Two Swings, Two Slams for FAU freshman
Caleb Pendleton belts two grand slams in first two collegiate at-bats
By Joe Frisaro/Man On Second Baseball
You have only one chance to make a first impression, right?
Florida Atlantic University freshman Caleb Pendleton on Saturday night seized his moment, and gained national attention in his very first collegiate baseball game.
Pendleton connected on two grand slams in his first two FAU at-bats. The first drive was pulled to left, and the second was even more impressive, as it was more towards left-center
Pendleton made slam history 14-minutes apart in FAU’s 20-15 win over the University of Central Florida.
“This is not a repeat,” the FAU announcer said.
A grand slam to start off a career is memorable enough. For Pendleton, delivering two grand slams in the same inning, in his first two collegiate ABs made him the talk of the sport, at least for one night.
“It’s all downhill from here. Caleb Pendleton cannot do any more, than get two grand slams in his first two collegiate at-bats,” the announcer added. “It’s insane.”
Just having the opportunity for one grand slam is rare. Two have it twice, and deliver both times, is beyond rare.
In MLB history, it’s been done once. Fernando Tatis Sr. did the improbable for the Cardinals on April 23, 1999. The father of Padres star, Fernando Tatis Jr., connected both times off Chan Ho Park, then with the Dodgers.
Pendleton, 18, is from Jensen Beach.
As a prep senior at Jensen Beach High School in 2020, he was off to a hot start, hitting .452 with 10 RBIs in 11 games before the season was shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Pendleton delivered eight RBIs in his first two collegiate at-bats, alone.
“Nothing I could ever dream of,” Pendleton said after the game in an interview. “That’s definitely more than I ever thought would happen preparing for today. I never thought I’d be going up for my third at-bat with two grand slams already. That was pretty cool.”
Perfect Game ranked Pendleton as the No. 3 catcher from the state of Florida, and ranked him 13th nationally among catchers.
Listed at 6-foot-2, 190-pounds, Pendleton certainly put himself on the radar of scouts.