San Francisco Giants Star Matt Chapman Destroys Fans in Beer-Chugging Race

Matt Chapman further endeared himself to San Francisco Giants fans in Napa on Saturday, besting three of them in a beer-chugging race with relative ease.
Aug 31, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants infielder Matt Chapman (26) talks with Giants special assistant Will Clark in the dugout before the game against the Miami Marlins at Oracle Park.
Aug 31, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants infielder Matt Chapman (26) talks with Giants special assistant Will Clark in the dugout before the game against the Miami Marlins at Oracle Park. / Robert Edwards-Imagn Images
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The San Francisco Giants kicked off their FanFest Tour on Saturday, and Matt Chapman made quite the first impression.

Chapman was one of the current Giants players in Napa for the event, taking center stage for a beer-chugging contest against three fans. With a crowd of other fans watching, Chapman downed his drink in roughly 6 seconds.

While the All-Star third baseman was holding up his empty glass in celebration, his competition was only halfway done.

Chapman joined the Giants in March 2024, signing a three-year, $54 million contract with opt-outs after the first two seasons. It was effectively a shot-term, prove-it deal for Chapman, who was coming off a solid two-year stint with the Toronto Blue Jays.

Just six months later, though, Chapman put pen to paper again. At the behest of Buster Posey – who had yet to becoming the club's president of baseball operations – the Giants gave Chapman a six-year, $151 million extension that would keep him in San Francisco through the 2030 season.

Chapman wound up batting .247 with 27 home runs, 78 RBI, 15 stolen bases, a .790 OPS, 17 defensive runs saved and a 7.1 WAR in 2024, winning his fifth Gold Glove and finishing 11th in NL MVP voting. Those figures were all higher than any of the ones he put up in Toronto, approaching the production from his peak with the Oakland Athletics.

While Chapman is a Southern California native, he will have spent 12 years in the Bay Area by the time his contract with the Giants runs out. The soon-to-be 32-year-old has seemingly endeared himself to San Francisco fans already, really soaking up the spotlight in his first full offseason as a member of the team.

The Giants' FanFest Tour will hit San Jose and Sacramento on Jan. 25 and Feb. 1, respectively, before wrapping up with an open house in San Francisco on March 8.

It remains to be seen if any more beer-chugging races are on the itinerary.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a Staff Writer for Fastball on the Sports Illustrated/FanNation networks. He previously covered UCLA Athletics for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's All Bruins, 247Sports' Bruin Report Online, Rivals' Bruin Blitz, the Bleav Podcast Network and the Daily Bruin, with his work as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for Sports Illustrated/FanNation's New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk.