It was a day to remember for Dorchester native Joshua Baez.
The St. Louis Cardinals outfielder made his MLB debut Saturday and smashed three home runs in his first three at-bats, becoming the first player in MLB history to accomplish that feat.
He won’t soon forget his debut at Wrigley Field in Chicago.
He smashed a 449-foot home run on the first pitch he saw in the first inning off of Chicago Cubs pitcher Matthew Boyd. He pointed to teammates and had a huge grin on his face as he circled the bases.
The 449-foot shot is the third-longest homer in a player’s MLB debut since ESPN began tracking home run distances in 2006. He’s in good company. The only players to launch longer homers in a debut were Jason Heyward (476-foot) in 2010 and Aaron Judge (457-foot) in 2016.
Baez then hit his second homer in the third inning when he lined a pitch just over the wall in left field. When the ball settled into the seats, a large contingent of family and friends jumped up and down in celebration.
He made history in the sixth inning when he launched his three home run in as many at-bats, cracking a pitch to the opposite field and over the wall in right field. Again, his power surge ignited his cheering section, as family and friends exchanged high-fives in the crowd.
His home run streak ended in the eighth inning when he lined out to left field.
Baez became the first player to homer on the first pitch he saw since Willson Contreras did so in 2016.
Baez split his high school career between Cristo Rey Boston, Snowden International and Dexter Southfield. He was the 2020 Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year and was a second-round pick of the Cardinals in 2020.
The right-handed hitter has hit .256 with 34 home runs and a .901 OPS for Triple-A Memphis in 2026. He is rated as the No. 59 prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline.
Baez produced a four-homer game at Triple-A Memphis in June. He leads all of Triple-A with 34 total homers this season.
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