SF Giants 2B Thairo Estrada eats an Uncrustables PB&J before each game

On the SF Giants YouTube channel, second baseman Thairo Estrada broke down his daily essentials, which feature the Smucker's Uncrustables signature snack.

Aya Newman | Jun 8, 2023

SF Giants 2B Thairo Estrada eats an Uncrustables PB&J before each game /

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San Francisco Giants

Thairo Estrada is having a career year. He joined the SF Giants in 2021 and quickly proved himself to be a solid baseball player. This season, however, he’s playing like an All-Star. So far this season, Estrada is hitting .300/.346/.468 with 14 doubles, a triple, six home runs, and a team-leading 13 stolen bases.

SF Giants second baseman Thairo Estrada gets ready to throw to first base. (2023) / Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

The coaching staff have noted Estrada’s strong work ethic, making big improvements in his defensive play in particular through everyday drills and glove work. But perhaps there’s another factor to Estrada’s development: a Smucker’s Uncrustable…?

Estrada explained his ten baseball essentials in a video on the Giants’ Youtube channel. Some were pretty standard: cleats, his favorite bat, a certain type of sports drink. But he also claimed that the famous little circle of PB&J helped him play his best. His reasoning was actually sound: “[it keeps] my sugar levels and energy up so that I can go out on the field and from the first inning give it 100%.”

He’s extremely particular about his Uncrustable: it has to be the one with grape jelly, and he eats it 40 minutes before the start of the game. If the clubhouse runs out of that flavor, he won’t have one at all. He explained that he tried eating a different flavor but went 0-for-4 in that game.

The video reveals just how superstitious Estrada really is. He has a meticulous routine for his sports drink (two gulps right before the game, have the rest in the second inning). He wears a teammate-approved cologne he’s designated for baseball only. Maybe most importantly, he keeps a piece of toy broccoli in his bag, given to him by his daughter.

Thairo Estrada’s essentials may perplex some, but with the season he’s had so far for the SF Giants, it’s clear they work for him. Hopefully, a Smucker’s partnership is in his future.

You can watch the full video below:

Published Jun 8, 2023

AYA NEWMAN

Aya Newman (she/they) is a writer, musician, and diehard SF Giants fan from Berkeley, California. She has a bachelor’s degree in theatre from Drew University with a concentration in theatrical research and playwriting. Their play about the 2016 World Series, National Pastime, was selected as part of Drew’s Plays in Process reading series. You can (hopefully still) follow Aya on Twitter @bayareadirtbag for additional musings on the Giants, the San Jose Sharks, the Golden State Warriors, and indie rock bands that only she likes.