Major League debut (2016)
On March 31,2016,the Cardinals announced Hazelbaker had made the major league roster;he played primarily as a backup outfielder and pinch hitter. He made his major league debut on April 3 as a pinch hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates after 751 games in the minor leagues. His hitting performances in the first two weeks of the season thus caught national headlines. [5] Hazelbaker's first MLB hit was a double on April 5 and the first home run was the next day;both hits were against the Pittsburgh Pirates. [7]
On April 8,Hazelbaker's second major league home run became part of a unique event in major league history. Playing against the Atlanta Braves,he,Aledmys Díaz,and Greg Garcia established a new MLB record by each hitting a pinch-hit home run,becoming the first trio to hit three pinch-hit home runs in one game for the same team. The previous record of two pinch-hit home runs by the same team in the same game had previously occurred on 57 occasions,most recently in 2011. The Cardinals won this contest,7–4. [8] That home run also gave him two in his first four career games,joining Joe Cunningham (1954) as the only Cardinals to accomplish the feat. [9] His first career four-hit game,including his first career triple,came in a 10–1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on April 11. [10] In the month of April,he batted .317,.357 OBP,.683 SLG,five home runs,and 13 RBI. [11]
The Cardinals optioned Hazelbaker to Memphis on June 15,2016,after hitting .250 with seven home runs and 19 RBI. [12] During a game against the New Orleans Zephyrs on June 28,Hazelbaker was instantly ejected when he charged the mound for JoséUreña,who had nearly hit him in the head. Hazelbaker also flipped his bat and avoided a left punch from Ureña. [13] After playing 13 games for Memphis and batting .325 with one home run and 11 RBI,St. Louis recalled Hazelbaker on July 19,2016. [12] He finished his rookie season batting .235/.295/.480 with 12 home runs and 28 RBI.
