The Havana native Lázaro Montes could not have written a more perfect debut script: on Tuesday, in his first game in Major League Baseball, the 21-year-old outfielder hit a home run and became the youngest player in the history of the Seattle Mariners to achieve that milestone in his debut, during the 9-6 victory over the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.
The Mariners themselves shared the celebration on their social media, where Montes appears excited alongside family members, thanking God for the achievement. "Thanks to God that everything went well, thank God and everything," said the player in the video.
The home run came in the fifth inning against reliever Wyatt Olds: Montes punished an 86.5 mph slider and sent the ball 407 feet to center field with an exit velocity of 106 mph, according to Statcast.
With that hit, the player from Havana became only the sixth player in the franchise's history to hit a home run in his MLB debut, joining Jamie Nelson (1983), Alvin Davis (1984), Greg Dobbs (2004), Kenji Johjima (2006), and Kyle Lewis (2019).
But the most notable record is the age record: at 21 years and 314 days, Montes is the youngest Mariner to hit a home run in his first game in the Major Leagues.
The Cuban's entire night was equally remarkable. In his first appearance at the plate, he negotiated a walk and scored thanks to a three-run homer by his teammate Randy Arozarena, who is also of Cuban descent. In the third inning, he achieved his first hit and RBI in the MLB with a single to right field.
Montes ended his debut with a line of 2-4, a home run, one RBIs, two runs scored, and one walk, also becoming the first Mariner since Ichiro Suzuki in 2001 to achieve multiple hits in his Major League debut.
The reunion with his family after the match was captured in another video published by the team. "God never abandons us. Thank you, Lord, I swear I said it, thank you Beloved Father," a family member expressed through tears. The Mariners accompanied the images with a phrase that sums it all up: "Family is everything".
Montes arrived at MLB after a historic season in the minors: 38 home runs, 96 RBIs, 99 runs scored, and an OPS of .927 in 123 games between Double-A Arkansas and Triple-A Tacoma.
That number 38 holds a special significance: on August 31, a day before his debut, Montes surpassed the Cuban record for home runs in a single season of minor leagues which had belonged to Juan Francisco "Pancho" Herrera since 1959, when he hit 37 home runs with the Buffalo Bisons.
The powerful left-handed batter, born in Havana on October 22, 2004, signed with Seattle in January 2022 for a bonus of 2.5 million dollars and accumulated 114 home runs throughout his minor league career before reaching the Major Leagues.
With just one game at the highest level, Montes already has his name etched in the franchise's history books.
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