Cardinals’ Joshua Baez makes history with three homers in first three MLB at-bats in eye-popping debut
Talk about a first impression.
Joshua Báez, the star prospect whom the Cardinals called up Friday, made history during his MLB debut Saturday, launching home runs in his first three at-bats as St. Louis took on the Cubs.
Báez became the first player in league history to hit three homers during his debut, according to MLB’s Sarah Langs, and he provided the boost the Cardinals expected when they brought up the outfielder — ranked as the organization’s No. 3 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline — for the regular season’s stretch run.
His afternoon started by taking the first pitch he ever saw in the majors — a four-seam fastball from Chicago starter Matthew Boyd — 449 feet to center field.
Then, in his second at-bat, Báez waited, getting to a full count to lead off the fourth frame before sending a 77 mph changeup over the left-field fence.
That second homer already put him in the conversation for a historical debut, as he became the ninth player in MLB history to collect two homers in his debut, according to Langs.
But Báez, the Cardinals’ second-round pick in 2021 out of Dexter School in Massachusetts, kept going and took his third homer off Boyd opposite field — just tucking the homer over the fence at Wrigley Field to drive in Alec Burleson and extend St. Louis’ lead to 6-3.
With a chance at a fourth homer in the eighth, Báez lined out to left field.
Báez, just 23 years old, led Triple-A with 34 homers across 103 games with Memphis before getting called up, and he became the second player in MLB history to hit his first three homers in the same game — joining the Tigers’ Seby Zavala in July 2021.
“There’s an edge to it,” Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Friday of Báez. “There’s a confidence to it, and he has a work ethic that’s fun to watch, too. He knows how to get after it. He wants to win, and it’s fun to inject that into this clubhouse because we have a lot of guys that are that way.”
St. Louis, in the middle of a playoff race and just 3 ½ games out of the final National League wild-card spot entering play Saturday, didn’t wait to put Báez in its lineup.
And Báez didn’t hesitate to start carving out a role — while making some history — for the rest of the season, either.
