'Living a dream': Torres homers, reaches 3 times in debut after 11 years in Minors

CINCINNATI -- There was a moment, seven years into his pro career, when Bryan Torres was contemplating whether it was time to call it quits.

The Puerto Rico native had toiled for five seasons in Rookie ball in the Brewers' organization, and after a year in limbo during the coronavirus pandemic, he posted just a .668 OPS in his lone season with the Giants' Double-A affiliate.

But after a two-year stint in Independent ball and three more seasons in the Minors, the 28-year-old's dream came true as he made his big league debut with the Cardinals. And he made it count as he homered and reached base three times in the Cardinals' 8-1 win over the Reds in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader at Great American Ball Park.

Torres' road to the Majors has been long and tough. But he credits his family and that time away from affiliated ball for turning around his career.

"In that moment, I said I'm gonna give myself a chance," Torres said. "But I'm gonna do that 100%, like everything I can. And I just don't give my 100, I gave my 200%, and that's the reason why I'm here. And from that moment on, I can say yes, I was really sure that big things were going to happen in my life, in my career.

"At some point, my brother, when I was going to my second year in Indy ball, he said, 'Hey, don't try to do the same as last year.' And I told him, 'I'm gonna do not the same. I'm gonna do better.' Those were my words. I will never forget that."

During his time with the Milwaukee Milkmen in the American Association, Torres established himself as an extremely disciplined hitter and an on-base machine. He slashed .372/.450/.514 with more walks (104) than strikeouts (100) in 184 games, which caught the Cardinals' eye.

After Torres signed with St. Louis, his production carried over to Double-A Springfield and Triple-A Memphis, where he has slashed a combined .331/.432/.442 with more walks (168) than strikeouts (157) the past three years. He has really stood out for his patience, as his 37.6% swing rate at Memphis the past two seasons ranks in the fifth percentile, while his 57.7% in-zone swing rate is in the sixth percentile.

With injuries to Lars Nootbaar, Ramón Urías and, most recently, Nathan Church, the outfielder-second baseman finally got the call after 913 games in the Minors, foreign leagues and Indy ball -- plus an appearance in the 2026 World Baseball Classic, where he went 2-for-6 with three walks and one double for Team Puerto Rico.

Sure enough, Torres showed off his disciplined approach by walking on six pitches his first time up and singling on the 10th pitch he saw of the day -- his first big league swing. He nearly added another knock in the seventh, but Blake Dunn's leaping catch at the warning track robbed him of extra bases.

But the cherry on top of his debut was his lasered round tripper in the ninth inning off right-hander Jose Franco, a Statcast-projected 337-foot shot that left his bat at 99.8 mph. At 28 years and 325 days old, he became the oldest player to reach base safely three times or more and homer in his debut since Weston Wilson with the Phillies on Aug. 9, 2023.

"One of the things that I've been learning through the years … is to manage the pressure," Torres said. "When the heart's going a little fast, you just gotta slow things down, and today I'm not gonna lie, I felt a little part in my chest. But at the same time, I breathe and just say, 'Do what you know to do.' And what I know to do is get good at-bats, get on base, and that's what I just did."

Five members of Torres' family flew in and celebrated throughout the game as the rest of his family, watching on TV, blew up their phones texting and calling. Torres was able to save the home run ball for his mom, who always believed in his persistence, and that -- combined with a win and a curtain call at a road stadium -- made for quite a memorable debut.

"It's pretty neat, man," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. "There's moments throughout the year that you take a step back and you just get to enjoy. That's one of them."

"I'm just living a dream that I dreamed 24 years ago, and today it's happening," Torres said.