San Francisco Giants Mike Yastrzemski (center with eye black) is greeted by teammates after hitting a triple and scoring on an throwing error by the Twins second baseman Brooks Lee for the game winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sun Jul 14, 2024 (AP News photo)
Minnesota (54-42). 000 000 002. 2. 3. 2
San Francisco (47-50). 011 000 001. 3. 8. 0
Time: 2:17
Attendance: 34,115
Sunday, July 14, 2024
By Lewis Rubman
SAN FRANCISCO–Sunday afternoon’s 3-2 walk off victory by the Giants over the visiting Minnesota Twins would have been exciting even if it hadn’t come at a time when the home team was trying to establish itself as a serious contender for postseason play.
It’s no secret that the Giants had been counting on Sunday’s starting pitcher, Blake Snell, to carry them into the postseason. Nor is it a secret that his slow, injury plagued performance before last Tuesday’s strong showing against the Blue Jays was a troubling development.
Snell held Toronto to one hit over five frames that evening to improve his record to 0-3, 7.35. This afternoon, in his first appearance since then, he came as close to perfection as you can get in seven innings.
Facing the minimum possible 21 batters, he retired the first 18 before Manuel Margot touched him for a leadoff single to left. Snell recovered to induce Will Castro to hit into a 6-4-3 double play and fan Brooks Lee. The fans responded with thunderous applause. Castro and Lee eventually would make the two final outs in the top of the ninth that prevented what would have been a demoralizing loss.
Snell threw 80 pitches, 55 for strikes, and gave up just that one hit in his seven inning stint on the mound. He struck out eight. His won-lost record remained 0-3, and his ERA dropped to a still ugly 6.31, but this was the Snell the Giants thought they had acquired this spring.
The Giants went to their bullpen three times; the first, for Tyler Rogers, who hurled a perfect eighth, and and then for Camilo Doval, who faced four batters and blew the save on a walk and doubles to right by Trevor Larnach, pinch hitting for Christian Vásquez, and Margot.
Ryan Walker replaced Doval and got Castro to ground out to second, which allowed Margot to score the tying run, which was charged to Doval; that’s how he came to be charged with his fourth blown save of 2024. . Even this masks how poorly Doval pitched; if Margot hadn’t tripped trying to advance on his double, he would have made it to third easily, and Castro’s slow grounder might have put the Twinkies ahead).
Although this was the first time Chris Paddack, Minnesota’s starting pitcher, faced the Giants this season, Bay Area fans had a chance to see him at work on June 21, when he put in a subpar performance against the current occupants of the Oakland Coliseum.
This was his first career start for Minnesota against San Francisco; his previous seven against them was as a Padre. Paddack, too, has spent some time on the injured list this season, although not as much as Snell. The Twin Cities’ righty was out from June 25 to July 8. He pitched well this afternoon, although, again, not as well as SF’s lefty.
Paddack lasted five innings and gave up two runs, one of them unearned. He, too, faced 21 batters; they got five hits and a walk off him, and he struck out a half a dozen of them. While Snell had to settle for a no decision, Paddack escaped with his and now has a record of 5-3, 4.99.
Minnesota used five relief pitchers. They were Steven Okert (two-thirds of an inning, a hit and a walk with two Ks); Jorge Alcalá (a third of an inning); Caleb Thielbar (two-thirds of an inning, a hit and a strike out); Josh Staumont (struck out the one batter he faced); Griffin Jax (a perfect inning with one strike out); and the losing pitcher, Johoan Durán (one hit and an unearned run after facing one batter).
The Giants took an early lead in the second inning, when they took advantage of Carlos Santana’s failure to hold on to Lee’s relay for what would have been an inning-ending double play to go ahead 1-0. A walk to Yastrzemski and Thairo Estrada’s single to left drove in Matt Chapman, who had hustled down the line in the aborted DP attempt, scored the go ahead tally.
SF doubled its lead with back to back doubles in the third. LaMonte Wade hit the first, a one out shot that bounced over the Visa advertisement in right center field, followed by Patrick Bailey’s fly in the same direction that stayed in play.
Once Walker saved Doval’s bacon, the Giants responded in stunning fashion. Yastrzemski smacked Jhoan Durán’s 96mph splitter to right center field. The ball got past Max Kepler in right and was retrieved by Margot in center.
He threw to Lee at second who relayed the ball in the direction of third base in an attempt to prevent Yastrzemski from turning his hit into a leadoff triple. The ball went past Diego Castillo, and Yastrzemski romped home with the winning run. Lee was charged with the error and Durán, now 5-4, 2.93, with the loss.
This was the first time the Giants had won a series since taking two out of three from the Braves in Atlanta on July 2-4. It was a good way to go into the all-star break. Their next scheduled game will be on Friday, July 19 in Denver.
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