at both baseball and basketball. In addition to his athletic accomplishments, the righty was a member of the National Honor Society.

Wacha was a third team All-American pitcher at Texas A&M and was drafted by the Cardinals with the 19th pick of the 2012 draft. Ironically, the 19th selection originally belonged to the Angels, but was given to St. Louis as compensation for Albert Pujols' departure via free agency.

The impact that Wacha has made during the playoffs should make him a household name for years to come, and not just within the geographies of St. Louis, Texarkana and College Station.