Atlanta Braves prospect Ozzie Albies hits 3-run shot for first MLB hit

Alas, it came with his team down 7-1, so it didn’t come close to helping the Braves win.

There are ways to make your introduction to Major League Baseball, and then there’s going yard for your first hit in the bigs. Ozzie Albies managed to pull that off on Thursday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Albies, the 20-year-old second baseman who ranks as one of the top prospects of the Atlanta Braves, was called up on August 1. He went 0-for-5 to start his career, albeit showing a good eye with a walk in each of the first two games against the Dodgers.

He also walked on Thursday, but he did much better in the ninth inning facing Tony Cingrani with Johan Camargo and Sean Rodriguez on base.

The ball didn’t clear the fence by much, and two Dodgers outfielders appeared they might have a shot at keeping it in the yard. Still, Albies has a sweet-looking swing, one that helped him hit over .300 over three-plus seasons in the minors.

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Albies entered 2017 as the 11th-ranked prospect in the majors by Baseball America and MLB.com, though he doesn’t project to have a ton of power. That might make his first MLB hit all the more sweet.

While Albies signed with the Braves as an international free agent, his teammate Lucas Sims, also called up this week and making his debut with Albies on Aug. 1, was a former first-round pick. Sims took the loss on Tuesday but pitched a relatively decent first game, going six innings and striking out three while giving up six hits and three earned runs.