Tag: Arizona Diamondbacks

Dickerson continues hitting spree, Giants edge Snakes 7-4

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By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Saturday, June 22, 2019

PHOENIX — For the second night in a row, the kids are getting it done for the San Francisco Giants.

Outfielder Alex Dickerson picked up where he left off on Friday, and Mike Yastrzemski homered in the ninth, leading the Giants to their second win in the three-game NL West series against Arizona on Saturday, downing the Diamondbacks 7-4.

Dickerson drove in three runs with a pair of doubles, and Yastrzemski, grandson of Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski, hit his fifth home run of the season, a two-run shot in the top of the ninth.

“I like his approach,’ Giants Manager Bruce Bochy said of Dickerson. “He doesn’t chase pitches, he’s disciplined up there. Sometimes, a guy just needs another chance, especially with him and what he’s dealt with.

“He’s always shown he can hit, but he’s always had to deal with the injuries. Hopefully he’ll stay healthy.”

After Giants starter Tyler Beede struggled through the first four innings,
Trevor Gott (4-0) picked up the win in relief. Gott, Mark Melancon, Sam Dyson, and Tony Watson combined to hold the D-backs scoreless over four innings, and Will Smith threw a perfect ninth to earn his 20th save.

“I’ve said it before, they’re so reliable and have so much confidence,” Beede said. ‘We needed them for five innings and that was huge. They picked me up in the fifth, then hand the ball to the next guy and let him do his job. It was a super impressive night for the bullpen and a great team win.”

Dickerson, Kevin Pillar and Brandon Crawford each had two hits in the Giants’ 10-hit attack.

Arizona jumped on Beede for three runs in the first inning. RBI singles by Adam Jones and Christian Walker drove in two; the third run came on a double steal — Walker took second while Edurardo Escobar (who walked) stole home from third.

The Giants bounced back with two runs in the top of the second off losing pitcher Zack Godley (3-5) on a run-scoring double by Dickerson, followed by an RBI single by Crawford.

San Francisco surged ahead to stay at 5-3 with a three-run rally in the third. A two-RBI double by Dickerson, again followed by a run-scoring single by Crawford, were the key blows.

David Peralta led off the Diamondbacks third with a base hit and scored when Escobar hit into a fielder’s choice, pulling Arizona to within 5-4.

The weekend series concludes on Sunday afternoon with a pitching matchup of righthanders — Shaun Anderson (2-2, 4.08) for the Giants and Merrill Kelly (7-7, 3.99) for the D-Backs.

GIANTS JOTTINGS: Arizona INF Domingo Leyba made his MLB debut Saturday and got a pinch-hit single in his first at-bat. Leyba came to the D-Backs in 2014 along with P Robbie Ray for SS Didi Gregorius. Diamondbacks P Zach Grienke made his seventh career pinch-hitting appearance in the fourth inning, striking out for Arizona starter Zack Godley. … Eduardo Escobar’s steal of home was the first for a Diamondback since Paul Goldschmidt did it in 2017. … On Friday, San Francisco OF Alex Dickerson joined an elite group who, in the last 30 years, picked up six runs batted in playing in their first game with their new team. Elias Sports Bureau reports the others are Sam Horn (Baltimore, 1990), Darrin Jackson (Minnesota, 1997), Calvin Pikering (Kansas City, 2004), and Starlin Castro (Chi. Cubs, 2010). … Dickerson is also the third Giant ever to hit a grand slam in his first game with the club in New York or San Francisco, joining Bobby Bonds (1968) and Brandon Crawford (2011). … The Giants are in the midst of playing 20 games in 20 days; their next day off is July 4. … Saturday’s attendance — 32,082.

TAGS: San Francisco Giants,Alex Dickerson,Arizona Diamondbacks,Mike Yastrzemski,Brandon Crawford

Dickerson makes smashing Giants debut in 11-5 rout of Diamondbacks

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Photo credit: @NBCSGiants

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Friday, June 21, 2019

PHOENIX — Just up from Triple-A Sacramento, outfielder Alex Dickerson had little sleep, but wasted little time making an impact on the San Francisco Giants lineup.

In his first game as a Giant, Dickerson cranked a grand slam and a bases-loaded triple, leading San Francisco to an 11-5 NL West win over the Arizona Diamondbacks Friday at Chase Field.

“It was a good feeling,” Dickerson said. “I didn’t get the barrel on the ball the whole time I was there (with San Diego). It’s good to come back, get a good pitch to hit.”

“It’s a long day. I got more sleep for this one than I did in my callups back when I was a rookie. I felt real good the whole day, very well rested. Just added a little travel to it to try and play a baseball game.”

Giants manager Bruce Bochy said, “Wasn’t that impressive? What a day, and what a lift for us. We’re coming off some tough games and looking for some offense early, and he and Pillar, what a show those two put on.”

“(Dickerson) is strong. He’s got a quick bat and it’s good to have him up here to give him a chance.”

“You can’t have a better debut than that.”

Dickerson started the season with San Diego, which designated him for assignment earlier this month after he hit .158 in 12 games. The Padres traded him to San Francisco for prospect Franklin Van Gurp.

“This means a lot, but at the same time, it’s back to business,” Dickerson said. “I want to show that this is the level I want to be at, and it really is business at this point. There’s a little bit of emotion there, but in time, you put that behind you and just be a baseball player.”

The hitting exploits of Dickerson and Kevin Pillar (two-run home run, four RBIs) helped Jeff Samardzija (4-6) grind through six innings to get the win. Samardzija gave up five earned runs on nine hits, struck out five and walked one, but never surrendered the lead.

“There’s mixed emotions about tonight as a whole, but when your teammates pick you up and give you 11 runs, it makes it a whole lot easier to swallow,” Samardzija said. “There was some good and some bad. I was just a little more upset in general with being a little erratic and not very consistent, but I battled and we move on to the next one.”

Dickerson was 3-for-5 with six runs batted in, and fell a double short of hitting for the cycle.

“Pillar set me up great with good a-b’s in front of me, which gave me good pitches to hit,” Dickerson said. “He always had the pitchers on the ropes, and I told myself ‘It’s time to do some damage.'”

“That was impressive,” Samardzija said of Dickerson. “He came in off the bus and went out there and almost hit for the cycle! He had a lot to do with the run support, and he was fun to watch.”

Trailing by six in the bottom of the ninth, the Diamondbacks loaded the bases on Carson Kelly’s double, a walk to Jarrod Dyson and Ildemaro Vargas reached on an infield error.

That prompted a pitching change for the Giants, as closer Will Smith entered the contest. Smith struck out David Peralta and Adam Jones to kill the rally in a non-save situation.

Diamondbacks starter Taylor Clarke (1-3) gave up six earned runs on seven hits in three-plus innings.

San Francisco started the scoring in the top of the second on Kevin Pillar’s ninth home run of the season. Pillar’s drive to left-center drove in Stephen Vogt, who led off the inning with a double.

The Giants extended their lead to 6-0 when Dickerson delivered his first home run of the season, and his second career grand slam.

Arizona found the scoreboard in the third on Ketel Marte’s RBI single, driving in Jerrod Dyson, who reached on a one-out single. Marte limped into first and left the game, replaced by pinch-runner Ildemaro Vargas.

San Francisco loaded the bases when Pablo Sandoval was hit by a pitch, and Clarke issued walks to Brandon Belt and Pillar. Dickerson’s slam landed above the 413-foot mark in right-center.

The Diamondbacks cut San Francisco’s lead to 6-3 in the fourth on Nick Ahmed’s two-run home run, his sixth of the season. Christian Walker led off the inning with a base hit and scored on Ahmed’s opposite-field shot to right-center.

Carson Kelly followed with a double, was sacrificed to third by Clarke, and scored on a base hit by Vargas, cutting the Snakes’ deficit to 6-4. Peralta singled to right, and Adam Jones followed with an RBI single, making it 6-5.

Jones was initially ruled thrown out at second trying to stretch his hit into a double. After a video review, the call on the field was upheld.

San Francisco used a four-run rally in the seventh to build a 10-5 lead. The big hit was Dickerson’s bases-clearing triple. The Giants scored once more in the ninth on Vogt’s RBI double, his second two-bagger of the night, scoring Belt from first.

In the Diamondbacks first, Samardzija allowed a one-out triple to Ketel Marte, followed by a walk to David Peralta. But he struck out Adam Jones and retired Eduardo Escobar on a comebacker to work out of trouble.

“I thought Shark pitched without his best stuff,” Bochy said. “He had tough luck early with some ground balls that got through. But really, the one inning (the fourth) is where he had a hiccup. They got back in the game, but he went back out there and gave us two solid innings, which you want to see.”

On Saturday night, right-hander Tyler Beede (1-2, 6.67 ERA) starts for the Giants. The Diamondbacks have yet to name their starter.

GIANTS JOTTINGS: Diamondbacks 2B Ketel Marte left the game with a left groin cramp and is listed as day-to-day. … The video review on Diamondbacks’ Adam Jones’ RBI single and throw out was 1:57. … Before the game, the Giants announced they claimed OF Joey Rickard off waivers from Baltimore. To make room for Rickard on the 40-man roster, San Francisco RHP Nick Vincent was transferred from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list, and will be optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. … Attendance was announced at 29,312.

TAGS: San Francisco Giants, Arizona Diamondbacks, Alex Dickerson, Jeff Samardzija, Kevin Pillar,

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca: Giants nearly come back on Dodgers on Thursday night

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Photo credit: @SFGiants

On the Giants podcast with Michael:

#1 The Dodgers nearly did what they did on Wednesday night and run away with a ballgame as the Dodgers started out the game with a 6-0 lead.

#2 The Giants rallied back in the last three innings of the game and nearly tied up the ball game against Dodger pitcher Kenley Jansen.

#3 On a Giant bunt by Tyler Austin up the first base side, Dodger first baseman Cody Bellinger’s throw to third base that Giants baserunner Stephen Vogt was called out. The play was reviewed and it look like Vogt’s foot hit the bag about the same time the ball hit Dodger third baseman Justin Turner’s glove how did Michael see it.

#4 When the Dodgers’ Max Muncy came up to the plate to face Giants starter Madison Bumgarner the Dodger’s scoreboard showed a replay of the home run that Muncy hit off Bumgarner last time the Dodgers were in San Francisco plus the Dodgers played “Under the Sea” and “Smoke on the Water” during the replay.

#5 The Giants are in Arizona for a three-game battle with the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Giants will start Jeff Samardzija (3-6) going against the Diamondbacks’ Taylor Clark (1-2).

Michael does the Giants podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Check the Ball? On Pace for 6,513 Home Runs

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Photo credit: @SportmaniaM

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

It used to be the Home Run was the most exciting play in the game of baseball, but at this pace, the 2019 MLB season is becoming so much of a routine event that it’s like “an intoxication of eating too much candy”. Last season, there was a total of 5,585 home runs hit among all 30 teams, but that is not the record for a single season. The record for a single season was established in 2017 with 6,105. Today, we are on a pace for 6,514 or more.

On Sunday, the Washington Nationals hit four straight home runs off of pitcher Craig Stammen. It was the ninth time in MLB history a team has hit back-to-back-to-back-to-back homers. On Monday, the Arizona Diamondbacks and Philadelphia Phillies hit 13 home runs at Citizens Bank Park. The D-Backs finished with eight home runs while the Phillies hit five for the new major league record.

A major league ball is supposed to weight between 5 and 5 1/4 ounces. Nowadays, pitchers throw harder than ever, and hitters have the launch angle mode, which is the perfect storm as managers really do not have to use a lot of strategies. It is all about Earl Weaver’s favorite play, the three-run homer. The game has changed and the ball has also “changed”.

D-Backs break out broom on Giants

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Photo credit: @carskelly

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — This will be a series that the San Francisco Giants will want to put behind them, and look forward to hitting the road.

Ketel Marte hit a solo home run off of Shaun Anderson in the top of the first, and then Eduardo Escobar scored on a sacrifice fly by Adam Jones and the Arizona Diamondbacks swept the Giants after a 6-2 victory before a crowd of 37,017 at Oracle Park.

This was the first sweep by the Diamondbacks over the Giants in San Francisco since June 12-14, 2015.

In the three-game series, the Giants were outscored by the Diamondbacks 34-8.

If you’re going to look now (on Memorial Day weekend), now’s the time. That’s the worst series of the year. I can’t remember one where we had three consecutive games with that kind of baseball we just played. Starters had a hard time getting the ball where they wanted. Anderson (pitch location) was up early, he finally made an adjustment. But along with the hits, the mistakes he made. Now you throw in bad defense and that’s a recipe for what happened today. You know that’s three games where we just played our worst ball, said Bruce Bochy.

Escobar singled following the Marte home run, advanced to second on an Anderson wild pitch and then scored on the Jones sacrifice fly.

Buster Posey got the Giants on the board in the bottom of the first inning, as he doubled in Joe Panik, who led off the inning with a double that came up feet short of Paniks third home run of the season.

Nick Ahmed started off the second inning by singling, stole second and went to third, when Andersons pitch got by Posey. After a Carson Kelly, Luke Weaver dropped down a perfect sacrifice bunt and Ahmed, when Anderson failed to look Ahmed back to third base.

Jarrod Dyson got in on the act, as he singled in Kelly. Following the Dyson single, Marte drove in his second run of the game, as he singled, went to second on the throw and when the throw hit the third base bag, Dyson scored easily from third base.

Weaver picked up his fourth win of the season, as he went five innings, allowing one run on six hits, walking two and striking out six, before leaving the game with tightness in his right arm.

Anderson went five innings, as he gave up six runs (four of them earned) on nine hits, walking one and striking out one and lost for the first time in his major-league career.

It was a huge day at the plate for rookie Mike Yastrzemski, who went 3-for-4 with two runs scored; however, he will be best remembered for what happened on his first major league hit. Yastrzemski wandered too far off of first base, and as he attempted to get back to first base, he was thrown out by left fielder Blake Swihart.

In comparison, it took Yastrzemskis grandfather, Hall of Famer Carl, 10 games to notch his first three-hit game in the majors. The 21-year old Yastrzemski picked up his first three-hit game on April 29, 1961 for the Boston Red Sox against the Detroit Tigers at Tiger Stadium.

Sam Coonrod made his major-league debut, as he pitched a scoreless eighth inning.

NOTES: With the 34 runs scored in the series, the Diamondbacks broke their team record of 32 for most runs in a three-game series on the road. The previous record was set from June 3-5, 2014 against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field.

The 34 runs tied a team record that was set at Chase Field from September 12-14, 2016 against the Rockies.

This was the second time this season that the Giants have been swept at home, as the New York Yankees swept the Giants from April 26-28.

Overall, the Giants have lost 14 out of their last 20 games at Oracle Park.

To make room for Coonrod on the roster, the Giants optioned Saturdays starter, Andrew Suarez to Triple-A Sacramento.

Posey picked up his 13th double of the season, giving him 259 in his career, which is fourth all-time in SF history. The late Willie McCovey is third all-time with 308 doubles during his two stints with the Giants.

UP NEXT: After an off-day on Monday, the Giants begin a three-city, nine-day road trip on Tuesday against the Miami Marlins at Marlins Park.

Jeff Samardzija will take the mound for the Giants, while Trevor Richards will open the series for the Marlins.

D-Backs drop a 10 spot on the Giants

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Photo credit: @Dbacks

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — If you thought the Arizona Diamondbacks scored enough to score to be all scored out, you are watching the wrong game.

Ildemaro Vargas reached on a fielding error by Pablo Sandoval that allowed Ketel Marte to score from third base, and then Kevin Cron hit a sacrifice fly to Kevin Pillar that saw Pillar fly in the air like Superman, got up and threw to Joe Panik, who in turn threw to Brandon Belt for the double play; however, Vargas was originally as no across the plate in time. Torey Lovullo challenged the call and it was reserved, as that would be all the runs that the D-Backs would need on their way to 10-4 victory over the San Francisco Giants before a crowd of 31,531 at Oracle Park.

“It’s bad baseball, there’s no getting around it,” said Bruce Bochy.

This was the first time that the D-backs scored at least 10 or more runs in back-to-back games since September 20, 2017 against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park, and then two days later against the Miami Marlins on September 22 at Chase Field.

As for the Giants, it was not as long, as they gave 10 or more runs to the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 29 and 30 of 2018.

Andrew Suarez helped out his cause in the bottom of the second inning, as he legged out an infield single that allowed Brandon Belt to score from third base. That run batted in by Suarez would account for the Giants only run on the afternoon until Evan Longoria walked with the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning that scored Mike Yastrzemski, who was hit by a pitch to lead off the bottom of the seventh inning.

Yastrzemski, who is the grandson of Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame left fielder Carl Yastrzemski was recalled from Sacramento and to make room for Yastrzemski, the Giants designated Mac Williamson for assignment.

In his debut, Yastrzemski went 0-for-3 with a hit by a pitch, as he started in left field before moving to center field in the top of the eighth inning.

Things went from bad to worse for the Giants, as the D-Backs scored eight runs between the third and fifth innings to blow the game wide open.

It was a tough day for Suarez, who went four innings, allowing nine runs (seven of them earned), walked three and struck out four, also threw two wild pitches and allowed a home run and fell to 0-2 on the season.

The nine runs allowed by Suarez were a career-high, breaking the previous mark of eight that was set on August 4, 2018 against the D-Backs at Chase Field.

Tyler Clarke went 6.1 innings for the D-Backs, allowing three runs on six hits, walking three and striking out one, as he picked up his first major league win.

Marte hit a home run for the second time in as many games, as it was the second time in his career that he hit home runs in back-to-back games.

NOTES: On the double play that ended the first inning, that was the 16th outfield assist for the Giants this season, which leads the major leagues. The Miami Marlins are second in assists with 12.

Cron picked up his first major league hit and run batted in, as his father Chris Cron, who is the manager of the D-Dbacks Triple-A farm club, Reno Aces, looked on from the crowd.

UP NEXT: Shaun Anderson continues to look for that elusive first major league win, as the former Florida Gators pitcher faces Luke Weaver, who pitched for the Gators rival, the Florida State Seminoles and is looking for fourth win of the season for the D-Backs.

Pomeranz, Giants bitten by Diamondbacks 18-2

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Photo credit: @Dbacks

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — If you thought allowing another first inning run to an opponent was nothing new for the San Francisco Giants, just wait to see what happened over the next five innings.

After taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning on a Ildemaro Vargas home run, the Arizona Diamondbacks quickly relinquished that lead, when Austin Slater smashed a two-run home run to give the Giants a 2-1 lead.

Unfortunately, that Giants lead would last only one-half inning, as the Diamondbacks scored 17 runs over the next six innings on their way to a 18-2 victory over the Giants before a crowd of 31,777 at Oracle Park.

The win by the Diamondbacks stopped their five-losing streak.

Ketel Marte tied up the game in the top of the second inning, as he singled in Nick Ahmed, who singled to lead off the frame.

Vargas then picked up his second run batted in of the game, as he singled to right field that scored Carson Kelly, who walked after Ahmed singled.

Robbie Ray helped out his own cause in the top of the third inning, as he hit a two-run single that scored Adam Jones and Ahmed.

That third inning would be the end of the line for Drew Pomeranz, as he went 2.2 innings, allowing five runs on eight hits, while walking just one and striking out six and lost for the fifth time in six decisions this season.

It was a huge night for Jones, who went 4-for-5 with three runs and three runs batted in before being replaced by Blake Swihart in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Not only was a huge night for Jones, but Ray pitched a good game as well. Ray went 5.1 innings, allowing two runs, five hits, walking two and striking out and won for the fourth time in five decisions.

Ahmed got in on the run batted in parade in the top of the fourth inning, as he walked to Eduardo Escobar; however, the big hit in the inning was a two-run single by Tim Locastro.

The quartet of Marte, Vargas, Escobar and Jones racked up 14 of the 21 Diamondbacks hits on the evening.

Marte ended the night with three hits, Vargas with five, Escobar with two and Jones with four.

Escobar joined the home run parade in the top of the sixth inning, as he smashed a Nick Vincent offering onto the arcade for a three-run home run.

All in all, Vincent went 2.2 innings, allowing six runs on seven hits, and striking out two.

Derek Holland was cruising in the top of the seventh inning, as he got the first two outs; however, then the wheels fell off, as he gave up a single to Kelly, then hit Locastro, then Swihart grounded into a fielders choice that saw Donovan Solano throw the ball into right for another Diamondbacks run.

Marte then got in on the home run derby, as he smashed a Holland pitch into the left field bleachers.

The biggest applause of the night came in the bottom of the seventh inning, as Pablo Sandoval came into the game to pinch hit and promptly singled to right field.

Following the Marte home run, the fans began to chant Let Pablo Pitch, but it did not come to fruition and Holland returned to the mound, much to the chagrin of the remaining fans that hung around.

Zach Godley pitched the final three innings to pick up his second save of the season for the Diamondbacks.

On the other side of things, the usually stellar Giants bullpen was anything but that, as they 13 runs (nine earned) on 13 hits, walked two and struck out six. They also gave up three home runs over the final seven and one-thirds innings.

NOTES: The 18 runs scored by the Diamondbacks are the most by a visiting team in the history of Oracle Park breaking the record of 17 that was set by the Colorado Rockies on May 5, 2016.

Also, the 18 runs scored by the Diamondbacks tied for the second most in team history, and the most ever on the road.

Their 21 hits are also the second most in team history, one shy of the team record that was set on August 24, 2013, when they smashed 22 hits against the Philadelphia Phillies.

UP NEXT: Andrew Suarez makes his second start of the season, as he takes the mound for the Giants on Saturday afternoon. Right-hander Tyler Clarke will toe the rubber for the Diamondbacks, as he looks for that elusive first win of the season

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca: Giants’ Williamson and company lacking the hits

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Photo credit: @NBCSGiants

On the Giants podcast with Miguel:

#1 What’s off with the Giants’ Mac Williamson swing? He was striking out five times on Thursday afternoon against the Atlanta Braves

#2 Five times they needed that bat of Williamson to make hay in a one-run loss that went 13 innings.

#3 Williamson is trying to make this club and be a main stay. We ask Michael is this a temporary hang up or something that needs a quick fix?

#4 Another bat out of the Giants’ lineup: shortstop Brandon Crawford, who missed Thursday night’s contest due to pink eye.

#5 The Giants opened a three-game series on Friday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks started Robbie Ray (3-1) and the Giants went with Drew Pomeranz (1-4)

Michael does the Giants podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips and Michael Duca: By trade deadline, you can expect a lot of changes to come to the Giants

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photo from nbcsports.com: San Francisco Giants pitcher Shaun Anderson during his second major league outing last Tuesday at Oracle Park. Anderson pitched five innings and gave up eight hits and two runs.

On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips and Michael Duca:

The San Francisco Giants are everything you would have expected them to be the way the pitching staff has been going were not sure if manager Bruce Bochy could name the five man starting rotation. The Giants are playing to the trade deadline, you can expect a lot of changes to come to this team.

On Tuesday night, for the 27th time in their entire history, they came from behind for a win in the ninth inning and there were 12,000 more people in the ballpark than usual. The Giants were 21-27 after their loss on Wednesday night at Oracle Park. The Giants are desperate for runs they have won eight of their last 10 wins by one run and 13 of 21 wins of one run.

Michael and Morris do the Giants podcasts weekly at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: Panda takes D-Backs deep in 10th inning for gamer 3-2

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Photo credit: nbcbayarea.com

On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips:

#1 San Francisco Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval can do it all, play all positions on the diamond, including pitch, but on Sunday at Chase Field in Phoenix Sandoval was clutch and got a game-winning 10th inning homer for the Giants in their 3-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

#2  Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford contributed with a game saving defensive stop in the ninth inning. The D-Backs Adam Jones hit a ball to Crawford’s right who dove to stop and get up and fire the ball to first base to retire Jones and strand a runner at third.

#3 On Sandoval, he has had a great series against the D-Backs. He hit an eighth inning home run on Saturday to help the Giants in their 8-5 win. Sandoval hit one against the D-Backs pitcher Yoshihisa Hirano to left field for his 40th home run at Chase the most of any opposing hitter to visit that park.

#4 Giants reliever Will Smith is coming along. He picked up his 11th save in 11 outings certainly the go-to to close games for manager Bruce Bochy.

#5 Giants are back at Oracle Park on Monday night to face a very tough Atlanta Braves club. The Braves will start Mike Soroka (4-1, 0.98 ERA) the Giants will start Andrew Suarez (0-0, 0.00 ERA).

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