CHICAGO - On the first pitch he saw in the first at-bat of his highly-anticipated MLB debut, St. Louis Cardinals newcomer Joshua Baez crushed a 449-foot home run, joining rare company.
Only 145 players, now including Baez, have hit a home run in their first MLB at-bat. Baez is only the 11th Cardinal to go deep on his first at-bat, and he is first to do so for St. Louis since Lane Thomas in 2019.
Even more impressive, Baez is the first player since 2016 to homer on the first MLB pitch he ever saw, a feat last accomplished by former Cardinal Willson Contreras when he debuted with the Chicago Cubs, according to Baseball Almanac.
According to ESPN Insights, Baez's 449-foot homer is also the longest by a MLB player on his first pitch since such data was first tracked in 2008.
Baez's raw power is no secret. He led minor-league baseball with 34 home runs prior to his big-league promotion Saturday, and he even enjoyed a rare four homer game in June, along with an elite .901 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in Triple-A Memphis.
The Cardinals initially took a 3-0 lead in the first inning on Baez's first home run, which came at Wrigley Field against Chicago Cubs starter Matthew Boyd.
Entering Saturday, the Cardinals sit at 61-61 in the 2026 season and 3.5 games out of a Wild Card spot. The Cardinals are in the early stages of an 11-game road trip that includes matchups against the Cubs, Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies through next weekend.
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