On May 25, 1951, a 20-year old Willie Mays went 0-for-5 with a strikeout against the Phillies and the fantastically-named Bubba Church. It was his first Major League game, and probably one of his worst.
On April 6, 2004, Kazuo Matsui went 3-for-3 with a home run and two doubles against a not-quite-washed-up Russ Ortiz and looked like the second coming of Ichiro. It was his first Major League game, and almost definitely his best.
Rome wasn’t built in a day, and Nero had to play more than a song or two before it burnt to the ground.