San Francisco Giants starter Kyle Harrison leaves for the dugout after being lifted by Giants manager Bob Melvin in the top of the third inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Tue Sep 3, 2024 (AP News photo)

Tuesday, Sept. 3, 2024

Oracle Park

San Francisco, California

Arizona Diamondbacks 8 (78-61)

San Francisco Giants 7 (68-71)

Win: Ryne Nelson (10-6)

Loss: Kyle Harrison (7-7)

Save: Justin Martinez (8)

Time: 2:47

Attendance: 23,545

By Stephen Ruderman

The Diamondbacks torched Kyle Harrison for six runs in just two and two thirds innings and jumped out to a 7-1 lead, and even though the Giants made a late spirited comeback, Arizona ultimately held on to win a wild 8-7 series opener at Oracle Park on Tuesday night.

President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi had himself a solid off-season in which he signed Jung-hoo Lee, Matt Chapman, Jorge Soler and Blake Snell. As a result, there was a lot of excitement surrounding the Giants at the beginning of the season. Expectations were high, and fans were showing up.

The Giants went through the usual ups and downs of the long 162-game grind. At three separate times this season, they looked like they were done only to get hot and play the kind of winning baseball we all have known they’re capable of.

However, things were never able to truly materialize. Now with the Giants now wrapping up their third-straight season of mediocrity, there was a very different vibe on the shores of McCovey Cove Tuesday night.

23,545 fans, the lowest crowd of the season, filled into Oracle Park to watch a Giants’ team six and a half games out of the third wild card spot with 24 games to go. There was a real sense that the patience of this fanbase had run out with the meritocracy of the last three years, and that feeling carried right into the game.

While the Giants were still barely hanging by a thread onto contention, everyone knew the reality that with the Diamondbacks in town, the Giants were really playing spoilers. They called up Marco Luciano and Luis Matos prior to the game, and it appears that the Giants have begun their transition to play-for-next-year mode.

Luciano would be at second base tonight. It was a new position for the Giants’ young phenom, who committed five errors in five games in his brief stint with the team in late May.

The Diamondbacks got to work right away against Giants’ starter Kyle Harrison in the top of the first inning. Geraldo Perdomo singled on a ground ball up the middle to start the game, and Corbin Carroll roped a double down the left field line.

I told ya the lack of vibes had carried over into the game. The Diamondbacks had runners at second and third with nobody out and had a chance for a crooked number right off the bat.

Josh Bell grounded out to short, which knocked in Perdomo to put Arizona on the board, but it was a big first out for Harrison. Harrison struck Christian Walker out for the second out, and he had a chance to limit the damage to just a run.

Harrison then got ahead of Randal Grichuk 1-2, but Grichuk fouled off four pitches with two strikes to work the count to 2-2. He then hit a home run to right-center field to give the Diamondbacks their crooked number.

Ryne Nelson took the ball for Arizona in the bottom of the first with an early 3-0 lead, but the Giants would have a response. Mike Yastrzemski drew a leadoff walk, and Tyler Fitzerald slashed a double off the end of his bat down the right field line to put runners at second and third with no one out. Sound familiar?

Like the Diamondbacks, the Giants got on the board via an out, as Heliot Ramos knocked in Yaz with a sacrifice fly to right. However, the Giants would not be able to add on.

Harrison hoped to settle down after his offense got him a run, but the Diamondbacks got that run right back in the top of the second. Nelson then threw a one, two, three inning in the bottom of the second, but Harrison wouldn’t be able to stay out of trouble.

Harrison set down the first men he faced, but the Diamondbacks were relentless, and they loaded the bases with two outs. That ended Harrison’s night after just two and two thirds innings.

Bob Melvin brought in Tristan Beck, and I’ll get the bad news out of the way. Kevin Newman came up, and he lined a base-hit up the middle to knick in a pair. The Diamondbacks had a 6-1 lead, and this was turning into an ugly night for the Giants.

The one shiny spot on the ugly start Tuesday night was the appearance of Beck. Beck was pitching just six months after having an aneurysm in his right arm that required surgery.

Beck was acquired from the Braves in the Mark Melancon Trade in 2019, and he had a solid rookie season when he finally made it to the big leagues last year. Beck was unable to pitch for most of this season, but he put in the hard work to find his way back to the Giants.

Beck threw three and a third innings, and he gave up a run in the top of the fifth. It was a big day for him, and he made clear after the game how thankful he was for the support following everything he went through this year.

Matt Chapman hit a line drive home run to left-center in the bottom of sixth to make it 7-2, but Nelson was dominant Tuesday night over six and two thirds. He gave up just two runs and four hits, and he struck out nine.

Despite the lows the Giants have suffered this season, they have never phoned it in. They have been a group of true fighters who have grinded out every out all season. Even at their lowest points, they never gave up. Tuesday night was no different.

Diamondbacks Manager Torrey Lovullo brought in Ryan Thompson for what was expected to be a quiet bottom of the eighth inning. However, the Giants had other plans with the top of the order up.

Yastrzemski led off the inning with a home run to left-center to make it 7-3, and the Giants put runners at first and second with two outs. Jerar Encarnacion and Patrick Bailey then knocked in runs with base-hits to cut the deficit to 7-5.

Lovullo brought in Justin Martinez to face Luciano. Luciano committed another error in his return to the big leagues tonight, but he had a chance for a big hit in the bottom of the eighth. On the first pitch, he took a slider right on the inside corner and fisted it the other way to right for a base-hit, and it was now 7-6 with the tying run just 90 feet away at third.

The Giants and the 23,545 fans at the ballpark tonight were making noise. Luis Matos came up, but he struck out on three pitches, and the Diamondbacks kept their lead going to the ninth.

Arizona would get a run back against Erik Miller in the top of the ninth to make it 8-6, but the Giants still kept it going against Martinez in the bottom of the ninth. Yastrzemski lined a base-hit to right to start the inning, and after Fitzgerald struck out for the first out, Heliot Ramos lined a double down the line in left to make it 8-7.

It was a one-run game again, and the Giants had the tying run in scoring position with one out. The Giants had a chance to once again pull off a big win and give themselves and their fans a faint glimmer of hope with their season all but done.

However, it was not meant to be. Chapman grounded out back to the mound, and after Lovullo elected to walk LaMonte Wade, Encarnacion struck out swinging to end the game.

Ryne Nelson picked up the win; Kyle Harrison took the loss; and Justin Martinez got his eighth save of the year. The Giants have now lost three-straight and fall to 68-71. They are now seven and a half games back of the Braves with 23 games to go, and their tragic number to be eliminated is 16.

Hayden Birdsong (3-4, 5.14 ERA) will try and bounce back after a rough August, and he will take the ball for the Giants in the second game of this series Wednesday night. Zac Gallen (10-6, 3.87 ERA) will make the start for the Diamondbacks. First pitch will be at 6:45 p.m PT.