ST. LOUIS -- Luis Lara was in the middle of a soccer match on PlayStation when his cell phone buzzed Monday night with a call from Triple-A manager Rick Sweet. It was the call the Top 100 prospect had been waiting for ever since he signed a seven-year, $31 million contract with the Brewers in early June.
“I had a feeling that whenever he called, that was going to be it,” Lara said.
He was right. The Brewers got 14 2/3 terrific innings from starters Jacob Misiorowski and Robert Gasser while winning both ends of Tuesday’s doubleheader against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium, taking the opening game, 4-3, before winning 10-2 in the nightcap. But they began the day by promoting Lara -- the 21-year-old, 5-foot-7 switch-hitter who is ranked as Milwaukee’s No. 4 prospect and No. 67 overall by MLB Pipeline.
Lara wasted little time making an impact. After watching the Brewers’ Game 1 victory from the bench, he went to work in Game 2 as the starting center fielder and two-hole hitter in a victory that had his fingerprints all over. Lara collected his first hit, his first walk, his first run scored, his first RBIs and recorded the final out in a victory that pushed Milwaukee 25 games over .500 at 58-33.
“A kid’s dream,” Lara called it. “It’s the moment you always dream of when you are a kid, and that moment arrived today.”
Lara met that moment by shrugging off Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker’s diving catch of his sinking liner in the third inning to deliver a two-out, two-run single in the fifth for his first Major League hit and RBIs. Then in the seventh, he worked a walk and flashed his superior speed while scoring his first big league run amid Milwaukee’s seven-run, game-breaking rally.
“He looked great, man,” said Brewers manager Pat Murphy. “His ABs were great, all of them, except for the one off the [position player].”
Lara flied out against Cardinals utility man Bryan Torres -- who pitched the final two innings for St. Louis when the game was so out of hand that Brewers outfielder Jackson Chourio batted left-handed on a dare -- and missed hitting a first-pitch home run by only a couple of feet.
Besides that, Lara looked every bit the big leaguer. He saw at least five pitches in three of his first four at-bats.
“I’m very happy that he’s going to be a teammate of ours for many years to come,” Chourio said.
As Lara arrived in St. Louis, his MLB debut wasn’t guaranteed. The Brewers were pondering a series of potential roster moves after seeing third baseman David Hamilton exit Monday’s win over the Cardinals with left hamstring tightness. With results of an MRI scan pending, the club opted to make the first move by recalling Lara, who was already on the 40-man roster by virtue of last month’s contract extension and will wear No. 18 in the Majors. Outfielder Blake Perkins was optioned to Nashville as a corresponding move.
A few hours later, the other dominoes fell. The Brewers placed Hamilton on the 10-day injured list with a strained left hamstring and selected Jones. To make room on the 40-man roster, the club shifted injured outfielder Brandon Lockridge to the 60-day IL.
For Lara, it’s a first opportunity to show the Brewers were wise to invest in his future.
“I think any time you sign a contract at a young age, you think about wanting to give the maximum potential that you have, give everything that you have to the team,” Lara said via interpreter Daniel de Mondesert. “Really, I just try to tell myself as much as possible to stay calm and not get lost in my thoughts too much."
Lara, from San Felipe, Venezuela, would be the second Top 100 prospect to debut for the Brewers this season after inking a long-term extension, joining shortstop Cooper Pratt. The Brewers will work him into an outfield rotation that already includes left fielder Chourio, center fielder Garrett Mitchell and right fielder Sal Frelick, all of whom are coming off OPS marks north of .850 during the month of June.
“I think Luis can help us, being a switch-hitter who is equally good from both sides,” Murphy said. “He’s never touched the big leagues, but we signed him to a long-term deal and that predicates that he’s going to be a Brewer. We’re excited about seeing him. He can play center, he can play right, he can play left, he can spell guys, he can start. He can play our type of game. I think it just solidifies us a little more.”
Murphy added, “We plan on him being here to stay.”
Lara’s first and only call after getting the news was to his mother, Geirin Chirinos. It was, as you might imagine, “a special moment” and “a dream come true” for any mother and son from Venezuela, he said.
After that, it was time to pack for the big leagues.
When he reported to Spring Training, could Lara have imagined what would unfold over the next five months? A breakthrough on the field. Lifetime financial security. A call to the Major Leagues, and a starring role in his big league debut.
“No way,” Lara said. “Not even close."