08/15/26 05:50:00
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08/15 17:49 CDT Joshua Bez of the Cardinals hits 3 homers in his first 3
at-bats in a historic major league debut
Joshua Bez of the Cardinals hits 3 homers in his first 3 at-bats in a historic
major league debut
CHICAGO (AP) --- Joshua Bez smashed the first pitch he saw in the majors about
450 feet, then flashed a grin to the St. Louis dugout as he began his home run
trot.
"There was a calmness and a smile, like, ?I'm here,'" Cardinals manager Oliver
Marmol said. "It's rare for me to pick my head up to enjoy parts of it. He
didn't exactly give us an option but to actually take a step back and enjoy the
heck out of what was going on there."
There has never been a show quite like it.
Bez became the first player to hit a home run in each of his first three
at-bats in the majors, leading the Cardinals to an 8-4 victory over the Chicago
Cubs on Saturday.
Called up from Triple-A Memphis before the game, Bez had 30 members of his
family in attendance at Wrigley Field. The traveling party, which included his
mother, Yris, gathered on the field for photos afterward in spite of rain.
"It's just unreal," the 23-year-old Bez said. "To not only get a hit, but
three home runs? It's crazy."
He did it with flair, too. The first came on the first pitch he saw from
Matthew Boyd and landed an estimated 449 feet away in the bleachers in
left-center. The left fielder's next at-bat ended with a solo shot down the
left-field line and the third, on his ensuing at-bat, went the opposite way,
giving him five RBIs.
Major League Baseball said Bez was the first player in modern baseball history
to hit three home runs in his debut. The league cannot say with certainty
whether the feat happened before 1901 due to a lack of game logs.
"He hit three different pitches for home runs. He had a great game. He beat us
for sure," Cubs manager Craig Counsell said.
Bez showed plenty of power in the minors this season. When he was called up,
he was leading all Triple-A hitters with 34 home runs, including four
multihomer games.
He's the ninth player to make his major league debut for the Cardinals this
season.
Bez also is the 11th St. Louis player to homer in his first career at-bat (the
last was Lane Thomas in 2019) and sixth in club history to homer on the first
pitch. Former pitcher Adam Wainwright last did it in 2006.
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