LOS ANGELES — Mum’s the word on the most viral celebration in baseball this season.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Giants center fielder Harrison Bader said when The California Post posed a question about the only hip thrusts viewed this many times on the safe-for-work corner of the internet.
Following the Giants’ 9-3 win over their archrivals Monday night, Bader and his fellow outfielders, Jung Hoo Lee and Drew Gilbert, locked arms in a group hug.
Nothing out of the ordinary. Then their lower bodies got involved.
The outfielders appeared to mimic a sexual act not once, not twice, not three or four times, but brought their pelvic sections together five times. All of it was captured on camera.
The clip was shared far and wide on social media, getting mixed reactions. Some fans appreciated the show of levity and personality, while others were concerned about children imitating the NSFW celebration.
A day later, the Giants didn’t seem to want to draw any additional attention to it.
“They’re a close-knit group,” manager Tony Vitello said. “Let’s put it that way.”
Bader declined further comment, Gilbert wasn’t interested in getting too deep into the weeds, and Lee didn’t make an appearance in the clubhouse during the time it was open to the media.
But the Post was able to get to the bottom of who was responsible for initiating the celebration.
“Bader’s spontaneous,” said Gilbert, who was known for expressing himself in creative ways on the ballfield when he played for Vitello at the University of Tennessee.
It doesn’t sound like there will be a repeat performance.
“We’ll change it up, come up with something different,” Gilbert said. “Hopefully keep the vibes going here. Just trying to win some ballgames.”
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The team preferred to deflect attention onto what preceded the unofficial Hingle McCringleberry homage, handing the Dodgers their biggest defeat of the season and winning consecutive games for the first time since April 25-26. Fair enough.
Between Willy Adames’ gatorade baths after every home win and the latest display by their outfielders, the Giants are drawing eyeballs as much for the way they celebrate their wins as they are for the wins themselves, which so far have been few and far between.
Gilbert and Bader both played coy when asked if they were aware of their newfound virality.
“If we win games, it’s cool,” Gilbert said. “Everything kind of goes for me off wins and losses. If it’s spreading because we lost, well we lost, who cares? If we win, then cool. If it helps us win, we’ll keep doing stuff like that.”
It was the first time Bader and Gilbert had a chance to show off their personalities in tandem, or share an outfield. Bader had every reason to be enthusiastic, having played his first game since he went on the injured list April 15 with a strained left hamstring.
Vitello’s teams at Tennessee earned a reputation for their over-the-top exhibits of emotion, and Gilbert brought a similar energy to the Giants’ dugout when he was called up late last season.
Vitello acknowledged this spring that his college teams at times “crossed the line” but said he merely permitted his players to express themselves.
It would seem his big leaguers are following suit.
“It’s kind of a fun collage of personalities and skillsets,” Vitello said of the Giants’ outfielders. “The one common theme is they’re all very energetic in their personalities. It makes it fun. If you look back on it, a lot of the winning teams, their personality kind of comes out. Those guys are doing that. They all pull it out of each other.”
