Category: San Francisco Giants

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca: Bochy on Crawford, “You couldn’t ask for a better hitter”

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sfgate.com file photo: San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford had a break out month of May and has started out June with an extra innings game winning base hit on Wednesday afternoon against the Arizona Diamondbacks

On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael:

The Giants’ run of six wins out of their last seven shows the team has come together like no other time of the season. Giants’ shortstop Brandon Crawford has had a great month of May and continues with a game-winning hit on Wednesday a 10th inning RBI single.

Manager Bruce Bochy said of Crawford, “We couldn’t have asked for a better hitter up there.” The Giants head on a nine-game road trip starting tonight in Washington. The Giants have a road record 12-20 and are looking to improve their record. With what’s happened lately, can the Giants do it?

Hunter Pence made his return on Wednesday with a hit in one at-bat. How much of an impact will he make now that he has returned?

Giants podcasts with Michael Duca and Morris Phillips are heard every week during the Giants season at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Biggest Yet: Hanson, Crawford led Giants to dramatic 5-4 win over the D’Backs in 10 innings

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–A two out, two-run pinch-hit homer in the ninth to tie. One run in the tenth to win.. against the first-place Diamondbacks on getaway day?

Yes, it was unquestionably the Giants’ best win of the season so far.  And one that will be hard to top no matter which path the club takes in the remainder of 2018.

Alen Hanson’s game-tying homer off closer Brad Boxberger was so clutch and dramatic, it may have earned the utilityman a role with the club for the foreseeable future. It was so unfathomable, the entirety of AT&T Park paused as the ball approached the bricks in the right field pavilion, then lost it when the ball landed.

Biggest moment, best hit, best win. This one had the feel.

“Great win for us,” manager Bruce Bochy said.

The Giants are back to .500 again. 31-31, the 13th time they’ve evened their record so far this season. But this time, they finally stood up to Arizona, while capping a terrific, 5-1 home stand.

Until the ninth inning, the Giants were competitive, but inexorably facing a tough defeat. Chris Stratton, looking for his eighth win, was stingy again, but gone in the fifth. Paul Goldschmidt–who had two hits off Stratton–got two more hits after his departure, both scoring runs, and the Diamondbacks appeared safe, leading 4-2, and needing just three more outs.

But Boxberger, looking for his 14th save, and the D-Backs, 29-0 when leading after the eighth inning, came up one out short, because of Hanson.

Through translator Edwin Higueros, Hanson explained his success that has led to six doubles, five home runs and 18 RBI in his first 19 games as a Giant.

“Last year I basically spent the whole year pinch-hitting,” Hanson explained. “I don’t let the situation intimidate me.”

Convinced he would see at least one pitch to drive from Boxberger, Hanson did on the 0-1 pitch that grabbed too much of the plate, and was sent over the right field bricks.

“He killed us this series,” Arizona manager Torey Lovullo said of Hanson, who had a hit in all three games of the series, despite not starting any of the three.

In the tenth, the table was set when center fielder Jarrod Dyson couldn’t snag Andrew McCutchen’s drive that eluded his glove at the base of the center field wall. Dyson later admitted he saw it initially, but lost in the sun.

That was the only moment the Diamondbacks wished they had back. In the fifth, they loaded the bases, but Will Smith struck out Alex Avila to end the inning. In the sixth, Goldschmidt was thrown out at the plate, the victim of Pablo Sandoval’s perfect throw from first base. And in the tenth, David Peralta’s deep drive danced around the foul pole. Later in that inning, Ketel Marte and Nick Ahmed couldn’t give Arizona a lead with two baserunners aboard.

The Giants’ bullpen–with Reyes Moronta, Tony Watson, Ty Blach (two innings) and Hunter Strickland following Smith–held up, or escaped, depending on your point of view.

The Giants open a 10-game road trip in Washington D.C. on Friday night. Andrew Suarez will be opposed by the Nationals’ Stephen Strasburg in that one.

 

 

 

 

Bumgarner solid in season debut, but Giants lose to Dbacks 3-2

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Photo credit: @NBCSGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — It took nearly two months, but Madison Bumgarner finally made his 2018 season debut for the San Francisco Giants.

Bumgarner went six innings, allowing two runs on eight hits, while walking no one and striking out three; however, the Arizona Diamondbacks spoiled the night with a 3-2 victory over the Giants before a crowd of 36,925 at AT&T Park on Tuesday night.

The loss stopped the Giants’ five-game winning streak, as they fell to 4-1 on the six-game home stand versus the Philadelphia Phillies.

Through the first, Chris Owings got the Diamondbacks on the board in the top of the third inning, as he followed Ketel Marte’s double with one of his own. Kristopher Negron then made it 2-0, as he drove in Owings with a single to left field.

Paul Goldschmidt was locked in as he usually is against the Giants, as he picked up three hits in his only three at-bats off of Bumgarner.

This season against the Giants, Goldschmidt is hitting .429, as he is 12-for-28 with two home runs and five runs batted in. Against all other opponents this season, Goldschmidt is a combined 35-for-186, a .188 clip with six home runs and 15 RBIs.

Patrick Corbin was cruising into the fourth inning, as he did not allow a base runner until Andrew McCutchen got a base hit off of the left-hander to break up the no-hitter.

The Giants finally got on the board in the bottom of the fifth inning, as Mac Williamson hit a double to left field and then Brandon Crawford continues to hit the ball well, as he hit a double inside the third base line to score Williamson from second base.

Pablo Sandoval then hit a bloop single that fell in between Marte, Nick Ahmed and Owings that allowed Crawford to reach third base. Joe Panik then walked to load the bases, but Corbin regrouped to strikeout Bumgarner, Gorkys Hernandez and Buster Posey in succession to end the inning.

That fifth double by Crawford extended his home hitting streak up to 14 games, as 24-for-49 (.490) with 11 RBIs during the streak.

Corbin ended up going 6.1 innings, allowing x runs on just four hits, walking two and striking out seven in route to his raising his record to 6-2 on the season.

Mark Melancon made his second appearance of the season, as he replaced Bumgarner in the top of the seventh inning.

Melancon ended up going one inning, striking out two and throwing a wild pitch.

With a chance to take the lead in the bottom of the seventh inning after loading the bases on walks against Corbin, Andrew Chafin and Yoshihisa Hirano, the Giants were unable to score, as Hirano got Posey to fly out to Jarrod Dyson to end the threat.

The Giants put two more on in the bottom of the eighth inning, as Evan Longoria singled with one out, then Crawford walked with two outs; however, Archie Bradley was able to regroup to get Sandoval to ground out to Ahmed to end the inning.

Hunter Strickland came on in the top of the ninth inning, and the Diamondbacks added another run, as Deven Marrero hit into Fielders’ Choice then Dyson walked and Jake Lamb hit a pinch-hit single that scored Marrero.

With one last chance to get back into the game, Alen Hanson hit a double that bounced on the right field line; however, the play was reviewed and after a brief 41 second review, the play stood. Boxberger then got Hernandez to strikeout swinging, and then Posey singled to right field to score Hanson from second base.

With McCutchen coming to the plate as the potential winning run, Austin Jackson came on to pinch run for Posey. McCutchen then singled to left field to bring up Longoria, who grounded out to Ahmed to end the game.

Brad Boxberger got the final three outs of the game, as he picked up his 14thsave in 15 opportunities.

NOTES: Chris Stratton will look to close the home stand on a high note, as he takes the mound for the Giants, and the Diamondbacks will send Clay Buchholz to the hill.

The game can be viewed on Facebook with Rich Waltz, Mike Krukow and Eric Byrnes on the call, and Ashley Adamson on the sidelines.

To make room for Bumgarner on the roster, Pierce Johnson was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento.

Thru the first five games, the Giants have outscored their opponents 24-7 with one game remaining on the home stand.

With their first pick (second pick overall) in the 2018 MLB Draft on Monday, the Giants selected Georgia Tech catcher Joey Bart, who was the 2018 Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Year. Bart led the ACC in batting with a .359 clip, second in slugging at .632, and hits with 79. He also finished in the top 10 in home runs with 16, runs scored with 55, and on-base percentage at .471. His defense was outstanding as well, as finished the season with a career-best .992 fielding percentage.

UP NEXT: The Giants and Dbacks face off in a rubber match on Wednesday afternoon at 12:45 pm PDT.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca and Morris Phillips: Giants rolling with 5-game win streak; Bumgarner gets the call tonight against D-Backs

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file photo from arizonasports.com: San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner returns tonight for the first start since his injury during spring training in March

On the Giants podcast with Michael and Morris:

We knew that the Giants would be facing some tough opponents of late. Looking back to their road trip in Philadelphia, the Phillies swept the Giants in Philly. They struck 55 Phillies in five games and the Giants didn’t see any of that coming back to AT&T Park and sweeping the Phillies.

Here’s the Arizona Diamondbacks, who are starting at 19-8 and they’re still in that slide. They came into AT&T Park on Monday night with just a one-game lead in first place and they now have lost 13 of their last 14 games. The Diamondbacks re-assumed first place by beating Cincinnati and Miami, winning five out of six in Phoenix. which has been their only response to the huge swoon they went through in May.

There’s more Michael and Morris as they do the Giants podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

June boon: Giants’ 5-game win streak has them breathing down the necks of the first place D’Backs

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By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Right now, the NL West has some serious, what comes around, goes around, going down.

The Diamondbacks started it all by winning their first nine series, and lapping the field with their 19-8 start. All four of Arizona divisional opponents got a taste of the D’Backs’ heat, and the Giants and Dodgers dropped three-games sets at home and away to Arizona in April.

But the D’Backs went from hot to cold seemingly overnight, losing 13 of 14. Colorado jumped up first, and briefly assumed first place. The Rockies made their run on the outside, sweeping the Mets and Cubs on the road to start May. Then the Dodgers got hot, winning a pair of series against the Rockies in their surge.

Now Giants have returned home, winning the first four of a six-game home stand, and their 10-3 series-opening win seemingly indicates that it’s the D’Backs’ time to pay.

Zach Godley allowed back-to-back home runs to Andrew McCutchen and Brandon Crawford, the opening blows in the Giants’ seven-run fourth that turned a 2-0 deficit into a laugher in one, swift act. In all, the Giants hit four solo shots with Pablo Sandoval and Nick Hundley putting the finishing touches on the important win.

“We took advantage in that inning. McCutchen hit that home run and after that Crawford, and then we’re working and working every pitch to score more,” Sandoval recounted.

Key in the rally was manager Bruce Bochy’s decision to lift starter Derek Holland with the bases loaded and one out in favor of pinch-hitter Alen Hanson. All Hanson did was foul off four of the five, normally confounding curveballs thrown by Godley, before sending his hardest offering down the left field line for a double, and a 4-2 Giants’ lead.

Godley lasted just four more pitches, leaving when replay revealed that Joe Panik was hit by his curveball that veered too far inside.

When the Giants last saw Godley in April, he was the pitcher of the moment, shutting down the Dodgers (in a matchup with Clayton Kershaw) and Giants in his first, two starts of the season. After striking out nine and beating the Giants 2-1, Godley confidently stated that he used the Giants’ aggressiveness against them with great success.

But opponents soon found out that Godley’s signature knuckle curve doesn’t always finish in the strike zone, and they began laying off it in droves.

In Godley’s third start, he walked six batters and was done after four innings, trailing 5-0 to the Dodgers. Then the grizzly-bear like hurler won his next two starts without wowing either opponent. In those appearances he beat the Padres and Nationals, but allowed a combined 16 hits in 10 innings of work.

And Godley after that? One win in seven starts with only one of those lasting into the seventh inning.

“I throw my curveball a lot,” he said. “If guys can see it, they’re going to lay off of it as much as they can until I can prove that I can throw for it strikes.”

After the win Monday–and the season-best, five-game win streak–the Giants are back at .500 for the 12th time this season, and the first time since May 20 (24-24). So what’s different this time?

Two things: the Giants are just 1 1/2 games out of first place, as close as they’ve been to the top of the NL West since they were 4-3 on April 7. And Madison Bumgarner is scheduled to pitch Tuesday, the World Series MVP’s season debut after the Giants somehow survived 60 games without him.

Patrick Corbin, who was roughed up in his previous start at home against the lowly Reds, opposes Bum in the 7:15pm start.

FIRST-YEAR PLAYER DRAFT: The Giants selected catcher Joey Bart with the second overall pick in the 2018 draft on Monday. The 6’3″, 225 lbs. prospect is considered to be a plus defender and a skilled pitch caller, possessing a power bat. A skill set that not surprisingly mirrors that of 31-year old Buster Posey.

Could change be in the wind?

“When you have what I believe is the best catcher in the game with us, he’s our guy. So I don’t even think about that until it’s time to think about it,” Bochy said of any changing of the guard within the next two seasons.

 

 

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: Rodriguez with fantastic rookie start; Holland goes after fifth straight win tonight

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Photo credit: @NBCSGiants

On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips:

Son of Hall of Fame catcher Ivan Rodriguez, San Francisco Giants starter Dereck Rodriguez, might have punched his ticket to the big leagues with a Major League win in his debut in a 6-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.

Rodriguez is the first Giants rookie to pitch for win in his big league debut since Ryan Sadowski did it in August 2009 against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Field. Rodriguez said that the Giants offense helped battle back the Phillies when they rallied for five runs in the sixth inning.

After 159 at-bats since his last homer, the Giants’ Andrew McCutchen tagged a homer to right field–a very difficult place to hit one out at AT&T Park. The last right-handed batter to get a big fly out over the right field fence was Nick Hundley on May 2nd.

Tonight, the Giants will start Derek Holland, whose on a four-game win streak and will open the series at AT&T against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks with a 7:15 PDT first pitch.

Morris Phillips does the Giants podcasts each Monday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Rodriguez impresses in first MLB start, Giants beat Phillies 6-1 to complete sweep

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Photo credit: @BruceBochy

By: Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — Things were looking bleak for the San Francisco Giants, especially with the way Jake Arrieta was pitching for the Philadelphia Phillies.

That all changed in the bottom of the sixth inning, as the Giants exploded for five runs off of Arrieta and the Giants came back to defeat the Phillies by the final score of 6-1 before a crowd of 40,491 at AT&T Park on Sunday afternoon.

The win not only completed the three-game sweep for the Giants, but gave Dereck Rodriguez his first major league win in his first major league start. In the three-game sweep, the Giants outscored the Phillies 12-1.

This was the first three-game sweep by the Giants over the Phillies since July 10-12 of 2015.

Rodriguez went six innings, allowing only one run on five hits, walking one and striking out six. The one run that allowed was a home run to Arrieta that gave the Phillies a 1-0 lead in the top of the third inning.

“He’s got a nice feel out there for pitching,” said Bruce Bochy. “He’s not afraid to throw secondary pitches at any time. Commands the ball well. He does the little things.”

The right-hander, who converted from an everyday player to a pitcher just five years ago is the first Giants rookie to win his first major league start since Joe Martinez on August 5, 2009 against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park.

It’s awesome, it’s a great feeling,” Rodríguez said. “We battled out there and in that sixth inning, the guys really pulled together and put up a five spot.”

Ryan Sadowski was the last Giants pitcher to win his major- league debut, and that came on June 28, 2009 against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park.

Arrieta was cruising into the bottom of the sixth inning, when the Giants finally got to Arrieta and erupted for five runs.

Gorkys Hernandez got the rally started, as he singled off of Arrieta, following get knocked down by a Arrieta pitch, then Alen Hanson then singled and then Joe Panik tied up the game with a single to right-center field. Buster Posey then drove in Hanson for the eventual game-winning run, and then Andrew McCutchen put the second pitch he saw from Arrieta in the at-bat onto the arcade for his fourth home run of the season.

McCutchen broke a 159-plate appearance streak since his last home run, the longest such streak of his career. His home run to right field was the first by a right-handed batter at AT&T Park since Nick Hundley did it on May 2 against Clayton Richard of the San Diego Padres.

In all, Arrieta also went six innings, allowing five runs on eight hits, not walking a batter and striking out four. With the loss, Arrieta fell to 5-3 on the season.

The five runs that Arrieta allowed in the bottom of the sixth inning, matched the total amount of runs that he allowed in the month of May (three earned) in 30 innings of work. His streak of 33.0 innings of not allowing a home run ended on the McCutchen home run in the bottom of the sixth inning, where the Giants scored five of their six runs.

Mark Melancon made his season debut in the top of the seventh inning, and struck out the side before giving way to Will Smith.

“It’s been a long time,” Melancon said. “So, it’s a really good feeling to be back and help these guys out and it was fun. A lot of fun.”

Buster Posey put the finishing touches on the scoring, as he hit a solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning. It was the fourth home run of the season for Posey. Last season, Neris hit Posey, and accused Neris of hitting him on purpose.

“I don’t know, I was just trying to go about the at-bat and fortunately, it turned out in my favor,” Posey said.

Since his return from the disabled list, Joe Panik picked up multiple hit games in all three games, and prior to his stint on the disabled list, Panik had only one multi hit game in his last eight games.

NOTES: Derek Holland looks to extends the Giants winning streak to four games, as the first-place Arizona Diamondbacks head to town and send Zack Godley to the mound.

The Phillies are the first team in major league history to score one run in a three-game series and their only run coming on a home run by their pitcher, according to STATS, LLC.

Rodriguez is the fifth Giants rookie this season to pick-up a win for the team, joining Reyes Moronta, Andrew Suarez, Pierce Johnson and Roberto Gomez.

UP NEXT: The Giants will host the Arizona Diamondbacks in a three-game series starting Monday night at 7:15 pm PST.

MLB The Show podcast with Daniel Dullum: Farquhar throws out first pitch recovering from aneurysm; Seahawks’ Russell wants to help move team to Portland; plus more

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photo from the nytimes.com: Chicago White Sox pitcher Danny Farquhar (43) tosses out the first pitch Friday June 1st at Cellular One Field before their meeting with the Milwaukee Brewers

MLB The Show podcast with Daniel Dullum:

1 White Sox reliever Danny Farquhar throws out first pitch six weeks after suffering brain aneurysm

2 Seahawks quarterback and wife want to bring MLB to Portland, Ore.

3 Giants win third in a row, beat Phillies with three-hitter.

4 Royals bounce back to beat A’s Saturday after Friday’s 16-0 pounding by Oakland.

5 RIP Bruce Kison age 68 – winning pitcher in first nighttime World Series game in 1971.

Daniel Dullum on the MLB The Show podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

A pair of Andrews lead the Giants to a 2-0 shutout of Phillies

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Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — After being total dismantled by the Philadelphia Phillies less than three weeks ago, the San Francisco Giants have totally turned the tables through the first two games of this series.

Andrew Suarez went seven innings for the first time in his career, as the Giants shutout the Phillies 2-0 before a crowd of 39,208 at AT&T Park on Saturday night.

Suarez allowed only three hits, did not walk a batter and struck out five, as he won for the second time this season.

“I had a good feel, and Hundo (Nick Hundley) called a great game,” said Suarez.

Suarez was the first Giants pitcher since Ty Blach on May 5th against the Atlanta Braves at Sun Trust Park to go at least 7.0 innings. In that game versus the Braves, Blach went 7.2 innings.

Coupled with Friday’s shutout over the Phillies, this is the first time since September 26, 1963 and May 19, 1964 that the Giants have shut the Phillies out in back-to-back games.

The Giants finally got on the board in the bottom of the sixth inning as Joe Panik doubled off of eventual losing pitcher Vince Velasquez, went to third on a Brandon Crawford and then made a great slide to avoid the Jorge Alfaro tag at home plate on a ball hit by Andrew McCutchen to give the Giants a 1-0 lead. The play was so close that Phillies manager Gabe Kapler challenged the call, and after a 1:35 review, the call stood and the Giants were in the lead.

McCutchen made the play of the night in the top of the third inning, as with Alfaro on third base after he tripled to lead off the inning and then with two outs, Cesar Hernandez hit that was headed for the right-center field alley that would have given the Phillies the lead; however, McCutchen made a great running catch to end the inning.

“Catch everything that you have to rundown,” said McCutchen.

The Giants got an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth inning, as Panik singled and then went to third on a Brandon Crawford single and scored the all-important second run, as the throw from Odubel Herrera was cut off by Carlos Santana.

Hundley picked up his first multi-hit game since May 2, as he went 2-for-3 on the evening.

Bruce Bochy turned the game over to his bullpen in the eighth inning, and Tony Watson threw just six pitches to retire the side in order. This was the 500th career appearance for Watson, who made his major-league debut for the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 8, 2011 against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

This was a tough loss for Velasquez, who went five innings, allowing one run on five hits, walking one and striking out nine. In his two starts versus the Giants this season, Velasquez struck out 21 batters.

NOTES: Dereck Rodriguez makes his first major league start on Sunday, as he will face Jake Arrieta, who is 5-2 in his first season with the Phillies. In his career versus the Giants, Arrieta is 1-0 with a 2.84 earned run average.

In his lone appearance as a big leaguer, Rodriguez pitched 3.1 innings, allowing four runs (one earned) and five hits before being forced to leave the game with a shin contusion on his right shin.

Brandon Belt was placed on 10-day disabled list after having an emergency appendectomy on Saturday morning.

“Looks like three weeks or in that area before he will be back,” said Bruce Bochy about the return of Belt.

Alen Hanson returned from his rehab assignment with Single-A San Jose and was activated from the 10-day disabled list.

Hunter Pence also returned from his rehab assignment, and was activated from the 10-day disabled list.

To make room for Pence on the roster, Gregor Blanco was designated for assignment and will be outrighted to Sacramento, where he will report on Tuesday, this according to Bochy.

UP NEXT: The Giants and Phillies conclude their series with a finale on Sunday afternoon at 1:05 pm PST.

Panik returns, Stratton dominates in Giants’ 4-0 shutout of Phillies

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Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — After striking out 55 times when they were swept against the Philadelphia Phillies, the San Francisco struck out eight times in the opener.

Chris Stratton pitched six innings, allowing just four hits, walking just one and striking out seven, as the Giants defeated the Phillies 4-0 before a crowd of 38,119 at AT&T Park.

This is the fourth consecutive win for Stratton, who improves to 7-3 and it was the longest that game Stratton went since going 6.2 innings in a game where he did not fare in the decision against the Washington Nationals on April 23rd at AT&T Park, a game that the Giants would win by the final score of 4-2.

Joe Panik made his return to the team from the disabled list a memorable one, as he walked twice and singled twice and ended the night going 2-for-3. Panik also scored the Giants first run of the game, and drove in a run with a single in the bottom of the second inning that scored Mac Williamson.

This was the first time that Panik reached base four times in the same game since he got four hits against the Arizona Diamondbacks on September 27, 2017.

The win by the Giants stopped a six-game losing streak, including the four-game sweep at Citizens Bank Park last month. This was the Giants’ eighth win over the Phillies at AT&T Park since 2015, their second-best record against any National League team. With the win, the Giants moved within three games of the Colorado Rockies in the NL West after the Rockies lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field and the Giants and Dodgers are tied for third place in the NL West.

Brandon Belt was forced to leave the game after his only at-bat in the first inning, where he struck out and was in the hospital, where he was being evaluated for appendicitis.

Nick Pivetta, who struck out seven Giants in his last start did not fare as well this time, as he went four innings, allowing three runs on five hits, walking three and striking out three.

Evan Longoria got the Giants on the board in the bottom of the first inning when he singled to score Panik, who led off the inning by being walked against Pivetta.

Panik drove in the Giants second run of the game in the second inning, as he singled in Williamson, who led off the inning with a walk.

That would be the score, when Gorkys Hernandez continued his hot streak, as he singled to left field to score Brandon Crawford, who led off the inning with a double.

On the evening, Crawford went 2-for-4, as he came off of a month, where he hit .412 (42-for-102) with nine doubles, four home runs and 21 runs batted in.

The Giants scored their fourth and final run of the evening in the bottom of the seventh inning, as Andrew McCutchen tripled to lead off the inning and then scored on a wild pitch by Hector Neris with Pablo Sandoval at the plate.

In his only inning of work, Neris gave up a run on three hits, struck out three and threw three wild pitches.

Neris joined Frank Hermann as the only Phillies pitchers to have thrown three wild pitches in one inning or less. Hermann did it on August 21, 2016 against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citizens Bank Park.

Dylan Cozens made his major-league debut for the Phillies, and singled in his first at-bat against Stratton in the top of the third inning.

The Phillies got a late rally going in the top of the ninth inning off of Hunter Strickland, as Scott Kingery narrowly beat out a throw by Panik at first base for an infield hit and then Odubel Herrera lashed a double down the right field line that sent Kingery to third base. Strickland then regrouped to strikeout Carlos Santana, then Maikel Franco to groundout to Strickland, where he made a great play to Franco at first base and finally got out of the jam, when Nick Williams flew out to Hernandez for the final out.

Overall, the Giants bullpen pitched the final three innings, and the trio of Tony Watson, Sam Dyson and Strickland gave up two hits, did not walk a batter and struck out six.

In his first season with the Giants, Watson likes pitching at AT&T Park, as he has yet to allow an earned run at home this season and is the only reliever to pitch more than 12 innings at home without allowing an earned run this season.

NOTES: Andrew Suarez will take the mound on Saturday night, as the Giants look for their third consecutive win, while the Phillies will send Vince Velasquez to the mound.

There were a multitude of roster moves made by the Giants, as Tyler Beede was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento following Wednesday’s game against the Rockies.

Kelby Tomlinson was optioned to Single-A San Jose.

Mark Melancon was activated from the 60-day disabled list, and Jose Valdez was reinstated from the 10-day disabled list and was then Designated for Assignment.

Dereck Rodriguez will start on Sunday in place of Jeff Samardzija. This will be the first major league start for Rodriguez, who made his major-league debut on Tuesday against the Rockies at Coors Field.

With Rodriguez in the rotation, Ty Blach is being moved to the bullpen and will be the Giants long man.

UP NEXT: The Giants and Phillies will meet in Game 2 on Saturday night at 7:05 pm PST.