San Francisco Giants starter Logan Webb is frustrated after giving up a bottom of the fifth inning home run to the Colorado Rockies Ezequiel Tovar at Coors Field in Denver on Sat Jul 20, 2024 (AP News photo)

Saturday, July 20, 2024

Coors Field

Denver, Colorado

San Francisco Giants 3 (47-52)

Colorado Rockies 4 (36-63)

Win: Kyle Freeland (2-3)

Loss: Logan Webb (7-8)

Save: Victor Vodnik (3)

Time: 2:14

Attendance: 44,178

By Stephen Ruderman

The Giants have now dropped the first two games of this three-game series in Coors Field to start the second half, as Logan Webb braved through six innings but gave up four runs, and the Rockies held on for a 4-3 win on Saturday night.

The Giants were looking for a fresh start after a tough loss last night, and there were many reasons to feel better about Saturday night. First of all, their ace, Logan Webb, was on the mound. Second, they were facing Kyle Freeland, who came into tonight with an ERA of 6.00. Plain and simply, Freeland’s having a bad season.

Unlike last night, the sun was out as the game got underway, as Freeland pitched a 1-2-3 top of the first inning. Webb, who gave up three runs in the bottom of the third inning at the All-Star Game Tuesday in Arlington, Texas, had a rough go of things in the bottom of the first.

The Rockies loaded the bases right away with nobody out, and Elias Diaz grounded into a double play to score Charlie Blackmon for the game’s first run—of course, Diaz was not credited with an RBI, because you can not be credited with an RBI under any circumstances if you ground into a double play.

The Rockies got their next run when first-baseman Wilmer Flores made a bone-headed play. On a ground ball off the bat of Brenton Doyle that was headed right for second-baseman Thairo Estrada, Flores, who was playing halfway between first and second dove to his right to field it, and the ball spat out of his glove. The play was ruled an infield hit, and Ezequiel Tovar scored to make it 2-0 Colorado.

Both pitchers threw scoreless innings in the second, and Tyler Fitzgerald put the Giants on the board with a solo home run out to left-center field with one out in the top of the third. Webb narrowly escaped a jam in the bottom of the third, and Heliot Ramos was doubled off at first to end the top of the fourth.

Webb finally pitched his first 1-2-3 inning of the night in the bottom of the fourth, and the Giants were able to put Freeland in a hole in the top of the fifth after Mike Yastrzemski hit a one-out triple. Curt Casali struck out looking for the second out, and up came Fitzgerald.

The first pitch from Freeland to Fitzgerald was a slider at the knees called a ball by Home Plate Umpire Chris Conroy. The pitch was a nut cutter and could have gone either way, but Freeland did not like the call, and he made his frustration with Conroy quite clear when he lightly threw his arms in the air.

After Conroy took his mask off for a light stare at Freeland, the next pitch was a sinker off the outside corner for ball 2. As Freelend continued to stew, Rockies Pitching Coach Darryl Scott came out to calm down the left-hander.

It was expected that Scott would wait for Conroy to come to the mound to toss him, but Conroy stayed behind the plate and kept his mask on, and Scott went back to the dugout without incident. Fitzgerald then hit a double to left to score Yastrzemski and tie the game. Surprisingly, nobody ended up getting tossed at all.

It was a new game heading to the bottom of the fifth. However, the Rockies got right back ahead when Ezequiel Tovar hit a two-run home run to left to make it 4-2.

Freeland retired the first two men he faced in the top of the sixth. Matt Chapman then reached on an error, and Wilmer Flores lined a double out to center to make it 4-3. Webb, meanwhile, pitched a scoreless bottom of the sixth, and both pitchers were done.

For Webb, he braved through six innings, as he gave up four runs and eight hits. Webb also only threw one 1-2-3 inning. Hey, it was Coors Field, and Webb gave it his best.

Freeland’s outing was quite surprising, as he gave up just three runs, two of them earned over six innings. Though Freeland’s success had more to do with the Giants’ offense falling back on their old bad habits than anything else.

Anyway, as the clouds gathered above Coors Field, Nick Mears threw a 1-2-3 top of the seventh for Colorado, and Erik Webb did the same for the Giants in the bottom of the seventh. Mears threw another 1-2-3 inning in the top of the eighth as the rain started to fall, and Sean Hjelle threw a 1-2-3 bottom of the eighth for San Francisco.

Victor Vodnik then came in for the top of the ninth and closed this thing out with a 1-2-3 top of the ninth.

Kyle Freeland got just his second win of the season; Logan Webb took the loss; and Victor Vodnik picked up his third save.

The Giants’ offense has gone dark again. The fact that Kyle Freeland of all people was able to shut them down tonight was bad. Jorge Soler, Luis Matos, Matt Chapman, Thairo Estrada and Curt Casali went a combined 0-for-16. Soler struck out twice, and is once again struggling with runners in scoring position.

The Giants have fallen back to five games under .500 at 47-52, and now they are staring down the barrel of getting swept by the lowly Rockies. Hayden Birdsong (1-0, 3.72 ERA) will make his fifth big league start tomorrow, and he will be opposed by left-hander Austin Gomber (2-6, 4.61 ERA).

Giants News and Notes:

Robbie Ray struck out seven and gave up just one hit over five and a third shutout innings in what was likely his final rehab start for the Sacramento River Cats. He is expected to make his Giants’ debut in the team’s four-game series in Los Angeles next week.