LOS ANGELES — When the Giants visited Dodger Stadium last June, the block-Buster of blockbusters stunned the baseball world and left Rafael Devers’ new team with new hopes, new dreams, and an inside track to the postseason.

Fans are still waiting: for the full Rafi experience and for the Giants to develop into contenders.

The contending stuff could be a while, but Devers finally is showing signs of returning to his old Boston self when he was a face of the franchise and the most feared hitter in the lineup, not just a pushover for pitchers throwing fastballs down the middle.

The Giants were back at Dodger Stadium on Monday night, 11 months after the Father’s Day trade went down. Devers collected two hits off Roki Sasaki, including a 401-foot homer to right-center. He drove in two runs, scored twice, and walked twice, once with the bases loaded to give the Giants a lead on their way to a 9-3 win.

Devers is continuing his best streak of the season. He hit safely in 10 of 11 games while batting .361 (13-for-36) with three homers, four doubles, and a 1.154 OPS — a far cry from his .203 average and .530 OPS through 30 games before the hot spell.

Couple Devers’ upswing with Casey Schmitt’s emergence, and you’ve got limited playing time for Bryce Eldridge, a heated talking point for fans who want the No. 1 prospect to play every day rather than sitting on the bench. Eldridge, who played three straight games after his promotion from the minors last week, has been out of the lineup three of four games, including Monday.

“He’s our biggest threat,” manager Tony Vitello said of Devers. “As much of a threat as Bryce is, our biggest threat in the lineup is Rafi. Our best producer so far has been Casey. So that triangle of bodies there, it does make it a little bit of a puzzle to solve.”

It’s odd that the team with the majors’ worst offense has too many hitters to squeeze into the lineup. By no means do the Giants boast All-Stars across the diamond, but Eldridge isn’t playing much because he’s a first baseman/designated hitter, just like Devers. Schmitt plays all over the infield and was at first base Monday with Devers DHing.

Until further notice, Eldridge has been relegated to a part-timer.

Vitello said he believes Eldridge is “here for the long haul, and he’s here to boost our offense.” The manager said Eldridge will be in the lineup Tuesday, facing Shohei Ohtani, but it won’t be a daily affair. He never got off the bench Monday. No pinch-hit assignments. He was on deck to hit for Schmitt when the ninth inning ended.

A team that called up its hot-shot 21-year-old should want to play him regularly to provide a better chance to be nurtured — especially if he represents the future. The Giants, citing their positional dilemma, aren’t on board with the strategy, which is curious considering that what they’ve tried so far this year hasn’t worked.

“I’m hopeful it would be almost every game he’d get at least one at-bat,” Vitello said of the Eldridge plan. “That isn’t how Barry Bonds got in a rhythm every day, but I do think it’s consistent enough [with the] appearances, preparation, and things like that, and seeing live pitching to where he can stay in a necessary rhythm to do what he’s capable of doing.”

Looking back at the Devers trade, initially perceived as a perfect move and a steal for Buster Posey, has yet to pay off, his recent hot bat notwithstanding. Devers joined a 41-31 Giants team and was hardly the final link to a playoff run. The Giants went a mere 40-50 on Devers’ watch, finished at .500, and fired their manager.

It’s no better this year. While the Giants played .444 ball with Devers in 2025, they’re playing .415 ball (17-24) this year, and much of it can be pinned on Devers, along with Willy Adames and Matt Chapman, the lineup’s three most accomplished hitters, all of whom got off to slow starts.

Despite Devers’ subpar numbers, despite the Giants’ disappointing record, despite Kyle Harrison (in the Brewers’ rotation) and James Tibbs (in the Dodgers’ farm system) prevailing elsewhere — the two major chips included in the deal — it’s a good bet Posey would acquire Devers if he had to do it again. Even with that pricey contract that runs through 2033.

Remember, the Giants aren’t good at signing elite hitters, whether it’s Bryce Harper or Aaron Judge or Ohtani, so trading for a lethal bat is the best way to get one aboard. When he has no choice. It was written after the trade — heck, I wrote it myself — that Devers is the Giants’ best hitter since Bonds.

That could still materialize. He could still be the lineup cornerstone for years to come. Devers is 29 and should be smack in the middle of his prime. But he needs a lot more 13-for-36s than 1-for-21s, as he was at the end of April.

“That’s a trade that you’re going to win,” said Heliot Ramos, who had two hits and two RBIs. “Rafi is an All-Star. He can be an MVP-caliber player. Rafi’s Rafi, a great player, and I think he’s going to end up with the same numbers this year, if not better.”

Adames (two hits, three RBIs) added, “Everybody knows what type of player he is and what kind of numbers he’s going to put up at the end of the year. It’s amazing he got hot, but I just want him to continue to be himself and help us win more games.”

The June 15 trade brought all kinds of emotions. The industry couldn’t believe Posey pulled it off. Giants fans couldn’t believe they suddenly had a marquee hitter. Harrison couldn’t believe his hometown team gave up on him. And Sean Hjelle couldn’t believe he was thrust into starting in place of Harrison.

News of the trade surfaced shortly before the Giants’ series finale in L.A., and it was announced in the fifth inning. Of the four players Posey sent to Boston, only minor-leaguer Jose Bello remains. The Red Sox quickly flipped Tibbs and traded both Harrison and Jordan Hicks in February.

At the time, Posey said it “felt like this was a chance to take a shot,” and Logan Webb called it a “win-now move.” Only three other hitters, Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, and Aaron Judge, had at least an .850 OPS the previous five seasons.

Devers hasn’t been the hitter he was in Boston, but so far this month, he’s showing he might be on his way.