When Blade Tidwell took the mound for the San Francisco Giants on Thursday, nobody really expected what was about to unfold. The 24-year-old right-hander wasn’t even supposed to be on the roster, he was called up last-minute after Jose Butto developed right forearm fatigue. But sometimes the best moments in sports come out of nowhere, and this was definitely one of them.

Tidwell’s debut was nothing short of impressive. The hard-throwing righty pitched three innings of relief, striking out two batters and giving up just a pair of singles while his fastball topped out at 98 mph. His slider, his best pitch, generated three whiffs, and when things got tight early on, he pounded sinkers to escape trouble. He even got the chance to face some serious competition: Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto made appearances during his time on the mound, with Lindor lining out and Soto singling before getting doubled off on a sweet play by Casey Schmitt.

Manager Tony Vitello seemed genuinely moved by the moment. During previous games that week, Vitello had been his usual self on the dugout steps, ready to celebrate every good play. But when Tidwell finished his first inning, Vitello stepped back and let pitching coach Frank Anderson, the man who originally brought Tidwell to Tennessee and helped shape him into a big league talent, have his moment with the young pitcher. “I think it was special to stand back and see him and Frank”, Vitello said afterward. “I’m just happy for (Tidwell), too, because I know he was more than willing to take on whatever role we were able to throw at him”.

What makes this story even better? Tidwell didn’t realize he’d just earned his first career save. Coming out of Tennessee, 99 of his 114 appearances since 2021 had been as a starter. So when catcher Daniel Susac, also 24, came out to congratulate him on the save after the final out, Tidwell was genuinely confused about what Susac meant.

“What do you mean? We’re up by five”, Tidwell said.

“You went three innings”, Susac explained.

“What does that mean?” Tidwell asked.

Susac had to spell it out for him: “It’s your first save!”

The two rookies celebrated together in true baseball fashion, matching laundry carts and beer showers in the clubhouse. Though Tidwell admitted the experience wasn’t exactly pleasant, especially since there were plenty of condiments involved and he’s not a sauce guy. “I almost threw up”, he said. Maybe that’s the real price of success in the majors.