“Just a dream come true” – Alex Rodriguez’s nephew Joe Dunand homers in MLB debut for Marlins
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Joe Dunand and Alex Rodriguez
Joe Dunand had a moment of his life when the 26-year-old hit a solo home run in his first career Major League Baseball (MLB) at-bat to spark the Miami Marlins to an 8-0 win over the San Diego Padres on Saturday. This win helped the team snap a six-game losing streak at Petco Park.
Dunand, who is a Miami native, a former standout at Gulliver Prep and nephew of MLB great Alex Rodriguez, received the ball in exchange for the fan meeting teammate Jazz Chisholm Jr. The Marlins selected Dunand’s contract after placing utility infielder Jon Berti on the injured list without giving any official injury designation, which the team generally only does when the roster move involves COVID-19.
“Get after it,” Rodriguez had earlier told his nephew. “It’s the same game you’ve played your whole life, so just go out there and do what you do.”
“I blacked out, don’t really remember much”
Talking about the game, Joe reckoned that he was so consumed at the moment and didn’t remember much. He took the first two pitches from Sean Manaea for a 1-1 count and then sent a changeup projected 365 feet just beyond the left-field wall on the third pitch in the third inning.
“Honestly, I’ve been saying I blacked out, I think,” said Dunand, as quoted by MLB.com. “I don’t really remember much. I just remember my game plan: I was looking for the ball up and hit it hard up the middle. I think I picked back up rounding around a second. It was a great feeling.”
“This is just a dream come true,” Dunand said. “This is everything you dream about. Just coming here and being able to play at the highest level and perform at a high level and help the team win, which is the most important thing, it’s a great feeling.”
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Sachin Arora
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