At just 23 years old, it's crazy to think of how successful Jose Fernandez was in his first season at the big-league level.

The Arizona Diamondbacks knew they were taking a risk by calling him up, as is every team that takes a chance on a prospect.

Calling them up too soon could set them back years, but not calling them up soon enough means they may have missed their window.

For Fernandez, there was no better time than Tuesday, March 31. It was a game for the ages as he went 3-for-4 with a pair of home runs and four RBIs.

Keep in mind, one of those homers was a go-ahead blast off Kenley Jansen, which put him in an exclusive club.

According to MLB.com's Steve Gilbert, Fernandez became only the eighth player in MLB history to hit two home runs in his first regular-season game.

Obviously, not every game was that great for Fernandez, but he built a solid foundation, and the D-backs have much to look forward to in 2027 and beyond.

There were two months where Fernandez had a batting average over .300, and those come with a solid sample size.

The first was in April, shortly after he was called up, when he slashed .304/.329/.380 with a .709 OPS.

For reference, he had a 3.000 OPS in March, but that's because the only game he appeared in was the one where he just so happened to hit a pair of homers.

After struggling in May and not seeing much playing time in June, Fernandez slashed .308/.400/.385 with a .785 OPS in August. 

He may have only had 26 at-bats in August compared to the 79 he had in April, but it was still great to see him get back on track after his return on Monday, Aug. 17.

Fernandez was just 2-for-15 without a walk to end his regular season. It's a bit concerning that he only had one RBI from May 30 to Sept. 27, but Fernandez was still a 0.2 WAR player in a year where he stole nine bases.

Power isn't exactly his strong suit, but nine of his 52 hits were doubles, and he hit a third homer on Sunday, April 26.

The Venezuelan native had a very even number of at-bats when he played first and third base, and he was asked to be the designated hitter quite a few times, though he hit just .211 as the DH compared to the .304 he hit when playing third.