SF Giants Highlight of the Week: Joey Bart’s First MLB Hit

The SF Giants had plenty of highlights this week including performances from Evan Longoria, Brandon Crawford, Tyler Anderson, and Logan Webb. But, Joey Bart recorded a first that is always special in a player’s career.

The SF Giants catching prospect (the second-best prospect in the organization’s system according to Around the Foghorn) was promoted on Thursday and wasted no time introducing himself to major league pitchers in a loud fashion.

The second overall pick in the 2018 draft started his first career game and helped the Giants get a rousing 10-5 victory over the Los Angeles Angels.

Before his first major league hit, Bart was hit-by-a-pitch in his first official plate appearance, so reaching base was not completely foreign to him by the time he recorded his first hit.

In his first official at-bat, Bart popped the ball up in the third inning to third baseman Anthony Rendon.

Sometimes, when a top prospect gets called up, they put too much pressure on themselves and go several games without notching that first hit. The pressure can mount and it becomes even harder to handle. Bart made sure that wouldn’t be the case. He showed the confidence and composure of a ten-year veteran.

That said, these are observations based on a very small sample.

In the sixth inning, Bart stepped up to the plate and laced a double down the left-field line off of Angels pitcher Julio Teheran:

It was an impressive swing of the bat from Bart, but the booming sound and 109.5 MPH exit velocity was equally impressive.

That double was not the only loud contact Bart made this week. He launched a double off of the right-field brick wall and missed a home run to center by just a couple of inches in the coming days. He has quickly become a must-see hitter in the SF Giants lineup.

His first double would move Brandon Belt to third base, and Belt would eventually score on a sacrifice fly from Alex Dickerson.

The 23-year-old was promoted at an opportune time. The lineup has been surprisingly good this season, so he is not expected to carry too much of a load with the bat. So long as he continues to consistently make loud contact, it’s hard to ask for me.

His promotion seems to have injected some new life into the SF Giants clubhouse as San Francisco has tallied four straight victories in the Joey Bart era.

Bart’s first major league is the highlight of the week, but there was plenty of competition for this spot. It is just the first highlight for him, but it will not be the last for in the Orange and Black at Oracle Park. The Joey Bart era is just beginning.