While the San Francisco Giants fight to stay alive in the playoff race, a rookie has carried the team with an incredible stretch.

San Francisco shortstop Tyler Fitzgerald has been hitting the ball out of the park at a crazy rate, hitting eight home runs in his last eight games. The last Giants player to do that was none other than legendary slugger Barry Bonds back in 2004, per MLB’s Sarah Langs.

Over his last 10 games, Fitzgerald is slashing an absurd .429/.512/1.229 line. San Francisco is now 52-55 on the season and back under five games out from a Wild Card berth.

He’s come out of nowhere this season to fill a huge need in the infield. He had been a utility man, but has been given the reins at shortstop over the past week.

The 26-year-old made his MLB debut last campaign in a short stint. He slashed .219/.265/.469 with two home runs and five RBI in 10 games.

He wasn’t a power hitter in college, but has flashed some serious power in the minor leagues since being drafted. Still, no one could have expected him to have the stretch that he has had.

The position of shortstop has been an interesting journey for the Giants this year. If Fitzgerald can finish the season out for them, it would be a huge problem fixed.

Nick Ahmed played a majority of games at that spot for San Francisco and struggled mightily while healthy. He slashed just a .232/.278/.303 line over 52 games this season. Obviously not performing up to the level that the team wanted, he was DFA’d at the start of July.

Ahmed recently signed a deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers and when 3-for-7 with a home run in a revenge series against the Giants. That home run tied the same amount that he hit during his San Francisco tenure.

Brett Wisely, Casey Schmitt and Marco Luciano have also played a few games for the Giants at shortstop.

Wisely serves as a bit of a warning to not get too attached to the surging infielder. He got off to a fast start, but has gone ice cold at the plate. In the month of July, he’s slashing just .203/.242/.288.

Fitzgerald doesn’t have to continue playing at a Bonds-esque level to be an improvement over what they’ve had for a large chunk of the season, though San Francisco certainly wouldn’t complain if he did.

Mike Johnston took the stage at Denver’s historic Paramount Theatre last week for his first State of the City address just days after he’d marked a full year as mayor.

He was in a reflective mood, recapping progress on homelessness and other problems in the time since he took office on July 17, 2023, after winning a 17-way mayoral race. He also previewed what’s next, including by pitching his recently announced sales tax increase to fund affordable housing initiatives — a proposal that’s facing questions from the City Council on its way to the November ballot.

Johnston, 49, sat down recently with The Denver Post to delve deeper into his first year and to discuss what lies ahead, including whether he still sees his goal of ending street homelessness in four years as realistic.

In the interview, he also talked about shortcomings in his otherwise galvanizing homeless initiative, called All In Mile High, which has moved more than 1,600 people into hotels and other temporary shelters, and how it relates to broader affordable housing goals. Some of that will hinge on whether the council and Denver voters go for his proposed 0.5% sales tax, which would raise an estimated $100 million a year.

Below are several excerpts, with his responses lightly edited for length and clarity. Context has been added where necessary.

Question: What do you think your biggest success has been in your first year in office?

I think it’s been our breakthrough success on homelessness.

Q: Where have you come up short in your first year, in your estimation?

I think there are some things that aren’t done yet that we still want to get done and are coming soon. I also think there are some safety protections in place at our All In Mile High sites that we should have been more stringent about when we first moved people in. The two lives we lost at the DoubleTree hotel are certainly two that I’ll never forget — and that is a decision I wish we had back.

Context: On March 16, Dustin Nunn, 38, and Sandra Cervantes, 43 — two people living in one of the city homeless initiative’s hotel shelters, a former DoubleTree at 4040 N. Quebec St. — were shot and killed. It was later revealed that the shelter’s operator, the Salvation Army, had not yet billed the city for any security measures at the building.  

Q: Critics have pointed out that people who have been sheltered through the All In Mile High program are ending up back on the streets at a rate faster than they are moving on to more stable housing. What do you feel is preventing more people from transitioning out of shelters and micro-communities and into more permanent housing? How can you increase the throughput?

First of all, I agree with that criticism. I think they’re right and we are deeply focused on getting better at that.

The major focus for this year is increasing that throughput — having better systems of case management at each of these sites so that we know who every person is, we know what their needs are and we’re getting them the right service from the right provider at the right moment.

And we also know part of that need is to make sure there are more available units of affordable housing out there for them to move into. So we knew the first step was getting people off the streets and into transitional housing. The next step was always more permanent affordable housing — and that need exists not just for people coming out of homelessness, that need exists for teachers and nurses and servers and retail workers across the city.

And those units take a little longer to develop, longer to build and more resources. That’s why we’re so focused on affordability now, at scale — that’s going to be our biggest need. But a big part of this will be us getting better and better at case management with our providers at these sites.

Q: Do you still believe you can end unsheltered homelessness in Denver by the end of your first term?

I have to say I feel more optimistic about that possibility than I did a year ago. I’m so proud of what we built together as a city, and we put the infrastructure in place to show we can move thousands of people off the streets in a single year.

I think we’re on a path to end street homelessness for veterans this year, which is generally the first big benchmark along the way to getting there. And yes, we think we can make homelessness brief and rare and nonrecurring. That is really what the field defines as ending street homelessness, or what sometimes is called “functional zero.” It’s the idea that if 30 people enter homelessness in one month, 30 people exit in the same month.

I think we have a real path to get there in three years. In fact, we’re ahead of schedule of where I thought we would be on our efforts on veteran homelessness. That’s been an encouraging function of, when you build this infrastructure and you have the housing units there and you have the support services, you can close those encampments, move them to housing and keep encampments closed.

So we think we’ve shown this cycle works. We just have to do more of it better and faster. And that’s the path ahead.

Q: Your predecessor, Michael Hancock, called working with then-President Donald Trump’s administration one of the biggest challenges of his 12-year tenure. Are you preparing for the possibility of a second Trump term if he wins this fall?

I am not. I am preparing for the opportunity to avoid a second Trump term.

One thing I love about this job is that it’s nonpartisan. We’re just here to solve problems — and problems don’t have a partisan label. Either the solutions work, or they don’t. But if you have a president who makes it a priority to divide the country and to wage war on parts of the country, that makes it very hard to do business.

I just remember that, for instance, in the first term he wrote an executive order to ban federal grants to any city that had a sanctuary status. It would have been every single federal dollar, denied to a great majority of the country’s largest cities that don’t believe it makes sense to try to deport someone who has a busted taillight.

So I would hate for this city or this country to be stuck in a bunch of unproductive battles like that when we have far more important things we can do, like how to work together to solve the affordable housing problem or public safety challenges or homelessness.

Context: Soon after taking office in 2017, Trump issued an executive order that sought to deny federal grants to cities like Denver that did not cooperate fully with federal immigration authorities. The order faced legal challenges before it was ultimately revoked by President Joe Biden in 2021. 

Q: What keeps you up at night?

That’s one of them (a second Trump term). The affordability of the city also keeps me up at night. Public safety keeps me up at night. I literally get a text from our police chief and the team every time we have a murder or violent crime or death in the city. And so that is the last thing I read at night or the first thing every morning. Every time that happens in a neighborhood, I feel that.

I think those are the biggest ones. The good news is, while that keeps me up at night, the days are filled with reminders of just the incredible resilience and passion and spirit of the people of the city.

Q: What is at stake if Denver’s housing costs continue to climb?

I think a lot about this one. I think it would be a dramatic change in what it feels like to live in Denver because of who can live in Denver.

I think it would mean almost all of the working-class families that support this city would no longer live in this city. So your teacher, your nurse, your barista, your local retail staff member — you wouldn’t find one of them who lives in the city anymore. And as their commutes become longer and the hours become slower, I think they might decide to just leave the metro area altogether.

And then the population stops growing and the city stops growing — and you have a city with no middle-class families left in it that feels like a shadow of its former self. We’ve seen, already, places like San Francisco where the population has just started dropping and the people that are left there are only the very wealthy.

That’s not where we want Denver to go. And that’s why the stakes feel so high.

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Originally Published: July 28, 2024 at 6:00 a.m.

2023 stats (rank)

Points per game: 21.4 (17th)
Total yards per game: 322.9 (21st)
Plays per game: 58.5 (32nd)
Pass Attempts + Sacks per game: 36.1 (16th)
Dropback EPA per play: 0.09 (10th)
Rush attempts per game: 22.5 (30th)
Rush EPA per play: -0.09 (14th)

Coaching Staff

The Seahawks have moved on from the Pete Carroll era, hiring former Ravens defensive coordinator Mike Macdonald as head coach. Macdonald led the Ravens defense to No. 1 finishes in points allowed, sacks, takeaways, point differential, and turnover margin. He is now the youngest head coach in the league, taking over a Seattle team that went 9-8 last season.

Ryan Grubb also joins the Seahawks at offensive coordinator. He spent two seasons with the Washington Huskies in the same role, helping the offense to the National Championship game in 2023. Ending the season a semifinalist for the Broyles Award (awarded to college football’s top assistant coach), Grubb has been hired to bring his successful offense to the NFL. Geno Smith and company ran the least plays per game in the league last season, averaging 322.9 total yards per game, good for 21^st in the league. While Macdonald brings defensive knowledge and a new culture, Grubb has been brought on bring the middle-of-the-pack offense to greater heights.

Passing Game

QB: Geno Smith, Sam Howell
WR: D.K. Metcalf, Jake Bobo
WR: Tyler Lockett, Laviska Shenault, Dareke Young
WR: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, D’Wayne Eskridge
TE: Noah Fant, Pharoah Brown, A.J. Barner

The Seahawks passed for 230 yards per game, 14^th in the league. Geno Smith started 15 games at quarterback, though his 64.7 completion percentage, 155 rushing yards, and 7.3 yards per attempt were decreases from 2022. He regressed a bit, but was serviceable enough to contribute to the Seahawks’ top-10 dropback EPA per play. Still, the Seahawks added a solid backup in Sam Howell. For the Commanders last season, Howell threw for 3,945 yards and 21 touchdowns. Much was garbage time/down-big production, but he had a better fantasy finish than Smith. However, Smith’s tenure and leadership in the offense will keep him as starter at least in the short-term. He is a low-end QB2 this season while Howell would be a QB3 if he starts.

A trio of wideouts lead the Seahawks’ pass-catching group. D.K. Metcalf is the alpha receiver, with a mashup of size and speed to torch opposing defensive backs. Last season, Metcalf averaged a career-high 16.9 yards per reception, though his totals in targets (119) and receptions (66) were both the lowest since his rookie year. He contended with Tyler Lockett last season to be the top receiver, though he gains an edge due to being the younger receiver with more prototypical alpha size. Lockett beat Metcalf in both targets (122) and receptions (79) last season, though he had less yards and has been the No. 2 receiver in previous seasons. Metcalf became the deeper target while Lockett took shallower looks, a flip from the past couple seasons. Nevertheless, it can be expected that Smith and Ryan Grubb will continue to utilize both.

The third member of the trio is Jaxon Smith-Njigba, entering his second season. As a first-round pick last season, Smith-Njigba operated out of the slot, catching 63 passes for 628 yards. It took a while for him to see quality looks, seeing a lot of shallow targets at or near the line of scrimmage. Projecting growth for Smith-Njigba, he will still see shallow targets but can also move out into the intermediate area in Grubb’s more condensed offense, especially if Grubb uses more three-wide receiver sets than Seattle did last year. At Washington, Grubb’s passing offense primarily ran through Rome Odunze and Ja’Lynn Polk. Translating that to Seattle, Metcalf is the primary outside receiver, with Lockett the No. 2 and Smith-Njigba the No. 3 from the slot. For fantasy, bet on Metcalf being a WR2, Lockett a WR3, and Smith-Njigba a fringe WR4 value. Jake Bobo and Laviska Shenault headline the rest of the wideout group who will step into roles should any of the top-three go down.

Behind the wideouts, Noah Fant is an intriguing name at tight end. He has spent two seasons with the Seahawks, totaling 82 receptions for 900 yards and four touchdowns between both. Fant saw more production in his previous three seasons with the Broncos but is now poised for more opportunity this season. Will Dissly and Colby Parkinson are both gone, leaving smaller target competition with Pharaoh Brown and rookie A.J. Barner. Though Fant is still just the No. 4 pass-catching option, he will have the opportunity to be a fringe TE2. It is notable that Grubb’s college tight end, Jack Westover, signed with the Seahawks as an undrafted free agent as well, though he is likely on the roster bubble through preseason.

Running Game

RB: Kenneth Walker III, Zach Charbonnet, Kenny McIntosh, George Holani
OL (L-R): Charles Cross, Laken Tomlinson, Olu Oluwatimi, Christan Haynes, Abraham Lucas

The running game was a curiously small part of the Seahawks’ offense last season. They ran 22.5 run plays, third-least in the league, though that conveyed to a 14^th-best rush EPA per play. Ryan Grubb has emphasized a desire to be a physical team while Mike Macdonald wants to run the football as a part of the offensive core identity. More rushing could be in line for the Seahawks’ backfield.

With little change in the backfield, Kenneth Walker is still penciled in as the lead back. He led the way with 219 carries for 905 yards and eight touchdowns, the only running back with more than one last season. Behind Walker, Zach Charbonnet totaled 108 carries for 462 yards as a rookie. While Walker was clearly ahead as a runner, Charbonnet saw a similar share of backfield targets, giving Charbonnet a pass-catching inflation to his fantasy value. Kenny McIntosh is currently the No. 3 RB, but he missed much of last season with a knee injury. He can be a scat back if needed, but Walker and Charbonnet should be expected to hold down the bulk of backfield responsibilities. Walker will be an RB2 value this season while Charbonnet will cut into his load and have RB4 value, elevated to RB2 should Walker suffer an injury.

The backs will be running behind an offensive line that was banged up last season for Seattle. Left tackle Charles Cross played 14 games while right tackle Abraham Lucas started six and is not fully recovered from knee surgery yet. George Fant and Stone Forsythe are tackle depth, but ideally the Cross/Lucas duo holds down the tackle spots when healthy. Walker and Charbonnet’s efficiency was not great last season and a lot hinges on the health of the tackles for blocking to improve for the backs and Geno Smith this season.

Win Total

Rookie head coach Mike Macdonald is projected to lead the Seahawks to a 7.5-win total from DraftKings. The offense has a variety of playmakers, but Geno Smith doesn’t have the elite ceiling from the higher tiers of quarterbacks. The defense will benefit from Macdonald’s knowledge, but a developing team with a first-year head coach and offensive coordinator will have its share of struggles in the NFC West. Those confident in the Seahawks at least playing at the same level as last season will likely take the over while those believing in a step back in Macdonald’s first year may prefer the under.