A second fire at an Outer Richmond elementary school has families wondering if it’s foul play.

The fire destroyed a playground’s equipment at Lafayette Elementary School late Sunday night, after another fire earlier this month damaged a storage container.

Throughout the day on Monday, many people stopped by Lafayette Elementary School to see the damage for themselves, including parent Sean Phillips.

“I think we’re all in disbelief,” said Phillips. “I mean, why would someone do this.”

His son and third grader at the school, Sebastian, echoed his sentiment.

“I mean, who would do that,” Sebastian questioned. “There was nothing wrong with the play structure.”

A fence has been put up around the structure to keep every safe. Sebastian said it made him sad to come to school and see it.

“Especially for the kindergartener’s because they love that thing so much,” Sebastian said.

San Francisco Fire said initial calls came in around 10:30 Sunday night, and they were able to put the fire out quickly but not before serious damage was done.

Just yards away from the playground is a burned storage shed. That fire happened in the early hours of May 1.

The Lafayette Elementary School PTA said every item in the container was damaged or destroyed, from sweatshirts to handmade decorations.  

Fire investigators are looking into if either was set intentionally, but Phillips thinks two fires in less than three weeks looks suspicious.

“It doesn’t sound like it was someone trying to stay warm,” said Phillips. “It sounds like someone just wanted to see something going up and see what’s going on right now. Media reports, people getting upset.”

The school sent an email to parents notifying them about what happened and the ongoing investigation.

In the email, school leaders said they are taking the situation seriously.  

“SFUSD has arranged for a security guard to visit our school every night through the end of the school year to complete an inspection and help ensure the safety of our campus. Lastly, the San Francisco Police Department will make regular patrols of the school overnight,” the email said.

Phillips said that helps but he still feels unsettled.

“I think it’s that feeling of intrusion,” explained Phillips. “It’s like when someone breaks in your house and does something. You know you’re safe, the intruders gone, but you feel invaded.”

The PTA President, Erin Feher-Montoya, said parents will be gathering at the school yard Tuesday morning at 8 to decorate the fence around the playground with drawings and ribbons to make it look more friendly and less upsetting for the students. 

The San Francisco Giants have been patiently waiting for their star free agent signing, shortstop Willy Adames, to live up to the billing.

He agreed to a seven-year, $182 million deal with the club, the largest in franchise history, but has not provided the team with the kind of production they were hoping for.

Adames has been slightly below-average at the plate with a 96 OPS+ and 96 Rbat+. However, after an underwhelming April, he has begun to show some signs of life in May.

Despite having less than half the plate appearances this month than in March/April, he already has more home runs (3) in May than he did in the first month of the season (2) and has matched his doubles total with five.

A .276/.344/.517 slash line in May is certainly more in line with the kind of production the Giants were expecting from their biggest offseason addition.

On the right track, his overall numbers now sit at .230/.308/.371 with five home runs, 10 doubles and 22 RBI.

Luckily for San Francisco, veteran Wilmer Flores has helped pick up the slack in the early going, putting together a historic performance against the Athletics that has him tied for the MLB lead with 41 RBI.

What could have led to such a disappointing start for Adames?

As shared by Eno Sarris of The Athletic (subscription required), his swing speed has dropped in 2025 compared to 2024.

A swing-speed increase last year is one of the reasons that Adames put together a career year with 32 home runs, 33 doubles and 112 RBI. He was routinely registering “fast swings” and doing damage.

This year, those swings have been few and far between.

His 1.7 mph drop, going from 73.6 mph to 71.9, is the ninth-largest drop in 2025. His teammate, left fielder Heliot Ramos, is also on the list, but he has not suffered the same power outage as Adames has.

The drop in swing speed is a concern and something to keep an eye on. In addition to his defensive prowess continuing to regress, this could be a contract San Francisco soon comes to regret handing out.