Detroit prospect debuts with feat not seen by a Tiger in 114 years

DETROIT -- Brett Callahan was 5 years old when he told his mom he wanted to be a Major League Baseball player.

“We were at the bus stop. He was going to kindergarten,” Kristie Callahan explained. “And he was like, ‘Mommy, when I grow up, I’m going to be a Major League Baseball player.’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah, yeah.’ He’s like, ‘You don’t believe me! I am!’

“And here he is.”

Even an ambitious, imaginative 5-year-old Brett Callahan might not have envisioned hitting a two-run triple on his first big league pitch, two decades later. For that matter, even an older Callahan a few months ago might not have envisioned getting to the big leagues to help the Tigers in a playoff race.

“My goal is always just to play as good as possible, see what happens from there,” Callahan said after Sunday’s 7-5 loss to the White Sox. “I didn’t really expect or think that it was going to happen going into the season, but when I was playing well in [Double-A] Erie, I started having some conversations with [SeaWolves manager Tony Cappuccilli], just talking about how I need to mature as a player because this could be possible. It’s amazing that it actually came about.”

Callahan’s memorable debut is the latest incredible story in what has been a Cinderella year for the former 13th-round Draft pick out of St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. The 24-year-old hadn’t played above High-A ball until this year due to injuries, and wasn’t on the Tigers’ Top 30 prospect list entering the season. His career highlight had been a Little League World Series run with Newark, Del. in 2013. But a pair of home runs for the Tigers as a late-inning extra from Minor League camp this Spring Training made an impression and helped earn an Opening Day assignment in Erie.

From there, Callahan slugged his way to prospect status -- currently No. 19 on the Tigers’ Top 30 list -- and eventually to Detroit’s doorstep, slashing .269/.365/.443 with 19 doubles, 13 home runs and 56 RBIs between Erie and Triple-A Toledo. He’d cooled off a bit in August, but with the Tigers set to face a string of right-handed starters and lefty hitters Riley Greene, Kerry Carpenter, Parker Meadows and James Outman all on the injured list, Detroit decided to give the left-handed-hitting Callahan a chance.

“It’s exciting for him and a win for player development,” manager A.J. Hinch said.

The Tigers gave Callahan the call on Saturday and not only flew him in from Louisville, where the Mud Hens played this week, but arranged for his family to fly in from Delaware as soon as they learned Saturday night.

“We’ve had faith in him all along,” said Craig Callahan, his father, a former college football player and pitcher who threw batting practice to his son growing up. “It wasn’t really a surprise. He’s worked really hard, so it’s been really exciting to see it all come to fruition. He works out really hard in the offseason. This callup is the icing on the cake.”

With two on and one out, Callahan wasn’t waiting. When White Sox starter Sean Burke tried to flip in a curveball for a first-pitch strike, Callahan crushed it, sending a line drive into the right-field corner and taking off.

“It was just a curveball that kinda popped,” Callahan said. “We had talked about how he throws a lot of curveballs early in counts.”

Colt Keith and Zach McKinstry scored as Callahan raced around second base, helmet and hair flying, as his family and friends -- some wearing Callahan jerseys from High-A West Michigan -- went crazy.

“I was thinking, ‘Don’t trip,’” Callahan said with a laugh. “I tripped a couple weeks ago, and my legs were feeling kinda shaky. That was honestly my first thought: Don’t mess this up. But it was a cool moment.”

Callahan became the third Major League position player to hit an RBI triple on the first pitch of his first Major League at-bat since pitch counts began being tracked in 1988, according to Opta Stats.

Callahan is the first Tiger to triple in his first Major League plate appearance in 114 years. Ed Irwin, whose lone MLB game came as a replacement for striking Tigers protesting Ty Cobb’s suspension for fighting a heckler in the stands, tripled twice on May 18, 1912 in a 24-2 loss at the Philadelphia A’s. That game featured another St. Joseph’s product, then-student and later Jesuit priest Allen Travers, who pitched all eight innings and gave up all 24 runs, 10 of them unearned.

Callahan should have a longer stay, particularly with a righty-heavy Pirates rotation awaiting the Tigers in Pittsburgh this week. But he’ll never forget his debut.