Most rookies get their first big-league game with a burst of nerves. Eliezer Alfonzo got his with grief.
The Dodgers catcher finally reached the majors Sunday night at Dodger Stadium, batting ninth against the Padres after more than nine seasons grinding through the minors. But the debut came on a day when Alfonzo learned that his 16-year-old sister, Eliana, and his stepmother, Patricia, had died in the earthquakes in Venezuela.
Manager Dave Roberts said before the game that Alfonzo was still in shape to start with Emmet Sheehan, and he didn’t hide how heavy the moment felt.
"I don't really know what to say about it, outside of my heart goes out to him and his family," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, as reported by the California Post." I don’t really want to go too far (into it) because I’ll get emotional.
I know it’s tough. Very tough."
The Dodgers tried to make the transition a little easier by placing Alfonzo’s locker next to Miguel Rojas, his fellow Venezuelan. Rojas embraced the 26-year-old during pregame introductions.
Alfonzo is a second-generation major leaguer. His father, also named Eliezer, played parts of six MLB seasons from 2006-11 with the Giants, Rockies, Mariners and Padres.
When the game started, the long road finally reached the big stage. After 2,078 minor-league at-bats, Alfonzo stepped in for the first time in the third inning and grounded out to shortstop.
He showed no hesitation in the fourth inning, when he used the ABS Challenge System. He was wrong on that one.
Two pitches later, after taking an 86-mph slider well inside the strike zone, he jogged back to the dugout as Padres shortstop Xander Bogaerts made his own challenge. The veteran minor leaguer clearly thought the five-time Silver Slugger had missed.
Alfonzo declined to speak with the media before the game, and his debut made him the 13th Venezuelan to reach the majors this season.
He opened his pro career in 2017 and spent years in the Detroit Tigers system before finally reaching Triple-A Toledo last season, where he appeared in eight International League games. He joined the Dodgers last offseason and hit .313 in 49 games with Oklahoma City.
The switch-hitter got one more chance in the sixth inning, when he lifted a fly ball to center field.
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