PHOENIX — Diamondbacks prospect Jose Fernandez not only hit his first career home run in his major league debut on Tuesday, but he homered a second time to give Arizona the lead in the bottom of the eighth inning off Detroit Tigers closer Kenley Jansen.
The D-backs rallied for six runs in the eighth inning at Chase Field, and the drama was set for Fernandez in his fourth career plate appearance against Jansen, who has 477 career saves. Jansen made his debut in July 2010, when Fernandez was six years old.
On a 1-1 count, Fernandez crushed a cutter up to left-center field for a three-run shot, giving Arizona a 7-5 lead.
The D-backs held on for the 7-5 win, as Paul Sewald earned the save in the ninth inning by striking out the side against his former club. It marked his second save in as many days.
JOSE FERNANDEZ'S SECOND HOMER IN HIS MLB DEBUT ?
The @Dbacks have taken the lead with a six-run inning! pic.twitter.com/53J5pZmAWR
— MLB (@MLB) April 1, 2026
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Fernandez became the eighth player in MLB history and seventh since 1900 with two home runs in his first regular season game, according to MLB researcher Sarah Langs.
“Honestly, I went back to when I was a kid,” Fernandez said in Spanish about running the bases. “It is the moment that one dreams of as a kid. And to see it come true at that moment is something super special for me.”
“I lost it,” catcher James McCann said. “I was high fiving (Jeff Banister) and (Torey Lovullo). That’s one of the more, especially this early in the season, kind of playoff atmospheres with guys going nuts.”
Arizona called up Fernandez, a 22-year-old infielder from Venezuela, on Monday to replace the injured Pavin Smith on the roster. Fernandez was a spring training standout in his first big league camp and started the year in Triple-A Reno, but he only played one game before receiving the call. He spent all of 2025 in Double-A Amarillo.
Lovullo put him in the starting lineup to give veteran third baseman Nolan Arenado a day off his feet, and Lovullo noted that Fernandez will indeed be back in the lineup on Wednesday.
The Tigers made a pitching change before Fernandez came up to bat, switching Will Vest for Jansen. That gave Fernandez the opportunity to head back toward the dugout and receive instruction from two of Arizona’s veterans: Carlos Santana and McCann, who have 30 seasons of MLB experience between them.
“Kenley’s one of the greatest closers of all time,” McCann said. “He has a very unique cutter that he uses at the top of the zone. It really was just Carlos and I trying to give him as much information as possible so that he wasn’t surprised the first time he saw it. And I guess he wasn’t.”
That was Fernandez’s third hit of the game.
He beat out an infield single in his first MLB plate appearance before taking Tigers starter Casey Mize deep in his second look.
Fernandez’s eyes must have lit up when he saw a 1-0 slider hang right over the center of the plate from Mize, who was otherwise excellent with six innings and one earned run.
Jose Fernandez is still hitting 1.000 for his career. pic.twitter.com/5z1WLvMBmm
— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) April 1, 2026
Fernandez became the eighth hitter in Diamondbacks history to blast a home run in his MLB debut, according to Stathead.
The first player to do so was Travis Lee in 1998, the first Diamondbacks game in history. The most recent before Fernandez was Seth Beer in 2021. No one on the list had two home runs.
“What a good moment for this team, for this organization, for all the people that have been around Jose, kept pushing him, teaching him,” Lovullo said. “And then ultimately it falls on Jose to go out there and let it all shine and he deserves all this credit. … He’s a player that came through our system, through our academy and it’s just a great baseball story.”
Brandon Pfaadt and the case of the big inning
Starting pitcher Brandon Pfaadt became the first Arizona starter to complete six innings of work this season on Tuesday, and he did not give up a hit in five of them.
The issue was that Detroit scored five runs on six hits in the third inning to take a 5-0 lead, including a pair of infield singles. Even with some misfortune, there was a struggle to record that third out, as three runs scored with two down.
The Diamondbacks have allowed four or more runs in five separate innings this season, which is only five games long.
“Weird third inning, but everything felt good,” Pfaadt said. “Felt like we fought to the end and gave our team a chance to come back, and we did that.”
There was an awkward play during the inning on a chopper to Santana at first base with runners on the corners. Santana ended up eating the ball, although there could have been a close play at home. Lovullo called it a tough play that they will break down.
Detroit’s rally came on the heels of Arizona stranding the bases loaded, as Tuesday was the first game this year in which the D-backs did not score first.
Pfaadt did well at rebounding with three breezy innings to end his day.
The bullpen following Pfaadt was great, as Andrew Hoffmann threw two scoreless innings without a hit before Sewald locked it down. Arizona did not allow a hit after the third inning.
Pfaadt said he watched the go-ahead home run from the clubhouse, and he and all of the training staff present were jumping around.
Building the 8th inning
The Diamondbacks had very little going for them offensively other than the solo home run and trailed 5-1 entering the eighth.
McCann provided the spark with a lead-off double, followed by a Jordan Lawlar single and a Ketel Marte walk.
In business, Corbin Carroll shot belief back into the ballpark with a two-run double, and Geraldo Perdomo walked to load the bases again. Marte then scored on a fielder’s choice, and the table was eventually set for Fernandez to be the hero.
“I know that if I put a good swing on a good pitch, I know that can happen,” Fernandez said. “I trust my talent. At that moment I just try to be calm and concentrate on my plan.”
Diamondbacks’ next game
The Diamondbacks will attempt to complete the sweep at home on Wednesday, but they will do so against arguably the best pitcher in baseball.
Left-hander Tarik Skubal, a two-time Cy Young award winner, will get the ball for Detroit. Zac Gallen will pitch for Arizona.
First pitch is at 12:40 p.m. MST.
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