In Yankee Stadium on March 30, a horde of Sabols convened to watch Blake Sabol make his Major League debut.
Sabol’s fiancé. Sabol’s dad and his wife. His older brother and his fiancé. His cousin and his wife. All their eyes focused on the Giants’ No. 2 jersey in left field with a “MLB Debut” patch sewed onto his arm.
Only Mike Yastrzemski in center field separated Sabol from another connection that feels like family to him.
“Mike’s been like a big brother to me on this team,” Sabol said of veteran outfielder Michael Conforto.
Conforto, San Francisco’s right fielder, has known the Sabol family since 2014. When he was rising through the Mets’ organization, Blake’s older brother, Stefan, played a level behind Conforto in the Mets minors and developed a tight friendship.
Now Conforto, 30, has taken the 25-year-old Sabol under his wing, sharing parcels of wisdom like so many veterans did for him.
“Ever since I walked into the clubhouse and first saw him,” Blake said. “He was like, ‘this is pretty cool, It’s almost like a full-circle moment for me, now I’m playing with the younger brother.’ I’m like yeah, that just means you’re old, bro.”
Conforto said that Blake reminds him of Stefan, both in personality and in game. They’re both gregarious and upbeat, but also competitive. They also both have power in the batter’s box; “Stef was strong as an ox,” Conforto said.
Stefan never made it past Double-A and currently works as an assistant coach at SUNY Cortland — a Division III powerhouse known for its accomplished coaching staff. Blake, meanwhile, joined the Giants this winter as a Rule 5 pick, debuted and is now their No. 1 catcher because of injuries to Joey Bart and Roberto Pérez.
So far, Blake has started all eight of San Francisco’s games — five in left field and three behind the plate. He recorded his first Major League hit on a bunt and then parked his first career home run in Chicago four games later.
All the while, Blake has had Conforto nearby in the clubhouse for lessons.
When Blake visited the Giants’ Papago Park facility in Arizona to train in January, Stefan asked him to make sure to tell Conforto — whom he calls “Big ‘To” — he sends his regards. The suffix-derived nickname confused Blake at first, but he quickly connected the dots and bonded with Conforto.
Soon enough, Conforto and Blake became so close that they were karaoke duet partners on a night out in Manhattan. They hit all the classics with a group of teammates and spouses: “Mr. Brightside,” “I Write Sins Not Tragedies,” Morgan Wallen and Chris Stapleton.
Conforto gives Sabol tidbits about how to be a big leaguer, both on and off the field. When Sabol started the season 1-for-15 — with the lone hit being a bunt — Conforto encouraged him to stay the course. The eight-year veteran retold the story of his first call-up, and how he struggled at the plate but was able to stick because of injuries.
“I just tell him, reinforce that what you did in the spring is enough,” Conforto said. “Just keep doing what you did, don’t second guess yourself.”
Sabol is in a similar situation as Conforto in 2015. Bart and Pérez have been unavailable, meaning San Francisco has relied on Sabol to catch consistently. The Giants were going to give him a chance early in the season behind the dish anyway, but the scarcity of healthy catchers now makes him indispensable for the time being.
Conforto had veterans to lean on when he was getting started in the bigs. Curtis Granderson, Jay Bruce, Michael Cuddyer, David Wright, and Daniel Murphy were to him what he is to Sabol.
“It’s a super great thing to be fearless in that way,” Conforto said of Sabol’s demeanor. “And I had guys do that for me. It’s an important thing to have. A guy who you’ve watched or have been a fan of — kind of put them under their wings.”
Eventually, the patience Conforto preached paid off. On April 6 against the White Sox, both Conforto and Sabol homered in a 16-6 Giants win.
After the home run, Sabol said that he used a bat designed by his fiancée that was inspired by Barry Bonds; “It’s made with love,” he joked. His teammates doused him in the clubhouse with a concoction of shaving cream, beer, mouthwash and V8 juice.
The rookie has endearingly compared his first hit to Mike Trout, quipped about Gerrit Cole’s “rocket balls” and broke out the term “bleacher creatures” before debuting in Yankee Stadium. His light personality breathes air into SF’s veteran clubhouse. And it’s just like Stefan.
“The way they talk,” Conforto said of the Sabols. “And how much they talk…It’s just kind of the energy. Very happy people. Very friendly. Also seriously competitive and intense. Good mix.”
And both Sabols feel lucky to have spent time with Conforto.
“‘To’ is an awesome dude,” Stefan said. “I’m so happy that Blake’s with him. A guy that can show him the ropes in the big leagues, he’s been there, done that. I’m really hoping he has a good, healthy year. And I’m really glad that Blake’s getting to learn the big league life from a classy veteran and a guy who’s been an All-Star, played in big games and all that. No better place for him to be in than San Francisco as a rookie.”