Tag: Madison Bumgarner

Bumgarner hit by line drive; Mad Bum possibly out six to eight weeks

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Photo credit: @Deadspin

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Friday, March 23, 2018

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – For the second time in two days, the San Francisco Giants’ pitching rotation was dealt a serious blow as spring training draws to a close.

Thursday, it was Jeff Samardzija finding his way to the shelf. Friday, it was ace Madison Bumgarner.

In the top of the third inning of the Giants’ Cactus League contest against the Kansas City split squad, Bumgarner was hit on his pitching hand trying to field a line drive by Royals’ second baseman Whit Merrifield.

After a brief discussion with the team trainer and Giants manager Bruce Bochy, Bumgarner was immediately pulled, replaced by right-hander Ryan Halstead, activated from the minor league camp.

Bochy said after the game that Bumgarner suffered a fracture on the side of his left hand, just below the knuckle on his little finger (fifth metacarpal).

Bumgarner will have pins inserted on Saturday, and is reportedly expected to miss six to eight weeks.

“There’s no way around that,” Bumgarner said. “They’ll put the pins in, and hopefully, it’ll heal the way it’s supposed to, and heal quickly.”

“I can’t give you any details until I get some more,” Bochy said, adding that it was too soon to determine any prognosis or timetable for Bumgarner to return. “They’ll let us know soon just how long this will take.

Asked about who will start on Opening Day, Bochy said, “I don’t know yet. We had guys set to go on certain days. It’s what we’ll talk about on the flight to San Francisco.

“Obviously, we’ll have to make some adjustments … It’s just a downer. This was (Bumgarner’s) short day. I really feel for him. Obviously, you know what he means to us … And how he was, the way he was throwing the ball all spring. Unfortunately, you have to deal with these things, but this was really a downer today.”

After a strong start in 2017, Bumgarner missed nearly three months after suffering a shoulder injury (Grade 2 left shoulder sprain and bruised ribs) while riding a dirt bike on April 20.

This was Bumgarner’s sixth and final scheduled spring training start. He’s 1-2 with a 3.43 earned run average in 21 innings. Bumgarner’s 30 strikeouts are second in the Cactus League to the 32 punch-outs by Cleveland’s Trevor Bauer.

Bad luck continues for the Giants’ rotation. San Francisco is already expected to place Jeff Samardzija on the disabled list to start the season, after an MRI revealed a strained pectoral muscle.

“And that’s never a good thing, but we have a lot more depth this year,” Bochy said. “So, we’ll get this thing figured out in the next couple of days on what we’re going to do with this rotation. There’s nothing we can do but push on.”

FIRST TIME
Brandon Belt played left field for the first time all spring for the Giants. Hitting third, Belt was 1-for-3 Friday.

Belt is hitting .396 this spring with three home runs and 11 RBIs.

THE GAME
Kansas City’s split squad surged ahead in the third inning and stayed there, holding off a late San Francisco rally to beat the Giants 9-6.

After Merrifield reached on the liner back to Bumgarner leading off the third, he went to second on Ryan O’Hearn’s base hit, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a Chester Culbert single.

Culbert gave the Royals their first lead on a solo home run off Bumgarner in the second inning. Pablo Sandoval tied the game for San Francisco with a solo shot to right off KC starter Jakob Junis (2-0), leading off the bottom of the second.

It was Panda’s third homer and 15th RBI of the spring. Sandoval is hitting .313 in 18 CL games.

Culbert led the Royals split-squad offense, going 4-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored.

The Royals added three runs in the sixth and two in the seventh.

Jerry Sands, sporting No. 98, hit his second CL homer for San Francisco on a towering drive to left in the eighth inning. The sellout crowd of 11,002 chanted “Jer-ry, Jer-ry” as he circled the bases.

Sands had major league stints with the Dodgers, Tampa Bay, Cleveland and the White Sox between 2011 and 2016.

San Francisco scored four runs in the ninth. Kelby Tomlinson and Dylan Davis had RBI singles in the rally.

Steven Duggar was 2-for-4 in the Giants’ 11-hit attack.

BARNEY NUGENT AWARD
Outfielder Chris Shaw was voted the 2018 Barney Nugent Award by the Giants’ players, coaches and training staff. The award is given in recognition of the player in his first big league camp “whose performance and dedication best exemplifies the Giants’ spirit, much like Nugent did.”

Nugent worked as an athletic trainer for the Giants from 1993 to 2003.

ON DECK
This was San Francisco’s final 2018 Cactus League game in Scottsdale. The Giants head to Sacramento to face their Triple-A affiliate River Cats at Raley Field (6:05 p.m.), then move on to Oakland for the first game of their annual three-game set with the Athletics at 1:05 p.m. on Sunday.

The Monday-Tuesday games against the A’s are at AT&T Park, both starting at 7:15 pm PST.

TAGS
San Francisco Giants, Cactus League, Madison Bumgarner, Sports Radio Service

Road woes continue, Giants fall to White Sox 8-1 in laugher

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Chicago White Sox’s Avisail Garcia, center, scores past San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey, left, as home plate umpire Eric Cooper looks on during the fifth inning of a baseball game in Chicago, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2017. (AP Photo/Matt Marton)

By Ana Kieu

The San Francisco Giants closed out the three-game series with a brutal 8-1 loss to the Chicago White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field on Sunday.

Giants ace Madison Bumgarner faced the White Sox for the first time in his career. He was matched up against rookie Carson Fulmer, who made his second start of the season.

The Giants got off to an early start as Jarrett Parker sent a fly ball to center for a 1-0 lead at the top of the second inning, but the White Sox poured in the runs in the bottom of the second inning. A throwing error by Mac Williamson allowed Kevan Smith and Rymer Liriano to score on Yolmer Sanchez’s two-run line-drive double. Tim Anderson hit a ground ball single to left. Fresh off a cycle, Jose Abreu jacked a two-run home run for his 30th of the season. The White Sox jumped to a 5-1 lead to end the inning.

Avasail Garcia scored on an RBI double by Matt Davidson, extending the White Sox’s lead to 6-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning.

A wild pitch by Albert Suarez allowed Sanchez to triple for a 7-1 lead in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Abreu smacked his 31st home run of the season to expand the White Sox’s lead to 8-1 in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Fulmer put in a hard day’s work with six innings, three hits, one run, three walks and nine strikeouts. The White Sox had Sunday’s game from start to finish, winning the series with a lopsided 8-1 victory at home.

Notes
White Sox placed left handed starter Carlos Rodon, who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury, on the 10-day disabled list.

Giants right handed reliever Mark Melancon will undergo surgery for his forearm next week. He’ll miss the rest of the season.

Up Next
The Giants return to AT&T Park to host the rival Dodgers. Game 1 between the two teams is on Monday night at 7:15 p.m. PST.

Giants drop series finale to Cardinals 7-3

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San Francisco Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner works against the St. Louis Cardinals in the first inning of a baseball game, Sunday, Sept. 3, 2017, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Ana Kieu

SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants lost 7-3 to the St. Louis Cardinals in the series finale at AT&T Park on Sunday afternoon.

Madison Bumgarner made his 14th start of the season after being scratched from his start on Thursday with flu-like symptoms.

The Giants broke through in the bottom of the third inning. Buster Posey hit a line-drive single to Joe Panik, who scored a run to give his team a 1-0 lead.

The Cardinals hit back-to-back home runs to take their first lead of the game in the top of the fourth inning. Paul DeJong tied the ballgame 1-1 with a home run on a fly ball for his 21st of the season. Jose Martinez then smacked a home run on a fly ball to left center that gave St. Louis a 2-1 lead.

Bumgarner hit a solo home run for his third of the season, tying the game 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning.

The Cardinals poured in the runs in the sixth inning. Harrison Bader hit his second career home run and the Cardinals’ third of the game to put his team ahead 3-2. Martinez followed with an RBI double to make it a 4-2 game. Yadier Molina added another RBI double to extend the Cardinals’ lead to 5-2.

Bader expanded the Cardinals’ lead to 6-2 with a ground ball single that scored Alex Mejia in the top of the seventh inning. Shortly after, Bader scored on a ground rule double by Martinez to enlarge the Cardinals’ lead to 7-2.

Tim Federowicz hit his first home run as a Giant in the bottom of the eighth inning. As a result, San Francisco cut the Cardinals’ lead to 7-3.

The Giants lost to the Cardinals 7-3 in the series finale at home.

“I contribute a little bit more,” Giants center fielder Gorkys Hernandez said. “You have to finish hard. You have to prepare for next season.”

“This year is really tough,” Hernandez added. “Everyone wants to go to the playoffs.”

Notes
The Giants recalled infielder Orlando Calixte and outfielder Mac Williamson from triple-A Sacramento. San Francisco now has 31 active pitchers on their roster (16 pitchers, three catchers, six infielders and six outfielders).

Giants outfielder Austin Slater went 1-for-3 in his second rehab appearance with triple-A Sacramento last night, playing seven innings in left field. Slater has missed the last 50 games with a right groin strain.

Giants left handed pitcher Josh Osich turns 29 years old today.

Today’s attendance is 39,724.

Up Next
The Giants head to Coors Field to take on the Colorado Rockies for a three-game series that starts this Monday at 1:10 p.m. MST on NSBA, ATRM.

As it was envisioned: Giants play their game in 3-1 win over the Cubs

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San Francisco Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval dives to stop a ground ball hit by the Chicago Cubs’ Ben Zobrist in the fifth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2017, in San Francisco. Sandoval stopped the ball and threw Zobrist out at first base. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Think back to spring training–before the 70 losses with almost two months remaining. A healthy, capable Giants club was supposed to look like this, especially on a heavy-aired afternoon at AT&T.

Pitch, play defense and get the big outs late. Offense? Scratch together a couple of runs, nothing spectacular. Just steady.

On Wednesday, it worked just like they envisioned, right down to Mad Bum actually winning one for a change.

In the other dugout, Joe Maddon was concerned, but not overly so. His Cubs were 16-8 post All-Star break and prior to Wednesday’s 3-1 loss to the Giants. But when he expressed what was missing from his team’s effort, it sounded a lot like what suddenly crawled into the Giants’ dugout.

“We haven’t played well. We haven’t played with the same kind of efficiency,” Maddon said.

“Pitching, great. Again, defense we still have to make plays. And overall, offensively we need more consistency out of more people to get this whole thing done.”

Each Giants’ position starter had one hit. The resurgent Hunter Pence had two. “Wawindaji” homered off Pedro Strop in the eighth inning for a nice piece of insurance in a 2-1 game. “Wawindaji” is Pence’s nickname (Hunter in Swahili) that will appear on his Players Weekend uniform in the upcoming series at Washington.

The placement of the way-out nickname on an actual game jersey is also a sure sign that Pence’s play has picked up. The right fielder hit over .300 on the completed home stand, and including the two games in Oakland.

Pablo Sandoval looked nifty ranging to his left. Denard Span and Ryder Jones contributed “small ball” hits in the seventh that allowed the Giants to break the 1-1 tie. And Bumgarner was tough on a lineup that’s been more than capable against ordinary lefties this season (19-9 after Wednesday’s loss).

Coming off that serious biking accident, Bumgarner had a long road, not just to get healthy, but to regain his status among the National League’s best starters. Bochy’s cast a discerning eye in the process. Here’s how he saw Bumgarner’s effort.

“His stuff’s the same. His command, everything is right there. He pitched very well today. He made the one mistake there, but he hasn’t changed a bit,” Bochy said.

The one mistake–a third inning home run surrendered to Albert Almora Jr.–would mark the only time a Cub crossed the plate all afternoon. Bumgarner threw seven innings, allowed four singles and the Almora homer while striking out seven.

Hunter Strickland pitched a scoreless eighth, and Sam Dyson, the reliever rescued from the scrap heap after a rough first half with the Rangers picked up save number eight.

The Giants resume play in Washington on Friday night, the first of a six-game road trip. The team will also visit the Marlins in Miami.

 

 

Giant’s year-long swoon now has the post-All Star break in San Diego as bookends

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA – JULY 08: San Francisco Giants Starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija (29) throws a pitch during the Major League Baseball game between the Miami Marlins and the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park in San Francisco, CA. (Photo by Bob Kupbens/Icon Sportswire) (Icon Sportswire via AP Images)

By Morris Phillips

The disappointing baseball being played by the Giants in 2017, actually commenced in 2016, in San Diego against the Padres immediately after the All-star break.

The Giants open the second half–on Thursday in San Diego–again under far different circumstances.

Same Giants’ team visiting the same opponent a year apart with now a full season of baseball games in between. The equation isn’t a pretty one, as the Giants have gone 64-98 after starting 2016 with a MLB-best 57-33 record that disappeared as quickly as it materialized.

Last year, the Giants traveled to San Diego with a nine-game win streak against the Padres, and promptly lost four straight to their division rivals, each loss in the most frustrating manner possible. It marked the first time that the team’s top three starters–Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija–had lost consecutively as teammates. Needless to say, that convergenge of poor luck has happened again since.

In the last 162 games, Cueto has gone 11-11, after starting his Giants’ career 13-1. Bumgarner opened 2016 with a 10-4 record, in the 162 games since, He’s 5-9 in 19 starts, and hasn’t thrown more than eight innings in any of the 19. Bumgarner also landed on the disabled list for the first time in his career following his April dirt biking incident and shoulder injury.

And Samardzija opened 2016 with a 9-5 record. In the 32 starts since, he’s 7-16, and has pitched more than seven innings in a start just three times.

In losing nearly 100 games, a lot more than the failings of the Giants’ top three starters has transpired. The offense has often disappeared, the bullpen has been faulty, starting with the struggles of Santiago Casilla last season, and Derek Law this season. And the left field position has been a revolving door with Jarrett Parker, Mac Williamson, Michael Morse and Gorkys Hernandez among the candidates to struggle. Most recently, rookie Austin Slater made the most of his 29 games left, hitting .290 only to see his season derailed by hip and groin injuries.

But the struggles no doubt begin with Bumgarner, Cueto and Samardzija, who were an impressive 32-10 as a trio before last season’s break. Since then? The three are a combined 23-36.

 

Royals, Giants meet again: Can either team regain the magic?

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Young fans watch activities before a baseball game between the Kansas City Royals and the San Francisco Giants Wednesday, April 19, 2017, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

By Morris Phillips

The last time we checked in on the Giants and Royals collectively, things weren’t going well.

Two months later, on the occasion of their second interleague matchup of 2017, they still aren’t.

The 2014 World Series champs, the Giants, are battling the Padres to stay out of the basement in the NL West. The 2015 World Series champs, the Royals, have shown signs of life lately, but still reside in fourth place in the crowded AL Central.

The biggest issue is the same for both teams. The Giants have seen their offensive stars deal with injuries and/or regress. Currently, the Giants average just 3.68 runs scored per game, which ranks 29th out of 30 clubs. That’s almost a full run below the MLB average of 4.61. The Royals rank 28th, averaging 3.86 runs per game.

Manager Bruce Bochy admitted on Saturday that a return to form for his guys could take a while, now that he finally has his top seven hitters healthy for the first time all year. Hunter Pence, the most recent returnee from the disabled list, struggled in his first week back, registering just three hits in seven games. In Sunday’s bust out 13-8 win over the Twins, Pence showed life with three hits, and three runs scored.

The Royals just clubbed 10 home runs in three games at San Diego’s still spacious Petco Park, winning two of three from the Padres.  The series highlights a modestly improved stretch for Kansas City, winners of seven of their previous 12 ballgames. After starting the season 10-20, the Royals are 28-34, still just five games of the division-leading Twins.

Mike Moustakas hit a pair of home runs Sunday, and leads the club with 17, putting him on pace to shatter the surprisingly-modest franchise record of 36, set by Steve Balboni in 1985. Still Moustakas isn’t in the position to gloat, likely mindful of his and his team’s struggles offensively.

“This game is hard,” Moustakas said. “I’m just trying to come in and find ways to get hits every day. I’ve been fortunate this year that things are going out of the park.”

While Moustakas has flourished, Alex Gordon, Lorenzo Cain and Eric Hosmer, the other Kansas City mainstays have not.

 

Royals and Giants, no longer on top of the world, have come back to the pack

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By Morris Phillips

A bunch has transpired since Madison Bumgarner became a household name, single handedly lifting the Giants over the Royals with his singular, five innings of relief in Game 7 of the 2014 World Series.

A bunch.

Since then, the Giants became World Series champs, the Royals also became champions, shaking off the disappointment of 2014 and capturing the title the following fall.  Players on both teams have moved on, or faltered, or retired.  And one especially bright young star, Kansas City’s Yordano Ventura died in a tragic car accident.

As a result, neither team is on top of the world at present, just a pair of struggling clubs mindful of making strides within their respective divisions before aspiring to another lengthy, playoff run.

Here’s what’s happened to the Royals and Giants over the last two-and-a-half years leading into the brief, interleague series between the two starting on Tuesday:

Nothing personifies the change within both organizations more than the two pitching staffs, beginning with the Game 7 starting pitchers, Jeremy Guthrie and Tim Hudson.  Hudson had a star-crossed evening on October 29, 2014.  Tabbed by Bruce Bochy to start the deciding game, Hudson lasted less than two innings.  Still, the 38-year old became a champion for the first time in his career.

Hudson would return to the Giants in 2015, his last season.  He would retire with 222 big league victories.

Guthrie pitched three innings that night, giving way to the heralded Royals’ bullpen, who shut the Giants down the rest of the way. The former Stanford pitcher would return to the Royals in 2015, only to be demoted from the starting rotation in August because of poor performances.  Guthrie has since been signed and released by the Rangers, Padres and Marlins.  Just two weeks ago, the Nationals tabbed Guthrie to start against the Phillies, but he allowed 10 runs in the first inning and was released again.

Jeremy Affeldt pitched two innings that night in a marvelous turn following Hudson, and leading to Bumgarner. That outing was the final assignment of his career as Affeldt announced his retirement in the days following the Series.

In fact, the Giants have moved on from all four relievers that were with the club for all three World Series titles. Affeldt retired after 2014, and Javier Lopez retired after the 2016 season. Sergio Romo signed with the Dodgers, and Santiago Casilla with the A’s after the Giants’ bullpen performed so poorly in 2016.

The only Giants’ bullpen holdovers from that World Series? 32-year old George Kontos, and Hunter Strickland, 28.  Of course, Strickland is well known for his high-90’s fastballs that fooled no one in the 2014 postseason in which he allowed six home runs just weeks after his major league debut. Since, he’s become a front-end bullpen guy, currently pitching in setup roles ahead of closer Mark Melancon.

The fate of the Royals’ bullpen since 2014 is even more stark than the Giants. The Kansas City trio of Wade Davis, Kelvin Herrera and Greg Holland was dynamic in their 2014 postseason run, shutting down opponents sometimes starting as early as the fifth inning.  In 2017, the often meteoric rise and fall of fireballing relievers is personified in the trio.

Davis, Herrera and Holland returned to their familiar roles in 2015, leading the Royals to the AL Central crown and the playoffs. Late in that season, Holland, the closer, was shelved in order to undergo Tommy John surgery that would cost him the entire 2016 season. Davis assumed the closer’s role and was fantastic, saving all four postseason chances while not allowing a run.

But in 2016, Davis experienced arm issues, was put on the disabled list, and was traded to the Cubs in December. Holland became a free agent shrouded in the unknown after a year of inactivity.  Holland drew interest from the Giants before signing with the Rockies. Holland earned his first save since saving 32 in 2015 on April 3, in the Rockies’ home opener.

Only the 27-year old Herrera remains with the Royals, now their closer in a bullpen that’s far less formidable than in 2015.

Anything but a Bum: Giants’ ace again pitches complete game shutout in Wild Card win over the Mets

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gillaspie-delivers

By Morris Phillips

The postseason is here.  Madison Bumgarner did his best to remind everybody on Wednesday night.

Bumgarner pitched a 3-0 complete game, shutout of the Mets, and the Giants advanced to the NLDS to face the Cubs with Game 1 slated for Friday.  With both teams desperate for offense, Conor Gillaspie provided all that the Giants would need, belting a game-deciding, three-run homer in the eighth.

The Giants’ ace continued his assault on the game’s postseason record book by extending his streak of scoreless innings pitched to 23.  Bumgarner also became the first pitcher to win twice in sudden-death playoff games via shutout, duplicating his feat from two years ago, when he went into Pittsburgh and beat the Pirates 8-0 in the wild card game.

But this time, Bumgarner wasn’t alone, joined by the Mets’ Noah Syndergaard in a matchup of power arms that went scoreless for seven innings, the first time two starters had gone so deep in a sudden-death playoff scoreless, since Game 7 of the 1991 World Series.

Throughout Bumgarner was unflappable, just a guy once again giving his team a chance to win on one of the game’s biggest stages.  Accordingly, Bum had a tougher time navigating post game questions than he did the Mets’ starting lineup.

“Aint much to say,” Bumgarner managed.  “That’s a big game for us right there, and we were fortunate to get some late runs, and we got the win.”

Both pitchers figured to be bears to take down, and they were, in slightly different manners.  Bumgarner benefitted greatly from the ease in which he cruised through the first two innings, needing just 14 pitches on a night he would throw 119 pitches, scattering three singles and a double to TJ Rivera.  Syndergaard was more devastating, hitting 98 mph on over 40 of his 108 pitches, and carrying a no-hitter into the sixth inning.  But Syndergaard would need 23 pitches to get out of the fourth inning, and manager Terry Collins felt his pitcher had expended himself after seven innings of work.

Still Syndergaard joined Tom Seaver, Jacob deGrom and Dwight Gooden as the only Mets to strike out 10 or more in a postseason game.

“I tell you, he stepped up when we needed him,” Collins said of Syndergaard.

For the first seven frames, this classic playoff encounter was equally about Bumgarner and Syndergaard.  But in the final two innings when the game was decided, Bumgarner was clearly better than Mets’ relievers Addison Reed and eventual loser, Jeurys Familia.

In the eighth, Reed would allow a hit and walk two batters, escaping a bases loaded situation by striking out Hunter Pence to end the inning.  But in the ninth, Familia would allow a leadoff double to Brandon Crawford, sending both managers and teams churning to score or prevent a game-winning run.

After retiring Angel Pagan, then walking Joe Panik, who fouled off several tough pitches, Familia couldn’t retire Gillaspie, who sent the closer’s 1-1 pitch into the bullpen beyond the right field fence.

“We went through such a rough time in the last month and, yes, we didn’t win the division, but I don’t think there is a guy in there that doesn’t believe in each other.  What a great opportunity to be part of this,” Gillaspie said.

Gillaspie had only found himself into manager Bruce Bochy’s lineup because of the injury to Eduardo Nunez last week.  But given the opportunity, Gillaspie succeeded joining Marco Scutaro, Travis Ishikawa, Barry Zito and others as the team’s unlikely postseason heroes since 2010.

“Pretty much the whole game I was spinning off balls, so I was telling myself to stay in there as much as I could, and trust I could get there,” Gillaspie said.

While the Mets finished the regular season 26-13, the major’s best record over the season’s final 39 games, the Giants limped into the playoffs, winning just 30 of their final 72 games.

The Giants open the NLDS at Wrigley Field in the nightcap of Friday’s quadruple header.  Johnny Cueto is expected to start for the Giants in a matchup with Chicago’s Jon Lester.

 

Down 4-0, Giants respond in critical, comeback win over the Mets

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Bum says bam!

By Morris Phillips

With both mired in difficult circumstances, it wouldn’t be hard to believe the Mets and Giants were happy to see each other on Thursday. But after 30 hits, 17 total runs, and a bunch of other unpredictable stuff, the two playoff hopefuls looking to get recharged might not be so enthused to see each other on Friday.

The Giants earned the more peaceful night of rest with a 10-7 come-from-behind victory in which they overcame a 4-0 deficit in the fourth inning. Madison Bumgarner allowed a grand slam to Justin Ruggiano in the top of that frame, then answered back with a two-run shot of his own, in the bottom of the inning, allowing the Giants to claim their first lead.

That Bumgarner’s shot came off Mets’ ace Jacob deGrom was surprising. That it came on the seventh pitch of a challenging at-bat that ended with what appeared to be the least challenging fastball of deGrom’s evening was quite eye-opening. Just not as noticeable as deGrom’s evening in his entirety, 13 hits allowed, eight earned runs, marking the worst outing of the 28-year old’s big league career.

“Early in counts, guys were making solid contact, leave a ball right down the middle to Bumgarner, hits it over the fence,” deGrom said. “I can’t think of any good pitches that got hit. It was a game where I wasn’t very good.”

But it was that kind of night at AT&T Park, two struggling clubs desperate to overcome their circumstances hardly preoccupied with the means to that end.

“I don’t think that’s how either of us had it drawn up, but we’ll take it for sure,” Bumgarner said. “It’s not about throwing shutouts, it’s about winning games, and that’s what we did today.”

Bumgarner, who has been mentioned at the top of the list of Cy Young candidates despite his hard luck results, and deGrom, with a sparkling 1.56 ERA in six starts since the All-Star break, didn’t seem headed for these types of performances, but there they were, just trying to record outs wherever possible until their ropes where inevitably cut.

DeGrom lasted through the conclusion of the fifth, allowing four hits, and three more runs after he gave the Giants the lead. He had never lost to the Giants prior to Thursday, and if this was the counter to all the success he’d enjoyed previously, he made it a doozy. DeGrom had given up just two earned runs in three previous starts against the Giants, winning all three times. But there wasn’t much magic in his arm this time, surprising given the recent groove the right hander had experienced.

Bumgarner needed 38 pitches to get through the fourth, allowing a home run to Justin Ruggiano, just two games removed from the disabled list. The grand slam was Ruggiano’s first home run of the season, his second grand slam of his career, and his third home run off Bumgarner.

But soon after Ruggiano’s slam was recorded, it became a footnote.

DeGrom then allowed the first four Giants hits in the bottom of the frame. After retiring Joe Panik, Bumgarner fouled off three pitches before deGrom offered him a batting practice fastball that ended up in the left field bleachers. Bumgarner would hit again in the sixth, striking out, but that was it for him as well, after just 89 pitches.

Buster Posey knocked in a pair of insurance runs in the eighth, and Santiago Casilla registers his 28th save after pitching a scoreless ninth inning.

The Giants won for just the 10 time in their 31 games since the break, but their timing was good. The first place Dodgers cooled in Philadelphia earlier, squandering a one-run lead in the seventh to lose 5-4 to the Phillies. With the win, the Giants climbed within a half-game of their rivals just three games ahead of their series that starts Tuesday in Los Angeles.

The Mets fell to 1-3 on their 10-game road trip that started in Phoenix and will end in St. Louis against the Cardinals.

On Friday, the Giants will have Johnny Cueto on the mound in a matchup with Steven Matz, looking for his 10th win of the season.

NOTES: The Giants placed Matt Cain on the disabled list before the game, and activated Cody Gearrin, who pitched in Thursday’s game. Cain was going to be skipped from his next start to give Matt Moore a chance to start against the left-handed hitting Dodgers so the timing was precise, but also the veteran had struggled in his previous two starts, after pitching well for five.

 

Giants’ woes continue despite strong outing from Madison Bumgarner

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Bruce homers

By Morris Phillips

Jay Bruce stayed hot, the Giants stayed cold, and Madison Bumgarner found himself in between, unable to affect either extreme.

Bruce’s seventh inning solo shot off of Bumgarner was the difference on Wednesday afternoon, swinging the game, a 2-1 decision, and three-game series to the Reds. When the margins are that narrow, it’s frustrating, especially to the coldest big league team over the last two weeks that still is just one game removed from having the game’s best record.

“You run into a well-pitched game,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “That happens. You hate to see it when your guy throws well. No question, (Reds’ starter Dan Straily) pitched great. We just couldn’t do much with him.”

The former Athletic, Straily, has made 63 starts over bits and pieces of five major league seasons, and Wednesday he more than proved that his career is starting to gain traction. The right hander pitched into the eighth inning, allowing a run, on three hits and one walk, striking out five. He improved his season record to 6-6, and now has two wins against the Giants, one win against the A’s.

After throwing 90 pitches, and recording two outs in the eighth, manager Bryan Price lifted Straily, preventing his starter from potentially registering his first career complete game. But Straily also felt the timing was right, his pitches were starting to lose steam, and regardless he had completed his mission.

“Three pitches or less, that should be your goal every single time,” Straily said after doing just that with 13 of the 23 batters he faced. “It’s just part of who I am as a pitcher.”

The Giants’ lack of offense lowlighted their 1-7 road trip, then things perked up the first two games against Cincinnati, followed by Wednesday’s drought that was punctuated with too many quick outs, and no pop. Leadoff hitter Gregor Blanco saw just nine pitches, but made four outs, and the team couldn’t chase Straily, or score after Conor Gillapsie’s solo home run in the third inning.

The pitching was far better, courtesy of Bumgarner, but the home run he allowed to Bruce was the eighth allowed by Giants’ pitching in the series, a new, low mark over a three-game set in AT&T Park history. Those eight follow, the 18 round-trippers the staff allowed on the road trip, which is lot of slack jaws, and eyes rolling on the mound.

Bruce has homered in five consecutive games, and has 25 of the season.

The Giants lead in the NL West remains 2 ½ games over the Dodgers, who lost at home to the Rays on Wednesday. After losing nine of 11 since the All-Star break, the Giants (59-42) are only looking up to the Cubs, who hold the game’s best record at 60-40.

The team is hopeful that they will get Hunter Pence and Joe Panik back on Monday, in time for a road trip that begins in Philadelphia. Recent rumors have the team linked to San Diego’s Andrew Cashner and Milwaukee’s Jeremy Jeffress on the trade market, but it’s likely the team will face the NL East leading Nationals the next four days without any roster movement.

Johnny Cueto faces Washington’s Tanner Roark in Thursday night’s series opener at 7:15pm.