Joshua Baez waited a long time for his shot in the majors.
When it finally came, he apparently decided to make sure nobody forgot his name.
The St. Louis Cardinals rookie walked into Wrigley Field on Saturday for his first-ever MLB game against the Chicago Cubs.
Then he started hitting home runs.
And he didn’t stop.
Baez went deep in his first three at-bats, becoming the first player in Major League Baseball history to do it. He finished the day 3-for-4 with three homers, five RBIs and three runs as the Cardinals beat the Cubs 8-4.
Not a bad way to introduce yourself.
First Pitch. First Homer.
There was no easing into this.
Baez stepped into the box for his first major-league plate appearance and took the very first pitch he saw from Cubs starter Matthew Boyd.
Gone.
The ball traveled an estimated 449 feet, landing in center field.
Imagine that.
Your first MLB swing.
Your first MLB hit.
Your first MLB home run.
And you’re doing it at Wrigley Field.
Baez didn’t exactly look overwhelmed either. He flashed a grin toward the Cardinals dugout before making his way around the bases.
Then He Did It Again
A player could be forgiven for getting a little excited after that.
Baez wasn’t.
In his second at-bat, he went deep again.
This time, he sent one toward left field.
Two at-bats.
Two home runs.
Now everyone in the stadium knew something strange was happening.
By the time he came up for the third time, the Cubs had a serious problem on their hands.
Baez solved it the same way.
He hit another home run.
Three at-bats.
Three home runs.
That’s when the history books had to be rewritten.
He Wasn’t Just Lucky
Here’s what makes the performance even more impressive.
Baez didn’t hit three cheap shots that barely cleared the wall.
His three home runs went to right, center and left field.
He showed power to every part of the ballpark and drove in five of St. Louis’ eight runs.
That’s not something you accidentally stumble into.
That’s a pretty ridiculous first day at work.
And it came against the Cubs, at Wrigley, with St. Louis fighting for a win.
The stage couldn’t have been much bigger.
The Road to This Moment Wasn’t Easy
The crazy thing is that Baez wasn’t some overnight sensation.
The 23-year-old had spent years working his way through the Cardinals’ minor-league system after being drafted out of high school in 2021.
There were plenty of struggles along the way.
He battled strikeouts and had to make major adjustments to his swing. At one point, his development had stalled badly enough that the Cardinals put him on their development list in 2024.
Then things started clicking.
In 2025, Baez hit .287 with 20 home runs.
This season, he took another huge step forward in Triple-A, smashing 34 home runs in 103 games before getting the call to St. Louis.
So when the Cardinals finally called him up, he wasn’t coming in cold.
He was ready.
Apparently, very ready.
Now Comes the Hard Part
Here’s where things get interesting.
Nobody is going to expect Baez to hit three home runs every night.
That’s impossible.
The real test starts now.
Pitchers have seen what he can do. They’ll make adjustments. They’ll throw differently. They’ll try to find weaknesses.
And Baez will have to adjust right back.
But after Saturday?
There’s no reason for Cardinals fans not to be excited.
A player who spent years grinding through the minors just walked into the majors and immediately made history.
That’s the kind of debut players dream about.
Baez got his opportunity.
He didn’t waste it.
Three at-bats. Three home runs. One unforgettable first day in the big leagues.
Now let’s see what he does with the rest of the season.
