Atlanta Braves at Washington Nationals

WASHINGTON – The FaceTime call informing Yohandy Morales he was being promoted to the Major Leagues may have frozen, but Morales stayed hot at the plate in his debut.  Morales smashed a Statcast-projected 407-foot home run off Braves right-hander AJ Smith-Shawver for his first career hit in the third inning on Tuesday in the Nationals’ 9-5 win at Nationals Park. Then, he belted a 104.9 mph double off the center-field wall against lefty Brent Suter, who had a 1.10 ERA in seven appearances in August. “The best experience ever, for sure,” Morales said. “Everything we dreamed of growing up, and all the hard work that I put in obviously paid off to get to this moment.”  After striking out on three straight pitches in his first at-bat, Morales finished the night 3-for-5 with two runs scored, one RBI and two strikeouts. His three hits are tied for the most by a Nationals player in their debut, matching Andrés Chaparro on Aug. 13, 2024, at Baltimore. “I was swinging for the fences, for sure,” Morales laughed. “I was just trying to stay under control and try not to do too much, especially after the first at-bat didn’t go so well. I had to relax and calm myself down and just breathe up there.”  Finishing a triple shy of the cycle in his debut, manager Blake Butera was impressed by the total effort.  “Unbelievable all around,” Butera said. “He looked like he wasn’t nervous at all and was ready to roll from the jump.”  Morales had entered Major League Spring Training this February hot off an impressive performance in winter ball. It was his second big league camp, and he was vying for a spot on the Nationals' roster. Instead, Morales struggled, slashing .059/.105/.059 over 11 games. He was optioned to Triple-A Rochester, where he watched multiple teammates who played his position get called up throughout the season as his numbers improved.  “What was cool about YoYo is he didn't hang his head or feel sorry for himself,” said president of baseball operations Paul Toboni. “He went right into the year in Rochester and tore it up and didn't slow down, really, at any point. So it's a testament to YoYo and just the mental fortitude he has.”