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WATCH: SF Giants CF Tyler Fitzgerald's first-career MLB home run

SF Giants recent call up Tyler Fitzgerald hit a home run he will never forget against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night.

Marc Delucchi

WATCH: SF Giants CF Tyler Fitzgerald's first-career MLB home run
WATCH: SF Giants CF Tyler Fitzgerald's first-career MLB home run /
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The SF Giants defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night in a 5-1 victory to return to .500 on the season. Before the game was over, recently called-up Giants prospect Tyler Fitzgerald (Giants Top 13 Prospect) had a highlight he will never forget. With the Giants leading 3-1 in the top of the ninth inning, a two-out single by fellow rookie Marco Luciano gave Fitzgerald a chance to hit against Ryan Yarbrough. Fitzgerald was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts in the game, but he lined a 2-2 offspeed pitch from Yarbrough into the left field stands.

Fitzgerald recorded his first-career MLB hit during his big-league debut on Thursday. He went 1-for-2 with a double and a walk. So, Fitzgerald has yet to finish a game hitless in his MLB career thus far. Not a bad start.

Fitzgerald was drafted by the Giants in the fourth round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of Louisville. Fitzgerald has been one of the organization's most productive hitters since he turned pro. This year, he has hit .292/.365/.511 with 26 doubles, seven triples, 22 home runs, and 32 stolen bases in the minor leagues. He has hit at least 20 home runs in all three of his full professional seasons and recently posted his second consecutive 20-20 campaign.

The 26-year-old Fitzgerald is one of the best athletes in the organization. His elite speed has consistently made him a problem on the base paths, but also gives him some unique potential defensive versatility. Fitzgerald was primarily a shortstop throughout his career, but began seeing time in center field this season at Triple-A and has some comparable characteristics to versatile platoon bats like Chris Taylor, Mauricio Dubón, and Marwin González. He's sure off to an impressive start with the SF Giants.

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Marc Delucchi
MARC DELUCCHI

Marc Delucchi (he/they/she) serves as the Managing Editor at Giants Baseball Insider, leading their SF Giants coverage. As a freelance journalist, he has previously covered the San Francisco Giants at Around the Foghorn and McCovey Chronicles. He also currently contributes to Niners Nation, Golden State of Mind, and Baseball Prospectus. He has previously been featured in several other publications, including SFGate, ProFootballRumors, Niners Wire, GrandStand Central, Call to the Pen, and Just Baseball. Over his journalistic career, Marc has conducted investigations into how one prep baseball player lost a college opportunity during the pandemic (Baseball Prospectus) and the rampant mistreatment of players at the University of Hawaii football program under former head coach Todd Graham (SFGate). He has also broken dozens of news stories around professional baseball, primarily around the SF Giants organization, including the draft signing of Kyle Harrison, injuries and promotions to top prospects like Heliot Ramos, and trade details in the Kris Bryant deal. Marc received a Bachelor's degree from Kenyon College with a major in economics and a minor in Spanish. During his time in college, he conducted a summer research project attempting to predict the future minor-league performance of NCAA hitters, worked as a data analyst for the school's Women's basketball team, and worked as a play-by-play announcer/color commentator for the basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. He also worked as an amateur baseball scout with the Collegiate Baseball Scouting Network (later renamed Evolution Metrix), scouting high school and college players for three draft cycles. For tips and inquiries, feel free to reach out to Marc directly on Twitter or via email (delucchimarc@gmail.com).

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