The nostalgia tour at Oracle Park has been hard to miss lately, with second-generation Giants like Peyton Bonds, Kaeden Kent and soon Darren Baker coming through, and with former stars back in the building for Jeff Kent’s Hall of Fame celebration and jersey retirement. Kent’s No. 21 was officially lifted into the rafters on Saturday, and Barry Bonds was among the familiar faces on hand to salute his former teammate.
Amid all that throwback energy, Rafael Devers gave the current Giants a milestone of their own.
Devers launched his 31st home run of the season - a three-run blast - in Tuesday night’s wild 13-12 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. That homer matched a mark no Giants hitter had reached since Bonds did it in 2004, when the seven-time MVP was still rewriting the record book in orange and black. The following year, Bonds passed Hank Aaron to become baseball’s all-time home run leader before retiring after the season.
For Devers, the number is another sign of how much his season has changed. The 29-year-old, acquired from the Boston Red Sox in the middle of the 2025 campaign, got off to a rough start and drew plenty of heat for his low production and big salary.
But over the past few months, he has flipped the script. Through 2026, he is batting .252 with 31 homers, 82 RBI and 32 doubles, while also drawing 62 walks and scoring 80 runs.
Most of that damage has come since June 1. Devers is hitting .245 over that stretch, but he has piled up 21 homers and 47 RBI since then, a huge turnaround after spending much of May among the least productive hitters in Major League Baseball.
That surge has also helped justify the Giants’ investment in him, especially with injuries piling up around the roster. Tony Vitello has pointed to Devers’ ability to carry more of the load when other key bats have been out, including Willy Adames and Matt Chapman, who have both dealt with mounting ailments for months.
“With Willy not there next to his side, he kind of just took the reins and said some things," Vitello said, according to an MLB.com story from late August. “I think it all was going in the right direction in the first inning. Fortunately, we had stuff on the scoreboard to back that up.”
In Other News...
Giants Add A Familiar Name Fans Will Instantly Recognize
The Giants are bringing in a name that will feel familiar to longtime fans, as they finalize a minor league deal with Darren Baker. The outfielder and second baseman is set to join Triple-A Sacramento, giving San Francisco another organizational option while also adding a player whose last name still carries real weight around the club.
Baker is the son of Dusty Baker, who remains tied to the organization as a special adviser to president of baseball operations Buster Posey. It is a small-footprint move on paper, but it keeps a notable family connection in the system and gives the River Cats another experienced depth piece to evaluate as the season moves along. [Read more 🡒]
Rafael Devers May Force A Giants Decision They Cant Avoid
Rafael Devers has done everything the Giants could have asked since arriving from Boston, showing up in every game and giving the lineup the middle-of-the-order thump that made him such a coveted addition in the first place. After hitting 20 home runs last year and reaching 30 before September this season, he has looked like a player San Francisco can build around, which is why the next conversation around him is less about production and more about how to preserve it.
The question now is whether the Giants eventually shift Devers into a full-time designated hitter role to help keep him healthy and in the lineup more often, even if that means moving Bryce Eldridge into everyday duty at first base. It is the kind of roster decision that can shape the long-term fit of a franchise cornerstone, especially with Devers under contract through 2033 and still preferring to play in the field. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Fans Just Got Their First Real Look At A Key Arm
Jackson Flora is set to give Giants fans their first real look at a pitcher the organization clearly thinks can matter down the line. The fourth overall pick in the 2026 MLB draft will make his professional debut Friday with Single-A San Jose, adding another name to a system that has been reshaped by recent draft additions and trade acquisitions on the pitching side.
Floras path to this point has already included a turn in the Bridge League, and the Giants are expected to handle his workload carefully as he shifts into pro ball. That makes this debut more about the first steps than the final numbers, but it also puts a spotlight on how San Francisco plans to develop a young arm it views as part of its next wave. [Read more 🡒]