If Bob Melvin and the Giants were allowed to sit down this past Friday morning and map out exactly how they’d like this weekend to go around the National League West, it would have looked exactly like how the results actually played out. The Giants, of course, swept the Oaklamento Athletics at Oracle Park. The Padres were shockingly swept at home by the Mariners, while the Dodgers were more shockingly swept by the Angels at Dodger Stadium. Four games out of a first place spot on Friday, the Giants woke up Monday morning just a game back. 

It was a memorable weekend at 3rd & King for many reasons. First and foremost, it was the first series played between the Giants and an A’s team not based in Oakland in decades. Emotions of spurned A’s fans were palpable. And the host Giants’ interesting efforts to beckon them into an awkward, sympathetic side hug with signage and Oakland based guests created a weird vibe. This unique NorCal partnership, however brief it may be, will take some getting used to. 

On the field, it was all about Wilmer Flores. On Friday night, the Giants’ most clutch hitter hit not one, not two, but THREE home runs in a 9-1 trouncing of the A’s. He became the first Giants right handed hitter to pull off the feat at Oracle Park, and the first righty overall since Kevin Mitchell. 

Here’s how all three of his bombs sounded on KNBR: 

And we can’t leave you without Jon Miller’s sweet serenade on KNBR when Flores hit a historic third bomb. 

Despite the heroics on the field, Flores’s most impactful moment of the night may have come in the postgame. He was reminded by a reporter that the A’s aren’t based in Oakland. Flores corrected himself to some chuckles, then turned and seemed to reject the notion that the iconic East Bay ballclub is anything but Oakland. 

Flores was the hero again on Saturday, but in much different fashion. He took a heroic at bat in the bottom of the 10th inning, with the A’s and Giants knotted in a 0-0 tie. A’s manager Mark Kotsay quizzically elected to intentionally walk Mike Yastrzemski to load the bases. Hard-throwing all star closer Mason Miller then gave Flores all he could handle. But in the end, it was the disciplined eye of the 10-year veteran that won out. Flores watched a 103 mph fastball low for ball four, forcing in the winning run and giving the Giants yet another walkoff win. 

It was a weekend of Wilmer, but above all else, it was flat out weird for these two franchises to be facing off in anything other than the battle of the bay.

Two weeks ago, the first real disappointment of a very successful April of 2025 hit the Giants when they lost both games in San Diego and dropped the first of four with the Rockies. It was a good test, a small humbling dose that slightly extinguished the flames of even the most determined optimists in orange and black. And the Giants responded, giving good reason for labeling the brief three game skid as a one off by taking the final three games from Colorado before taking two of three from the red hot Cubs at Wrigley Field in Chicago. 

That is precisely the last time you saw your Giants in the win column. Six days ago, a sunny afternoon victory in CHicago that put the Giants 10 games over .500 at 24-14. Since then, it’s been four straight losses, highlighted by a sweep in Minnesota and a 2-1 loss last night in the series opener against the Diamondbacks. A bit sooner than they;d certainly hoped, a second disappointing spell has befallen the now 24-18 Giants. 

A struggling lineup once again failed a stellar pitching effort Monday night. As was the case on Friday and Saturday in Minnesota. A top heavy lineup, a cooling off from 1-5 has had disastrous implications considering 6-9 has been abysmal all year. San Francisco lost on Friday night 3-1, then fell 2-1 on Saturday evening. Getting next to zero production from the catcher and first base positions, it’s fair to wonder just how much longer the Giants can afford to routinely trot out Patrick Bailey and Lamonte Wade Jr. 

Through Monday;s game, Bailey is hitting .183, with a brutal OPS of .477. He hasn’t homered in the 2025 season. Bailey is an interesting situation, given his sterling defense behind the plate. He’s coming off a Gold Glove award and could realistically claim another if he stays on the field. Wade Jr. hasn’t fared any better at the plate. His OPS is slightly better at .491, but his average sits at a shocking .145. Unlike Bailey, he doesn’t have the shield of elite defense to fall back on. 

Notes: 

Heliot Ramos is heating up, providing essentially the only Giants production during a forgettable weekend in Minneapolis. His average has crept up to .290, while his OPS sits at a respectable .850. The 2024 All-Star has blasted seven home runs, a figure that is probably a bit lower than he’d like but one that gives him a chance to end the Giants absurd 30-home run drought. Bonds was the last player to hit 30+ in 2004. 

Justin Verlander is STILL searching for his first Giants win despite pitching more than well enough to deserve one multiple times in his first nine starts. On Monday, he surrendered just the two runs to Arizona. In a 2-1 loss, that’s enough to receive an undeserved loss. It’s coming, Justin. 

On a much more positive note, the KNBR x Giants Community Fund auction is now live! 

Learn more here: https://giants.auctions.mlb.com/iSynApp/allAuction.action?sid=1102321&promoGroupList%5b0%5d.strValue1=GCF&rc=25

Is Steph Curry the greatest showman in the history of Bay Area sports?

Or, as the kids might say: Does Steph Curry have the most aura of any athlete in the history of Bay Area sports?

As I tiptoe past the desk of Willie Mays, sneak by the cubicle of Joe Montana and try not to be noticed by Barry Bonds at the company water cooler, I think the answer is yes.

Thursday night in Orlando, Steph Curry scored 56 points and made 12 three-pointers and while this has happened before, there is something about the KIA Arena Ka-boom that caused us to ramp up the historical stakes.

For one, Steph Curry just keeps doing it. He’ll be 37 on March 14 and he just … keeps … doing … it. So we are approaching that part of his career where we are saying: Wait. This guy burst into the NBA consciousness when he scored 54 points on Feb. 27, 2013 at Madison Square Garden, has since won two MVPs and four NBA titles and, a dozen years later to the day, scored 56 in a critical road win?

He just … keeps … doing … it.

There comes a time in a career when you begin to mark new ground, like the doorjamb in your childhood home that mapped your ever-increasing height. The pencil mark from last night marked another leap. 

A month ago, Curry did post-game interviews exhausted and drained, a towel draped over his head in what almost appeared a sign of surrender. But Curry never surrenders. He just keeps trying to get open. His ongoing efforts produced fatigue, and too many losses as the Warriors went 13-23 and offered Curry no help in personnel. 

Curry, though, kept running off screens, literally and metaphorically. 

And then came Jimmy Butler, who lit candles, literally and metaphorically.

In the last eight games, Curry’s exhaustive efforts finally yielded goodness. Butler, who has an aura of his own, liberated Curry and justified Curry’s never-ending efforts. In the eight games with Butler, Curry is shooting 51 percent from the field, 42.7 percent from the three-point line and is averaging 30.6 points per game.

Hallelujah, Steph is saved.

And in being saved, he is allowed to resume his climb in our sports-loving hearts. As a listener texted in today, Buster Posey took over the Giants saying he wants the team to be in the “memory-making business.” Steph Curry has spent the last 15 years making memories for Warriors fans, and that he did so even Thursday night in Orlando shows how consistently brilliant he remains.

How would he pass Mays, who many consider the most thrilling and graceful baseball player of all time? It may be unfair to Mays, but Curry’s ability to nab four championships and spend his entire career in the Bay — Mays burst into America’s consciousness as a New York Giant — gives him the edge.

How would Curry pass Bonds, who may be quite simply the greatest hitter who ever lived? Let’s be honest. Curry’s graciousness, generosity of spirit, approachability, patience with the media and spiritual connection with fans gives him the edge in terms of Bay Area adulation.

How is Curry able to pass Montana, the golden QB god who gave San Francisco its very first pro sports championship, in the fashion of epic poetry with “The Catch”, and then did it a total of four times? 

Oof. That’s the toughest one.

For many, including yours truly, Montana is holy ground. There is nothing anyone can say or do to replace or smudge the 1980s run of Joe Montana as quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers. Montana evoked not just athletic brilliance and grace, not just uncanny poise and flair for the dramatic, not just championship genius over and over; he also validated a region, a franchise, and generations of fans.

Passing Joe Montana in terms of Bay Area aura is the toughest ask of all.

Steph Curry might have done it. 

For about 30 minutes on Monday night, the Ninrs offense resembled the high powered machine it’s looked like for much of the past five seasons. The zone running, lethal play action passing, and comprehensive distribution had the NFC best Detroit Lions on their heels at Levi’s Stadium. This offense, of course, hasn’t been remotely close to that for almost the entirety of 2024. And in the second half, the same shortcomings that have plagued the Niners all year led to another loss. A previously unfathomable 10th of the season. 

The result doesn’t sting as much for Niners fans. Not since the team was eliminated in the early part of December. But coming up short on national television against a championship contender is still a black eye. The list of issues continues to grow. 

Jake Moody’s Monday night performance was abysmal. The controversial third round kicker missed two field goals and an extra point, the latest unfortunate chapter in what has been a rough sophomore season. Moody’s performance will always be topical, partly because he’s a starting kicker, and partly because of the almost unprecedented draft capital used on him. Kyle Shanahan, who has always had Moody’sback publicly, showed some cracks in that framework postgame. 

Moody faced the music following the game. He stood at his locker and answered questions with grace, but the pain in his face was palpable. Moody explained that his confidence is about as low as it’s ever been in his football career. 

The Niners defense has also had a year to forget. Once the most fearsome unit in the NFl, injuries and a severe lack of clutch execution have contributed to a lowlight reel that Fred Warner, Nick Bosa and Co would love to bury and burn in the offseason. One prominent reason the defense has struggled is the stark inability to force turnovers, especially in the latter half of the season. Warner, someone who takes tremendous pride in his defense’s ability to turn the ball over and score, can’t explain the drought better than you or I. 

Ricky Persall’s big night was a bright spot. He’s had a tough year on the field on top of the obvious struggle off of it. He went for 140 yards and scored a touchdown. Pearsall looked like the Niners’ best player on Monday night. George Kittle heaped praise on the rookie. 

When the NFL schedule came out this past Spring, the 49ers vs Cowboys week eight matchup at Levi’s Stadium was rightfully billed as one of a handful of premiere matchups on the league’s calendar. Two historic franchises, rich head to head history, and of course, what should be two of the NFL’s best come October 27. 

The latter has been far from the case in the early part of 2024. Dallas can’t stop a nosebleed, can’t win at home, and limps out of its bye week with a 3-3 record. Somehow, that 3-3 mark is a half game better than the 49ers. If Super Bowl hangovers are real, the Niners just woke up in Vegas without a front tooth and a weapons grade sunburn. SF sees the Cowboys limp into Levi’s from the rear window of a Santa Clara ambulance.

The 49ers injury list is comically long. It rivals the plethora of injuries the team suffered during the infamous 2020 season that went off the rails around this time of year. The headache-inducing IR and daily participation reports aren’t quite to that level, but the contrast between a nearly injury free 2023 and this carnage is staggering. Here’s a quick summary of the bad luck San Francisco has encountered when it comes to health this season. 

Their rookie first round pick Ricky Pearsall was shot in an armed robbery in August, just days before the season opener. All world and defending offensive player of the year Christian McCaffrey still hasn’t played this year with bilateral Achilles tendinitis. The team is still without Dre Greenlaw, who ruptured his achilles whilst jogging onto the field in the second quarter of the Super Bowl. Javon Hargrave was lost for the season two weeks ago, severely crippling the Niners’ depth on the defensive line. 

Deep breath. 

San Francisco’s starting kicker sprained his ankle attempting to make a tackle because the other 10 men on kick coverage are so consistently incompetent that kickers and punters are often forced into contact situations. Then his backup was injured in his first appearance as a Niner. How many NFL teams have reached their third kicker in one season, without a single change being made due to performance? 

Former All-Pro safety Talanoa Hufanga was the exception to the sterling injury luck in 2023. He tore his ACL midway through the year before heroically returning to action early in this season. Promptly, and almost cruelly, he suffered a wrist injury that tore tendons off the bone. It’s unclear if he will play again this season. 

Brandon Aiyuk, who dominated offseason headlines for the Niners with a very public contract dispute, just tore his ACL and MCL in the loss to Kansas City. 

Finally, and perhaps most unbelievably, star wide receiver Deebo Samuel missed Sunday’s game with an undisclosed illness that turned out to be pneumonia, for which he was hospitalized. Yes, Pneumonia. 

It’s been a brutal couple of months for the 49ers on the injury front, and the product on the field hasn’t been much better. Some of that can be attributed to the long line at the infirmary, but far from all of it. 

Steve Young joined Tolbert & Copes: for his weekly spot on Wednesday. Check out more here and listen to the full podcast below! 

There’s not much to smile about right now if you’re at all affiliated with the San Francisco 49ers. The Niners were tormented by their biggest boogeyman once again on Sunday, as Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs came to town and reminded everyone in red and gold that they’re the champs. And the Niners, just about eight months removed from coming within inches of being champs, feel lightyears away from that. 

The Chiefs didn’t even play particularly well either. Mahomes was underwhelming overall, but of course a reliable playmaker whenever it really mattered. A depleted platoon of Kansas City skill position players weren’t very special. Yet the Chiefs laughed and slapped hands on the visiting sideline for much of the fourth quarter, cruising to a 28-18 victory that wasn’t as close as the final score even indicated. From start to finish, it was an ugly afternoon at Levi’s Stadium, and things have never looked more bleak for the 2024 49ers. 

The misery wasn’t just in the final score and the annoying, frustrating, infuriating way it played out. The 2023-absent injury bug once again reared its ugly head. Wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk suffered a season ending torn ACL in the second quarter after making a first down reception. The unfortunate injury puts an abrupt end to what was a long and tumultuous 2024 for Aiyuk and the Niners, the majority of which took place away from the field. Aiyuk’s contentious hold out, lack of on field production, and finally brutal injury encapsulate just how grim things have been for the Niners since they left Las Vegas in February. 

Greg Papa kicked things off on this dark Niners Monday with a monologue that begged one simple question: Where are the 49ers? What has happened to this juggernaut in the first seven weeks of a season classified as Super Bowl or bust. Kyle Shanahan described Sunday’s loss as an “Ass-Kicking.” Papa concurred. 

Overall, Brock Purdy has been fantastic for the Niners for the vast majority of his young career. Sunday was not a performance to remember for the third year QB. Purdy, to put it nicely, was underwhelming in the loss. He posted the lowest Quarterback rating of his career, threw three picks, and underthrew two deep routes for completions that would have been touchdowns had he put them on the money. He has to be better. 

Colin Cowherd touched on the difference between Purdy and Mahomes that was magnified in yesterday’s game. 

The national media has long praised the 49ers during their post pandemic Super Bowl contention. The tides are officially shifting as of Monday morning. Cowherd wasn’t the only one. NFL Network’s Good Morning Football crew unloaded on SF. There were questions about the secrecy of Christian McCaffrey’s condition from Kyle Brandt and Peter Schrager. Then, former linebacker Akbar Gbajabiamila put the nail in the coffin. 

It’s all bad right now for the 49ers. 

Not only is superstar running back Christian McCaffrey still out and shrouded in uncertainty, George Kittle and Fred Warner are also listed as questionable heading into a pivotal matchup with the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday. Kittle’s been sidelined for a game already, but Warner’s ailment is a new one, an ankle injury suffered in the second half of last week’s convincing victory over New England. 

Kyle Shanahan joined Tolbert and Copes on Thursday afternoon and provided an update on the status of Kittle and Warner. 

In the event that Warner isn’t able to go, the Niners may turn to rookie linebacker Tatum Bethune to take his place. While any alternative to Warner is an obvious downgrade, the 49ers are high on the intangibles of the rookie Bethune. John Lynch joined Murph and Markus for his usual spot on Friday morning and expressed how confident he and Shanahan would be if Bethune would have to quarterback the defense. 

There will come a time when Brandon Aiyuk’s performance, contract, and practice behavior are no longer a hot topic, but that time is not now. Lynch was asked about Aiyuk’s slow start to the season after inking a big time contract prior to week one. As everyone inside the organization has expressed, Lynch is supremely confident in Aiyuk’s ability to return to his 2023 form sooner than later. 

The next man up mentality has been a strength for San francisco through its first four games. No one has embodied that sentiment more than Jordan Mason. He’s filled in admirably for McCaffrey, leading the NFL in carries through four weeks. Mason has been more than adequate, but is this workload sustainable? Larry Krueger and John Dickinson discussed the back’s workload on Wednesday night’s Niners Nightly on KNBR. 

Defensive player of the month snub?  

Almost beyond a shadow of a doubt, Fred Warner has been the most impactful defensive player in the NFC through the season’s first four weeks. It was Detroit’s Aidan Hutchinson, however, who was named the conference’s defensive player of the month earlier this week. You decide. 

Photo: David Gonzales

About that 49ers opening night whipping of Aaron Rodgers and the Jets:

Felt great, baby.

Now, in the never-ending river of stress and angst that is pursuing a Super Bowl, we approach the next hurdle:

How long can the 49ers keep this dream alive in a world without Christian McCaffrey?

We should all take this McCaffrey injury news seriously, and as a result, take the blow to the 49ers’ dreams seriously, as well. While my medical degree from an off-shore med school is still processing, my gut instinct degree from covering the NFL for three decades is top of the class, and this McCaffrey news hits the wrong way.

Sure, there is a scenario where a few more weeks of rest heals up the calf and Achilles. In this scenario, by midseason a rested and healthy McCaffrey has overcome the strain and is revving like the reigning NFL Offensive Player of the Year he is.

That’s what you would call your ‘puppy dogs and rainbows’ scenario. Who’s against puppy dogs and rainbows? Throw in some ice cream in that scenario to make it even better.

Then there’s the other scenario. The one from the mean streets of the real world.

We should all brace ourselves for the possibility that Christian McCaffrey, the Steph Curry of the NFL, will be an on-again, off-again presence on the injury list this season. There’s another possibility that I don’t even want to put in the universe, but we all must be big boys and big girls and ponder the idea that McCaffrey could be out for a while.

No puppy dogs, ice cream or rainbows there.

Being adults, we must prepare for the worst. Yes, kids, being an adult sucks sometimes. 

So we must ask the question: Can the 49ers still win the Super Bowl with a diminished McCaffrey? Or even without McCaffrey?

Gulp.

That does not feel great, baby.

And yet, the short answer is: Yes, they can. 

I know, crazy, right?

I mean, I’m not fired up about it. And given my druthers, I’d prefer a healthy McCaffrey in uniform to maximize their chances.

But, yes, they can.

We refer you to the 2019 season in which Christian McCaffrey put up a monster 1,000-yards rushing/1,000-yards receiving as a first team All-Pro . . . for the 5-11 Carolina Panthers. So no CMC in the Bay.

Kyle Shanahan’s offensive wizardry still reigned in 2019, with the then-beloved, now-embattled Jimmy Garoppolo at quarterback; with the undrafted brigade of Matt Breida and Raheem Mostert at running back (Jeff Wilson and Tevin Coleman were factors, as well); and with a wide receiving corps headlined by rookie Deebo Samuel and Kendrick Bourne — later fortified by Emmanuel Sanders. George Kittle had a monster year, too.

(Fun side note: three future NFL head coaches — Robert Saleh, Mike McDaniel and DeMeco Ryans — were on that staff.)

We won’t compare the defense, because the focus here is on McCaffrey’s absence and its effect on the offense.

Did the 2019 team win the Super Bowl? I think you can all Google that if you forgot. Point is, they were in the Bowl, and leading by 10 in the fourth quarter. The rest was in the hands of the football gods, who are apparently still wreaking universal balance for the orgasmic joy of the 1981-1994 five-time championship run.

So it’s doable.

The current receiving corps of Samuel, contract king Brandon Aiyuk, even Jauan Jennings and of course Kittle is vastly superior. The quarterback is objectively superior as well. No shade, Jimmy G. It’s just that the guy Tim Ryan calls the “A-I Throw-Bot” seems to make crisper decisions and passes.

Which leaves us with the running back.

Jordan Mason, or JP Mason, or the Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech made about as large a statement as he could make, as I was just saying to my good pal Carlos Hyde. (Warning shot: Hyde ran for 168 in his first career start as a Niner, back in the Tomsula days of 2015. Also on Monday Night Football, don’t ya know.)

Mason is not the receiver McCaffrey is, obviously. And the idea of him toting it 28 times in one game does not seem a sustainable plan, when the depth chart is thin at that position.

But . . .  but! He looked gosh darn effective as heck, and has pretty much every time he has touched the ball in his NFL career, which started as an undrafted free agent. 

The defense is off to a good start. Purdy will minimize mistakes and maybe even put up  big numbers. Shanahan is Shanahan. Dudes will be open.

So, can the understudy do enough to keep the dream alive until the lead actor returns?

I think so, based on past results. Sure will be fun to watch.