On Friday, June 26, former Clemson catcher Cooper Ingle made what he called a “surreal” MLB debut as the starting designated hitter for the Cleveland Guardians in their game against the Seattle Mariners at Progressive Field in Cleveland.

Ingle went 0-for-2 in his MLB debut but reached base for the first time in his big league career with a fourth-inning walk.

One day later, Ingle was back in the lineup, and he collected his first major league hit – which also produced his first big league runs batted in.

Facing Mariners starter Logan Gilbert in the fourth inning of Saturday’s game at Progressive Field, Ingle hit a sharp ground ball past the diving second baseman into right field for his first MLB knock. It plated two runs, and the two-run single gave the Guardians a 3-0 lead in their eventual 4-3 win.

After the game, Ingle described his approach at the plate in that situation, standing in the batter’s box against one of the better starters in the American League.

“Just looking for something up in the zone and put a good swing on something and try to drive in a couple runs,” he said.

Ingle said he planned to give the baseball from his first major league hit to his dad, Steve.

“I’ve thought about it for a long time, if I ever got here, and it’s for sure going to the Pops,” Ingle said.

Prior to being called up to the majors June 26, Ingle – the third-ranked prospect in the Guardians organization, and the No. 68 overall prospect in baseball — excelled this year at Triple-A Columbus, hitting .284 with nine doubles, 12 homers, 41 RBIs, a .551 slugging percentage and a .416 on-base percentage over 51 games.

Ingle was drafted in the fourth round (No. 125 overall pick) of the 2023 MLB Draft by the Guardians. He played 281 career minor league games in the Guardians’ system from 2023-26, when he hit .282 with 33 homers, 173 RBIs and a .408 on-base percentage across 984 at-bats.

In three seasons (2021-23) at Clemson, Ingle, a 2023 third-team All-ACC selection, hit .329 with 29 doubles, 14 homers, 81 RBIs, 112 runs, a .476 slugging percentage, .425 on-base percentage and two steals in 126 games (120 starts). He also struck out just 62 times in 483 at-bats.