Joshua Báez's rollercoaster introduction to MLB should remind Cardinals he's not their savior

Joshua Báez lit the whole world on fire with his historic MLB debut, clobbering a record three homers in his first three trips to the plate with the St. Louis Cardinals. The hype around him was already palpable, but he sent expectations into the stratosphere with that performance.

As such, there was really nowhere for him to go but down. You can't replicate the impact of a three-homer game every single night, which made his encore that much tougher. And it's safe to say that he's having his "Welcome to the Show" moment right now.

Since hitting the third of these three long balls, Báez has gone 0-for-16 with six strikeouts. As impressive as his 918 wRC+ looked after his first day in the majors, his -79 wRC+ ever since is just as ugly.

Of course, this is just the nature of baseball. It's a game of ebbs and flows; Báez is just experiencing the most extreme version of whiplash we've seen in some time.

Joshua Báez's enormous potential hasn't changed after record-setting debut or rough encore

It's important not to lose sight of the bigger picture when we're talking about a four-game sample. Báez is a top prospect in the system for a reason; he's got legitimate 30-30 potential in the big leagues, possessing a rare blend of power and speed for a 23-year-old.

It's also true that this mini-slump hasn't been all bad. In this three-game stretch post-debut, he's still hitting the ball in the air more than 60% of the time, with a hard-hit rate sitting at 62.5%. He's been the recipient of some bad luck during this hitless streak, which is just the law of averages coming into play after his monstrous opening act.

The strikeouts are a real concern, though, since they represent his most exploitable weakness for opposing pitchers. In Triple-A this season, he whiffed on and chased pitches outside the zone at an equal 34% rate, both of which were good for the 16th percentile among all qualified hitters at the level. His hit tool and swing decisions remain the biggest mystery surrounding his profile, and the best pitchers in the world are only going to expose that more frequently than their minor-league counterparts.

Of course, the Cardinals have experience with this type of hitter -- they've successfully helped Jordan Walker mitigate his own strikeout problems this season, which has led to an All-Star nod and narrative-altering breakout. It might take Báez some time to adjust, but there's no reason to expect that he won't eventually figure it out.

It's just good to have a reminder that he's not the savior who is going to magically propel this team to an unlikely championship in 2026. He's a rookie in the middle of a rollercoaster debut week. We should enjoy all the highs and lows that naturally come with that territory.

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