With Eloy Jiménez, we had to wait.
We had to wait for him to debut in the Majors. After laying waste to minor league pitching in 2018, he was in the 2019 opening day lineup.
We had to wait for that first home run. He started his MLB career with 11 singles in his first 10 games. His first extra-base hit was in his next game. Then in game number twelve, he finally homered. Twice.
He was the 11th player in White Sox history whose first 2 career long ones were in the same game.
| Eloy Jiménez | Apirl 12, 2019 |
| José Abreu | April 8, 2014 |
| Brian Anderson | August 26, 2005 |
| Brian Simmons | September 26, 1998 |
| Greg Pryor | September 8, 1978 |
| Wayne Nordhagen | August 25, 1977 |
| Carlos May | April 9, 1969 |
| Tom McCraw | June 19, 1963 |
| Brian McCall | September 30, 1962 |
| Don Kolloway | June 28, 1941 |
| Zeke Bonura | April 18, 1934 |
My favorite fun fact from that breakout performance: Jiménez was the first player to hit his first 2 MLB home runs in the same game as a visitor at Yankee Stadium (old or new) since [former White Sox great] Manny Ramírez on September 3, 1993.
But then we had to wait again. Because he kept homering on the road. His first 8 career MLB blasts were all on the road. He's the third White Sox player whose first 8 career MLB home runs all came as a visiting player. The others were Nellie Fox (his first 9 were on the road spanning from 1951-54) and Johnny Mostil (his first 8 were on the road in 1921-22).
MLB
That first home run at Guaranteed Rate Field came on June 11, and it went FAR, and from that point forward he hit 11 on the road and 12 at home.
Number 30 came on September 22 in Detroit, and with that came a few more interesting notes.
Jiménez is one of only three White Sox to hit 30+ home runs as a rookie.
| 1983 | Ron Kittle | 35 |
| 2014 | José Abreu | 36 |
| 2019 | Eloy Jiménez | 31 |
Jiménez is the youngest player in White Sox history at the time of his 30th HR of the season.
| 22 y, 299 d | Eloy Jiménez | 2019 |
| 23 y, 98 d | Frank Thomas | 1991 |
| 25 y, 75 d | Bill Melton | 1970 |
And perhaps most impressively, Jiménez is one of only 11 players in MLB history to hit 30+ home runs in his debut season. Here's that list:
| 1930 | Wally Berger | Braves | 38 |
| 1939 | Ted Williams | Red Sox | 31 |
| 1956 | Frank Robinson | Reds | 38 |
| 1963 | Jimmie Hall | Twins | 33 |
| 1986 | Pete Incaviglia | Rangers | 30 |
| 2001 | Albert Pujols | Cardinals | 37 |
| 2007 | Ryan Braun | Brewers | 34 |
| 2014 | José Abreu | White Sox | 36 |
| 2017 | Cody Bellinger | Dodgers | 39 |
| 2019 | Pete Alonso | Mets | 53 |
| 2019 | Eloy Jiménez | White Sox | 31 |
Jiménez finished his rookie campaign on a tear, pummeling pitching for a .321/.355/.604 clip over his last 46 games. At last the waiting was over. Eloy Jiménez had arrived.
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