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Cardinals' Joshua Baez: Makes history in MLB debut
Rotowire
Baez went 3-for-4 with three home runs and five RBI in Saturday's 8-4 win over the Cubs.
Making his big-league debut at storied Wrigley Field, Baez did something no other player in MLB history had ever done, homering in his first three trips to the plate. All three long balls came off Matthew Boyd, with the first being a massive 449-foot blast to center field on the very first pitch Baez saw, and the three homers combined traveled 1,199 feet. The 23-year-old outfielder earned his promotion Saturday by launching 34 home runs in 79 Triple-A games this season, and it doesn't look like he's going to have much trouble translating that power to the top level of baseball.
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Cardinals' Joshua Baez: Promotion official
Rotowire
The Cardinals recalled Baez from Triple-A Memphis on Saturday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.
One of the top prospects in all of baseball, Baez will make his MLB debut Saturday against the Cubs after slashing .254/.326/.572 this season at Memphis while tallying 34 homers, 90 RBI, 79 runs scored and 21 steals in 103 games. The 23-year-old is likely to immediately fill an everyday role upon joining the Cardinals and is worth picking up in virtually all formats. Cesar Prieto was optioned to Triple-A in a corresponding move.
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Cardinals' Joshua Baez: Slated for major-league debut Saturday
Rotowire
St. Louis manager Oli Marmol said Friday that Baez will be in the Cardinals' lineup against the Cubs on Saturday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.
Baez is scheduled to make his major-league debut in Chicago on Saturday, five years after being selected by the Cardinals in the second round of the 2021 First-Year Player Draft. He's been heating up at the plate at the right time, having gone 20-for-58 (.345) with six steals, six doubles, five home runs and 16 RBI over his last 15 games with Triple-A Memphis, which has brought him up to an .898 OPS across 460 plate appearances this season. Baez has played in all three spots in the outfield and should see a fair amount of reps in the majors, with most of his starts likely coming in left field.
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Cardinals' Joshua Baez: Heating back up at Triple-A
Rotowire
Baez has slashed .333/.412/.733 with four home runs and three stolen bases over his last 12 contests at Triple-A Memphis.
Baez had been in a rut prior to that, collecting just a .450 OPS across his previous 20 contests, but the slugger looks to have gotten back on track. The 23-year-old has played an even 100 games this season with Memphis, slashing .252/.324/.572 with 33 home runs, 18 stolen bases, and 8.1 percent walk rate and 29.3 percent strikeout rate. Top prospects promoted to the majors around mid-August will retain rookie eligibility in 2027, and the Cardinals might be waiting until that deadline before calling up Baez. St. Louis cleared a path in left field for Baez when it traded Lars Nootbaar earlier this month.
Cardinals' Joshua Baez: Four-homer game at Triple-A
Rotowire
Baez went 4-for-5 with four home runs and seven RBI in Triple-A Memphis' win over Nashville on Tuesday.
Baez went deep in each of his first three trips to the plate before he grounded out back to the pitcher in the seventh inning. He then got another chance in the eighth inning and smashed a solo blast. Baez has an incredible 12 long balls over his last 18 games, pushing his total on the season to a career-high 23. He's also stolen 12 bases in 13 attempts and boasts a .976 OPS. Baez's best path to playing time with the Cardinals is in center field, and most of his starts have come at that position (35). However, Baez has played right field in each of his last three contests.
Cardinals' Joshua Baez: Back-to-back two-homer games
Rotowire
Baez homered twice for the second consecutive game at Triple-A Memphis on Wednesday.
After going 4-for-6 with two homers and five RBI on Tuesday, Baez cranked a solo home run and a two-run blast Wednesday. Baez has gone deep nine times in May to push his season total to 15, which is just five off his total from last year's breakout campaign. His strikeout rate has been elevated in 2026 at 32.7 percent, but Baez is slashing a healthy .251/.332/.552 with 11 stolen bases in addition to his 15 long balls. Baez has also made six of his last seven starts in center field, and it's at that position where he's likely to break into the big leagues.
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Cardinals' Joshua Baez: Homers, strikeouts up at Triple-A
Rotowire
Baez is slashing .233/.307/.487 with 10 home runs, seven stolen bases and a 34.3 percent strikeout rate at Triple-A Memphis this season.
Baez homered for the third time in four games Friday and then wore the golden sombrero Saturday with strikeouts in all four of his plate appearances. It's a perfect microcosm of his season, as Baez is hitting for plenty of power but also swinging and missing a lot during his first stint in the Pacific Coast League. Cutting his strikeout rate to 20.6 percent between High-A and Double-A in 2025 was a major reason why Baez was able to break out, but his strikeout rate has regressed early on in 2026. Baez still has a chance to debut for the Cardinals at some point this season, but the club likely wants to see him get his whiffs under control first.
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