No. 4 prospect Beck's dreams become a reality with stellar debut

MIAMI -- There’s something special about a player’s Major League debut that extends outside of the player themselves. It’s a sort of aura, an excitement that intoxicates the rest of the team.

Every player remembers their big league debut. One of the biggest pieces of wisdom that circulates from veterans to prospects is the advice to write everything down.

“One of my favorite things -- I love a debut,” manager Bud Black said before Rockies No. 4 prospect Jordan Beck's debut. “I love it. Because it's, it's hope for the future. But he's a good player. He's a good player, and I hope that it's a memorable one.”

It was certainly memorable, though perhaps not in the way that Black meant.

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From Ryan Feltner being poised to throw his first shutout (and a Maddux, at that), to the Marlins tying the game in the bottom of the ninth inning, then the Rockies losing, 7-6, on a 10th-inning walkoff, Beck got to experience all of the highs and lows of Major League Baseball.

“There's always fresh energy around here when someone is debuting,” Feltner said.

Then, thinking back on his own debut in 2021, Feltner added: “For me, it wasn't the best debut, but just to make it up here is a huge accomplishment and I'm really proud of it.”

Though the end result on Tuesday wasn’t ideal, Beck still showed off why he was the Rockies’ first move when Nolan Jones went on the 10-day IL. He finished the day 2-for-4, crushing a single in his first at-bat as part of the Rockies’ five-run first inning. Then he turned around and snagged a lineout for the Rockies’ first defensive out of the night.

All the while, Beck's parents, Chris and Michelle, looked on from their seats in a section behind the visiting on-deck circle.

The moment, for all, was surreal. It was a surreal night for the Rockies as a whole, frankly. But beyond that, it was a moment of hope for a Colorado club that has set a Modern Era (since 1900) record by trailing in 29 consecutive games to start the season.

“I think that any time -- like I said -- any time there's a young player who's talented, it brings a degree of hope and optimism -- for that player and ultimately the team,” Black said pregame.

For Chris and Michelle, the moment was the culmination of years watching Jordan learn and grow, both in the game and in life, all the while teaching them a thing or two, too. Lately, the biggest thing Jordan has learned has been to “stay where his feet are." That might sound like a lesson in fielding or hitting, but it’s not.

It’s a lesson in living life in the present.

“[It means] just not really getting ahead of myself; just staying -- looking at what the situation is and then staying right there,” Beck said pregame. “I think that’s kind of helped me stay who I am and continue to be like that.”

For Beck's parents, it might not have been a surprise that their son -- who was selected in the 2022 MLB Draft out of Tennessee -- was finding success at the highest levels of the game. Beck made his debut after just 25 Triple-A games, having spent Spring Training with the Major League squad. The Rockies liked what they saw then, and knew Beck was something special.

“He came into Spring Training for the first time this year and he did a great job and felt comfortable -- we had some fun with him in the morning and in some of our meetings and he handled it great,” Black said pregame. “He's a good all-around player. He plays defense. He can run, he can throw. There's a hit tool in there -- which is his primary tool, right?

“He’s a corner outfielder, who can play center, but still a primary corner outfielder with potential to hit, and to hit with some power and slug. … That's what you hope for -- that your young players come up and become good players.”

The Becks have always had that belief in their son. Obviously, as parents, they had to be realistic, too. But to see him succeed on the biggest stage on Tuesday night -- no matter the result -- that was something special.

“There are times [as a parent] where -- you hear them talk in the backseat while you're driving to a tournament,” Michelle told MLB.com, “Where they’re saying ‘I’m going to play in MLB.’ And, as a parent, you encourage them and tell them, ‘You can do anything you want to do in life.’ But then you -- the reality of it is very slim, but you don't tell them that. You encourage them no matter what. And then to see his dream actually come to life, to be a reality …”

“I don't know if you've ever had so much belief in anybody that when they tell you something, you have no choice but to believe it,” Chris told MLB.com. “He's just kind of been that person for me.

“He’s my hero.”