SAN FRANCISCO — The out-of-town scoreboard at Oracle Park is directly in front of the home dugout. If you’re leaning on the rail, as just about all of the Giants do at some point during a game, you literally cannot miss it. When they looked out at Logan Webb on Monday night, the New York Mets-Philadelphia Phillies score was directly behind him.
The Giants are well aware of what’s going on around the rest of Major League Baseball every night, but if they have started to think big, they’re doing a pretty good job of hiding it.
On the first night back home, they hit a season-high five homers and beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 11-5. Across the country, the Mets got shut out in Philadelphia. With 18 to go, the Giants are just three games back, although the deficit in the wild-card race essentially is four since the Mets hold the tiebreaker.
But they’re not talking about any of that.
“I think you guys talk about it more than we do,” catcher Patrick Bailey said, smiling.
Webb gave a version of the same answer. Like Matt Chapman on the last homestand, he insisted that the focus is on winning every day and not thinking about anything other than that. And that actually is pretty believable.
You don’t go on a run like this without having the proper mindset, and right now, there isn’t a group that is having more fun or playing more relaxed than the Giants. It was a party in the dugout for most of Monday’s game, particularly in the sixth, when a five-run rally gave Webb his 14th win and pushed the Giants back to two games above .500. In the middle of it all, rookie outfielder Drew Gilbert started biting left-hander Robbie Ray.
“We’re just enjoying it,” Webb said. “That’s obviously easy to say when we’re scoring a lot of runs, but the whole energy — every game is a blast. We’ve got to keep positive energy.”
That’s easy to do when you’re hitting multiple homers, and the Giants right now are taking advantage of the warmest stretch at Oracle Park this season. Balls are flying, and for the second time in the last two weeks, they hit at least four homers at home. For the fourth time in the last six home games, they scored double-digit runs. What exactly is going on here?
“If we knew,” Bailey said, “we’d do it all year.”
Sometimes it’s better not to ask questions and simply enjoy the ride, and the Giants are playing like a group that might be pushing longer than anyone expected. They didn’t just pick up a game on the Mets on Monday, they also did the same with the Diamondbacks, St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds.
The decks are clearing for them to spend the final two-plus weeks trying to chase down the Mets and guarantee a first-round MLB playoff series either in Los Angeles or San Diego, although that’s not what they’re thinking about right now.
“The main goal every single day is to win the day,” Webb said. “I think that’s the way to do it. I wish we did that two months ago but that’s what we’re doing right now, and it’s fun to be a part of. We’ve got 18 games left, so we’ll just finish out strong. It’s going to be fun.”
Webb reached 200 strikeouts in the middle of the latest win, becoming the first NL pitcher to get there this season. Early on, he received supportive blasts from Jung Hoo Lee and Dominic Smith. Heliot Ramos went deep during the five-run sixth. Matt Chapman and Bailey tacked on solo shots as the Giants hit five homers at Oracle Park for the first time since 2021.
That was a magical season that was filled with winning from start to finish. This year’s group won early, and then had a historic collapse in July and early August. They’re trying to counteract it with this late-season push, and their momentum continues to build.
The Giants were disappointed to drop the final two in St. Louis, and they fell behind early Monday. But it ended up being another blowout win.
As Webb thought about all that has happened lately, he admitted that there wouldn’t have been as much energy in the dugout if he gave up four early runs a month ago. But the vibes have changed, so much so that a rookie can bite a veteran to celebrate a rally and nobody blinks. Webb laughed and said he figures he’ll probably be on the receiving end from Gilbert on Tuesday since it’ll be Ray on the mound.
“I think energy is a huge thing. That goes with just trying to win each day,” he said. “I think Gilbert brings 99 percent of that energy, but it’s great to have.”
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