PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Justin Crawford bounced the first pitch he ever saw in the major leagues straight up the middle to get his first career hit out of the way in a matter of seconds.
First hit of how many?
“Just 2999 more to go," his father, four-time All-Star outfielder Carl Crawford wrote on Instagram under video of the single.
Hey, no pressure there, especially in Philadelphia.
Making one of the more anticipated debuts for a Phillies rookie in years,
Crawford was an instant hit — truly — in his big league debut. The 22-year-old center fielder batted ninth and went 2 for 4 with a run scored for the Phillies in their 5-3 opening day win over the Texas Rangers on Thursday.
“I'll be lying if I said I didn't have no butterflies,” Crawford said. “But by the time I got on the field, it was another game. Go play.”
Crawford paced the outfield hours ahead of first pitch, headphones on and walking barefoot just as he did as one of the top prospects in baseball during his sensational rise — he set a Triple-A Lehigh Valley record season with a .334 average — through the minors.
“I wanted to get a feel for the stadium, just feel the heartbeat of the stadium," Crawford said. "Something I like to do when I get somewhere for the first time.”
He should expect to stay in Philadelphia for a long time.
The 17th overall pick in the 2022 draft, Crawford wowed the Phillies in a spring training where the position was his to lose after hitting .300 at every level of the minor leagues. Crawford was the first Phillie with a hit in his first at-bat in his major league debut on opening day since Denny Doyle on April 7, 1970, against the Chicago Cubs.
At 22 years and 72 days old, Crawford is the 10th Phillies player (since 1898) at that age or younger with multiple hits on opening day. He's the first Phillies player to achieve that feat since Mike Anderson (20 years and 298 days old) in 1972.
He's also the youngest Phillies position player to make his debut in an opening day start since Hall of Famer Richie Ashburn (21 years, 32 days) in 1948 against the Boston Braves.
Kyle Schwarber, who went deep on opening day after leading the NL with 56 home runs last season, said Crawford impressed with scores of great at-bats in spring training.
“He's such a raw player; I feel like there's going to be so much room for growth,” Schwarber said. “The guy hits, I think that's kind of the biggest takeaway. The guy just gets hits, he finds a way to get hits, and he can be a big problem on the base path.”
Carl Crawford led the American League in stolen bases four times — that speed was passed down to his son — and is in the Tampa Bay Rays Hall of Fame. He led a bus full of about 40 friends and family to Citizens Bank Park to catch the debut — “we're about to see Justin do his thing,” he said on an Instagram video — and was spotted filming just about every pitch his son faced against the Rangers.
Dad also gave Justin some advice.
"Stay in the moment, control what you can control, go out there and have fun,” Justin Crawford said.
About the only error in the family came earlier in the week when Crawford said his mother tried to order a vegan cheesesteak at one of the city's more popular spots, and the staff, “looked at her absolutely crazy.”
Crawford wasn't sure what he would do with the souvenir ball from his first hit. He joked everyone from his parents to his grandmother would try and claim it.
“I'm sure a few people are going to be fighting over where they want it,” Crawford said with a laugh.
The baseball's future home is a decision for another day. After the game, Crawford gathered the entire group of friends and family together on the field for photos.
“Just so glad everyone was able to make it out,” Crawford said. “It's really just a moment after never going to forget for the rest of my life."
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