Tyler Fitzgerald is on an incredible run for the San Francisco Giants that started before the All-Star break and picked back up right where he left off.
July 9, against the Toronto Blue Jays, Fitzgerald hit a home run. When he next saw the field again, he homered on July 20. Then, for good measure, he added three consecutive games with home runs after that. He went two games without a home run to follow, but put up a two-homer game—the first of his career—on Friday night, making it seven home runs in eight games, a pace not seen for the Giants since Barry Bonds, as many astute statisticians pointed out.
Tyler Fitzgerald is the first Giants player with 7+ HR in an 8-game span since Barry Bonds in 2004 https://t.co/7WnlWgsVMZ
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) July 27, 2024
It’s not as if this stat is cherry-picked: It’s been since 2004 since Bonds pulled this off for San Francisco.
It caught the attention of Bonds, with the slugger liking an Instagram post about the feat on Friday.
Bonds liking this makes my heart so happy 😭 pic.twitter.com/aBPLS49XQa
— Jen Kent (@jencosgriff) July 27, 2024
Fitzgerald was not projected to be a star coming into this season. He’s a rookie, and has spent this season bouncing up and down between the big-league team and the Sacramento River Cats. Mind the fact that his first and second games on this streak were 11 games apart. He’s had to stay ready despite not finding a firm spot in the lineup just yet.
Now, it’ll be tough for the Giants to deny him a starting spot.