Cueto and Giants get it done

 SF 4  AZ 1

Johnny Cueto had some command issues early in the game but settled down to retire, at one point, 13 in a row. The Giants had a 1-0 lead thanks to an Alex Dickerson homer in the 1st but did not get another hit until the 8th inning. Meanwhile the Diamondbacks tied it up in the bottom of the 6th with a solo shot of their own. Cueto delivered a splendid 6-2/3 yielding three hits and three walks on 106 pitches. Fine bullpen work from Tony Watson, Tyler Rogers, and Sam Coonrod (who closed it) gave the Giants a chance. They responded with four hits in the top of the 8th to plate three runs and come away with a tidy win. The Giants improve to 8-11 on the road and 17-19 overall.

So far no news from Giants HQ regarding the trade deadline which is 4 p.m. ET tomorrow.

Monday is an off-day and then the Giants go to Colorado for two, with Tuesday at 5:40 and Wednesday 12:10 (p.m. PDT).

--M.C.

Giants Snap Skid

 SF 5  AZ 2

The Giants put a quick hurt on the Diamondbacks, taking a 4-0 lead after three innings, but had a setback when starter Trevor Cahill had to leave in the 4th with a hip injury. He had a physical issue in the 3rd but Kap and the trainers felt he was OK for another go-round but after yielding a two-run homer discretion got the better part of valor. The 4-2 lead was agonizing for Giants fans as the lineup had repeated chances to break the game open but could not deliver the big hit. Good thing the bullpen was up to the task and kept the lid on the Arizona hitters the rest of the way. Wilmer Flores added a solo shot in the 9th to make it easier for Tyler Rogers to close it out. Jarlin Garcia got five outs in relief of Cahill, Sam Coonrod popped 100 mph on the gun in the 6th, Trevor Gott handled the 7th, and Tony Watson got the 8th in front of Rogers.

I missed Friday night's loss as I was in a kayak on a nearby mountain lake as part of a (socially-distanced) surprise birthday celebration for a friend. Nutty, I know, but it sure broke up the routine and provided a nice diversion from everything. A good time was had by all.

The Giants snap their three-game losing streak! It was a surprisingly hard-fought victory as it really felt like they should have put up seven or eight runs. But the team got the job done and that's what matters. I'd really like to see them kick some butt tomorrow (1:10 Pacific) and take the series. Johnny Cueto gets the start against righty Taylor Clarke.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

p.s. You might be interested in "Giants More Likely to Buy Than Sell" by TC Zencka at MLBTR. There's also this tweet by notorious rumor-monger Jon Heyman that the Giants are interested in Jackie Bradley, Jr. I don't put too much stock in these things, these guys have to talk about something now that we are so close to the trade deadline. I have to say I'm much more interested in talking about what the Giants actually do as opposed to what they could or should do!

Dodgers Double Down

LA 7  SF 0

LA 2  SF 0

The Dodgers made quick work of the Giants in the first game. Logan Webb had command issues early and with some bad luck added on that was enough for the Dodgers. They turned nothing into something in a hurry. Webb kept the ball in the yard--the hardest hit was a double to center by Austin Barnes--but also walked two and hit two in addition to four hits allowed. Giants hit the ball hard off Clayton Kershaw but were denied by the excellent LA outfield defense and that was all the big lefty needed. He blanked the Giants for six innings on 89 pitches. Rookie Josh Sborz finished up. It was an abrupt ending to the seven-game win streak and the first time the Giants have been shut out this season.

Kevin Gausman got the call in the nightcap. He was supposed to be matched with Walker Buehler but the righty was a late scratch and sent to the IL. The Dodgers sent out southpaw Caleb Ferguson instead. They played a bullpen game and used six more pitchers after that. It didn't really matter as the Giants went stone cold and even if they could square one up someone was there to catch it. Gausman struck out six in 4-2/3 but got burned on a couple of extra-base hits. The two runs held up as the Giants were shut out for the second time.

After Tuesday's thrilling win I think the Giants stuck their chests out and told the Dodgers "let's go toe-to-toe" which you have to admire. The Dodgers said "OK, bring it on" and proceeded to throw 14 scoreless innings. Well, they are the best team and I have to give them credit for picking up the gauntlet and slapping the Giants in the face with it. The Dodgers take the season series six games to four.

Next game is in Arizona, tomorrow at 6:40 p.m. PDT. Giants are there through the weekend and then have a travel day Monday (7/31) before two in Colorado. They are off on Thursday (8/3) and then open a home series against the Diamondbacks on Friday.

Go Giants!

--M.C.

Postponed

That's the official word. Tonight's Giants-Dodgers game has been postponed.

As Gabe Kapler put it: "some things are bigger than sports."

Both the Giants (in particular manager Kapler) and the Dodgers (in particular Clayton Kershaw) have been outspoken about injustice and systemic racism in our society and this action seems consistent with those stands. Things started with what one might call a "boycott" or "wildcat strike" by the NBAs Milwaukee Bucks and that quickly spread to all the teams in the NBA playoff bubble. Baseball's Milwaukee Brewers acted not much later and that rippled to other MLB teams on the schedule for tonight. Here's the word from MLB:

 

--M.C.

Giants Win Slugfest

 SF 10  LA 8  (11)

The San Francisco Giants have four wins against the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team that has lost only nine games. Last night the 3-4-5 hitters, Evan Longoria, Brandon Belt, and Donovan Solano, went 9-16 with 7 runs scored and 8 RBI while the rest of the lineup went 5-for-30 (three by Brandon Crawford) with 11 whiffs. The team was 3-for-22 with runners in scoring position! It was a crazy game: Giants used nine relievers after Johnny Cueto went four innings and overall the ten pitchers threw 199 pitches (122 strikes)!

It was more like a heavyweight boxing match with the Giants as the upstart contender and the Dodgers as the veteran champion. In fact, last night was merely the opening rounds of what promises to be a great three-game fight. In the opening frame, Max Muncy blasted a 3-run homer on a 3-0 pitch (I wonder if pitchers will stop grooving 3-0 pitches now that batters swing at them) but the Giants counter-punched with a 3-run homer of their own in the bottom half. That was the first of two for Brandon Belt, the other was a solo shot off Kenley Jansen that tied the game in the 9th! The Giants trailed in the 9th, 10th, and 11th but still won the game. Donovan Solano had just one hit but it was the game-winning two-run homer, only his second home run of the season.

Seven wins is a row. Kevin Gausman and Clayton Kershaw tonight at 6:45 p.m. PDT.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Sweep!

SF 6  AZ 1

The Giants designated Hunter Pence for assignment today, the halfway point in the 2020 season. It's not a surprise given his performance but it says a lot about the state of the team. There's just no room for him! Pablo Sandoval can swing a lefty bat and still back up at third base in a pinch so he hangs on to his job, at least for now. But Hunter was just too low on the outfield depth chart. We were privileged to root for this unique, accomplished, and lovable ballplayer. I wonder if he'll find his way back to San Francisco after his playing days are done.

But today was about the team on the field. They won again behind a strong start, a patient lineup, and a bend-but-don't-break bullpen. Two big homers, a solo shot by Mike Yastrzemski in the 6th and a three-run blast by Alex Dickerson in the 7th, were the difference-makers. Trevor Cahill went 5-1/3, throwing 88 pitches and striking out eight. Caleb Baragar allowed an inherited runner to score in the 6th to make it 1-1 but that was it--the Giants took the lead in the bottom half and didn't look back.

Halfway through 2020 I did not expect the Giants to be on a roll (six wins in a row!) and sniffing (14-16) a .500 record. My expectations for this season were low. When they were 8-12 after the first twenty games I thought the .400 percentage was a fair measure of their ability. Shortly after that they had a nightmare stretch of blown games and really bottomed out. To their credit they turned it around and in the six straight wins they've scored 42 runs and allowed only 13!

I'm glad I was wrong about this team. I'm not sure what they are capable of but it is certain they are not as bad as they were predicted to be. The pitching staff seems to be stabilizing behind the resurgent starters and I think we'll get a better picture after this next series. The high-flying Dodgers come to town for three (Tues/Wed 6:45, Thu 5:05 p.m. PDT) and it should be a real test. Johnny Cueto pitched Wednesday so I suspect he'll get the ball in the first game. They have a well-earned off-day tomorrow.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Complete Game!

SF 5  AZ 1

Southpaw Tyler Anderson pitched his best game of the season so far, and in fact his best game in years, perhaps his best ever. Tonight's three-hitter was his first career complete game in his 76th career start. He pitched the best game of the season so far for the Giants, that's for sure. The Giants had one complete game last season, a five-inning rain-shortened outing from Derek Holland which they lost 3-1 to the Pirates. The last time they had a real complete game was in 2018 when Chris Stratton threw a two-hitter and beat (believe it or not) Tyler Anderson and the Rockies 2-0.

Anderson took a one-hitter into the 7th with the Giants up 1-0, but a throwing error by Brandon Crawford put Ketel Marte on and he eventually scored the tying run. It was a frustrating moment as Arizona starter Zac Gallen was putting up zeroes of his own. Gallen walked the first three batters he faced but got a double play grounder from Brandon Belt (that scored a run) and then struck out Evan Longoria. You know those blown chances always come back to hurt the team. But Belt got a big hit in the bottom of the 7th in a weird inning that saw the Giants grind out four runs, the highlight a booming double by Joey Bart that was almost a homer.

Gabe Kapler deserves a lot of credit for sticking with Anderson in the 9th. The first batter hit a double (Ketel Marte again) but Kap stayed in the dugout and let his starter go. Anderson finished with 103 pitches so he'd worked efficiently all game long. Kap also started Chadwick Tromp at catcher and he obviously got in a good groove with Anderson and even got a base hit. Bart pinch-hit in that crucial 7th and that paid off, he also wound up scoring, and of course he caught the final six outs. Mauricio Dubon also pinch-hit in that inning and walked and scored, then took over center field from Steven Duggar (who was 1-for-2). So, a couple of smaller moves worked as well, it seems that Kap is getting into a better rhythm with his players and his substitutions.

But it all goes back to Tyler Anderson who really performed superbly tonight and that meant the Giants could be patient and wear down the other side, which they did with another fine team effort. Despite the BCraw error the Giants also got excellent defense with a great catch by Mike Yastrzemski in RF and a fine play from Alex Dickerson in LF. This lineup is showing a lot of patience (8 walks, 148 pitches) and fortitude lately, and I keep thinking "who are these guys?"

They are the San Francisco Giants, that's who, winners of five in a row. Tomorrow at 1:10 p.m. PDT it is Trevor Cahill with a rested bullpen and an off-day on Monday.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.