San Francisco Giants’ Patrick Bailey watches his three run-double against the Atlanta Braves during the fifth inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sun Aug 27, 2023 (AP News photo)

Atlanta (84-44). 000 032 000. – 5. 6. 0

San Francisco (67-63). 110 042 00x. – 8. 8. 0

Time: 2:47

Attendance: 31,047

Sunday, August 27, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants entered this afternoon’s contest with the NL-East leading Atlanta Braves 1-1/2 games behind the Diamondbacks in the battle for a toe hold on the lowest rung of the wild card qualifying ladder. The home team’s exciting 8-5 win over Atlanta didn’t change that because Arizona also won its game today.

The Braves named Jared Shuster, their first round pick in the 2020 draft, to start the game for them. All nine of the big league games in which he’d appeared in this year had been as a traditional starter, but yesterday’s media package listed him as a reliever.

Sunday’s also had him in the bullpen section, but crossed out. He was an opener this afternoon and pitched 4-2/3 innings, in which he allowed four runs, all earned, on four hits, and three walks. He left with a no decision and a record of 4-2, 5.26.

Tristan Beck, San Francisco’s opener du jour, like Shuster, was a Braves’ draft pick, chosen in the fourth round of 2018. as a minor leaguer. He’s appeared in 60 minor league games, 53 of them as a starter. The Giants’ have used him out of the bullpen since his major league debut on April 20, and he responded with a record of 3-2-2, 3.34 with two saves out of three chances.

He was sensational this afternoon . . . until he wasn’t. The first batter to reach base safely against him was Matt Olson, who walked on a 3-2 pitch to lead off the fifth inning.

A leadoff walk to Austin Slater, followed by productive ground outs by Thairo Estrada and Wilmer Flores and a JD Davis single to right had put the Giants up, 1-0, after one inning of play.

In the Giants’ next turn at bat,the hitherto slumping rookie Casey Schmitt, playing third base and batting eighth, doubled the home team’s with his third big league homer, a 426 lollapolosa solo shot to left field with an exit 107.7mph that came off an 82.9mph change of pace.

Once Olson had brokenBeck’s spell in the fifth, Eddie Rosario’s double, a solid single to right by Travis d’Arnaud, and a scratch hit by Orlando Arcia tied the score and put an end to Beck’s mound tenure. Scott Alexander gave up an opposite field single to Nicky López that brought in d’Arnaud with the tie breaking run, which was charged to Beck, and advanced to second.

The inning ended with a double play that was the result of a successful challenge to home plate umpire Emil Jiménez’s original call. Here’s what happened: Acuña hit a grounder to Estrada at second; he tossed the ball to Alexander, who fired it to Estrada covering at first, for the first out; Estrada’s throw home completed the 4-1-4-2 double play. Atlanta now led, 3-2.

But not for long. Matos hit a one out double to shallow left. Slater singled to right, sending Matos to third. After Estrada went down swinging, Collin McHugh replaced Shuster on the mound and Flores and Davis, both of whom scored on Bailey’s double to right, and, in the twinkling of an eye, San Francisco was on top, 6-3.

That lead shrank before you knew it. Alexander got two quick outs in the top of the sixth before Olson smacked a double to right center and Ozuna knocked one out of the park into the left center field bleachers to make it a 6-5 game.

After a walk to Rosario, Alexander was replaced by the submariner Tyler Rogers, who got the final out, pitched a perfect seventh, and would give way to his brother Taylor, who notched his 500th career K in the 1,2,,3 top of the eighth that he worked.

San Francisco tacked on a pair of runs in the bottom of that frame. Wade Meckler pinch hit for Ramos and walked. Schmitt sacrificed him to second. Joc Pederson hit for Matos and received an intentional walk. Slater’s single to center gave the Giants their seventh, and Estrada’s bunt single brought Pederson, who had taken third on Slater’s hit, home with their eighth.

Michael Tonkin toed the rubber for Atlanta after the seventh inning stretch, retired the side in order, and was relieved by Brad Hand with one out in the top of the ninth.

Camilo Duval, who’d been struggling recently, went for his 34th save in 41 attempts. He got, setting the Braves down to a conga beat, uno, dos, tres.

Alexander was the winning pitcher. His record now is 7-2, 4.46. Shuster, now 4-3, 5.26 was the loser.

Before the game began, the Giants. honored Mike Murphy for his 65 years of service to the team, which he joined as bat boy in 1958, when they moved from the Polo Grounds, rising to his current position as Senior Advisor, Home Club House, by adding his name to the Giants Wall of Fame. He’s the 56th person so honored..

A good deal of the Giants’ chances for an orange and gold October depend on the performance of other teams. But there are some factors that the team can try to control.

The Giants also have other problems to solve. Its collective batting average before today was a rakitic .239. The team ERA was 3.99. They have been hard hit by injuries. So we shall see what we shall see, but the days in which we can see it are dwindling down to a precious few.

Tomorrow, Monday evening at 6:45, Kyle Harrison (0-0, 5.40) will make his Oracle Park debut against Andrew Abbott (8-3, 3.16) and the Cincinnati Reds.