Red Sox rookie, Daniel Nava, crushed a Grand-Slam out of Fenway Park on his first at bat in the Majors. In fact, it was the first ball he had seen pitched in his rookie debut for Boston’s big leagues. He is only the second player to do so following Kevin Kouzmanoff’s September 2nd, 2006 dinger for Cleveland against Texas (STATS LLC.)
The 5-foot-ten-inch Nava approached the plate like everyday business. “I wanted to treat it like I normally do,” he said. “I just said, `How are you guys doing (to umpire Bill Hohn and catcher Brian Schneider)?’(notes) They didn’t say anything.”
The bases were loaded for Boston with no outs.
“I knew it was his first at-bat, but I tried to throw him a sinker away,” Blanton said. “I threw it right down the middle and it didn’t sink.”
Blanton’s fast ball ended up in the right-field bleachers before Nava realized what had happened. In perfect Major League fashion, Nava had his chance to soak it up as Fenway Park’s enthusiasm pulled Nava from the dugout for a rookie curtain call.
Watch the hit unfold below :
