Miami Marlins Nick Fortes (right) is congratulated by teammate Jonah Bride (41) after scoring from third base on a Jesus Sanchez sacrifice fly in the top of the seventh inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco (AP News photo)
Sunday, Sept. 1, 2024
Oracle Park
San Francisco, California
Miami Marlins 7 (51-86)
San Francisco Giants 5 (68-70)
Win: Xzavion Curry (1-2)
Loss: Logan Webb (11-9)
Save: Calvin Faucher (6)
Time: 2:38
Attendance: 41,187
By Stephen Ruderman
SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants just lost two out of three at home to one of the worst teams in Baseball in the Miami Marlins, who fought through a wild game to win 7-5 in what very well may have been the final dagger in the Giants’ playoff hopes here in 2024 on Sunday.
The dim orange sun shined on this beautiful first day of September at Oracle Park to signify the beginning of the meteorological fall, as well as the final month of the baseball season. With the Giants six and a half games back of the Braves for the third wild card in the National League, this unfortunately signified the beginning of the end of the Giants’ season.
Sunday was also Pediatric Cancer Awareness Day at the ballpark, and kids fighting cancer got to take part in a pregame ceremony on the field. Just before the Giants took the field, Rhydian Daniels, who had been diagnosed with muscle cancer at the age of nine, got to ring the bell signifying that he beat cancer in front of this sold-out crowd.
After a rough 4-3 loss Saturday night, the Giants looked to take the series against the Marlins. The Giants once again turned to Logan Webb to be the stopper. Webb got off to a great start with a one, two, three inning in the top of the first.
The Giants would be up against the young Miami right-hander, Darren McCaughan. Mike Yastrzemski led off, and he took the second pitch of the inning from McCaughan and hit it out to the arcade in right field to give the Giants a 1-0 lead. For Yastrzemski, it was his 100th-career home run.
After Yastrzemski’s home run McCaughan was all over the place. Tyler Fitzgerald was hit by a pitch, but he was caught trying to steal second base. Matt Chapman was also hit with two outs, and he was crouching in pain, but he stayed in the game.
Webb threw another one, two, three inning in the top of the second, and Curt Casali became the third Giant hit in just the first two innings of this game with one out in the bottom of the second. There was understandable frustration from the Giants’ bench when Casali was hurt, but since it was not intentional and had to do with McCaughan’s lack of control, no warnings were issued.
Nick Fortes singled on a ground ball up the middle and into center field for the first hit and base-runner for the Marlins with two outs in the top of the third. Webb ultimately threw a scoreless inning, and the Giants had a rally going against McCaughan in the bottom of the third.
Fitzgerald hit a ground ball the other way into right field for a base-hit to lead off the bottom of the third. That brought up Michael Conforto, who grounded into a weird play. Not a double play, a weird play.
Conforto hit a chopper up the middle that was fielded by Marlins’ shortstop Otto Lopez, who hesitated and then stumbled to the bag at second. Fitzgerald was called safe by Second Base Umpire Jim Wolf, but the Marlins challenged the play.
The boys in New York found an angle that that could say for sure indicated that Otto beat Fitzgerald to the bag, and the call was overturned. Bob Melvin and the Giants’ dugout were not happy about the overturned call, and they let Third Base Umpire and Crew Chief Alan Porter know. Porter then warned them and returned to his position at third.
Not to worry though. Chapman lined a base-hit to left to put runners at first and second with one out. LaMonte Wade then beat out the back end of a potential double play, and the throw sailed past first, which allowed Fitzgerald to come in to score and make it 2-0.
Both pitchers threw one, two, three innings in the fourth, and Webb was on a roll. Webb had set down 11 of the first 12 men he faced today, and he appeared well on his way to another dominant outing.
However, everything changed for Webb and the Giants in the top of the fifth. Jeff Conine’s son Griffin led off the inning with an opposite-field base-hit to left. Lopez lined out to second for the first out, and Jose Devers, the younger cousin of Rafael Devers, grounded into a fielder’s choice.
David Hensley then singled the other way to put runners at first and second with two outs. Nick Fortes followed that up by lining a base-hit to left-center to knock in Devers and put the Marlins on the board. The ball was over run by left-fielder Michael Conforto, and the runners ended up at second and third.
That brought up Kyle Stowers, who hit a home run to the 415 out in right-center, and the Marlins suddenly took a 4-2 lead. Webb was dealing through four innings, but the Marlins scored four runs out of nowhere in the top of the fifth to make it a new ballgame.
The Giants bounced back in the bottom of the fifth. Yastrzemski walked to lead off the inning, and Fitzgerald singled him over to second. That brought out Marlins Manager Skip Schumaker, who pulled McCaughan for the left-hander, Kent Emmanuel.
Michael Conforto walked to load the bases, and Matt Chapman knocked Yastrzemski in with a fielder’s choice to make it 4-3. Melvin sent Mark Canha to pinch-hit for Wade, and the move paid off, as Canha singled the other way to right to knock in Fitzgerald and tie the game.
Schumaker then brought in Xzavion Curry to face Jerar Encarnacion. After a seven-pitch at-bat, Encarnacion knocked in Conforto with a sacrifice fly to left-center, and the Giants retook the lead.
It was quite a wild fifth inning. The game appeared to be a pitcher’s duel through four, but the Marlins scored four runs in the top of the fifth, and the Giants bounced back with three in the bottom of the fifth.
Webb was back out for the top of the sixth, and he was right back in trouble. Jesus Sanchez singled to right and stole second, and then Jonah Bride tied the game with a double to center. Conine singled Bride over to third, and Lopez got Bride in on a ground out to third.
The Marlins had the lead again, and this game suddenly turned from a pitcher’s duel into a wild seesaw game.
Webb was done after six innings. He gave up six runs and eight hits, and he struck out four.
Curry stayed out to throw a one, two, three shutdown inning in the bottom of the sixth for Miami, and the Marlins looked to add on against Camilo Doval in the top of the seventh. Fortes singled into the hole at short to lead off the inning, and Stowers walked. Derek Hill bunted the runners over to second and third, and Sanchez got Fortes home with a sacrifice fly to center to make it 7-5.
From there, the game sailed the rest of the way. The Giants would not get another base-runner the rest of the game. Mike Baumann, John McMillon and Calvin Faucher did the honors of setting down the Giants one, two, three in the seventh, eighth and ninth.
As for Giants’ pitchers, left-hander Erik Miller threw a scoreless top of the eighth, and Landen Roupp had a one, two, three top of the ninth.
Xzavion Curry got the win; Logan Webb took a really tough loss; and Calvin Faucher got the save, his sixth of the year.
The Giants fall to 68-70, and after a day off Monday, they will welcome the powerful Arizona Diamondbacks into Oracle Park for a three-game series starting Tuesday night.
The Giants remain six and a half games back of the Braves, who lost their game in Philadelphia in 11 innings, but make no mistake, the Giants will be playing the role of spoilers in their series against the Diamondbacks this week.
The pitching matchup is still to be determined. First pitch will be at 6:45 p.m.
Giants News and Notes:
With today being Sept. 1, that also meant that rosters expanded from 26 to 28. Prior to the game, the Giants called up catcher Blake Sabol and right-handed pitcher Tristan Beck to fill the two extra spots on the roster.
The Giants drew a sold-out crowd of 41,187 at Oracle Park Sunday. It was the largest crowd for a Giants’ game at Oracle Park since 41,189 fans came to see Wilmer Flores walk off the Philadelphia Phillies on Sept. 4, 2022.
Major League Baseball News and Notes:
Darren Baker, the son of Dusty Baker who until today was most known for nearly getting trampled by David Bell before J.T. Snow saved him in Game 5, made his major league debut for the Washington Nationals today.
Baker was sent to pinch-hit with the Nationals trailing the Chicago Cubs 14-1 in the bottom of ninth inning at Nationals Park. Baker took the first big league pitch he saw from Cubs’ right-hander Ethan Roberts and grounded it over the mound and into center field for a base-hit.
Dusty, who had managed both the Cubs and Nationals, was on hand to see his son get his first big league hit.
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