Yankees J.C. Escarra records first career hit in amazing first start

Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Greg Joyce about the inside buzz on the Yankees.At some point, the spring of firsts — his first time cracking a major league roster, his first at-bat — will start to fade from J.C.

Escarra.He’ll settle into a role as the Yankees’ backup catcher, spelling Austin Wells and positioning himself to contribute when needed throughout the season.

Escarra has soaked in the spotlight of being the feel-good story of the spring, but “when it’s finally done, I’m gonna enjoy it as well.” It all continued Thursday, when the 29-year-old — who drove for Uber and worked as a substitute teacher to help keep his baseball dream alive — made his first career start behind the plate and picked up his first career hit with a double down the right-field line in the seventh inning of the Yankees’ 9-7 win over the Diamondbacks in The Bronx.Escarra got the jitters out of the way Saturday, when he entered as a pinch-hitter in the seventh.

He’d already caught Carlos Carrasco, who started in the finale, a handful of times during the spring, too. He’d already started to “feel more comfortable.” And when he stopped pressing Thursday, what followed was the “amazing” moment of his first hit — the highlight of a 1-for-4 night. “It’s funny how baseball works,” Escarra said postgame.“When you don’t try to do too much, that’s when things come.” Aaron Boone gave Escarra a heads up before Wednesday’s game that he could start behind the plate the next day.

After the Yankees’ loss, when Boone crossed paths with Escarra, the manager said, “Hey, you’re back there tomorrow.” Escarra told his wife the news.His family, who saw his debut Saturday but already traveled home, all planned to watch, too.

And after the game, Escarra dedicated the ball from the first hit to his father, a longtime Yankees fan who lived in Yonkers for 15 years. “Been through a...