On a surprisingly cool March day in Arizona, Todd Helton leaned against the backstop on the back fields of Salt River Fields and watched as Michael Toglia took batting practice. 

MLB was still in a lockout, and it wasn’t known when, or if, there would be a big-league season. But minor league baseball continued as normal, and Helton was flown in to train Toglia. 

With Helton in a hoodie and Toglia in a purple Rockies jersey, the three-time Gold Glove winner worked with Toglia, passing on his knowledge from a decorated 17-year career in Colorado. 

“I think his time in Denver is going to be soon,” Helton said after spending just one afternoon with Toglia. 

Helton was right. The Rockies called up Toglia on Tuesday, and the 24-year-old made his MLB debut the same day. He played first base and batted seventh in the order against the reigning World Series champion Atlanta Braves. Toglia didn’t get that elusive first hit in the Rockies 3-2 win, but he did find his way to first base in the eighth inning after an error from Braves second baseman Vaughn Grissom. 

The Rockies on Tuesday also recalled Sean Bouchard, who was Toglia’s teammate at UCLA. To make space, they optioned Sam Hilliard and fan-favorite Wynton Bernard, who debuted earlier this month after spending 11 years in the minors.  

Toglia, a 2019 first-round pick, has largely been seen as the best defensive first baseman since Helton. He plays gold-glove caliber defense, just like his mentor. A switch-hitter, Toglia has the potential to bring much-needed power to the Rockies lineup. And he already has his first home run in a major league stadium in the books: Toglia homered at Coors Field during last year’s Futures Game. 

Helton continued to work with Toglia throughout the season, traveling to Hartford to pay a visit to his understudy. While Toglia’s defense remained top-notch, his offense took a step back. He was batting just .197 at the end of April, striking out nearly 50% of the time. 

But things gradually picked up for him. His strikeout percentage dipped, in a good way, and the Rockies saw enough from him in Double-A to promote him to Triple-A on Aug. 9. He hit seven home runs in three weeks in Albuquerque, N.M., before being told on Monday he was heading to the big leagues.

He was on the team bus when he heard the news, and went into shock, he said. But he decided to wait out the rest of the 40-minute ride before calling his parents, wanting to tell them when he was alone and not surrounded by his teammates. His family made the cross-country trip from Washington on Tuesday, sprinting in to Truist Park just in time to watch Toglia live out his dream.