July 26, 2026<\/a><\/p>\nCrowds at complex league games are limited to a handful of scouts, coaches and team officials. There\u2019s no walk-up music, no mascots, no contests between innings, and a bare minimum of cheering. So Saturday night\u2019s game was a new experience for both players. It was Gonzalez\u2019s third game playing in front of fans; he participated in one major-league spring training exhibition in addition to the Spring Breakout game in March.<\/p>\n
After the game, the two young infielders added one more new experience: their first media interviews. The Giants had shielded them from reporters until Saturday, when the team gave The Athletic\u00a0permission to ask them a few questions with Villegas providing the translation.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had experience playing in Venezuela in front of fans and it was a really good experience, but this was different,\u201d said Hern\u00e1ndez, who gave expansive answers to every question. \u201cComing here, playing for the Giants, everything I experienced today was unbelievable. The fans, the environment was unbelievable. It made me feel great and it pushes me to play even harder. I know I\u2019m here to play for the fans and I love that.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gonzalez said he would remember his diving catch and the experience of playing in front of a sellout crowd.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd the environment in the dugout with my teammates,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cEverybody is rooting for each other. That something I loved and is going to stick with me. It feels great to hear the crowd go crazy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hern\u00e1ndez credited his experience in the Venezuelan League with helping him to stay focused amid an environment with so many distractions.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had to work on that because it really affected me the first year \u2014 not to the point where I\u2019d drop out of the game, but it could definitely impact me at any moment,\u201d said Hern\u00e1ndez, who was tutored at the Carlos Guillen academy in Venezuela. \u201cI found a way to use the noise and crowd to my advantage. You try to let it help you play a little harder. You aim to reach a point where you can stand there and hear absolutely no one because you\u2019re so focused on the game. Of course, after the game, it\u2019s a different story \u2014 then you can pay attention to all that.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, if you don\u2019t feel those nerves, even if there\u2019s no crowd, it means you don\u2019t love the game. But I\u2019d get past that initial feeling after the first swing, the first play, or the first inning of every game.\u201d<\/p>\n
Did Hern\u00e1ndez hear how the crowd responded to his highlight play?<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t hear anything,\u201d he said, smiling. \u201cOnce I saw what was going on \u2014 after I turned around \u2014 I started hearing people shouting a bit. That\u2019s the kind of thing that really fuels you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hern\u00e1ndez said his San Jose debut didn\u2019t quite match his expectations because \u201cI felt like the pitching was at a higher level, or that there were better pitches being thrown. That\u2019s going to help me when, God willing, I move up to the next level. It\u2019ll help me trust myself a bit more.\u201d<\/p>\n
For now, both young infielders say they are grateful that they get to take this step in their journey together.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlaying with a guy like Josuar is a really great experience,\u201d Hern\u00e1ndez said. \u201cObviously, we\u2019re close and we\u2019ve been building a partnership, you could say, that brings us even closer and allows us to help one another. We really feel great wherever we play, whether it\u2019s the big leagues, here in San Jose, in rookie ball, or anywhere else.\u201d<\/p>\n
What did Gonzalez think of the play Hern\u00e1ndez made?<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s unbelievable but he always practices that before the game,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty much routine for him because he practices it every day. We have a good relationship and to be on the field with Luis is a great feeling for me. I think fans will enjoy watching us play together.\u201d<\/p>\n
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\n Hern\u00e1ndez made a highlight-reel play from third base Saturday. (Shelly Valenzuela \/ San Jose Giants)<\/p>\n
The promotion of both young prospects, as well as switch-hitting shortstop Jhonny Level, who dominated the Cal League before moving up to High-A Eugene, has been a boon for San Jose. Prior to Level\u2019s arrival, the Low-A affiliate hadn\u2019t featured a consensus top-100 prospect since catcher Joey Bart in 2019.<\/p>\n
San Jose had already sold out Saturday\u2019s game in part because of a promotion that included a pregame exhibition featuring masked Mexican wrestlers. But it\u2019s fair to assume that their new infielders will be responsible for plenty of ticket sales over the next six weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe energy was different today,\u201d San Jose GM Matt Alongi said. \u201cIt\u2019s a pretty knowledgeable baseball crowd here in San Jose to begin with, but the attention on the field today isn\u2019t always the case on a Saturday. So to have two guys like that come, it energizes our social media, energizes our fan base. Even our clubhouse has a different feel to it. From a fan perspective, it\u2019s really, really cool to have guys like that come here and get people interested in them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Let the record show that the duo\u2019s first jersey for a full-season affiliate was cinnamon brown and featured the club\u2019s San Jose Churros alternate logo. Gonzalez had the additional pressure of being designated the double-double batter of the game; an extra-base hit would\u2019ve won free cheeseburgers for all fans in attendance.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet me tell you, they go crazy for that,\u201d Villegas said with a laugh.<\/p>\n
Gonzalez and Hern\u00e1ndez aren\u2019t the only interesting players on San Jose\u2019s roster. Catcher Rod Barajas Jr., whose father played for seven major-league teams over 14 seasons, hit two home runs, including a grand slam \u2014 he also hit a grand slam a night earlier \u2014 as the Giants rolled to an 8-3 victory over Ontario.<\/p>\n
The Tower Buzzers also happen to be a Los Angeles Dodgers affiliate. It\u2019s never too early for a Giants prospect to start learning how to dominate their archrival.<\/p>\n