MILWAUKEE -- Kaelen Culpepper's whirlwind 24 hours started with a shower and ended with a different type of shower that featured mustard and baby powder in his hair.
In between, the 23-year-old introduced himself to the Major Leagues with a bang.
Culpepper launched his first career hit into the Brewers’ bullpen for a solo homer in his second MLB at-bat Friday night, providing an early spark as the Twins erased a four-run deficit to beat the Brewers, 8-6, at American Family Field.
“I mean, it definitely felt great,” Culpepper said. “Fell behind in the count, but that didn’t change anything. I feel like I thrive with two strikes. So I stuck to my approach, got my hands back, saw something I could drive, took a really good swing on it.”
And then, with a smile: “I need a couple more of those moving forward, for sure.”
COMPLETE TWINS PROSPECT COVERAGE
Culpepper had barely been a Major Leaguer for a day.
He was in the shower Thursday with Triple-A St. Paul when a clubhouse attendant told him to report to manager Brian Dinkelman’s office. Culpepper walked in, saw the staff and coordinators gathered around and quickly realized what was happening.
“I got pretty emotional,” Culpepper said before the game. “I started crying.”
By Friday night, the Twins’ No. 2 prospect and MLB Pipeline’s No. 29 overall prospect was standing in the batter’s box in front of a sellout crowd of 42,118.
“I never played in front of that many people in my life,” Culpepper said. “It was crazy. It was loud.”
His first at-bat ended with a popout. Culpepper said getting it out of the way helped settle him.
“After that, just like, ‘All right, now I’m here. Let’s go,’” Culpepper said.
His next opportunity came with Minnesota trailing, 4-2, in the fourth. Culpepper quickly fell into an 0-2 hole against Brewers left-hander Shane Drohan, but when Drohan elevated a four-seam fastball, Culpepper turned on it.
The ball left his bat at 100.2 mph and traveled a Statcast-projected 390 feet into the bullpen in left-center field.
Just like that, his first Major League hit was a homer, making him the first Twins player to go deep in his MLB debut since Matt Wallner on Sept. 17, 2022, against Cleveland.
And forget the traditional silent treatment. Minnesota’s dugout erupted.
“We were all, like, celebrating so hard and then we were looking around, ‘Wait, should we give him the silent treatment?’” Josh Bell said. “And we’re like, ‘No, it’s too late. It’s too big of a game.’ So he got lucky on that one.”
Manager Derek Shelton called the celebration “genuine” and “palpable.”
“Every guy in that room knows the day they made their Major League debut,” Shelton said. “The first ground ball you get, the first fly ball you catch, the first pitch you make, the first hit you get. When you have something like that, it causes some excitement.”
The Twins needed some.
Minnesota entered Friday having scored three runs or fewer in 11 of its first 19 games since the All-Star break. It then fell behind, 4-0, after two innings against the National League-leading Brewers.
But Bell’s two-run homer started the comeback in the third before Culpepper pulled Minnesota within one. The Twins eventually scored two runs in four consecutive innings, with consecutive two-out doubles from Ryan Jeffers and Royce Lewis breaking a 6-6 tie in the sixth before Bell, who finished 4-for-5, drove in an insurance run.
Shelton believed Culpepper’s blast helped inject some life into it all.
“It did spark us a little bit,” Shelton said.
That was exactly the kind of contribution Culpepper had envisioned hours earlier when he was asked what he could provide a team fighting for a postseason spot.
“Just effort,” Culpepper said pregame. “I just want to show off my athleticism, how hard I work. I’ve been grinding.”
The Twins had challenged Culpepper to improve defensively entering the offseason, and he responded this season with what Shelton described as significant strides at shortstop. Offensively, his bat speed and ability to impact the baseball have long stood out. Friday provided the first Major League glimpse.
“He’s a huge athlete,” Bell said. “It’s going to be exciting watching him play.”
Afterward, the Twins made sure Culpepper’s first night wouldn’t be forgotten any time soon. His teammates gathered around him and showered him with whatever they could find.
“I don’t know if you can tell, but I got stuff all over my hair,” Culpepper said.
Bell knew at least some of what was in there.
“Baby powder, mustard, and all sorts of things,” Bell said. “So I try to stay out of there.”
Culpepper didn’t seem to mind. Twenty-four hours earlier, he had been crying after learning he was headed to the Majors. Now, after his first hit, first homer and first Major League victory, he was covered in the remnants of his first big league celebration.
“It was special,” Culpepper said. “All the guys gathered around me, yelling, clapping and throwing stuff all over me.”
Quite the way to get the first one out of the way.