In Bobby Cox’s last season as the manager of the Atlanta Braves he wanted to go into the first month of games with the best team possible, even if that meant costing the team more money. Cox and the rest of the Braves’ management decided to start rookie outfielder Jason Heyward in right field despite the fact that it will speed up his arbitration eligibility and ultimately cost the team more money in the future.
Standing six feet and five inches tall the 20 year old Heyward has warranted a tremendous amount of hype. Heyward answered the all that hype in his first official major league at-bat with a 450 foot home run to right-center field. Heyward finished the game going 2-5 with 4 RBI in the first major league game of his young career (three-run homer as well as an RBI single in the 8th).
Jason Heyward became the 103rd player in the history of the MLB to begin his major league career with a home run. His home run and 4 RBI helped push the Braves passed the Cubs with a 16-5 victory on opening day. Heyward is clearly the next big thing in the baseball and looks to have a long and prosperous MLB career.