Báez has historic MLB debut surrounded by family and a special bee

CHICAGO -- At first, Joshua Báez was a little scared of the bee.

It kept finding him in left field Saturday afternoon at Wrigley Field. Inning after inning, Báez noticed it buzzing around him, sometimes circling back toward his Cardinals cap.

Eventually, he stopped worrying about it. By then, Báez had another thought.

Maybe it was Dad.

“I kind of took that as if he was the bee, because it was right on me every single inning,” Báez said. “I’ve never had any type of bees or any animals or flies. So I just know that he’s super proud and that he’s here with me right now in spirit.”

José Manuel Báez wasn’t among the approximately 30 family members who descended upon Wrigley Field to watch Joshua make his Major League debut Saturday.

But for a few hours, Joshua felt like his father was there anyway.

And what a day he witnessed.

Báez became the first player in MLB history to homer three times in his debut, going 3-for-4 with five RBIs in the Cardinals’ 8-4 win over the Cubs.

For Báez and his family, though, Saturday was about considerably more than history.

His father, whom the family called “El Bronco,” died three years ago. José Manuel had once dreamed of playing professional baseball himself but never got the opportunity to sign.

Joshua made him a promise.

“My dad, his dream was to play in the big leagues,” Báez said Saturday morning. “The only promise that I made to him was that I was going to be able to do that for him.”

Hours later, Yris Báez watched her son step into a Major League batter’s box for the first time.

The first pitch he saw traveled a Statcast-projected 449 feet.

For Yris, watching from the stands, years of work and sacrifice seemed to arrive all at once.

“Since he started playing when he was 12 years old, seeing all the work that he made, all the progress and everything, this is something that God gave me,” Yris said through team interpreter and bullpen catcher Kleininger Teran. “That is a really satisfying feeling that I have right now.”

She had witnessed something like this before.

Earlier this season, Yris was in Memphis when her son produced another almost unimaginable performance: four home runs in one game.

The date made it unforgettable.

It came on the third anniversary of José Manuel’s death.

So perhaps it was fitting that on the day Joshua fulfilled his promise and finally became a Major Leaguer, one homer wasn’t enough.

Neither were two. With the third, Báez had authored a debut unlike any in the history of the sport.

For his mother, it was the culmination of all the days nobody else saw.

“She’s seen me working hard every day, every month, trying to make it here,” Báez said of his family’s support.

Afterward, mother and son found each other. They cried.

Then came the pictures. Thirty family members and friends gathered on the Wrigley Field grass, surrounding Báez while rain fell around them.

Nobody was in much of a hurry to leave.

“The rain didn’t matter,” Báez said. “I was just happy just to be there, and that just made it more special. They’re so happy and so excited to be here.”

Manager Oliver Marmol watched from nearby and made sure to come give his player a hug.

“No one gets here on their own,” Marmol said. “You have to have such a support group to keep you sane, because there’s so many ups and downs in this game.”

Marmol eventually approached Yris. He wanted her to know how special the afternoon had been.

Then he offered some simple instructions.

“Enjoy it,” Marmol told her. “Take it in. Sit out there for as long as you want.”

So they did. And somewhere amid three home runs, 30 family members, tears and rain, Báez kept thinking about the one person who couldn’t pose for the picture.

José Manuel.

“El Bronco,” Báez said, was a stubborn man with immense strength and power.

His son promised him years ago that he would make it here.

On Saturday, Báez fulfilled that promise in a way nobody ever had before.

And whenever he looked toward the outfield, that bee kept coming back.

“It was circling back and forth,” Báez said. “It was on my brim the whole time I was there.

“I’m just taking it that he was here with me today.”