Guardians prospect homers in first MLB at-bat - and his former teammates go wild
The Cleveland Guardians dipped into their farm system on Wednesday and promoted an unheralded prospect to make his major league debut against the Baltimore Orioles.
First baseman Jhonkensy Noel, nicknamed "Big Christmas" by manager Stephen Vogt, earned his call-up by hitting a sizzling .408/.462/.704 with four homers and 19 RBI this month at Class AAA Columbus.
And as luck would have it, his former teammates at Columbus just happened to be in the middle of a rain delay in their game Wednesday night when Noel stepped to the plate for his first at-bat in the majors.
The entire clubhouse erupted when he took Orioles starter Grayson Rodriguez deep over the center field fence.
Entering the season, Noel was rated as the Guardians' No. 26 prospect by MLB Pipeline − although the 6-3, 250-pound slugger has some of the best raw power in the minors − hitting 27 home runs last season at Triple-A and smashing another 18 already this season.
All things Guardians: Latest Cleveland Guardians news, schedule, roster, stats, injury updates and more.
Noel, 22, got his opportunity only after the team's No. 2 prospect, first baseman Kyle Manzardo, struggled in his initial stint in the majors (.207/.241/.329 with no home runs). The Guardians also gave No. 16 prospect Jonathan Rodriguez a shot before sending him back to the minors to make room for Noel.