Justin Verlander #35 of the San Francisco Giants pitches against the Colorado Rockies in the first inning at Oracle Park on September 27, 2025 in San Francisco, California. (Mandatory Photo Credit: Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

By Jeremiah Salmonson

SAN FRANCISCO — In what was most likely Justin Verlander’s last start in orange and black, the Giants defeated the Colorado Rockies 4-3 in game two of their three-game series to close out the season.

Justin Verlander pitched very well in what was likely his final start for the Giants. Verlander tossed six innings of two-run ball, giving up five hits and a walk while striking out seven. He walked off the mound after the sixth inning to a nice ovation from Giants fans who understood it could be the last time they see him.

Bob Melvin spoke after the game on Verlander’s final start.

“It’s nice to get him a win. You look up at his 3.85 ERA… knows where it’s going, pitched consistently every time out. We don’t give him a ton of run support but just enough today.”

The bullpen

The Giants turned to Joel Peguero for the seventh inning, and he tossed a scoreless frame, allowing only a lone walk.

In the eighth inning, Tristan Beck pitched a perfect frame to keep the Rockies off the board and from mounting any sort of comeback.

However, in the ninth inning Ryan Walker came on to close things out and ran into trouble. Walker managed just one out as he gave up a walk, two hits, and a run before Melvin had seen enough and went to Spencer Bivens to finish things off. Bivens came in, retired both batters he faced, and secured the 4-3 victory for the Giants.

The bats

The Giants didn’t get much offense going, but it was just enough to secure the win. They collected only four hits against the Rockies and scored a total of four runs while walking twice.

Three of the Giants’ runs came in the second inning thanks to a three-run home run from Casey Schmidt. Schmidt’s blast was hit to straightaway center field and left the bat at 104.5 mph before coming to rest 422 feet away on top of the center field netting.

The Giants scored one more run in the eighth inning on a Rafael Devers RBI double that went past the diving Rockies center fielder to give San Francisco a 4-2 lead.

Up next

The Giants will play their final game of the season on Sunday at 12:05 p.m. PST at Oracle Park in San Francisco. A sellout is expected for the season finale as Logan Webb (14-11, 3.30 ERA) is slated to go for the Giants. The Rockies are scheduled to send McCade Brown (0-4, 7.54 ERA) to the hill. If the Giants can complete the sweep, they will secure a .500 season at 81-81. They currently have 80 wins heading into Sunday’s game.