Former Peninsula Pilot and the first rising freshman ever to sign and play in the Coastal Plain League, Jake Cave, made his major league debut May 19 for the Minnesota Twins. Cave finished 1-for-3 with a home run, stolen base, two RBIs and two runs scored in the teams 5-4 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.

In 2011, the Coastal Plain League began allowing players the chance to play as Rising Freshman the summer between their high school graduation and starting college. Cave was the first to take advantage of this opportunity choosing to spend the 2011 summer with the Pilots while in contract negotiations after the New York Yankees selected Cave in the sixth round of the 2011 MLB Draft.

During his time in the CPL in 2011, the Hampton, Va. native, led the Pilots with a .326 batting average while notching seven doubles, one triple, one home run, 16 RBI and six stolen bases in 41 games played. Cave also excelled on the mound that summer, posting a 2.19 ERA and 14 strikeouts in 12 1/3 innings pitched.

Cave joined the Yankees later that summer to begin his professional career. Though it seemed he was on the cusp of making his major league debut a number of times over the past few seasons, it ultimately took a few turns – and teams – to get him here.

While there was a brief stop in Cincinnati following his Rule 5 selection in 2016, Cave was eventually returned to the Yankees despite a strong spring training. Upon his return he continued to impress at the minor league level but with a bevy of talent in the outfield the Yankees decided to trade Cave to the Twins before the start of the 2018 campaign.

The 25-year-old started the season with the Twins AAA affiliate in Rochester where he held a .265 batting average to go along with seven doubles and 17 RBI at the time of his call-up.

Cave marks the fifth former CPL player to make their major league debut in 2018, and the 114th all-time. His debut also pushes Peninsula’s major league alumni total to 11.