Month: August 2025

San Francisco Giants’ Heliot Ramos throws his bat after popping out against the San Diego Padres during the sixth inning of a baseball game in San Francisco, Tuesday, Aug. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

By Lincoln Juarez 

SAN FRANCISCO – Jose Iglesias and Jackson Merrill both homer as the San Diego Padres take the series in San Francisco. The Giants couldn’t get starter Robbie Ray any run-support in his 113 pitch outing. 

A brisk Tuesday night of baseball at Oracle Park made for an even more un-enjoyable night for Giants fans as they watched the team’s playoff hopes get swept further under the rug in their loss to the Pads 5-1 Tuesday. 

The orange and black took the field on Grateful Dead night behind left-hander Ray. Ray went into the ballgame 9-5 with a 2.85 ERA. He set down the first two hitters without a problem but encountered one of the more interesting ways we’ve seen a Giants pitcher allow a run this year. 

Manny Machado blooped a shallow fly-ball into right field where three Giants converged but none could make the play. Right fielder Tyler Fitzgerald, who had just been recalled from Triple-A Sacramento, was playing in the outfield for the first time since last season. That could’ve been attributed to the lack of communication that saw the ball drop in the triangle of Giants. 

The next delivery from Ray got blasted off the left field wall for a double by Xander Bogaerts putting Machado at third base and two men in scoring position. On the next attempt to pitch, Ray lost his footing on the mound resulting in a balk and Machado coming home to score the game’s first run. 

Visibly frustrated by Machado’s bizarre trip around the bases, Ray kicked the clay near the rubber and proceeded to fire a 95mph fastball past Jackson Merrill for his second strikeout of the game. 

In the home first the Giants had their first look at Nestor Cortes in just his second start as a Padre. 1-1 on the year with a 7.11era, Cortes aimed to toss his first win with his new club. 

The top of the Giants order gave him trouble early on as Casey Schmitt doubled from the two hole in the order. It was his first of four hits Tuesday night. Devers followed with a single placing runners on the corners and one out. 

Willy Adames was next to test his luck with runners in scoring position and struckout, leading to Wilmer Flores stepping in with two outs. Wilmer rolled a swinging bunt down the third base line that went untouched until it stopped rolling about ten feet in front of the bag. Machado finally picked it up, only after Schmitt scored from third to tie the game. 

Would it be a surprise if that was the only run the Giants could score Tuesday night? 

With the way they’ve played at home their last 13 games(1-12), scoring just 24 runs in that span (the fewest in a 13-game span since August 27-September 24 of 2018), it would not be a surprise at all. 

Sure enough the Giants lacked that big hit they’ve been needing to get the offense going at home and struck out 11 times on their way to a fourth straight loss and their fifth straight series loss at home. 

Giants fans wish they could all snap a bat over their knee like Heliot Ramos did in the second inning. 

The Padres got to Ray again in the second, this time cashing in two on Jose Iglesias’ first home run of the year. They tacked on two more, one in the fourth and eighth inning, en route to a 5-1 win, securing their fifth consecutive series win. 

Robbie Ray threw 113 pitches in his sixth loss of the season across 6.0ip allowing 4er. Postgame, Bob Melvin praised Ray’s competitive spirit and his desire to go deep into the game. Melvin also mentioned that the bullpen being a bit short on arms and where the team is in the season, Ray throwing as many as he did Tuesday night is what he expected. 

Now two games under .500, the visibly frustrated Giants return to action Wednesday afternoon at Oracle Park looking for anything to help turn things around. 

It will be Kai-Wei Teng (1-1 ERA 5.40) earning the start at 12:45pm vs right-hander Nick Pivetta (11-4 ERA 2.94) for San Diego first pitch 12:45pm PT.

San Francisco Giants’ Drew Gilbert (61) is tagged out by Sn Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado while trying to reach third base after stealing second base during the third inning of a baseball game in San Francisco, Monday, Aug. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

By Lincoln Juarez

SAN FRANCISCO–The San Francisco Giants offensive woes continued as the bats got stumped by the Padres pitching staff 4-1 in game one of a three game set Monday night at Oracle Park. Recently acquired, OF Drew Gilbert recorded his first big league hit and Rafael Devers hit his 23rd home run of the season, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Padres offensive onslaught in the seventh. 

The Giants continued their homestand against a Padres team that has won four consecutive series. The .500 (59-59) Giants started a stretch where seven of their next ten games will be against the second place (NL West) Padres. 

After a disappointing series to open up the homestand against the Nationals over the weekend, the Giants sent their ace, Logan Webb (10-8, 3.24) to the mound to bounce back in the win column. 

In what turned out to be a pitcher’s duel until the seventh inning, Webb looked like his All-Star-self. Only allowing one run on five hits through his first six innings of work, Webb gave his moping offense a chance to stay in the game. 

The story of the offense Monday night; no different than it’s been the last month and counting. The Giants were held to one run on five hits and went 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position. 

The fact they only had two opportunities to hit with runners in scoring position is bad enough, but to go 0-for is the same story Giants fans have been watching for over a month. 

Including Monday night’s start, Logan Webb has received three total runs of support over his last three starts at home (16.0ip). 

The lack of offense and a seventh inning that blew up prefaced a dreadful Webb as he walked off the mound after pitching 6.1 innings, allowing eight hits, four earned runs, walked one batter, struck out three and allowed one home run.

Both teams put together a run in the sixth but the Padres took over the tie ballgame in the seventh and never looked back, silencing an already quiet Oracle Park crowd. 

The Padres exploded for three runs on four hits in the top of the seventh, including a home run. 

The Giants looked to answer in the home half, just as they had in the sixth. They were set down in four batters. 

In the eighth, the bats were dodging the fireballs of Padres newly acquired reliever Mason Miller. 

He quickly struck out the side in order. 

Still a three-run game in the ninth, Padres closer Robert Suarez set the Giants down in order to secure the win. 

The Giants got one hit in the final third of the game and dropped their third in a row. 

Although as a team the offense has still yet to find their groove again, there are some individual milestones to be recognized from Monday’s tilt. 

INF Dom Smith extended his career-best hitting streak to 14 games (longest active streak in majors), and OF Drew Gilbert is making a name for himself at Oracle Park after showing off his glove over the weekend and recording his first Major League hit Monday night off Yu Darvish. 

Besides that hit and Rafael Devers’ game-tying home run in the sixth inning, Giants fans had nothing to cheer for. 

As the team continues to free-fall the ballpark remains empty and quiet. The Giants will see if the San Francisco faithful get what they deserve in game two of the series Tuesday night at Oracle Park. 

Starters for game two of the series for San Diego Nestor Cortes (0-0, 3.86) vs. San Francisco’s Robbie Ray (9-5, 2.85), first pitch 6:45pm PT.