SAN FRANCISCO _ When Mauricio Dubon left Honduras as a 15-year-old teenager, he brought a love of baseball and a dream of one day playing in the major leagues.
Ten years later, Dubon's love for the game is stronger than ever. His dream has been realized and now, the rest is what he makes of it.
If Thursday's performance is any indication of what's to come, Dubon is going to make more than just memories. In the midst of dark night for the San Francisco Giants (65-68) in a 5-3 loss to the San Diego Padres, Dubon was an unquestioned bright spot and proved why many scouts believe he'll have no trouble making a living in the game.
The Giants scored twice in the late innings to narrow the gap and brought the tying run to the plate with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, but Donovan Solano grounded out to shortstop to end a threat against Padres closer Kirby Yates.
Dubon's unbridled joy and electric energy brought a new vibe to a Giants infield filled with veteran mainstays. On an evening where a malfunctioning scoreboard served as a metaphor for a faulty Giants offense, Dubon was the player fans will remember from an otherwise forgettable Giants' loss.
In his Giants debut, the second baseman made a flashy diving stop to the left of second base on a second-inning putout and recorded his first major league hit with a single down the right field line in the bottom of the fifth.
Dubon spent his high school days at Capital Christian in Sacramento watching videos of Brandon Crawford and Joe Panik turn two up the middle and chose to pattern his defense after the shortstop he started alongside on Thursday.
In the top of the first, Dubon had his chance to show off his skills up the middle, but instead of playing a leading role in the action, Crawford had a front row seat to the 1-4-3 double play the Giants turned against Padres slugger Manny Machado.
After keeping the Padres off the board in the first, the night spiraled out of control for Giants starter Dereck Rodriguez, who gave up two home runs and has continued to struggle through an inconsistent sophomore season in the big leagues. Following a dominant rookie year in which he was the best Giants pitcher, Rodriguez will finish the month of August with an ERA of 5.49 and a question as to whether he'll remain in the rotation when veteran starter Johnny Cueto returns from a rehab assignment next week.
Rodriguez lasted five innings on Thursday but gave up five runs while a Giants offense that rarely hits well at Oracle Park was overmatched by San Diego rookie Chris Paddack.
Outside of a splash-hit home run by Giants first baseman Brandon Belt, Dubon's fifth-inning single was the only offensive highlight that brought home fans to their feet in Thursday's series-opener.
Dubon's laser single down the right field line in the fifth merited a standing ovation from an Oracle Park crowd that already has an appreciation for his story.
The 25-year-old infielder was acquired in a July 31 trade with the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for relievers Drew Pomeranz and Ray Black. The deal reunited Dubon with his Sacramento-based host families, the Ritchey's and Garcia's, who were both in attendance for his Giants debut.
When Andy Ritchey traveled to Honduras in 2010 with a Christian mission group that supplied baseball equipment to children, he met Dubon who expressed an interest in moving to the United States to advance his career.
A conversation involving Ritchey and Dubon's mother, Jeannette, led to an abrupt decision to allow Dubon to move to California where he would finish high school and continue pursuing baseball. Dubon split time living with two host families, but told both shortly after arriving that he planned to eventually suit up at Oracle Park.
Six years after being drafted in the 26th round by the Boston Red Sox, three years after being traded to the Brewers and two months after making his MLB debut as a pinch-hitter with Milwaukee, Dubon made good on his promise.
It didn't come on an ideal night for the San Francisco Giants, but as Dubon showed, there should be brighter days ahead.
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