Gift Ngoepe got his first Major League hit and was rewarded with a warm embrace

The Pirates are busy breaking barriers in the first month of the 2017 season. On Monday, Dovydas Neverauskas became the first Major League player to be born and raised in Lithuania. They weren't done there.
When the Pirates called up infielder Gift Ngoepe on Wednesday, the native of South Africa became the first African-born player to appear in the Major Leagues. In the fourth inning of the Pirates' 6-5 win against the Cubs on that same day, Ngoepe came in as a pinch hitter for pitcher Tyler Glasnow and became the first African-born player to record a hit in the Major Leagues.
As a reward -- one might be tempted to call it a gift -- Ngoepe received a loving embrace from first-base coach Kimera Bartee.

A gifted fielder, Ngoepe has never been prolific with the bat in his Minor League career. For now, though, history has been made and it has been justly celebrated.

Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo showed his appreciation of Ngoepe's achievement after the hit:

South African Gift Ngoeoe, on Anthony Rizzo, after earning his first hit. pic.twitter.com/WuW6Hoe1U8

— Jesse Rogers (@ESPNChiCubs) April 27, 2017

 It sounds like it was a party down there at first base.
Ngoepe's teammates saw his first hit as representing something much bigger than one player

Jordy Mercer repeatedly reminded the team tonight Gift "represented 1.62 billion people." Gift said they all screamed, "For the motherland!"

— Adam Berry (@adamdberry) April 27, 2017

If you thought this was a minor accomplisment from Ngoepe, well, don't tell that to Jordy Mercer.