Category: San Francisco Giants

Giants Lose Rubber Match Against Rays 6-1 at Oracle

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Tampa Bay Rays Christian Bethancourt (left) congratulates Luke Raley (right) at home plate after scoring the first pinch hit inside the park home run in Rays history in the top of the sixth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park in San Francisco (AP News photo)

Wednesday, August 16 2023

By Troy Ewers

San Francisco, Ca – In Oracle Park, the San Francisco Giants play the Tampa Bay Rays in the rubber match of this 3 game series. The Giants are 5-8 in rubber games this season and hope to make it six wins at the end of this game.

On the hill for the Giants was Ryan Walker for his 10th start of the game against Aaron Civale for the Rays and they got on the board in the first inning when a single hit by Isaac Paredes scored Brandon Lowe, 1-0 Tampa Bay.

The Giants replaced Walker in the second inning and called in Ross Stripling. The Rays didn’t stop the pressure in the fourth inning when Josh Lowe hit a lead off home run to right center field, giving Tampa Bay a 2-0 lead.

The next inning the Rays weren’t done getting on Stripling. Brandon Lowe hit a 2 run home run to center field and it scored Yandy Diaz, making it a 4-0 lead, but the Rays weren’t done. Randy Arozarena hit a double and then scored off a Paredes single to extend it to 5-0 for Tampa Bay.

After five innings, the Giants only had four hits and no runs and the air deflated out of the park. The scoring avalanche kept rolling in the sixth inning when Luke Raley came in to pinch hit and hit the ball off the triples alley wall and it bounced off the top of the wall in right center, Meckler slipped trying to get the ball, and Raley goes all the way around for an inside the park home run, 6-0 Rays.

As the Giants entered the bottom of the seventh inning, the Rays made a pitching change and called Hector Perez to the hill. Civale put together a scoreless six innings with five hits and five strikeouts.

The Giants take advantage of the pitching change and finally get on the board when Sabol, who got on from a fielder’s choice and Estrada & Camargo hit back to back singles to load the bases. With the bases loaded, Lamonte Wade Jr. pinch hit for Heliot Ramos and got walked, giving San Francisco their first run of the game. 6-1 going into the eighth inning.

The Rays took out Perez after 17 pitches and put in Colin Poche who escaped the inning when Meckler grounded into a double play. The Giants replaced Stripling after six innings and allowed five runs with Scott Alexander and he got the first three up, three down inning since the third for SF.

The eighth inning for the Giants was where fans decided enough was enough, where the Giants grounded into their fourth double play of the game and struck out for the sixth time.

Alex Wood was the pitcher for the Giants in the ninth, but the damage was done, San Francisco had to comeback from five runs in the bottom of the ninth. Pete Fairbanks, the closer for the Rays, retired the side on 12 pitches and the game ended 6-1 Rays and they also took the series.

The winning pitcher for today was Aaron Civale (6-3) and the losing pitcher was Ryan Walker (4-2). The Giants have a needed off day before their next series on Friday, August 18th as they shake off this high scoring series.

The Giants open a three game series Friday night at Truist Park in Cobb County against the Atlanta Braves for a 4:20pm PT first pitch. Starter for San Francisco has not been announced and going for Atlanta Spencer Strider (13-4 ERA 3.75).

Troy Ewers is a beat writer and podcast contributor at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants podcast with Troy Ewers: Giants bats come alive Tue after Mon night beating; Giants opener Walker starts today

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On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Troy Ewers:

#1 Troy, it looked like Giants manager Gabe Kapler’s ejection from last night fired up the team, they responded with a four pitcher combined shutout and went on a hitting attack to defeat the Tampa Bay Rays 7-0.

#2 It was the Giants debut of rookie centerfielder Wade Meckler who got his first hit in the bottom of the sixth inning that jump started his career. Meckler went onto get two hits and and score a run.

#3 Meckler was at bat when he took a pitch that looked liked a ball which Kapler came out and argued about. Meckler said he didn’t argue the call because he was just in his second day on the job and didn’t want to come off as disrespecting the umpires.

#4 Troy, talk about the two home runs that the Giants got from Thairo Estrada and Wilmer Flores both hit home runs in the 7-0 landslide of the Rays on Tuesday night. For Estrada it was hit tenth home run of the season and for Flores it was 17th home run.

#5 The Tampa Bay Rays will be starting Aaron Civale (5-3 ERA 2.61) will be matched up against the San Francisco Giants Ryan Walker (4-1 ERA 2.28) expect Walker to be an opener a 12:45pm PT first pitch at Oracle Park.

Troy Ewers is a http://www.sportsradioservice.com beat writer and podcast contributor

Headline Sports podcast with Bruce Magowan: 49ers Lance needs more chances; Which Giants team will show up; plus more news

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San Francisco 49ers quarterback Trey Lance (5) throws under pressure from Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Jordan Willis (99) during the first half of an NFL preseason football game, Sunday, Aug. 13, 2023, in Las Vegas. (AP News photo)

On Headline Sports podcast with Bruce:

#1 Bruce, what is your take away regarding all the criticism that 49ers quarterback Trey Lance had been receiving about his performance last Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders.

#2 Which Giant team will show up, the Giants before last night who lost 10-2 on Monday night or the Giants of last night who got some hitting and used four pitchers to get a 7-0 shutout of the Tampa Bay Rays.

#3 Bruce what do you make of the possibilities of the Baltimore Orioles relocating. It sounds preposterous but Orioles managing partner John Angelos said recently that the Orioles would never leave Baltimore but Orioles are looking for prime downtown property and although they would get $600 million for Camden Yards improvements Angelos whose wife owns a music entertainment company in Nashville makes the idea of moving all the more interesting.

#4 Bruce the Pac 12 reportedly will incur 11 teams from the ACC. It was first mentioned the four remaining Pac 12 teams Cal, Stanford, Washington State, and Oregon State would join the ACC but that has been reversed with the ACC planning to not charge 11 schools exit fees and move to the Pac 12.

Join Bruce Magowan for Headline Sports at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Giants find their offensive strength in late innings for 7-0 shutout of Rays

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San Francisco Giants’ Wade Meckler hits a single against the Tampa Bay Rays during the sixth inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Tue Aug 15, 2023 (AP News photo)

Tampa Bay (72-50). 000 000 000 – 0. 3. 2

San Francisco (64-56). 000 003 22x.- 7 9 1

Time: 2:15

Attendance: 26,322

Tuesday, August 15, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants this evening once more used an opener to get them through the early going of the second of this three game transcontinental battle of the bays. The task fell to John Junis, who was 3-3, 4.36 when the day started although he’d allowed only three earned runs in his previous 13-1/3 innings.

Junis pitched four shutout innings in San Francisco’s overwhelming 7-0 triumph over the Tampa Bay Rays tonight. In that stint, Judis faced 16 batters and allowed two hits and one base on balls while striking out seven. This performance brought his ERA more than a quarter of a run to 4.10.

Zack Littell, who started for the visitors, has been both a Giant and an opener. He went 5-2, 4.68 for San Francisco in 2021-22. Although this was his seventh start and 20th appearance of the season, it was only his fifth traditional start of the year.

Littell had walked just one batter in his last 33 innings of work. He relies on a mix of fast balls and about, throwing one or another of them about 72% of the time. Tuesday night, in his first appearance against his old team, Littell pitched an excellent game until he didn’t.

Littell lasted 5-2/3 innings and gave up two runs, both earned although the second was posthumous, on three hits, one of them a homer. He struck out five and didn’t walk anyone. He threw 59 pitches, 52 for strikes and was tagged with the loss, ending the night with a record of 2-4, 3.99.

With the game still a scoreless tie after four innings of play, Sean Manaea entered the fray. He pitched brilliantly, yielding only one hit and two walks over 3-1/3 innings to earn his fourth win against three defeats and lower his earned run average to 4.89. He was relieved by Tyler, the right handed Rogers twin, with one out in the eighth.

Thairo Estrada broke that tie with his one out line drive home run into the left field bleachers, over the SF Nothing Like It sign in the bottom of the sixth.. The blast was the Giants’ second sacker’s tenth round tripper of the year and travelled 374 feet.

The crowd had more to cheer about two batters later when Wade Meckler got his first major league hit, a single to center. that drove Littell from the mound. The rookie got his second safety lone inning later, beating the throw on a grounder to second.

But that wasn’t all. Wilmer Flores took Kevin Kelly, Littell’s replacement, deep on the first pitch he threw. It was almost a replica of Estrada’s four bagger, landing in the left field bleachers 373 feet from home. Just like that, the orange and black were ahead, 3-0.

They continued their attack in the seventh, loading the bases with none out on a single by Conforto, a walk to Bailey, and an error by the Rays’ first baseman, Yandy Díaz, on Blake Sabol’s grounder. Then the attack stalled But that didn’t stop the Giants from scoring twice more.

Crawford went down swinging. Estrada forced Conforto out at home on a grounder to third for the second out. Then Tampa Bay’s catcher, René Pinto, tried to pick Bailey off at third and threw the ball into left field, allowing Bailey and Héctor Ramos, pinch running for Sabol, to cross the plate. The seventh ended with San Francisco enjoying a 5-0 lead.

Erasmo Ramírez pitched the bottom of the eighth for Tampa Bay. He gave up Mecker’s second hit. Flores was retired on a soft liner to short. Meckler was forced out at second by Pederson. Then Conforto doubled to left, bringing Peterson home on a call that was reviewed and upheld. Ramos followed by a single to center that brought Conforto home for the Giants’ seventh tally.

Luke Jackson mopped things up in the top of the ninth. He struck out all three batters he faced.

Gabe Kapler was ejected by home plate umpire Chad Whitson in the top of the fourth for arguing balls and strikes. It was the second time this season that the skipper had received the heave-ho.

The rubber game of this three game series will starts Wednesday, afternoon at 12:45. The Rays expect to send righty Aaron Civale (5-3, 2.61) to the mound. The Giants haven’t yet announced their intentions.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Stephen Ruderman: Giants just couldn’t stop Rays on Monday night

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San Francisco Giants pitcher Luke Jackson gives up a home run to Tampa Bay Rays hitter Luke Bethancourt in the top of the seventh inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Mon Aug 14, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the Giants podcast with Stephen:

#1 The Tampa Bay Devil Rays got lots of support on Monday night from their starting pitching Tyler Glasnow was in command of the San Francisco Giants line up pitching six innings, three hits, one earned run, three walks, and seven strikeouts as the Rays landslide the Giants 10-2.

#2 Glasnow had come back from back from back spasms and threw 98 MPH and broke the webbing of catcher Christian Bethancourt’s glove.

#3 Bethancourt got a homer and a single to score a run and Glasnow chalked up his fourth straight win the Rays are 72-49 and one of the dominating teams in the American League they trail the first place Baltimore Orioles by three games in the AL East.

#4 Giants reliever Tristan Beck got the worst end of it from the Tampa Bay hitters giving up ten hits, five runs and two strikeouts. Giving up the most runs for the Giants.

#5 The Rays and Giants go at it again at Oracle Park on Tuesday night going for the Rays Mack Littell (2-3 ERA 4.10) and the Giants have . First pitch at Oracle 6:45pm PT.

Join Stephen for the Giants podcasts Tuesdays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Rays open up the flood gates on Giants in 10-2 laugher at Oracle Park

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Tampa Bay Rays’ Christian Bethancourt, right, is congratulated by third base coach Brady Williams (4) after hitting a home run against the San Francisco Giants during the seventh inning of a baseball game in San Francisco, Monday, Aug. 14, 2023.(AP News photo)

Tampa Bay (72-49). 000 320 122. – 10. 18. 1

San Francisco (64-56). 000 010 010. – 2. 6. 1

Time: 2:45

Attendance: 25,748

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–What league do the Giants play in, any way? Tonight’s humiliating 10-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays was the ninth consecutive game they’ve played against an American League opponent. They’ve now lost seven of them.

The Giants added two reinforcements before game time. They promoted Wade Meckler and Johan Camargo from Sacramento. Both started tonight’s game, Meckler in center field and batting second, Camargo at third base and batting ninth.

Meckler, the first of the Giants’ 2022 draft picks to reach the majors, went 0 for 3 but handled himself well at the hot corner. Camargo, a veteran of 416 games in six seasons in the show, where he posted a lifetime batting average of .255, went 1 for 4.

Tampa Bay made a newsworthy roster move of its own before game time. They placed infielder Wander Franco on the restricted list because of illicit behavior on the internet.

Southpaw pitcher Jacob López, who made his major league debut when he entered the game to pitch the bottom of the seventh, took Franco’s place on the roster. Stayed in the game, allowing one run, earned, on three hits in his three innings of work.

The orange and black went with an opener for the fourth time in six games. The choice was Ryan Walker , making his ninth start of the season as an opener.. His was a respectable 4-1, 2.40 before pitching his two scoreless innings and giving way to Tristan Beck.

The Rays, inventors of the bullpen game, went with a traditional starter, Tyler Glasnow. He had held the Yankees to one run in a seven inning start on July 31 but had to leave the game due to back spasms. This was his first appearance since then.

Glasnow brought a 5-3, 3.15 record (3-2, 2.11 in July) with him to the mound. Glasnow pitched a strong game, going six innings while holding the Giants to one run, which was earned, on three hits and three bases on balls. He threw 87 pitches, 58 for strikes, en route to his sixth win and bringing his ERA down to 3.01.

Beck pitched himself out of a two on, one out jam in the third, but he couldn’t wiggle out of the mess the Rays created in the fourth, Curtis Mead shot a one out single to center and moved up a notch on Christian Bethancourt’s safety to left.

Manuel Margot’s ground out to third offered a respite to the Ray attack, Oslleiivis Basabe singled both runners home, and Yandy Díaz capped the scoring with an RBI double to center. Tampa Bay was up, 3-0.

Beck coughed up another run in fifth. With two down and Harold Ramírez, who had led off with a single, on first, Mead hit a hard drive back to the mound. It escaped Beck’s grasp. He attempted a fancy back hand toss to first and threw the ball away.

Mead was safe at first on the single, and both he and Ramírez advanced another base on the error. Bethancourt sent a grounder through the second base hole, driving in Ramírez and sending Mead to third. Margot also smacked a single to right, bringing Mead home with the visitors’ fifth run.

San Francisco’s bats had been dormant ’til now, with Conforto’s second inning single their only hit. But they came alive in the bottom of the fifth, even if they only managed to produce one run. Pederson opened the frame with a single to right center. Conforto walked.

Thairo Estrada hit a single off shortstop Basabe’s glove and into left that brought Pederson home. With the exception of Blake Sabol’s fly to the left field warning track, that was the extent of the Giants’ offensive resurrection for the inning. They still trailed, only now it was by 5-1.

Luke Jackson replaced Beck for the sixth and held the Rays in check for a while, until Bethancourt planted a 3-2 slider half way up the left field bleachers, 407 feet deep, for his eighth home run and 24th RBI of the season and a 6-1 advantage for the team from St. Petersburg. A walk to Margot, and Jackson was gone, replaced by Scott Alexander, who notched the two outs to hold the damage at 6-1.

The home team loaded the bases with two outs in the seventh against the rookie López after Crawford reached first on an error, Camargo singled, and Wade was hit by a pitch. But Mecker went down swinging on a full count.

Tampa Bay added to its already comfortable lead in the eighth. Arozamena started it with a walk. Meckler made a beautiful play on Ramírez’s grounder to third, but the out call at first was reversed on. aooeal. Singles by Paredes and Siri, and it was 8-1, Rays.

A Conforto single to left and Estrada’s double to right gave the Giants a fig leaf second run in their half of the eighth.

Taylor Rogers allowed two more tallies in the Tampa Bay ninth on a single to Arozarena, a triple to Ramírez, and a wild pitch.

López set the Giants down in order in the ninth to complete the debacle.

Beck was charged with the loss, making him (3-2, 3.62)

The Giants will try to tie the series Tuesday, at 6:45. They’ll haven’t yet announced who they’ll send against Zack Littell (2-3, 4.10)

San Francisco Giants podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Kapler says Bailey is bringing big things; Giants open 3 game set with Rays tonight

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San Francisco Giant Patrick Bailey heading home after hitting a two run home run in the bottom of the tenth inning against the Texas Rangers on Sun Aug 13, 2023 (AP News photo)

On the SF Giants podcast with Marko Ukalovic:

#1 The San Francisco Giants catcher Patrick Bailey belted his sixth home run of the season on a walk off two run blast in the bottom of the tenth inning to edge the visiting Texas Rangers 3-2 on Sunday at Oracle Park.

#2 The win helps Giants reliever Camilo Doval’s blown save in the top of the ninth inning when the Giants had a 1-0 lead but the Rangers tied up the game on a ground ball to Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford who threw to first base and a runner came in and scored from second base to make 1-1.

#3 The Giants in the bottom of the tenth inning were looking to try and end it with a ghost runner on board Patrick Bailey hit one high and deep to left field and it landed in the bleachers for the walk off two run home run for a one run 3-2 in.

#4 Giants manager Gabe Kapler said that Bailey been bringing the big moments, made the big plays and has done a great job handling the pitching staff.

#5 Starting pitchers for Monday night’s contest at Oracle Park as the Giants open a three game series against the Tampa Bay Rays. For the Rays Tyler Glasnow (5-3 ERA 3.15) and for the Giants Ryan Walker (4-1 ERA 2.40) a 6:45pm PT first pitch.

Join Marko for the San Francisco Giants podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Bailey’s two run homer saves Giants in 10th inning defeats Rangers 3-2

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San Francisco Giants Patrick Bailey has his hand raised for being the gamer in the top of the tenth inning after clouting his sixth home run of the season against the Texas Ranges at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sun Aug 13, 2023 (AP News photo)

Texas (7-48). 000 000 001 1. – 2. 8. 0

San Francisco (63-55) 100 000 000 2. – 3. 10 1. (10 innings)

Time: 2:30

Attendance: 35,648

Sunday, August 13, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–Things have not gone well for your San Francisco Giants since they returned to the bay area a little over a week ago. Their record was 61-49 when they crossed the Bay Bridge to face the moribund Oakland Athletics on August 5.

Even with today’s thrilling 3-2 come from behind extra innings win over the American League West leading Texas Rangers, they stand at 63-55, 8-1/2 games behind the Dodgers, who still were playing Colorado when the Giants’ game ended, in the NL West.

Logan Webb started the game for San Francisco at 9-9, 3.38. He has four deliveries in his arsenal, a change up, that he throws 38.6% of the time, a sinker (36.8%), a slider (21.2), and a four seamer, just to keep ’em guessing (3.4%). The 26 year old righty threw over 100 pitches in each of his previous outings, a win in Phoenix and a no decision in Anaheim.

He exceeded the century mark this afternoon, throwing 107 pitches, 75 of them strikes, and again once more wasn’t involved in the decision. He threw 8-2/3 innings and yielded only one run. It was earned but posthumous and came on an error of judgement by, of all people!, Brandon Crawford. Webb gave up six hits and a walk while striking out six. His balance sheet now reads, 9-9, 3.26)

Dane Dunning, two years older than Webb and also right handed, came to work at 9-4, 3.21 for the season and 20-22, 4.08 lifetime. This was his first appearance against the Giants. It was a magnificent one. He threw 106 pitches, 76 for strikes in seven innings of outstanding work.

Dunning allowed only one run, earned, on a homer that was one of the seven hits he gave up. He didn’t issue a single wak and struck out a dozen. All he earned for his hard work was a no decision that left his record at 9-4, 3.1).

Webb pitched himself out of trouble in the two opening frames, and Michael Conforto gave him the comfort of a one run lead to work with by leading off the home half of the second with a 408 foot blast over the center field wall off a 90.8 mph sinker. It was Conforto’s 15th round tripper and 54th RBI of the season.

Webb needed to get one more strike on JP Martínez to finish up a complete game shutout. But Martínez doubled, and Camilo Duval was called in to finish the job. He got Ezequiél Durán to hit a grounder to short that Crawford backhanded. He unwisely threw to first; Durán beat it out, an dMartínez ran home with the tying run Bailey threw Durán out trying to steal second, but it was too late.

José Leclerc pitched a scoreless eight. Estrada led it off with a double, but The Curse of the Leadoff Double stranded him there. Aroldis Chapman relieved Leclerc for the home ninth. He struck out the first batter he faced, and then Ramos doubled off the Levi’s Landing wall. But Chapman recovered to strike out Austin Slater, pinch hitting for Crawford, and Wade.

Duval got out of the top of the 10th with only a run scored, but it was ugly. Zombie runner Durán went to third on Josh Smith’s Texas League single and scored on a balk with Semien at the plate. It took a pitcher’s best friend to hold the damage to that one run.

The Rangers went to their closer, Will Smith, for Giants’ tenth. He fanned Estrada and Pederson, and so it was up to Bailey to keep the game alive with Wade as the plaed runner on second and two out. The rookie came through! He shot a no doubter over the left field, landing 355 feet deep. It came on a 1-1 four seamer that came in a 92.8mph and left at 107.3 mph. It made Bailey 2 for 4 in the game and was his sixth home run of the year.

Doval was charged with a blown save but credited with the win. His record now is 4-3, 2.36. Will Smith (4-1, 3.30) was the losing pitcher.

The Tampa Bay Rays will be here tomorrow, Monday, for a 6:45 start. Neither team has announced its pitching plans.

Rangers get all the scoring they need in two run sixth edge Giants 2-1 at Oracle

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Texas (69-47). 000 002 000. – 2. 6. 1

San Francisco (62-54) 000 001 001. – 1. 3. 0

Time: 2:19

Attendance: 35,689

Friday, August 11, 2023

By Lewis Rubman

Texas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy, center, walks out of the dugout for batting practice for the team’s baseball game against the San Francisco Giants, Friday, Aug. 11, 2023, in San Francisco. (AP News photo)

SAN FRANCISCO–Before tonight’s battle began, the buzz centered around Bruce Bochy’s coming back to the bay (the terrafirma – or should I call it the terratremula?– side, that is). The ex Giants’ skipper, who guided the ragtag teams of the early 2010s to upset World Series championships in 2020, ’12, and ’14, had come out of retirement for this season, at the helm of the AL West division leading Texas Rangers.

He’d been in the east side of the bay for a three game series with Oakland, where his charges had their eight game winning streak broken by losing the last game of the series.

The last time he was the visiting team’s manager at Oracle Park was in 2006 when his San Diego Padres defeated their hosts, 10-2. Tonight’s crowd gave him a rousing standing ovation when his picture appeared on the jumbotron before the lineups were announced. And again when it showed a welcome back slide show between halves of the third.

Bochy’s team won a squeaker, 2-1.

The Giants, struggling to stay in the National League wild card race after going 0-2 in Oakland and 1-2 in Anaheim, chose the bullpen route for the third consecutive time. Friday night’s opener was Scott Alexander (6-2, 4.01) at game time, who had been chased from the mound in the first inning on Tuesday before he could get a man out, but not before he had given up three hits, which resulted in three runs. He did better in his one inning of work tonight, allowing only one base runner (on a walk) and striking out two. Ross Stripling came on in the second for his turn as follow up man.

Bochy and crew went with the 31 year old right hander Jon Gray, who toed the rubber at 7-5, 3.88. Gray was 2-8, 5.96 against the Giants and 67-61, 4.42 in his overall big league career before tonight. His work tonight was excellent, seven innings of shutout ball, in which he conceded only two hits, both singles. He didn’ walk anyone. His pitch count reached 87 (with only 26 balls). He earned the win and now has a record of 8-5, 3.65.

Both pitchers were in command as the teams traded zeroes until the top of the sixth, when the Rangers broke through with back to back solo homers by Nathaniel Lowe (his 14th, to right) and Mitch Garver (his eighth, to left).

That did it for Stripling; he struck out JP Martínez to end the inning and his tenure. He’d thrown 73 pitches, 47 for strikes, over five frames, allowing five hits and no. walks. His ERA briefly dropped below 5.00, but he left the game with it at 5.10. He was tagged with the loss; his record now stands at 0-5, 5.10.

Ryan Walker put the visitors down in order in the seventh and was pulled for Taylor when Marcus Semien led off the eighth by beating out a grounder to third for a single. The left handed twin emerged unscathed in spite of a passed ball on the third strike to Lowe. (It’s not having been scored as a wild pitch occasioned some questions in the press box).

Aroldis Chapman replaced Gray for the eighth, struck out Conforto and walked Bailey. Mark Mathias, batting for Crawford, fanned, but Chapman unleashed two wild pitches in the process, putting Conforto on third. Matos also went down swinging, and that was the end of the threat.

Luke Jackson was hit hard in the Texas ninth but put the Rangers down while allowing nothing more harmful than a walk.

Will Smith, the Texas closer, looking for his 22nd save in 24 opportunities, gave up a leadoff double to center by Heliot Ramos, who took third Leody Taveras’s throwing error. He scored on a ground out to third by Estrada, but that was all the offense the Giants could muster. Smith got his save and the Rangers, their win.

Saturday, the game will start at 6:05. Alex Cobb (6-3, 3.30) is scheduled to be on the mound for San Francisco. Andrew Heaney (9-6, 4.14) will pitch for the team from Arlington.

San Francisco Giants preview: San Francisco Looking to Turn Skid Around Taking On Rangers

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San Francisco Giants starter Scott Alexander gets the call for Fri Aug 11, 2023 at Oracle Park in San Francisco to open the series against the Texas Rangers (San Francisco Chronicle file photo)

San Francisco Looking to Turn Skid Around Taking On Rangers

By Barbara Mason

The San Francisco Giants (62-53) had a great start to the month of August taking a four-game series off the Arizona Diamondbacks. They had pulled to a game or two away from the division leading Los Angeles Dodgers. It was all looking very promising until they hit a speed bump at the Coliseum getting swept by the Oakland A’s. San Francisco went on to drop a series to the Angels winning the first game but dropping the next two games and falling six games behind the Dodgers.

Friday night the Giants will take on a very tough Texas Rangers team. The Rangers have a 68-47 record and sit atop the AL West, 2.5 games ahead of the Houston Astros. They just came off a series win against the Oakland A’s.

ESPN Analytics have the Rangers as favorites despite the fact that this game will be played at Oracle Park.

The Giants will send Scott Alexander to the mound with a 6-2 record and a 4.01 ERA. This is the sixth opening assignment for Alexander who signed a minor league deal May 4, 2022 with San Francisco. Alexander opened in game two of the Giants latest series with the Angels.

The Giants fell behind in that game 4-0 in the first inning. Alexander was pulled in the first inning of that game and Jakob Junis came in to relieve. He did not fare much better allowing four hits and one run. The Giants made a valiant comeback bid that fell short losing 7-5.

The Giants will be looking to get back on the winning track in this upcoming series. The Rangers will send Jon Gray to the mound with a 3.72 ERA and a 7-5 W/L record. The Rangers have some solid hitters. Adolis Garcia has hit 29 homers with 89 RBi’s and Jonas Heim has a .280 batting average.

Heim is out on a 10-day IL. at the moment so San Francisco will not have to deal with him. The Giants will be depending on Wilmer Flores who has been exceptional with 15 homers and a .307 batting average. LaMonte Wade Jr. and J.D. Davis will also provide a threat at the plate for the Giants.

First pitch is scheduled for 7:15 PM.