Bader's second grand slam of week snaps SF Giants' four-game losing streak

SAN FRANCISCO - If the Giants had to name a standout performer from Saturday's 10-3 victory over the Chicago White Sox, they wouldn't have any shortage of deserving candidates.

The most obvious choice would be center fielder Harrison Bader, who hit his second grand slam in a week. There's also rookie Bryce Eldridge, who reached base three times in a single game for the first time in his career. Casey Schmitt, making another start in left field, also became the first Giant to reach 10 homers this season, and Willy Adames hit his sixt homer of the year as well.

Bader, Eldridge, Schmitt and Adames all played important roles in snapping San Francisco's four-game losing streak. The real MVP, however, was an entity about 93 million miles from Earth: the Sun. And, to a large extent, the White Sox's Miguel Vargas, who lost two battles with the brightness and paved the way for Bader's game-changing grand slam.

Both of Vargas' losing battles with the sun happened with two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning. Schmitt had already homered in the frame, giving the Giants a 5-3 lead, but if Vargas caught either of the two pop flies in his direction, the latter four runs of the Giants' six-run frame never happen.

Following Schmitt's no-doubt two-run homer, third baseman Matt Chapman hit what looked like an inning-ending pop out just beyond the infield dirt in shallow left field. Vargas and shortstop Colson Montgomery both converged, and Vargas helplessly stabbed at the ball as it dropped to the grass. Chapman, who reached base three times on the afternoon, legged out a double.

Rookie Daniel Susac and Eldridge followed Chapman's two-bagger by drawing walks to load the bases, but Vargas was offered a chance at redemption to end the inning when Bader hit a pop up in foul territory between third and home. Again, the sun won.

Vargas completely lost sight of the ball, covering his head as the ball landed less than a foot to his right. He picked up the ball with disgust and flung it out of play.

Two pitches later, Bader sent Oracle Park into a frenzy. Bader hit a grand slam last Sunday with the help of atypically strong winds, but the third grand slam of his career was earned, a 425-foot blast that cleared the center field fence.

Right-hander Adrian Houser, who pitched for the White Sox last season, allowed three runs over 4 2/3 innings with five strikeouts to no walks.

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This story was originally published May 23, 2026 at 7:07 PM.