SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Hall of Famer Willie Mays visited Giants camp Saturday morning, settling into the Don and Charlie’s corner booth outside the clubhouse and drawing a stream of greetings from players and coaches alike.

Mauricio Dubón was among the players who stopped by to welcome Mays to Scottsdale Stadium. Dubón met Mays for the first time last year and said the Giants legend had no trouble identifying him.

“He said, ‘Oh, it’s the kid that smiles,’” Dubón said. “That’s me.”

Hours later, Dubón had even more cause to grin.

On his first swing of the spring, Dubón crushed a solo home run to left field off Dodgers right-hander Josh Sborz, putting the Giants on the board in the third inning of their 10-4 loss in their Cactus League opener, which was delayed by nearly 2 1/2 hours due to rain. The 25-year-old added an RBI single off right-hander Brett de Geus in the fifth, showcasing some of the tweaks he’s made to his leg kick with the help of new hitting coach Donnie Ecker.

“The change looks a little different,” said Dubón, who logged five innings at shortstop but is expected to be used at multiple positions this spring. “I’m not dropping as low, and I think that’s what helps me see the ball a little bit better. My eye level doesn’t change. It’s a work in progress.”

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Top prospect Joey Bart also wasted little time collecting his first Cactus League homer, launching an opposite-field blast off right-hander Luís Vásquez in his first at-bat of the spring in the seventh inning. Bart, 23, replaced Buster Posey behind the plate in the fifth and stayed in to catch the remainder of the game.

“It’s always good to see Joey stay through the baseball to the right side of the diamond in the air,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “And obviously, Dubón turned in on that ball. Pull-side power is a good sign early in camp.”

D-Rod’s debut
Right-hander Dereck Rodríguez experienced a dip in velocity in 2019, when he posted a 5.64 ERA while shuttling between the Majors and the Minors, so it was encouraging to see the 27-year-old right-hander’s fastball hit 93 mph in his first start of the spring on Saturday. Rodríguez allowed the first two runners to reach base on a walk and a single, but he rebounded by striking out reigning National League MVP Cody Bellinger and A.J. Pollock on fastballs.

“You’ve also got to remember that it’s the first game for them, too,” Rodríguez said. “I was the first guy they really saw in a while, so those swings really don’t mean nothing. If I’m getting swings like that in a month and a half, I’ll be happy. But first game of spring, we just go with it. I’m happy that they took some pretty ugly swings, but it’s only the first game.”

After his disappointing sophomore campaign, Rodríguez spent the bulk of the offseason in Puerto Rico, working with Alex Cruz, the bullpen coach for his winter-ball club in Mayagüez, to iron out the mechanical issues that he felt led to his decreased velocity in 2019.

“Just staying back, loading a little bit more,” Rodríguez said. “I felt like last year, I was jumping a little bit off the mound. This year, I’m trying to be a little bit more smooth. Just the rhythm and timing.”

Rodríguez didn’t receive much help from his defense on Saturday, as right fielder Jaylin Davis, second baseman Donovan Solano and Dubón committed errors behind him in the first inning and ran up his pitch count. Rodríguez departed after throwing 28 pitches, yielding two unearned runs on one hit over two-thirds of an inning.

“We can handle the ball better than we did early in the game,” Kapler said. “I think all of us know that that’s part of Spring Training, getting your feet wet both on defense and in the batter’s box.”

Carasiti shines
Non-roster invitee Matt Carasiti emerged as one of Saturday’s standouts after striking out Pollock, Enrique Hernández and Matt Beaty in the fifth inning. The 28-year-old right-hander signed with the Giants as a Minor League free agent this offseason and will be in the mix for a bullpen spot this spring.

“It was a pretty impressive inning,” Kapler said. “He utilized a good four-seam fastball and split combination.”

Right-hander Rico García, another non-roster invitee, also looked sharp in his one inning of work, retiring Edwin Ríos, Terrance Gore and Chris Taylor to post a clean second.

Up next
The Giants will play the first road game of their Cactus League schedule on Sunday when they head to Mesa to face the A's at Hohokam Stadium at 12:05 p.m. PT. Left-hander Andrew Suárez will start for the Giants, opposite A's right-hander Mike Fiers. New infielder Wilmer Flores, outfielder Mike Yastrzemski and No. 6 prospect Sean Hjelle are also expected to make their spring debuts.