Brandon Belt has accomplished plenty with the Giants as a two-time World Series champion, but there are some milestones he still hopes to reach during his time in San Francisco.
The team’s longtime first baseman sat down with NBC Sports Bay Area’s Carmen Kiew for the latest edition of “Summer Sunday,” where he shared which achievements he’d like to realize in a Giants uniform -- and cracked some classic Belt jokes along the way.
It was a hard question, he said, because he doesn’t really know his stats off the top of his head. Of course, his teammate Brandon Crawford recently reached his own milestone of 1,500 games played with the Giants.
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When Kiew asked if reaching 2,000 total career bases was a milestone he aims to cross off his list -- he’s just 29 bases shy -- Belt gave an amusing answer.
“Yeah, that’s pretty cool. Although I didn’t have any idea I was close to that until you just told me,” Belt told Kiew. “That’s the hard part. I don’t know anything that I’m close to right now.”
Still, Belt was able to think of a few landmark accomplishments he’s on the cusp of: He’s getting “closer” to 200 home runs, he noted, and tallying 1,500 hits would be “pretty cool.”
Belt has 1,122 hits in his career so far and needs 28 more home runs to reach 200. He signed a one-year, $18.4 million contract with the Giants prior to the 2022 season after accepting the team's qualifying offer and is due to become a free agent next year, so it remains to be seen if and when he'll be able to do so in San Francisco.
San Francisco Giants
But there’s one definite milestone Belt would like to achieve as a Giant, and that’s consistent health.
“I think, honestly, the biggest milestone for me would just be [to] stay healthy and stay on the field,” he told Kiew. “If I can do that, I’ll be happy with whatever comes next.”
Belt appeared in 156 games in both 2016 and 2019 but has dealt with a variety of injuries and ailments in seasons otherwise throughout his career. He missed 23 games this season due to right knee inflammation and returned from his IL stint in the middle of June.
While it’s clear that staying healthy is at the top of Belt’s list, Kiew had to ask: What about a Willie Mac Award?
Belt has provided plenty of inspiration for both Giants fans and players alike over the years, most notably his recent Captain title, but his mischievous nature might not do him any favors when it comes to earning his teammates’ votes for the award, he joked.
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“I think that’s something that every Giants ball player works towards, so I’m working on it,” he said. “Who knows if I’ll get there. I think I wear out my teammates too much for them to want to give me that, so. But we all have a lot of fun anyway.”
With the Giants almost halfway through the season, there are still plenty of games left for Belt to work toward those milestones.
And if he’s able to achieve the No. 1 priority on his list, he’ll certainly have a better chance at eventually accomplishing the others.
You can catch Belt's full interview with Kiew during "Summer Sunday," airing at 12:30 p.m. PT Sunday on NBC Sports Bay Area.