Giants douse Bryce Johnson in unique fashion to cap off historic slugfest

Johnson caps off historic Giants slugfest with memorable homer originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea

CHICAGO -- There are not a lot of problems with hitting seven home runs in a game, but as the Giants shook hands on the damp infield dirt Monday afternoon, there was an important question to answer. Who would get the most attention after the game?

Was it Michael Conforto, who hit his first homer since signing with the organization in the offseason? What about Joc Pederson, who hit his second of the year and got robbed of a third? Or Mike Yastrzemski, who had just three hits all spring but rewarded the staff's faith with a homer Monday that was his fourth extra-base hit in four games? Or Thairo Estrada, who homered from the three-spot but also was removed with an injury? Maybe it was David Villar, who went deep twice and hit his first grand slam?

Ultimately, none of them found themselves the target of a postgame celebration, and for good reason.

The seventh homer of the day belonged to Bryce Johnson, who got his first big league bomb out of the way just four days after he was surprisingly left off the Opening Day roster. After a 12-3 demolition of the Chicago White Sox, it was Johnson who found himself surrounded in the clubhouse shower.

"I got dunked in there, everything you could think of," he said. "Ketchup, mustard, everything you could possibly put on a pancake -- it was on me in there."

Johnson was all smiles after the game, but he was far from alone. The Giants had their first seven-homer game in 21 years and came up one short of matching the franchise record, set when Willie Mays led the way with four on April 30, 1961.

Any seven-homer game is surprising, but this one was particularly out of place after a disappointing weekend in New York. The Giants were shut out twice and had just three hits Sunday, two of which didn't leave the infield.

"That Sunday loss really left a bad taste in our mouths," Villar said. "We wanted to come out and get this thing rolling."

It started with Pederson, who turned around a 97 mph fastball in his first at-bat. He nearly did it again in the third, but White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. pulled back what would have been Pederson's third in three games.

Two innings later, White Sox outfielders could do nothing but turn and stare. The Giants knew coming into the game that they needed to take advantage of mediocre secondary pitches by Michael Kopech, who has a good fastball but otherwise is not overpowering. They ended up hitting five homers off him and going back-to-back twice in the fifth inning, something they had never before done as San Francisco Giants.

The homers came on three fastballs, a slider and a changeup, and from five different players. And they didn't stop after the fifth.

Villar hit his first career grand slam in the ninth, capping a five-RBI day for a young third baseman who should pretty easily clear 20 homers if he holds the everyday job at the hot corner. He was the only Giant to go deep twice.

"No bragging rights," he said, shaking his head. "It was just cool to be a part of."

Villar credited the hitters in front of him, saying they were working such deep counts and having such good plate appearances that it made his life easier every time he came up. That is exactly how the front office envisioned it when they put together a lineup lacking in star power but not in punch.

Johnson is one of the few on the team who probably doesn't dream of hitting 20-plus homers. He has never reached double-digits as a professional and his calling card is his speed. He only added left-handed-hitting to his resume so that he could reach first faster, but he turned on a fastball in the eighth and ripped a solo shot into the visiting bullpen.

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The homer capped what has been a strange week for Johnson, who seemed to have won a job by stealing 12 bases in 12 tries in the spring. The Giants kept him off their initial roster on Thursday as they worked on a potential trade, but added him Saturday.

"I was disappointed but understood what was going on around me," he said. "Being able to stay (with the team) in New York and not go back to (Triple-A Sacramento) was huge. They told me that I'm still around and you never know what might happen, and that's what happened. On Saturday my number was called and whenever my number is called I plan on doing whatever I can, just like today."

Because he hit the shot into the bullpen, Johnson was able to easily get it back. It will travel back to San Francisco with the team before being handed over to his father. Villar's first slam went deep into the seats in left, but he was pleasantly surprised to learn that he also had a keepsake waiting in his locker.

"They threw it back on the field," he said. "I guess it wasn't too hard to get back."

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