Historic moment for infielder Ngoepe

Gift Ngoepe was aware of the significance of the moment when he put on his Pittsburgh Pirates uniform for the first time in the regular season.

The Pirates recalled the infielder from triple-A Indianapolis Wednesday, making him the first player from Africa to reach the major leagues, according to the team.

“It’s a dream come true for me because it’s been my dream since I was a 10-year-old boy, but it also means so much to the people of South Africa and baseball in Africa,” Ngoepe said before the Pirates played the Chicago Cubs. “I’ve got plenty from people back home who are so excited. Baseball is still very much in the development stages (in Africa) and hopefully this gets more people interested.”

The Pirates optioned right-handed reliever Dovydas Neverauskas to Indianapolis. Neverauskas became the first Lithuania born and raised player to pitch in the majors when he appeared Monday in a loss to the Cubs.

The 27-year-old Ngoepe was born in Pietersburg, South Africa, and attended high school in the suburbs of Johannesburg. Ngoepe signed with Pittsburgh in 2008 and was batting .241 in triple-A when he was promoted.