If you were wondering if there was a team of Giants lore that charged back into the postseason chase after a miserable start, the answer is yes. They’re called the 1951 Giants, and they probably cheated, but the radio call of Bobby Thompson’s home run became such a part of American culture that we all let it slide. That’s how I see it, anyway. I’m sure there are Dodgers fans who disagree, but, whoops, we’re running out of time.

That ’51 team didn’t start off this slowly, though. The only teams that started like the 2026 Giants were some of the worst in franchise history, castoffs and miscreants, all of them finishing under .500. The only 100-loss team in franchise history, the 1985 Giants, also started out 14-23, so that’s the kind of company we’re dealing with here.

The best example of a Giants team that charged back into relevance, at least, was the 2004 club that had a miserable start to their season, only to stay in a postseason chase long enough to have it end in one of the worst ways possible. Be careful what you wish for with teams like this. If they start winning too much, you might start caring again.

Home runs (23), 42nd-worst in franchise history through 37 games

This doesn’t seem too bad. Only 42nd-worst?

Ah, but this includes teams like the 1902 Giants that played back when there was one baseball in the world, it was made out of plaster and sand and all 16 teams shared it. That team had one home run, and it probably ricocheted off a hartebeest that was still native to those climes. You can’t compare modern teams to teams from the beginning of the 20th century.

Casey Schmitt is the only Giants’ batter who has hit with any kind of authority in the early going. (Ezra Shaw / Getty Images)

Remove the teams from the New York era, then, and the Giants’ low home run total through 37 games is still bad, but not egregiously so. The 2026 Giants have the 10th-lowest home run total since the franchise moved to San Francisco, 68 seasons ago. Not great, but far from an all-time worst.

Except if we’re throwing out the Dead Ball Era, we should also look askance at teams from the 1970s and 1980s. A lot of those teams included players who looked like a rough 45 when they were in their mid-20s, and they were built like Michael Cera. They didn’t hit home runs, and it’s not like the ballparks helped them out, either.

Of course, even without accounting for the difference in eras and styles of play, it’s not like this season’s team is doing that much better, historically speaking. They’re on a worse home run pace than the 1974 Giants, a team that finished with 93 homers.

The best comparison is probably the teams from the Oracle Park Era, the ones you remember. They played a similar sport to the one you’re watching, and in that cohort, only the 2009 Giants had fewer home runs through 37 games than these Giants.

(Casey Schmitt should probably get a gift certificate to Outback Steakhouse for single-handedly keeping the Giants out of the ranks of the Dead Ball teams. Kick the idea up to HR, see if they can make it work.)

Walks (72): worst through 37 games in franchise history