The 2026 MLB All-Star Game was as forgettable for San Francisco Giants fans as any in recent memory. Luis Arraez struck out swinging on a pitch in the other batter’s box, and Logan Webb didn’t enter the game. That’s it; the franchise’s only contributions to the Midsummer Classic. There were two other All-Stars out of the remaining 75 who had spent time in the Giants organization, Otto López and Tristan Peters. Both of them struck out, too.It was the perfect All-Star Game for Giants fans to remember the 2026 season by, in other words. As in, don’t worry about remembering it because a better one will come along soon enough. Next season’s All-Star Game at Wrigley Field might be a fun one, of course, depending on where the Giants are in the standings. A year ago, nobody was expecting the White Sox to send a third of their lineup to the next All-Star Game, and they all seemed to have a pretty good time.It’s the 2028 All-Star Game that should be on your calendar. Not only because it’s likely to be at Oracle Park — which it is — but also because that’s when the Giants hope to have a team fans actually like.That’s hyperbolic and more than a little harsh, yet you probably understand the sentiment. Giants fans like this team, sure. When Jung Hoo Lee hits a stand-up double, the crowd chants his name with fervor, and when he hits a stand-up triple, they get even goofier. There are long-anticipated rookies on the roster, an affable homegrown All-Star ace on the roster and other delightful weirdos and miscreants. Fans line up for the bobbleheads and other promotional giveaways. The crowd gave Tyler Mahle a standing ovation for his seven strong innings on Saturday. Attendance is up for the second straight season, somehow, and they have a real chance to break 3 million fans for the first time in almost a decade.It still feels like a component or secret ingredient is missing, though, something that can’t wholly be explained by the lingering resentment over Pride Day. With the unlikely help of Phillies fans, I think I’ve figured it out.The All-Star Game was in Philadelphia, and as you might already be aware, that’s where 60 percent of the internet is from. No, I don’t know why, either. But it’s great for the amateur sports sociologists among us. I don’t know what a Joel Embiid is, but, boy, do I have opinions about him.A Phillies fan on the wider internet posted a picture they took of several of the team’s six all-stars together in the Citizens Bank Park outfield, and the caption was, “These are my best friends.” It took me back to the olden days, the days when it was possible to post a simple GIF on social media and get Giants fans excited about the players on the team.The folks in that Academy Award-winning GIF are, I am going to imagine, a few of your best friends. There’s a sense of fan ownership that comes with the most successful Giants teams of the past, if only because that sense is there with every successful team in every sport. But don’t tie it entirely to postseason success. It’s been a great time to be a Phillies fan, but also a painful time, especially in October. Why, the last season they won a World Series, the Giants drafted a fresh-faced high schooler named Zack Wheeler. Phillies fans still love their collection of scruffy galoots.Imagine if this season’s All-Star Game were in San Francisco, by contrast. The rosters would have been goosed to get an extra Giant or two on them — perhaps Lee, Casey Schmitt or Robbie Ray — but they definitely wouldn’t be sending six players. Pictures of Webb and Arraez doing All-Star things together made the rounds on the Giants internet, but it’s hard to see how the addition of any of the above players would have stirred feelings in the typical Giants fan. These are not your best friends. Not yet. This season, they’ve been a neighbor with a dog that sneaks into your yard to poop. There’s a lot of ice-breaking that needs to happen if you’re going to overcome that kind of start.