It was a "bullpen game" and it didn't go quite the way they planned it but it turned out OK in the end. Mike Yastrzemski hit a grand slam in the bottom of the 8th to complete a remarkable comeback and give the Giants their 42nd win.
Opener Zack Littell faced six batters and didn't record an out. Sammy Long had to finish the 1st. He promptly gave up three runs in the next frame and it was suddenly 7-0 Diamondbacks. The Giants bounced back for three in the bottom of the 2nd with Steven Duggar's homer the big blow. Long persisted into the 5th yielding one more run and left with Arizona holding an 8-3 lead. Two more runs in the 6th made it 8-5 and the Giants had a pulse. A two-out walk to Curt Casali loaded the bases in the 8th and Yaz made the most of it. Brandon Belt's triple started the 6th inning rally and his double got it going in the 8th. He scored three of the Giants nine runs. Shutdown relief work from Conner Menez (6th), Jarlin Garcia (7th), Jimmie Sherfy (8th), and Tyler Rogers (9th) made it all possible.
The Giants have certainly had their share of blown leads this season, with bullpen meltdowns and opponent walk-offs aplenty. It is nice to see the baseball winds blow the opposite way for a change!
Splash hits rescued the team tonight. Let's hope Anthony DeSclafani takes charge tomorrow night (6:45 Pacific).
Go Giants!
--M.C.
p.s the chart is from FanGraphs
6 comments:
I thought for a while if we lose because of Arizona's 8th run I would be upset. Long on an 0-2 pitch threw a beautiful curve which caught plenty of the plate and it was called a ball. Unlike wood who thought he had a K, and then threw the next pitch up about 6 inches, saw that pitch taken deep. So Long did not give in, and gave up the walk. The walks later came around to score the 8th run. He should have been retired. That is baseball. Oddly in the dodger game the last out, J.T. Realmuto, looked on TV and to the announcers to be a strike three ring up on what everyone that was watching thought was strike 2. Apparently, a pitch earlier in the sequence, that was though to be a check swing and called a ball, was actually called a swing. It seemed very odd as even the announcers were duped. I was hoping that Belt would get another chance to hit so he could have a chance at the cycle. It was not meant to be. Arizona must be wondering what is going on.
We've rooted for some lousy teams over the years so I can certainly feel the fans' anguish. It's hard to believe they've lost that many games in a row. Even with their road woes they are better than the Rockies who are 5-27 away from Coors!
I confess, we stopped watching at 8 o'clock. Bummer. Must suck to be a Snakes fan. My daughter Maggie is only a few months older than Sammy Long and they both went to the same high school, but she doesn't remember him. He sure looks great, at least most of the time. What a nice curveball he has.
I'm glad Long got to keep pitching. He's now faced 34 batters in 9 IP and has 10 K with 6 hits and 2 walks. I wonder if they'll give him some actual starts. He was a starter at Sac State and had some starts in the minors. I think they want to build up his innings and pitch counts and that's why they are doing the "opener" thing with him.
Dusty Baker is the most famous baseball player from Del Campo HS.
It feels like a very good sign to have so many amazing highlight moments in this still young season. I mean, come on, the Yaz grand slam is as sweet a vision of baseball as you will ever see. It was like the ballpark was built for that exact type of home run. Man I love highlights. This team makes the best highlights.
I'm still "reeling" from all the highlights! Ha-ha.
It's true. Highlights good and bad, in fact. This team is definitely NOT boring.
Yaz hit a good pitch, too. Down-and-in changeup. That pitcher was shocked. He threw the pitch he wanted--I'm sure he expected Yaz to swing over it. At worst he figured a foul or weak grounder. That was a great bit of hitting, not just a dramatic hit. Sure like to see Yaz stay healthy the rest of way. He has yet to put his whole game together in 2021, no doubt from all the injuries. If he can get back to full fitness that could be a lot of fun.
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