BOSTON | Édouard Julien hit his first hit and home run of his Major League Baseball career last Thursday at Yankee Stadium. On that magical day, Yankees big star Aaron Judge, author of last season’s 62 Long Ball, walked up to greet him: “Welcome to the big leagues, kid! »
“He said that to me on the field when he passed me, I don’t remember exactly when,” said Julien simply, scoring Tuesday in Boston before the Minnesota Twins game against the Red Sox.
If he stays human, the 23-year-old Quebecer exudes self-confidence. Even when he’s living his dream, Julien keeps his head as cool as possible. He can’t afford to be too impressed.
“Not once since I’ve been in the majors have I felt overly excited,” assured Julien. I stay in the present moment and enjoy every moment. »
In front of family and friends
Finally, the judge’s welcome speech remains one of the many incredible scenes the young Quebecer has witnessed with the Twins over the past week.
“For me, the most important thing was that I wasn’t too far from home and that my parents and friends could come,” Julien admitted.
After Thursday’s famous game at Yankee Stadium, the Quebecois with great emotion also handed over the various balls he kept as a souvenir of his father Rémy.
One could hardly have imagined a better scenario for Julien’s career start. After a first home game at Target Field, the Twins player visited Yankee Stadium. And here he is in Boston now, at Fenway Park, another legendary stadium.
Every day is different
Like his Twins teammates, Julien was unlucky to come up against Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole, who was at his best on Sunday. This helped bring the young Quebecer’s batting average down to a .111. However, Julien knows very well that days go by and don’t always look like baseball.
During last training camp, Julien hit two home runs in the same game on Feb. 28 against the Atlanta Braves. Questioned at the end of that game, he pointed out that he had been the victim of three strikeouts in his previous game.
“It’s baseball, I insist, Julien. You can be the worst player in one game and have your best day the next. I don’t worry about what I experience every day. Every day is a new game and every batting appearance is a new opportunity. »
Édouard Julien was not in the starting XI for the Twins on Tuesday night in Boston. This decision by manager Rocco Baldelli is closely related to the fact that the Red Sox put on left-hander Chris Sale as a starting pitcher.