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NEW YORK – Hours after learning his grandmother had passed, Brandon Belt texted his wife and parents on Tuesday, admitting he was struggling and wasn’t sure he could play .
His father reminded him that his grandmother, Margaret Peterson, would have liked to see him there.
“I think that sort of thing locked me in,” Belt said.
Belt swung a heavy bat with a heavy heart, hitting two of San Francisco’s four home runs before dedicating them and the rest of her season in memory of his grandmother after the Giants’ 8-0 win over the Mets.
“I was a little dizzy the whole day,” he said. “I was just glad I was able to come here and do this for her.”
The 33-year-old belt ended a 2-for-30 skid with a workout that landed atop the Citi Field center-field apple in the first inning, hit a homerun again in the fourth, and also pulled it off. two simple. The second circuit was his best 19th of the season.
“I couldn’t help but feel that something powerful was at play there when he hit that first home run,” Giants manager Gabe Kapler said.
Belt’s grandmother died Tuesday morning from COVID-19, Belt said. He grew up in Texas down the street from his mother’s mother and said she and her grandfather provided financial assistance when Belt was pursuing a baseball career in high school by traveling to present tournaments.
“She was always proud to brag about me to her friends,” Belt said.
Kapler said he expected Belt to leave the team for funeral services in the coming days and that he would have the club’s full support.
“He just looked locked in,” Kapler said. “And I think it’s kind of amazing considering what he’s been through today.”
The Giants, the major league leaders, have won 20 of 27 games while trying to push the Dodgers back in the NL West. San Francisco entered Tuesday with a 2½-game lead.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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