Casey at the bat

The future is here | Giants 5, Nationals 1

The Casey Schmitt Era is here, and thank goodness.

Day 1 brought badly-needed excitement to the Giants, who are already drawing some of the smallest crowds ever at Oracle Park.

Schmitt is the first player drafted by Farhan Zaidi to reach the majors—and he delivered immediately, going 2-for-4 with a home run. It's easy to wonder if the shortstop of the future is a superstar in the making.

He could be Will Clark. Or he could be John Bowker. Both players homered in their first games, like Schmitt.

The range of outcomes is wide—but at least we'll be excited to watch.

Next up: Sean Manaea (1-1, 7.30 ERA) faces former Dodgers phenom Josiah Gray (2-5, 3.03 ERA) in the rubber match of the series, 12:45 p.m. first pitch.