San Francisco Giants Jorge Soler (right) is tagged out by Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Chris Taylor (left) in the top of the first inning at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Mon Jul 22, 2024 (AP News photo)

Monday, July 22, 2024

Dodger Stadium

Los Angeles, California

San Francisco Giants 2 (48-53)

Los Angeles Dodgers 3 (60-41)

Win: Blake Treinen (4-2)

Loss: Erik Miller (3-3)

Save: Daniel Hudson (7)

Time: 2:26

Attendance: 49,576

By Stephen Ruderman

The Giants’ offense sputtered against River Ryan in his major league debut, as they were unable to support Blake Snell, who pitched another strong outing, and the Dodgers beat the Giants 3-2, thanks to a pair of RBI base-hits by Teoscar Hernanez, in the opener of this four-game series at Dodger Stadium.

The Giants were able to get out of Denver with a win Sunday, averting a disastrous sweep at the hands of the third-worst team in Baseball. With the Giants in need of a spark, they are in LA for a four-game series just as they were this very week in 2021. The Giants took three of four in that series, which featured two epic come-from-behind ninth inning wins on July 21 and 22.

That series is when everybody realized that 2021 was going to be a magical season. Three years later here in 2024, the Giants have come into this four-game series four games under .500 at 48-52, and three games back of the New York Mets for the third wild card spot in the National League.

For the Dodgers, they send the young right-hander, River Ryan, who has a great baseball name, to the mound to make his major league debut. Ryan was originally drafted by the San Diego Padres in 2021 out of the University of North Carolina, where he was a two-way player. He was traded to the Dodgers on March 28, 2022, and then bounced around the minors this season before getting the call to start tonight.

This was one of those rare games where the designated hitter was the lead off guy for both teams. For the Giants, it was Jorge Soler, who walked to start off the game. The Giants appeared to be in business when LaMonte Wade lined a base-hit to left-center field, but Soler was nailed by left-fielder Miguel Vargas trying to take third base.

Wade advanced to second on the throw, but that essentially killed the rally for the Giants. Heliot Ramos lined out to left, and Patrick Bailey popped out to short, as Ryan ended up getting out of his first big league inning in a quite unusual way.

Blake Snell nearly got his first win as a Giant after he took a perfect game into the seventh inning of the first half finale last Sunday against the Minnesota Twins. However, that was not to be, as Camilo Doval blew the save and gave up two runs in the top of the ninth.

Still, it was the first time the real Blake Snell showed up for the Giants, and he was looking to build off that Monday night. Snell walked Shohei Ohtani to start the bottom of the first inning, but catcher Patrick Bailey nailed Ohtani trying to steal second, and Snell ended up facing the minimum.

Ryan pitched a pair of 1-2-3 innings in the second and third. Snell escaped a two-out rally in the bottom of the second, and then he threw a 1-2-3 bottom of the third.

Wade walked to start the top of the fourth, and Bailey grounded a single up the middle with one out. Michael Conforto moved the runners over to second and third on a ground out to first, and they left things up to Matt Chapman.

Unfortunately, after the Giants’ offense finally showed what they were capable of over the final four weeks of the first half, they have fallen back on their old bad habits to begin the second half.

Chapman did work the count full to 3-2, but the Giants caught a break when Ryan threw a fastball on the outside corner that was dropped by catcher Will Smith and went to the Giants’ on-deck circle, which allowed Wade to score. The Giants were unable to come through with that key RBI hit with runners in scoring position. Instead, they got their run on a passed ball.

The Dodgers struck right back when Teoscar Hernandez, who won the Home Run Derby last Monday night in Arlington, Texas, tied the game with his 21st home run of the season. It was a no-doubter, as Hernandez hit it half way up into the pavilion out in left field.

Both pitchers threw 1-2-3 innings in the fifth, and base-hits by Wade and Bailey put runners on the corners for the Giants with one out in the top of the sixth. That ended the night for Ryan, but he had himself one helluva of a major league debut, as he was thrown into a rivalry game and gave up just an unearned run over five and a third innings. Not bad.

Looks like I gave away the ending to the Giants’ rally. Of course they wasted it, as left-hander Alex Vesia came in and struck out both Luis Matos and Chapman to end the inning.

Well, the Dodgers made the Giants pay in the bottom of the sixth. With Freddie Freeman at second and two outs, Hernandez got a hanging curveball from Snell and lined a base-hit out to center field to score Freeman and give the Dodgers their first lead of the night.

Snell escaped the inning without any further damage, and that would end his night. It was a good night for Snell, who went six innings, and gave up two runs and four hits. We’re now seeing what Snell is capable of, and if he can keep pitching like this, it will be huge for the Giants down the stretch.

Snell was unfortunately unable to get his first win as a Giant, but he didn’t get the loss either. Tyler Fitzgerald tied the game with one out in the top of the seventh when he hit a home run off Ryan Yarbrough. For Fitzgerald, he has now homered in three-straight games.

Ryan Walker threw a 1-2-3 bottom of the seventh for the Giants. Bailey drew a two-out walk off Blake Treinen in the top of the eighth and stole second, but with a full count, Matos struck out when he chased a slider down and away to end the inning.

It was another wasted opportunity for the Giants—a sentence I have written far too many times this season—and Erik Miller ran into trouble right away when he came in for the bottom of the eighth. Kiké Hernandez led off the inning with a double to center, and Will Smith walked with one out.

Freeman grounded into a 6-4 fielder’s choice for the second out, and the Giants were hoping that they could get Will Smith on interference for his slide at second, as Bob Melvin challenged that play. The play was upheld, and Melvin went to Randy Rodriguez to face Teoscar Hernandez

Hernandez was up with the go-ahead runner at second with two outs, just as he was in the sixth. Rodriguez was a strike away from getting out of it with the count at 2-2, but he threw a 98-MPH fastball right on the outside corner that Hernandez lined off the end of the bat and up the middle into center field for a base-hit that scored Smith to put the Dodgers back ahead.

It was deja vu all over again. Just as he did in the sixth, Hernandez gave the Dodgers the lead with a base-hit up the middle.

Daniel Hudson came in for the ninth, and while Fitzgerald walked with two outs, Brett Wilsey flew out to left to end the game.

Blake Treinen got the win; Erik Miller got the loss; and Daniel Hudson picked up his seventh save of the year.

The Giants’ offense are struggling again at the worst possible time. As Marcos Breton pointed out on Twitter—yes, I’m still calling it that—Jorge Soler, Heltiot Ramos, Luis Matos, Matt Chapman, Mike Yastrzemski and Matt Chapman went a combined 0-for-22, and Yastrzemski ended up with the hat trick. To be blunt, things need to change, and they need to change soon.

The Giants fall to 48-53 and four games back of the Mets for the third wild card. They will need a win Tuesday night. Jordan Hicks (4-6, 3.79 ERA), who has hit a rough patch as of late after a great start to his season will make the start for the Giants Tuesday. Landon Knack of all people will counter to make his season debut for the Dodgers. First pitch will be at 7:10 p.m.

Giants News and Notes:

Following his dominant 12-strikeout performance in Colorado Sunday, Hayden Birdsong was sent all the way down to the Low-A San Jose Giants. The move was simply made to clear a roster spot for right-handed reliever Mike Baumann, whom the Giants acquired in a trade with the Seattle Mariners yesterday.