CHICAGO, Ill. - There's another former ODU Monarch in the majors.
Wednesday, just hours after being called-up from Triple-A, former Old Dominion University baseball standout P.J. Higgins made his Major League Baseball debut for the Chicago Cubs. Higgins, a 12th round pick in the 2015 MLB Draft, pinch hit in the 4th inning of Chicago's game vs. Washington.
Nationals ace Max Scherzer struck out Higgins in his first at bat. P.J. then grounded out to shortstop in his second at bat.
Later in the game, Higgins faced fellow ODU Monarch Daniel Hudson in an all-Old Dominion matchup. Hudson, who won a World Series title with the Nationals in 2019, struck out Higgins. Washington beat Chicago, 4-3.
In three seasons at ODU, Higgins played in 158 games - hitting for a career average of .324.
Yo, @ODUBaseball: look who just made his #MLB debut!
— Adam Winkler (@AdamWink) May 20, 2021
Per @cbwilktweetsODU, P.J. Higgins is the 13th @ODUSports alumnus to appear in a @mlb game - but just the 4th position player.@CoachFinny5 @WTKR3 https://t.co/bhtsl15OeL pic.twitter.com/PYvjG0SSm4
19,996th player in MLB history: P.J. Higgins
— Céspedes Family BBQ (@CespedesBBQ) May 20, 2021
- 12th round pick in '15 out of Old Dominion (1st ODU hitter to reach MLB since '03)
- primarily a C, but has also played 1B/2B/3B in MiLB
- limited power but great approach (221 BB/306 K in MiLB)
- .765 OPS across AA/AAA in '19 pic.twitter.com/rGiTgU26U1
