1. Bret Saberhagen
Debut: April 4, 1984 vs. Yankees
Age: 19 years, 359 days
The Royals had taken Saberhagen in the 19th round of the 1982 MLB Draft out of Grover Cleveland (Calif.) High School. Less than two years later, Saberhagen found himself jogging in from the bullpen at Royals Stadium in relief of Paul Splittorff, who had been ineffective that night against the Yankees. Understandably, the 19-year-old Saberhagen was a little nervous.
“If anybody tells you they’re not real nervous in their first Major League at-bat or appearance, then they’re lying,” Saberhagen told the Kansas City Star.
With Butch Wynegar on first base and only one out, Royals catcher Don Slaught called for a pitchout. But Saberhagen was so focused on the batter and threw a curveball that crossed up his catcher and went to the backstop, advancing Wynegar to second base.
Saberhagen settled down and worked 4 2/3 scoreless innings of relief, allowing just three hits. He got his first start a couple of weeks later, on April 19 -- just after his 20th birthday -- and soon blossomed into one of the best Royals pitchers in franchise history.
“It’s kind of strange coming up and facing all these guys I saw in high school and junior high,” Saberhagen said following his debut.
Well, that had only been a few years ago at that point.
2. Andrés Blanco
Debut: April 17, 2004 at Twins
Age: 20 years, 6 days
With everyday shortstop Angel Berroa dealing with migraine headaches and placed on the injured list in April 2004, the Royals called up Blanco from Double-A Wichita when they were in Minneapolis for a weekend series. Blanco was the youngest player in the Major Leagues at the time of his debut.
Blanco hit ninth and went 0-for-3 with one strikeout and was lifted for a pinch-hitter late in the game. In the Minors, he had a reputation for strong defense, but he committed a two-run throwing error on his first fielding opportunity, uncorking a low, wide throw that eluded first baseman Mike Sweeney. Blanco did make two sparkling plays later in the game, though.
Blanco logged 19 games for the Royals in 2004, posting a .317/.379/.417 slash line. He played sparingly for three seasons in Kansas City, followed by a three-year stint with the Cubs and Rangers from 2009-11. Then, in ‘14, he latched on and played four seasons with the Phillies before his big league career ended in ‘17.
3. Clint Hurdle
Debut: Sept. 18, 1977 vs. Mariners
Age: 20 years, 50 days
The cover of the March 1978 annual baseball preview of Sports Illustrated featured a picture of Hurdle, with the caption “This Year’s Phenom” right next to his face. This was six months after Hurdle’s debut and his cup of coffee in the Majors in 1977, which came just two years after he was drafted No. 9 overall by the Royals as a high school player.
The Royals invited Hurdle to big league camp in the spring of 1977, and he was so impressive there that he went straight to Triple-A, bypassing Double-A completely. When the Royals called him up in September of that year, fans were ecstatic. A crowd of 33,397 packed into Royals Stadium to watch Hurdle, who was the youngest Royal to make his Major League debut at the time.
And then he became the first Royal to hit a home run in his debut with his two-run blast in the fifth.
“My biggest thrill, without question,” Hurdle told reporters after the game. “It was a high fastball and as soon as I hit it, I knew I had it all. It was weird, like slow motion. But I knew it was out.”
It’s no secret that Hurdle did not necessarily live up to the hype that the SI cover put on his shoulders with that “phenom” cover. He played parts of 10 seasons -- five with the Royals -- but only accumulated 2.8 bWAR and finished his playing career with a .259/.341/.403 slash line. He went on to make his mark as a successful MLB manager and coach.
4. George Brett
Debut: Aug. 2, 1973 at White Sox
Age: 20 years, 79 days
The story of Brett’s debut has been told many times. With Royals third baseman Paul Schaal sidelined, the team called up their second-round Draft pick just two years earlier. Brett was at his apartment in Omaha he shared with catcher Buck Martinez and pitcher Mark Littell. They were getting ready to grill hamburgers for lunch when Omaha manager Harry Malmberg knocked on the door. Brett and Martinez assumed Littell was getting the call, but Malmberg said it was the 20-year-old Brett.
Brett got to Chicago just a couple of hours before game time, but he didn’t expect to be in the lineup because Malmberg had told him he wouldn’t. That turned out to be false, as Brett was playing third base and batting eighth that night.
Brett got his first hit that night, the first of what would end up as an amazing Hall of Fame career that included 3,154 hits. He played in just 13 games that first season, but Brett made the team out of Spring Training the next year, and, well, you know what happened from there.
5. Adalberto Mondesi
Debut: Oct. 30, 2015 (World Series Game 3) at Mets
Age: 20 years, 95 days
Not only was he young, but Mondesi made history with his debut in 2015. He became the first player to make his first big league appearance in the World Series. The dynamic infielder had never played above Double-A and was preparing to head home for the offseason when he was told he’d be added to the active roster. The Royals had added Mondesi to the 40-man roster earlier that week in part for insurance in case infielder Ben Zobrist needed to leave for the birth of his child. Zobrist didn’t need to leave, but Mondesi still got his opportunity.
Mondesi entered Game 3 as a pinch-hitter and struck out against Noah Syndergaard. That was the only at-bat Mondesi had during the rest of the World Series, which the Royals won in five games. But Mondesi will always be able to say he played in the World Series, something his father, Raul, didn’t get to do in his 13-year big league career.
“He didn’t have a chance to play in a World Series, and I did,” Mondesi said after his debut. “He was laughing about that. It’s incredible. And tonight I got a chance to get an at-bat in a World Series.”
Mondesi began the 2016 season in Double-A again but made his regular-season debut in July. He played sparingly for the Royals over seven seasons, dealing with injuries and never quite reaching the potential many thought he had on the field.
The next five youngest debuts
Mark Littell: June 14, 1973 (20 years, 148 days)
Dee Brown: Sept. 14, 1998 (20 years, 171 days)
Zack Greinke: May 22, 2004 (20 years, 214 days)
Buck Martinez: June 18, 1969 (20 years, 223 days)
Tom Gordon: Sept. 8, 1988 (20 years, 295 days)