Watch: Kris Bryant homers in 2nd at-bat with SF Giants

Newly acquired Kris Bryant received a standing ovation from Giants fans before his first at-bat, then really gave them a reason to cheer in his second trip to the plate.

SAN FRANCISCO — It didn’t go into McCovey Cove, the legendary landing spot for so many of Barry Bonds’ home runs, but the first long ball in a Giants uniform might as well have been destiny for their new slugger Kris Bryant.

Bryant, a childhood fan of Bonds and the Giants, received a standing ovation before his first trip to plate in a Giants uniform. But it was his second at-bat that really gave fans a reason to cheer.

With one down and the bases empty in the bottom of the third, Bryant turned on a middle-in fastball and sent it flying 366 feet, just clearing the wall in left-field, for his first home run as a Giant — and his 19th overall this season. The 0-1, 94-mph fastball from Astros starter Luis Garcia exited Bryant’s bat at 102 mph, according to Statcast.

“You kind of knew he was going to hit a home run,” Giants starter Logan Webb said afterward.

Bryant’s dinger got the Giants on the scoreboard and started a three-run rally that gave them a 3-2 lead over Houston by the end of the inning. Darin Ruf extended the Giants lead to 5-3 with a two-run blast of his own in the fifth inning.

Following his standing ovation in the first inning, Bryant saw eight pitches and worked a full-count but eventually struck out swinging with Lamonte Wade Jr. on second base.

Bryant became the seventh player since 2011 and the first since 2018 to hit a home run in his first game with the Giants.

Bryant also became the third of his former Cubs teammates to homer in their first game with their new teams. Javier Baez went yard in his first game with the Mets, and Anthony Rizzo has homered in each of his first two games with the Yankees. They are the first trio in the modern era to each homer in their debut with a different team after playing on the same team earlier that season, according to STATS.

“It’s been cool to see what they’ve done in their debuts,” Bryant said before the game. “Maybe there’s some magic here.”

#statcast on Kris Bryant's first #SFGiants HR

exit velo: 102 mph
distance: 366 feet
launch angle: 25 degreespic.twitter.com/5mlx2bKmZk

— Evan Webeck (@EvanWebeck) August 1, 2021