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I want to talk about your years in San Francisco. A lot of great years for you in San Francisco. I had a Kevin Mitchell, Will Clark on recently, and an next teammate of yours, Richard Relia, who is the next teammate of mine, talking about those years, talking about Willie Mays. What I want to hear about the San Francisco experience for you outside of the playing, Willie Mays recently passed away. What do you remember about Willie? You were there a lot when he was a big part of that organization on the field in uni, probably in spring training with you. Yeah, it's very cool. Giants have a history of bringing back their former players and remember my first spring training going in the clubhouse in Scottsdale. Willie Mays in there. Willie McConvie, Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichall, Gaylord Perry, all these guys. But for Willie, he was always in the clubhouse, hanging around, talking to guys that you almost felt embarrassed, kind of walking by him. The salaries in baseball were escalating, what we were making. And here's a guy that's one of the best ever to play the game. And Willie was-- the one thing I'll say about him, he was super honest. You sit down and he didn't really engage you. But if you wanted to talk about baseball or you're struggling, you could go up and engage him. And he would sit and talk to you. And those guys from that generation were very simple, very down to earth, swinging the bat, playing great defense, running the bases. He was always in the middle of the clubhouse. He loved to play cards. He loved to play dominoes with the guys. I got really close to Willie McConvie and Orlando Cepeda because they were first baseman. And like I said, talking to Willie McConvie, I always felt embarrassed because here's a guy, 500 home runs in the Hall of Fame. These guys were all part of the Giants family. But they embraced us all. I had a very cool career playing for my hometown team, the Angels. And I got traded at the Giants and went to Candlestick. I thought the-- I thought it was into the world, right? Candlestick was like the worst ballpark in the league. And I did nothing about Northern California. But I came to love it and grow here and play nine years here. And it's a cool organization. They treat the players well. And yeah, we missed those guys. And just to walk in the clubhouse and see them was such a treat. And just to pick their brain, then like I said earlier, one thing, they were all very simple old school ball players. It was about hitting it, catching it, running the bases hard, and giving 100% every night. You mentioned Candlestick, man. I remember Candlestick and as a player going in there, and that it's just such an uncomfortable feeling as a hitter. You know, when you're sitting in that box, and it's like the winds are just swirling. You have no idea. I don't know. I wonder if it was a home-fielded advantage, though, because you guys are kind of at the point-- or you know what? We just deal with it. It's this way every day. There's no reason to bitch about it. It's not going away. But to the opponent coming in, man, it was almost like, gosh, we got to go to Candlestick and deal with that weather. And it's colder in the summer than it is in the winter. It was huge. And we got there. I remember the first meeting, and Dusty was like, hey, guys, no bitch in hell at the ballpark. Let's just play. And you're right. It was foggy and cold and windy. Remember, Candlestick did the visiting team had to dress down the right field line. Oh, I remember. I brought the field ring. It was like the final leagues. I grabbed your bat and gloves. Yeah, they finally put a bathroom in the dugout. And I remember playing the Dodgers on the store of walk-cross field. The fans were booing him. But everybody that would get down to first base, going back to where we talked about earlier, they'd get down to first base and be like, how in the hell do you play here every night? And I'd say, well, I had no choice. Got traded. But it was a huge home field advantage. And actually, I liked hitting at Candlestick. The wind would kind of blow out to the gaps. So I played there three years in the new ballpark. Oracle Park now played there six. But yeah, numbers in Candlestick were first year at 28, drove in 104. And then I think I hit 20 the next year and 24 the next year. And then go to the new ballpark and topped out at 19 homers. Was the best I could do there. But we knew it. And we knew that if we could wear them down, because guys were pitching about the ballpark. And a great story is Todd Helton got into Hall of Fame this year. And I had a pretty cool relationship with him playing against him all the years. And he would always get down to first base, whether it's Candlestick or the new park. And just shake his head. And he's like, I can't hit here. I don't know how you do it. And if you look at his splits, I looked him up. What he got in the Hall of Fame, I looked up his splits in San Francisco. And they weren't great as opposed to like Cooler's Field. But yeah, it wore on guys. And I think it was the biggest home field advantage in baseball in all the major league baseball. And the fans were great. We'd get 10, 15,000 fans that they were loud and raucous and obnoxious. And then the new ballpark opened. And it was kind of a downtown vibe. And it was quiet. And then 2000, when we won the National League West that year. And it brought a lot of people in and got it going. So yeah, it's a pretty interesting place to play. Like you said, you never get tired of the heat, because it's always cool there in the summer. So you're always pretty refreshed and you feel good. But it does wear on you by the end of the year. Yeah, it was tough. And you talk about New Oracle ballpark and you hit-- you topped out at night. I'll tell you what, for a left-handed hitter in that new ballpark, I got to play a couple of series before I retired in the new ballpark. And I remember coming away going, wow. And how deep right center was. And then I'm watching-- and you're watching this freak show every day. Freak, I mean, in a very positive way of bonds hitting those home runs. And what people don't understand about Barry is not only was he hitting the ridiculous amount of home runs, the on base percentage. It's everything all around. But he was doing it at probably the toughest left-handed pull to the pull side ballpark in all of baseball. That place is-- it's a graveyard. I mean, right down the line, you can get it out. You go to right center. And as a right-hander, that a lot of my power was the other way. Go into that gap in right center in San Francisco. Good luck to you. It's an out. And to see what Barry did, not only what he did off the charts, but to do it at that ballpark. Yeah, it was amazing. And you have to think back. And I didn't realize this, but a reporter told me a couple of years ago, like, do you play with Barry longer than anybody in his career? I was like, no, I didn't know that. He's like, yeah, the nine years there or there, you play with him more. And it's right at front roast here, man. The guy would get-- literally, when he was going, he would get three or four strikes a game. And at bats, and then he would hit home runs. And when it first opened, we took batting practice there. We're like, oh, man, we're going to hit 30 a year. The right deal lines 309. But then he goes up to 421 in right center. And the thing is, is most left-handed hitters. And you notice, most left-handed hitters are not real pull guys in the air. We're more gap guys, a little bit longer swing. So Barry was the only guy consistent. I could pull the ball in the air. And then to hit the ball in the cubby-co, the water, you got to hit it probably 370, 380. And the ballpark has been there for 24 years. There's not been one right-handed hitter in a game to hit a ball in the water the opposite way, which is an amazing stat. And I think there's over 100 splash hits now. But the first year, they started pitching all the lefties away because they thought the right field was so short. And that's the first year I hit 19 home runs. And then they realized how tough it was. They put the right fielder in right center. And then the next year, it come back in '01. And now I'm just getting pounded inside. And it's hard to keep the ball fair. And you're hitting some top spins down the right field line. So it definitely got in your head. And then I don't think people really knew how the ballpark was going to play. And now it's settled down. And the lefties, you can literally throw the ball down the middle of the play and let him hit out the right center left center. And it's going to be an out. So the righties are more pull guys in the air. For us, lefties are more gap guys. And it's hard to get the ball over that wall. But Barry did it consistently every night. And if it wasn't out, it was off the wall. And it's a great part. Anyone out there who never got a chance comes down to San Francisco and you can walk the whole ballpark. It's got great views. And it's tough to hit there. It's tough to hit there. And you know what I knew two years ago? That's why I knew I said there's no way Aaron Judge is going to go to San Francisco. I said too many of his home runs at a right center. And as players, as hitters, that comes into play. You know, first is where does my family would raise my kids? All these things. Money, I understand that. But if everything's equal, it comes down to wait a minute. Do I like hitting there? Is it a friendly right center? Not at all. And that's why I knew deep down. And I had no insider information. I just knew there's no way you're going to go from Yankee Captain to you're going to go sign with the San Francisco Giants and play in that graveyard to right center. There's no way. Yeah, yeah, they thought that a chance because he's born and raised up here in Stockton, I think. But that's why the Giants of it's hard to get offensive hitters here, especially power guys. Because we all, like you said, the money is what it is. We like our numbers and we're tired of one. It's hard. So I think one of the things that Giants haven't done the last couple of years is you got to build a team of that ballpark. You've got to have speed. You've got to catch the ball of defense. And pitchers, we're seeing Blake Snell right now with the Giants deal at home. Logan Webb's done it. You can pitch. You can get pitchers. But I just watched a Giants series last week against the Brewers. And the Brewers are one of those teams. I'm like, this is how the Giants should be constructed. They put the bat on the ball. They put him play. They play great defense. They steal bases. Because you're not going to get a lot of big time free agent power hitters to come here. Because we all love the back of our baseball card. We all love our numbers. And when I came here, it was through trades through Brian Fabian. And we had some guys with some pod, which really hit 37 homers one year. We had Barry and Ellersburg. And I was stuck in there in the lineup. We had some guys that could have some pop. But over the last-- since they've 14, since they won the last World Series, it's been a challenge. And I think you've got to construct-- you've got to get these guys that are played great defense. Outfielders cover the field. Don't strike out. Put the ball and play steel bases and get good pitching. And then you'll see them start winning again. 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You hit 407, and you got to hit in every game in that series. But you're best known for getting Darren out of the way. Seeing that, does it make you feel old now? How old are we that-- wait a minute. This kid that I was picking up, when I was playing, I was playing in the big leagues. The hardest thing has been you watch the replays. It's like the video coverage on TV. It's all grainy and like, you hear like a young Joe Buck. And yeah, it's like 22 years ago. But yeah, Dusty was great. He used to let a lot of the kids come in the dugout and the club out. So he had that culture. Sons could be around their dads, see what they do. And then the other game against the Angels in '02. I was on third. David Bell, who's now managing the Reds, is on second. And Kenny Lofton hits the ball at the right center. And the reason Darren went out there, he's three years old. Kenny Lofton was his favorite player. We got him at the trade deadline. It's a great acquisition by Brian Fabian. And so right when he was hit, everybody's watching the ball and right center. It ends up banging off the wall. And I go back to tag. And David Bell is halfway. So I'm just kind of jogging in. And I see Darren shoot out of the dugout. I knew what he was doing. The bat was on the left-handed batter's box side. And Benja Molina's catching. He later caught for the Giants. Mike Riley was the home plate umpire. And I just knew what was going on. And I knew Dave was coming behind me. So luckily, I stepped on home, grabbed it by the jacket, and just lifted him up. And I have a great picture in my office. It's actually right behind my door right here. But no one's even paying attention. No one knew what happened, because everybody's watching the play. And then not until they showed their replay. And then I worked for the Pac-12 network a few years ago doing some college baseball broadcasting. And Darren played a cow, got to meet him. And he didn't remember anything about that incident. But yeah, just one of those things that never happened will never see it again. They raised a bat boy age, I think, the next year, like 13 or 14. I was excited to see him get called up for the big leagues this week. And he gets a base in his first set bat. So that 1,000, playing for the Nationals for Davey Martinez. So he's a great kid. And when I saw my cow, he's got a chance playing the big leagues. Left-handed, any second baseman hits the ball the other way. It turns a double play. But yeah, it makes you feel old. Dusty Baker, we had him recently on the podcast. He's a guy. And until the podcast-- and I went to the winter meetings, J.T. a couple of years ago, and I sat down and ended up having a conversation with Dusty for about an hour. Played against him forever. Never played for him. I remember him as a little kid when I was running around in Philadelphia. Those Dodgers, teams playing my dad's Phillies. So I remember Dusty Baker very well. He gave me that feeling like you knew him. Like you guys were buddies, and you'd really never had a conversation. I remember coming in candlestick from right field. And Dusty'd be sitting in the dugout. Just way, hey, Boonie, what's going on? Hey, Dusty. Yeah, we go way back. And then I think to myself, I've never had a conversation with this man. But he made you feel like you knew him. Like he was your buddy. He was like a father figure. Everybody always wanted to play for him. You never hear a negative word about him. And I think he really is that guy. He's that guy that's just-- he's got that it factor. And he's a special, special man. You got to play for him for a long time. Just touch on Dusty and your experience. OK, yeah. So when I grew up in Southern Cowell's huge Dodgers fans back in the '70s and '80s, because the Dodgers were always good, and I switched to the Angels. But Dusty was a left fielder. And then getting a chance to play for him. In '97, Davion makes a trade for Jeff Kent. Brings me in. Jose Viscanos, our shortstop. We get Daryl Hamilton playing centerfield. We had like five new guys. And then our model the whole year was like, why not us? Nobody knows us. We're like a band of misfits, right? And like we win the National League West that year. And yeah, he was just that guy that was-- you could talk about anything. How's the family doing? How's the kids? I remember one day I was struggling. My first year at the Giants, getting over the National League. And so he didn't play me one day. He stabbed me down next to him. And we watched the game. I was next to him for nine innings. We watched the pitcher. He was trying to explain the game to me what's happening. This is why he's pitching this way. This and that starts off with manager's point of view. And that's just the kind of guy he was. I appreciate him. He would always like guys know, you're not playing tomorrow. You're not playing tomorrow night. Go out at fun tonight, whatever. Take that pressure off you. And he had the wristbands and the toothpick. And we didn't win it in '02. And then he left. But yeah, he was just like he said. He knew everybody. The people that came in our clubhouse were amazing from town to town. But I was bringing food. I always wanted you to eat. You got to be strong. And then I think the telling sign for me was when the Astros went through all that whole scandal, I remember telling some friends. I said, Dusty Baker is the right guy to come in and take over, get him back. And they brought him in to Houston. He got things turned around. They win that World Series. So that's just the kind of guy he was. And every love playing for him, the communication skill was the biggest thing, right? His office doors always open, come in. He always had music on, burning candles, just all that stuff. So he had some swag. And now it's fun to see him get to watch his kid play. Hey, it's Rob Bradford. 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