GONE-zalez!

SF 4  MIL 2

Rookie Luis González hit his first big league home run--a towering two-run blast--and that powered a dramatic late-inning victory over the Brewers in Milwaukee. Corbin Burnes was as good as advertised, allowing only two hits and whiffing eleven in his 6-2/3 innings of work. The Giants were patient against him despite the lack of results and pushed up the pitch count and forced Craig Counsell to go to his bullpen. Trevor Gott gave up a two-run homer to Joc Pederson in the 8th to turn the game around in the Giants favor but Jake McGee gave up a solo shot to Willy Adames in the bottom half and the Brewers tied it back up. That gave Lu-Gone a chance to be a hero in the 9th and he launched his winner off Jake Cousins. I suppose the Giants were fortunate to miss closer Josh Hader and set-up man Devin Williams who had both worked the previous two games for Milwaukee.

Speaking of bullpens the Giants relief corps delivered another tremendous effort. Sam Long opened and put up a zero in the 1st. He was followed by Dominic Leone who unfortunately sandwiched a bad pickoff throw between two infield singles and the Brewers took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd. It looked like that would be enough but the Giants kept battling. John Brebbia took the 3rd and 4th, Zack Littell the 5th, José Álvarez the 6th, and Yunior Marte had a sterling eight-pitch 7th. McGee couldn't hold the lead in the 8th but Camilo Doval saved it in the 9th. Overall the 'pen allowed five hits and two runs with only one walk and nine strikeouts. Both Brandon Crawford and Thairo Estrada made big plays up the middle to help their guys out. Once again we saw a total team effort. That's four wins in a row, an 8-3 road trip, and a 12-5 (.706) record.

The A's come to San Francisco tomorrow and Carlos Rodón takes the hill at 6:45 Pacific.

Go Giants!

--M.C.

Joc and Giants rock D.C.

SF 12  WSN 3

Joc Pederson has 16 hits so far this season and five of them are homers. He hit two big ones today and finished with a  3  3  3  3 line. In typical Giants fashion he was pulled for a pinch-hitter in the 9th to get the platoon advantage--Austin Slater vs. LHP--as well as a better OF glove for the end of the game. Only in San Francisco do you rack up ten total bases and then sit down! But the method works and the players all buy in to it. Slater got two ABs in the nutty, six-run final frame including a two-RBI hit. Wilmer Flores had three RBI-singles and I wanted to say that he showed his usual brio, or panache, but he's so placid and stoic that neither word applies. I guess I'll stick with "clutch."

Logan Webb was a little off-kilter early but left with a 6-3 lead in the 7th. The Nats still had a chance but José Álvarez got Juan Soto to ground out to end the inning and the remarkable Tyler Rogers put up a zero in the 8th. You just have to keep marveling at Rogers. He made Soto look bad in yesterday's game and that's no mean feat. Giants pitchers really kept a lid on the young superstar over the course of the series.

The Giants are 11-5 and still have a lot of guys hitting below their weight. It was nice to see Jason Vosler rap out a couple of hits. Mike Yastrzemski tested positive for COVID and will be unavailable for an indefinite period so the team will need Vos' LH stick.

Last year's Cy Young Award recipient Corbin Burnes gets the start in Milwaukee tomorrow in that weird one-game schedule quirk. It's at 3:10 Pacific. Giants have yet to announce a starter/opener. Burnes is a beast so it will be a tough challenge. The team comes home for two against the A's followed by an off-day Thursday. This is the longest road trip of the season--eleven games. They've won seven of the first ten.

Go Giants!

--M.C.

Kris Bryant, Giant

The story has now made it past the twitter-verse: Maria Guardado reports on the Giants MLB site that Kris Bryant is coming to San Francisco. I posted in the comments on Wednesday's post that the Giants had been linked to Bryant.

The Giants give up Alexander Canario, a 21-year old RH OF at A-level. He's on the 40-man roster so that clears a spot for the FNG. They also give up Caleb Killian, a 24-year old RH starter at AA-level.

Bryant is a rental but he's the best player available that really fills the Giants needs. They get a right-handed power hitter who can play both corner infield and corner outfield spots and has even logged games in center field. His best position is third base and he's a former MVP and RoY not to mention a World Series winner with Chicago. He's 29 years old and has a career .886 OPS in 3626 PA over seven seasons.

It's a great move and should really help the team. I still think they can use another starter, but I'm not complaining. Bryant is a superb ballplayer and I don't see a downside. The Cubs get two excellent prospects but the Giants are finally in a position to trade from their farm system and they took advantage of that. Good job by the F.O.

Go Giants!

--M.C.

 

 

p.s. Looks like Tony Watson is returning to the Giants. Sam Selman goes to the Angels for Watson along with two other players, pitchers Ivan Armstrong and Jose Marte. Seems like a lot for an old lefty but I'm not complaining!

Party Time!

SF 12  COL 0

Anthony DeSclafani was superb tonight, and a start like that ought to be the story. But we do have to take a moment and give a nod to the hitters as they exploded for 12 runs to overwhelm Austin Gomber and the Rockies. Gomber is a good pitcher. He came to Colorado in the Nolan Arenado deal. The Giants, however, lit him up for four runs in the 1st and chased him in the 2nd when they added five more. What's cool is only the final two runs came via the homer, Buster Posey's two-run big fly in the 6th. In the 1st it was single, walk, single, double, single, groundout and in the 2nd it was single, single, groundout, double, strikeout, walk, walk, double. They added a run on a sacrifice fly in the 4th before Buster's blast.

We've all been waiting for the hitters to start hitting so it was a cathartic evening. And we've all been waiting for a lopsided win. All the previous games were decided by four runs or fewer! I'm still pinching myself. I actually relaxed during the broadcast.

But back to DeSclafani whose nickname, by the way, is "Disco." He was superb, as I mentioned. He breezed through eight innings on 85 pitches so it was only natural Kap would send him out for the 9th with a chance for a complete game and a shutout. He seized his moment: Garrett Hampson flew out to right (3 pitches), Josh Fuentes struck out (6 pitches), and Ryan McMahon struck out (6 pitches). It was a tremendous performance and he dominated from start to finish, retiring the last twelve batters. Final line was three hits and a walk, nine strikeouts, and ten groundball outs.

Who would have thought Anthony DeSclafani would be the Giants pitcher to get the first complete game of the season and the first shutout? Certainly not me. Like I said--party time!

Aaron Sanchez tomorrow night at 6:45 Pacific.

Go Giants!

--M.C.

Dick's Big Stick Leads Giants

SF 23  COL 5

Alex Dickerson hit THREE home runs--the first multi-homer game of his career--and the Giants clobbered the Rockies tonight in Coors Field. It was a sustained multi-hitter attack as the lineup scored at least one run in each of the first eight innings! Dickerson wound up with five hits (the others were doubles, one a booming near-homer), a walk, five runs scored, and six runs batted in. He tied a club record with 16 total bases (held by Willie Mays). Naturally, with 27 hits and 23 runs, there were hitting stars up and down the lineup but it is worth noting that young Joey Bart had three hits, two runs scored, and a run batted in. Donovan Solano and Brandon Crawford both had six RBI nights, and Mike Yastrzemski made another great catch. It was one of those nutty games but a hell of a lot of fun. The Rockies "only" used six pitchers (one was catcher Drew Butera) and they threw a combined 228 pitches!

Kevin Gausman allowed just two hits, both solo shots, and both by shortstop Garrett Hampson. Hampson would probably be the story on another night, but not tonight. Gausman was pulled after five innings and 87 pitches (5 K, 1 BB) and that was probably smart. Pitching in Denver is more "quit while you're ahead" than "go get a few more outs." Andrew Suarez pitched a scoreless 6th and 7th but came out after yielding two runs in the 8th. Wandy Peralta got the final five outs, giving up a run in the 9th.

Dickerson's first homer was a 480-foot moonshot, the longest by a Giants hitter since a 475-footer by Brandon Belt in 2015. That's when Statcast started tracking such things. Trevor Story is credited with a 505-foot satellite launch against the Giants two years ago, that's #1 on the Statcast list, but anything over 450 feet is prodigious. Dick is a big part of the team's plans but he's had a slow start to this abbreviated season. He had four hits in the two wins in Anaheim but still came into tonight's contest slashing an ugly .221/.299/.355 line, well below expectations. We know he's talented, but can he stay healthy and be a consistent, productive hitter? I sure hope so.

Infielder Daniel Robertson made his Giants debut and had a hit and a run scored subbing in the 7th for Evan Longoria (who had two hits). Robertson was on the taxi squad and was acquired for "cash considerations" from the Rays last month. He replaced OF Joey Rickard (60-day IL) on the roster and is a right-handed hitter who plays mostly second base but also has experience at third and short.

Logan Webb gets the start tomorrow (12:10 Pacific). The Rockies counter with lefty Kyle Freeland.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

p.s. Three teammates in the same game each getting six runs batted in is a first since 1920 when the RBI became an official statistic.

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.

Webb Snares Snakes

 SF 6  AZ 2

The Giants played another great ballgame tonight and got the better of Robbie Ray and the Diamondbacks. Ray has been plagued by walks this season (20 in 22 IP coming into the game) and added five more in his five innings and the Giants dinged him for two two-run homers (Evan Longoria and Wilmer Flores) to win their fourth in a row. The big story was Logan Webb who kept the ball in the yard for seven impressive innings (5 hits, 2 runs, 0 walks, 8 strikeouts, 102 pitches) to lead the way. The 23-year old righty showed some poise in his final two starts last season and I think everyone has been waiting to see some similar results this season. Tonight he may have erased a few doubts with a strong outing and the Giants lineup backed it up. Joey Bart hit a double and also added a bases-loaded walk in the 7th as part of a two-run rally that bumped it from 4-2 to 6-2. Tony Watson and Tyler Rogers covered the 8th and the 9th. The Giants are now .500 (6-6) at home.

Tyler Anderson tomorrow at 6:15 p.m. Pacific.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Jaylin Jack

SF 2  COL 1
Jaylin Davis is in the bigs because he can hit homers. He hit a heapin' pile of 'em at AAA this season, and the expectation is that he'll hit a few in the show. It took 13 games and 33 ABs but he finally got the big fly and it won the game in the 9th for the Giants. It was another anemic offensive display by the home squad, but the pitching was very tough and that kept it close and that gave the good guys a chance. Jaylin Davis is 25 years old and is from North Carolina and has over 1800 PAs in the minor leagues, mostly in the Twins system. He killed it (1.112 OPS) at Rochester (International League, AAA) and at Sacramento (1.105 OPS) and earned his call-up. Let's hope we see more good stuff from Davis--that was only his fourth hit! He was acquired in the Sam Dyson trade. His walk-off winner tonight made history: only twice before had a first career homer decided a ballgame.

Tyler Beede goes tomorrow afternoon, 12:45 Pacific.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

An ugly win is still a win!

SF 2  MIA 1
The Giants put on a display of offensive ineptitude again today but they managed to prevail over the equally-pathetic Marlins. Good work from the bullpen saved the home squad from embarrassment, with Tyler Rogers getting three outs on ten pitches, and Will Smith returning to close it out. Mauricio Dubon gave the Giants early hope with a solo shot, but an Evan Longoria throwing error led to the tying run against hard-luck reliever Burch Smith. The winning rally featured singles by Yaz and Belt who both moved up on a wild pitch. After a walk to Longo and a whiff from Vogt reliever Ryan Stanek threw another wild pitch and Yaz scampered home. It's a win, I'll take it, but damn it is a discouraging thing to watch. The Giants have scored 254 runs at home in 75 games (3.39 rpg) and that's why they are 33-42 there. Johnny Cueto pitched well again (5 IP, 0 R) and that feels good.

It is a blessed travel day tomorrow and--another blessing--the boys go on the road, this time to Boston. They'll have to hit better there. Logan Webb gets the ball on Tuesday at 4:10 p.m. Pacific.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Dubon Leads Giants

SF 5  LA 4
The Giants survived a three-homer game from A.J. Pollock, all solo shots, and hung on to win in Dodger Stadium. Closer Will Smith struck out LA phenom Will Smith to end it. It was an agonizing 9th, in contrast to the brisk work from Tyler Rogers in the 7th and Fernando Abad and Jandel Gustave in the 8th. Jeff Samardzija delivered a solid six (5 H, 3 R) to keep the Giants close against Clayton Kershaw. I often joke that Kershaw is the greatest pitcher in San Francisco Giants history. We have all watched his exceptional dominance against our favorite team, but they prevailed over him this time. They worked counts and ran up his pitch total in the first few innings but were unable to capitalize on some big chances. Finally after a 12-pitch walk to Kevin Pillar to open the 5th Dave Roberts came out for his super southpaw and the Giants were able to crack it open against reliever Dylan Floro. The big hits were from Yaz, pinch-hitting for Joey Rickard, and young Dubon.

Speaking of Mauricio, he doubled and homered off Kershaw, his homer tying the game in the 4th. His single in the 5th off Floro scored the final two runs that proved to be the difference. I like watching him in the field, he is very smooth and he makes everything look easy. Looks like he has a great arm as well. Big night for the rookie. Giants need infielders who can hit, let's hope he can be a fixture on the 2020 club.

That's only the 19th loss at home for the Dodgers this season. Tyler Beede goes tomorrow night at 6:10 Pacific. GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Dubon Debut

SD 5  SF 3
Middle infielder Mauricio Dubon made his Giants debut last night and collected his first fielding chance and first hit. (He was 0-for-2 for Milwaukee earlier this season.) He also flashed some leather taking a hit away and turning a double play pivot.  Dubon will likely get most of his work at second base but he is primarily a shortstop, having logged 4000 innings there in his minors career.

Otherwise there wasn't much to get excited about last night. Dereck Rodriguez continues to struggle and the offense continues to avoid the big, run-scoring hit.

Bumgarner tonight, 7:15 Pacific.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Double-digits

SF 11  AZ 6
For the second straight night in Arizona the Giants rapped out double-digit hits (18) and double-digit runs (11). They scored in five different innings. Brandon Belt got the rout started with a grand slam in the 2nd inning. He added RBIs in the 3rd and the 8th to finish with six. Kevin Pillar had five hits in five at-bats and scored three runs. Scooter Gennett also scored three runs. Austin Slater had a good night with two hits and some fine work in right field. It was another nutty offensive outburst by a team that has struggled to score runs for much of the season. That's three wins in a row over the D-Backs and five wins in the last six games. The Giants are now 8-8 in August and back to two games over .500 (63-61) with 38 games to play.

Rookie Logan Webb ran into trouble in the 1st inning but then settled down and delivered four scoreless after that. He induced double-play grounders to end both the 4th and the 5th. The youngster threw 94 pitches to 21 batters, whiffing seven and walking one, allowing only two runs on five hits. He kept the ball in the yard, something that neither Andrew Suarez nor Travis Bergen could pull off in their relief stints. That can be tough to do in a homer-happy ballpark in a homer-happy season. Jandel Gustave got the final four outs. The game ended most unusually when Eduardo Escobar tried to stretch his two-out, bases-empty 9th-inning double into a triple and was gunned down at third base (Slater to Gennett to Solano). That's crazy, man.

Madison Bumgarner gets the start tomorrow afternoon at 1:10 Pacific. GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Beede, Bats Beat Pads

SF 10  SD 4
Tyler Beede had his best start ever (7 IP, 4 H, 1 R) and the Giants pounded out 17 hits to subdue the Padres in San Diego. That's three straight games in which the Giants have scored in double figures: 10 on Sunday, 13 yesterday, and 10 tonight. Who are these guys? One is Evan Longoria who had four hits including a double and a homer, scoring three and driving in five. Donovan Solano led off the game with a homer and had two more hits and is starting to look like a real option at shortstop. Kevin Pillar had four hits, Brandon Belt added three, and Austin Slater two. But the story is Tyler Beede who threw 100 pitches (63 strikes) to 24 batters, with a solo homer to Wil Myers his only blemish. Let's see some more of that!

Reyes Moronta had an ugly 8th but also struck out Fernando Tatis, Jr. and made him look bad. Derek Holland gave up a run in the 9th but got the last three outs. The Giants take a shot at a sweep tomorrow behind Shaun Anderson.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

p.s. Tomorrow will be the 20th straight game for the Giants (June 14th to July 3rd) and thus they will have an off-day for The Fourth. They are 10-9 in those 19 games.

Alex "Big Stick" Dickerson

SF 11  AZ 5
Buried in a comment of mine on Zo's June 9th post about MadBum was this little tidbit:

Giants get another OF, another lefty (Alex Dickerson)in a trade with SD. The Pads get All-Name Team All-Star RHP Franklin Van Gurp.

At the time it was just another roster-churning Zaidian move, part of the endless search for some outfield help. The list of those guys is getting pretty long and I didn't give it more thought than the time it took to write the sentence.

I suppose we'll have to take another look. The 29-year old from Poway has played 108 games in the big leagues, all with the Padres. In his debut with the Giants he had three hits and six runs batted in with the big blow a grand slam home run in the 3rd inning. Bobby Bonds (in 1968) and Brandon Crawford (in 2011) each hit a big salami in their Giants debuts. Those were also their major league debuts, so it is a little different with this one but still pretty damn cool.

So, congratulations to Alex Dickerson and "welcome aboard." The Giants won the game, too, and played like some other team rather than the one we saw in LA, which is good. Kevin Pillar, batting in front of the FNG, had a big night as well. Dickerson also had a triple, and all his RBIs came with two outs. Good stuff!

All I'm hoping for from this roster-shuffling is competent major league play for extended periods. We seem to be getting some of that from Mike Yastrzemski (.772 OPS). Can we get a couple of fellows in the outfield to finish out the season with at least an average shot at getting a big hit every few days? I don't expect superstars, just players who aren't black holes with the bat and can catch the ball when it comes their way. In the pool of so-called "replacement players" there ought to be some who can pull that off, don't you think?

Anyway, the boys play another tonight in Arizona, 7:05 Pacific, and Tyler Beede gets the start. Go Giants!

--M.C.

Rookies Lead the Way

SF 4  TOR 3
Rookie Shaun Anderson had a perfectly acceptable debut: 5 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 5K. It took him 96 pitches to get through the 21 batters he faced. Not bad, really. He gave up a run in the 1st inning, but that just makes him a good teammate. You don't want to show guys up on your first day. There was a comical sequence in the 3rd where he walked a guy, wild pitched him to second, the guy went to third on an out, and then he wild pitched him home! He was victimized by an error and his own bad pickoff later, too, and that led to a run. But the youngster also had two hits himself, very impressive, and he showed some power and poise getting big outs. I'm looking forward to more Mr. Anderson. And I know you asked about Matt Cain's debut, didn't you? I thought so: 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 K. And I'll answer the next question: Timmy's was 4-1/3 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 K.

Good bullpen work (Melancon/Dyson/Watson/Smith) and some nice defensive work to make up for the earlier sloppy stuff kept the Jays off the board the rest of the way. Panda got things started with a run-scoring double in the 1st, and rookie catcher Aramis Garcia's two-run homer in the 2nd put the Giants on top. After the Jays tied it in the 5th, Brandon Crawford's solo shot in the 6th made it 4-3 and that's how it ended. Will Smith struck out the side in the 9th--that's 11-for-11 in save opportunities.

Off-day tomorrow. They'll be in Arizona Friday night, 6:40 PDT.

Go Giants!

--M.C.

Buster Bopped

Buster Posey took a foul tip off his mask on Sunday and was placed on the concussion list. He's out at least a week. We all know how uncertain these things are, one can only hope for the best. Buster has taken a beating back there, like all catchers. His importance to the team makes it different for Giants fans, I think. Lots of catchers get hurt, but few have the celebrity status of Posey, who advertises for the world's number one carmaker, fer chrissakes. I took this from a Baggs tweet:

Buster Posey: “I value who I am and who I will be as a husband and father first and foremost. At the same time, I enjoy my job and plan on doing my job.”

That sounds like Buster who has a real knack for saying the right thing. I wouldn't be surprised if he was a Senator some day. What I'd like to see is Posey managing. Seems like he's perfect for the job, especially in this media-saturated landscape. Aaron Boone had no experience managing but the Yankees chose him over more traditional picks and his time on TV was a selling point. Buster is really good in front of a microphone. His calm demeanor and natural reticence, along with his good looks--and that tinge of a Southern accent--make him a camera magnet. Hensley Muelens can manage the Giants until Posey retires and takes over. Wouldn't that be fun?

Drew Pomeranz also goes on the IL and Tyler Beede takes his spot. Aramis Garcia will handle the catching duties with Stephen Vogt.

--M.C.



p.s. The Giants got beat 12-11 in a cold, snowy Denver today. Derek Holland had a disaster start, giving up three runs in the 1st and four in the 2nd. Tyler Austin had two three-run homers, both big blasts, to lead the comeback effort (it was 8-8 after his second in the top of the 6th) but they ultimately fell short. The bullpen wasn't up to the task as Tyler Beede, Mark Melancon, and Sam Dyson gave up six hits, five walks, and five runs.

B-Craw Bomb Beats Reds

SF 6  CIN 5
Brandon Crawford hit his first homer of the year in the 9th inning to lead the Giants to a come-from behind win in Cincinnati. Buster Posey had a big game as well with a double and a three-run homer. Starter Jeff Samardzija gave up three homers in a row in the 1st inning but then put together four scoreless and turned it over the the 'pen. The A-Team of Trevor Gott, Reyes Moronta, Tony Watson, and Will Smith shut the door and the Giants had their fourth win in their last six games.

They've one more in Cincy tomorrow morning (9:35 PDT) with Drew Pomeranz getting the call. It's on to Denver Tuesday with Madison Bumgarner.

--M.C.


p.s. Giants claimed RH starting pitcher Andrew Moore off waivers, he was with the Rays (and came up though the Mariners system). Breyvic Valera was DFAd to make a spot on the 40-man. Breyvic was a favorite for the All-Name Team, I'll be sorry to see him go.

Three in a row

SF 4  TOR 0
The last time the Giants threw a shutout was on April 11th against the Rockies. Jeff Samardzija was the star that day and FNG Kevin Pillar provided all the offense with a solo homer in a 1-0 win. Today the star was FNG southpaw Drew Pomeranz who retired the first 13 batters he faced. He left after six innings (87 pitches) having allowed only two hits and two walks. Reyes Moronta took the 7th and Trevor Gott the 8th and 9th. Gott, impressively, delivered a six-up, six-down performance with three whiffs. The Giants showed some power with four doubles: Brandon Belt, Buster Posey, Evan Longoria, and Kevin Pillar. DH Pablo Sandoval hit a 112-mph homer from the left side off Clay Bucholz. That was the hardest hit ball by a Giants hitter this season. He then blasted a 111-mph liner, this time from the right side against Tim Mayza, but Jays SS Richard Urena made a nice play to turn it into an out. The Panda is 12-for-36 with seven doubles and two homers.

Outstanding effort by the lads today. The Yankees are coming to town on Friday and Madison Bumgarner gets the call against James Paxton.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Pillar of Strength

SF 7  SD 2
For the second straight night FNG Kevin Pillar chipped in four RBIs, but this time it paid off in a big win. He gets the RMC FNG of the Week Award! He must have read the memo: How to Impress Your New Fanbase. But I'm burying the lede. The real hero tonight was southpaw starter Derek Holland who subdued a right-handed lineup for seven solid innings. Only two walks (and five hits) against NINE strikeouts and Dutch matches Bumgarner's opening day dominance but with some offensive support. Holland's only blemish was a solo shot from Hunter Renfroe with one out in the 7th and he responded with two strikeouts to end the inning. Trevor Gott gave up a run in the 8th and Mark Melancon closed out the 9th. A fine effort from the lads tonight.

D-Rod goes tomorrow afternoon, 12:45 PDT start time. Go Giants!

--M.C.

Salami Nolo Contendre

The fog rolled in about 3 pm today in my neighborhood, then got heavier and heavier until it was a drizzle.  By game time, it had let up enough, but was hardly dry.  The park looked the same, until the fog rolled back in again late in the game.

No matter, the ball seemed to jump from time to time.  The Giants scored in the bottom of the 4th, Brandon Crawford singled home FNG Austin Tyler for 1 run, and then scored himself along with Brandon Belt, Yangervis Solarte and the batter, Kevin Pillar, on a grand slam home run.  That will net you some fans at the new team.  It was the first grand slam the Giants have hit in 2 years and 1 day.  That, I think, is the result less of a paucity of home runs (although there's that, too) and more of a failure to put men on base - they haven't had many 3 run home runs or 2 run home runs either.  After a good 4th inning, the Giants followed up with - nothing.  A few chances wasted, but they were stuck on 5 and that was not good enough to win tonight.  Padres 6, Giants 5.

Madison Bumgarner on the mound, and the Giants got him 5 runs to work with after he had held the Padres hitless through 4.  Not runner-less, though, as he put Fernando Tatis Jr. on via a HBP.  That was the guy who came back in the 5th and hit a 2 run shot.  The kind of electric talent that we only wish we had.  Madbum gave up a solo shot to Wil Myers on a pitch after he thought he had struck Myers out, but according the the little box on the screen, it was clearly a ball.  Madbum pitched into the 7th, when he put Tatis Jr on again by the HBP.  He scored on a ground out after Francisco Meija (another youngster) doubled and he went to 3rd.  That made it Padres 4 and brought in Reyes Moronta.  With Meija on, Moronta gave up a no-doubter to Franmil Reyes (23 years old, like Meija) for the 5th and 6th runs.   For Madbum: 6 IP, 3 K, 4 hits, 1 BB, 5 runs and 2 HBP.  Moronta got the loss.

I like the new 6:45 start time, but am curious as to what the Giants think they'll accomplish.  If baseball has a "demographics" problem with its audience, an earlier start time is a move to attract seniors, like me.  You know, the kind that take advantage of the 4 pm dinner specials.  Punks, they're fine with being up late.  Sparse crowd, tough weather, and no win tonight.