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LOS ANGELES -- Madison Bumgarner did not expect David Villar to swing.
The Giants' rookie infielder made his big league debut on July 4 against Bumgarner, who opened the second inning by trying to run a fastball across the outside of the plate for strike one. Villar ambushed him, scorching a double off the top of the wall. It was a show of fearlessness, and that continued Wednesday, when Villar had his best big league game two months after his debut.
He wasn't able to put Bumgarner in his book, but in a 7-3 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, Villar did cross Clayton Kershaw off the list. As good as Bumgarner has been, Kershaw is the best pitcher of his generation and one of the greatest of all time. Any contributions Villar makes this month will be meaningful, but the smile got a bit wider Wednesday afternoon as he talked about that homer.
"Yeah, that one means a little bit," Villar said. "Obviously it's a guy that I've grown up watching and seen on TV and in a Dodgers uniform. It's a historic pitcher, but my job is to do exactly what I did. I'm glad I was able to get my A-swing off."
Villar did that often over three days at an uncomfortably hot Dodger Stadium, hitting three homers, including two on Wednesday. All were to the opposite field, and Villar mentioned multiple times that he was getting his best swing off. It is one his manager has seen often in batting practice, but the Giants were waiting to see that power translate into games.
After Wednesday's game, manager Gabe Kapler compared Villar to former Giants infielder Donovan Solano, who squared so many balls up that he earned the nickname "Donnie Barrels." Villar might never have those exact contact skills, but he does bring a lot more pop.
"Donovan Solano, when he hit it his best, he hit it in the air. He had some angles that would have the balls that he didn't hit all that good fall over the infielders' heads and land on the grass, and the balls that he did hit good had a chance to carry into the gap and sometimes out of the ballpark," Kapler said. "Now with Donovan, he didn't have the kind of power that David has. David has the kind of loft in his swing that when he hits it his best it's going to be in the air.
"In batting practice, you will rarely see him hit the ball on the ground. It all has that kind of nice loft to it. Now, it's not (Lewis) Brinson power, it's not light tower power, but sometimes the trajectory of the baseball is as important as how far the ball goes. I wouldn't expect him to hit balls 500 feet but I think he's going to hit a lot of them that get over the wall and into the gaps."
Villar started all three games in this series with the Dodgers throwing three lefty starters at the Giants. He took two of them deep, then added his third homer off a lefty reliever late in Wednesday's loss. Kapler said the Giants don't view him strictly as a platoon piece, and Villar likely will get some opportunities against righties this month as he looks to lock up a 2023 job, or at least put himself in a better position heading into the offseason.
There are a lot of avenues to more time for Villar, who can be part of the plan at first or third -- depending on what Brandon Belt and Evan Longoria decide this offseason -- or even replace Wilmer Flores, the utility infielder who will be a free agent at the end of this season.
Villar is trying not to get too far ahead or think too big. He was thrilled with the result against Kershaw, but he tried to keep a stable approach during that at-bat. He had noticed the Dodgers busting him inside after he had gotten his arms extended the previous two nights, but Kershaw left a slider over the plate. The homer was Villar's 30th of 2022 and he later got No. 31, with 27 of those coming in Triple-A.
"I'm not shooting for numbers and homers, but it's something that I know I'm capable of," Villar said. "To reach that, it's a testament to the hard work and the adjustments I've made over the last two years."
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