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Hello! Happy Wednesday, and happy July. And happy start of Spring Training 2.0!
Our rewatch of the 2014 postseason is continuing tonight at 6 p.m. PT with Game 2 of the World Series, so come check that out if you’re needing some baseball to tie you over until baseball tentatively starts in less than a month.
And speaking of actual baseball, the San Francisco Giants have some new developments at Oracle Park. We’ve known for most of the offseason that the team would be getting rid of the bullpen mounds that were in foul territory. But we didn’t know exactly what it would look like when they moved those mounds behind the fences.
Well, the bullpens are officially done. Many people will miss the old ones, but dang ... these sure are pretty.
The Giants return to Oracle Park tomorrow, and they’ll find the new bullpens are completed. Here’s what they look like: pic.twitter.com/d47j6etdp6
— Alex Pavlovic (@PavlovicNBCS) June 30, 2020
Did Barry Bonds hit a home run today?
He did.
July 1, 1996: Against the Colorado Rockies, Bonds hit a solo home run in the 5th inning off of Lance Painter. It tied the game 5-5, and the Giants would win 9-6. It was his 22nd homer of the year.
July 1, 1998: Against the Anaheim Angels, Bonds hit a solo home run in the 6th inning off of Steve Sparks. It gave the Giants a 2-0 lead, and they would win 6-3. It was his 18th homer of the year.
July 1, 2004: Against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Bonds hit a solo home run in the 7th inning off of Jose Lima. It gave the Giants a 3-2 lead, but they would lose 5-4, despite Jason Schmidt hitting a home run. It was Bonds’ 21st homer of the year.
Giants links
- Grant Brisbee on the questions left over after the Giants announced their player pool (The Athletic, subscription required)
- Grant Brisbee on the best 60-game starts from Giants players (The Athletic, subscription required)
- Podcast: Grant Brisbee and Andrew Baggarly discuss the 60 player pool (The Athletic, free)
- Alex Pavlovic on positional battles to watch (NBC Sports Bay Area)
- John Shea on the Giants feeling like they’re in a pennant battle (SF Chronicle)
- Andrew Baggarly on Hunter Bishop testing positive for the coronavirus (The Athletic, subscription required)
- Alex Pavlovic on who Gabe Kapler has identified as frontrunners to win the closer job (NBC Sports Bay Area)
- Bruce Jenkins on how the now-banned relief rules helped the Giants win three championships (SF Chronicle)
- Daniel Brown on the advice former Giant Darrell Evans has for the team (The Athletic, subscription required)
Have a great Wednesday, one and all.