San Francisco Giants second baseman Brett Wisley (70) turns on a Milwaukee Brewers pitch for a home run at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sat May 5, 2023 (@SFGiants photo)

Milwaukee (18-15). 000 000 001. – 1. 6. 0

San Francisco (15-17). 012 000 10x. – 4. 6. 0

Time: 2:30

Attendance: 26,387

Saturday, May 6, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants tried to make it four in a row and nine out of the last 13 in this afternoon’s encounter with the slumping Milwaukee Brewers, who were trying to end their five game losing streak that on April 30th. A Giant win would be a fitting birthday present to the 92 year old Willie Mays, who broke in to what was then considered major league baseball in 1951.

The New York Giants of that year began as a horror show, with Mays playing for the Minneapolis Millers. Recommended to Leo Durocher by Artie Wilson, he went 0 f0r 12 after his May 25 call up until he got his first hit, a home run off Hall of Famer Warren Spahn. Still, the Giants were 13-1/2 games out of first in mid August, when they caught fire and finally won the pennant with two out in the bottom of the ninth of the last of a three game playoff series against the Brooklyn Dodgers.

Today, behind the solid pitching of Alex Cobb, the current ace of the Giants rotation, San Francisco the Brewers, 4-1. Milwaukee sent Colin Rea, a well travelled but not particularly distinguished veteran to the mound at Oracle Park.

San Francisco took an early lead. Both pitchers retired the first five batters they faced and then walked the sixth. Cobb retired the seventh. Rea didn’t. Joey Bart sent a line drive down the left field foul line that evaded the glove of third baseman Owen Miller to become an RBI double that drove in Michael Conforto.

Thairo Estrada added two more runs to the Giants’ lead, sending an 82.8 mph sweeper into the left field bleachers, 376 feet from home plate, from where it departed at 97.6 mph. It was Estrada’s fifth homer of the season, and drove in LaMonte Wade, Jr., who had singled, giving the Giants’ shortstop his 12th and 13th RBI and his team a 3-1 advantage.

That caused some excitement but not as much as the brouhaha that erupted when Milwaukee came t0 bat in the f0urth. Willy Adames singled to left. Cobb attempted to pick him off. He was called safe. Then first base umpire Jimmy Riggs awarded Adames second base, believing that the throw had been Cobb’s third disengagement of the at bat.

Third base ump and crew chief Chris Guccioni disabused the minor league substitute ump of that misconception, which infuriated Brewer skipper Craig Counsell enough to earn him an ejection from Gucccioni. It took a while for Cobb to recover his rhythm, which enabled the visitors to load the bases. But Cobb recovered and, helped by spiffy pick and throw by Davis at third, kept Milwaukee off the board.

Six innings were enough for Rea. He’d thrown 89 pitches; only 30 were balls. He allowed three runs, all earned, on four hits, one of which was a homer, and struck out four. Tyson Miller relieved him to pitch the home seventh and gave up a solo home run to Brett Wisely, his first. Miller stayed in the game to throw a scoreless bottom of the eighth.

107 pitches, his second highest total of the season, were enough for Cobb. He didn’t allow a run in his seven frames on the mound and permitted only five hits and two walks while striking out five. 39 of those 107 offerings were balls. Taylor Rogers, the southpaw brother of Tyler the Submariner, shut out the Brewers in the eighth.

John Brebbia had a four run lead to protect when he came on in the ninth. He walked the first two batters he faced and went two innings and on Bruce Turang before throwing him two strikes and then receiving a mound visit. After another ball, Turang took a called strike three. Owen Miller stroked a single to left, plating Tellez, the first walkee, and sending Brian Anderson to second. Exit Brebbia. Enter Camilo Duval. He got the job done with two flies to center, the last out coming at the warning track.

Cobb, now 2-1, 2.01, got the well earned win. Rea, nbow 0-3 got the loss. Doval earned his seventh save.

Ross Stripling (0-1 ERA 6.10) will try to make it a sweep when the Giants and Brewers meet at 1:05 tomorrow, Sunday, afternoon to wrap up this three game series. Milwaukee hasn’t yet announced who will pitch for them.