Tag: San Francisco Giants

Willie Mays, the Giant of the Game, has passed away at age 93

Published on by moepeaLeave a comment

The late great Willie Mays is seen here Aug 19, 2016 during a New York Mets and San Francisco Giants game at Oracle Field in San Francisco. Mays passed away on Tue Jun 18, 2024 at 93. (AP file photo)

By Morris Phillips

ATLANTA—Broadcaster Bob Costas told it first tonight, and said it best tonight:

“If you reduced the Hall of Fame to just 10 people, Willie Mays would be one of them. He was a giant of the game.”

Willie Mays, the pre-eminent New York Giant and San Francisco Giant, has passed away at age 93.

Presumably, Mays was at home on the San Francisco peninsula, unable to attend this week’s festivities in his honor, at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama when he died. The Giants face the St. Louis Cardinals there in a nationally-televised game on Thursday.

Mays, the “Say Hey Kid,” was remembered by his son, Michael Mays, who said, “I want to thank you all from the bottom of my broken heart for the unwavering love you have shown him over the years. You have been his life’s blood.”

Mays’ greatest play, the catch in Game 1 of the 1954 World Series, in which he furiously retreated to the center field wall and made an over the shoulder catch, followed by a throw to the infield, is the greatest baseball play ever that doesn’t involve a home run.

But, of course, Mays did more than that play. He hit 660 home runs, compiled 3,293 hits and scored 2,068 runs.

Wednesday’s Giants game in Chicago, as well as Thursday’s game against the Cardinals In Birmingham will be instant memorials for the greatest Giant.

“In the pantheon of baseball greats, Willie Mays’ combination of tremendous talent, keen intellect, showmanship, and boundless joy set him apart,” said Giants Chairman Greg Johnson in a statement.

Thairo Estrada carries Giants to comeback 7-6 win over Cubs on crazy night at Wrigley Field

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Francisco Giants Mike Yastrzemski (5) celebrates with Thairo Estrada for Estrada’s three run home run in the top of the ninth inning at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Mon Jun 2, 2024 (AP News photo)

Monday, June 17, 2024

Wrigley Field

Chicago, Illinois

San Francisco Giants 7 (36-37)

Chicago Cubs 6 (34-39)

Win: Erik Miller (2-2)

Loss: Hector Neris (6-2)

Save: Camilo Doval (13)

Time: 3:06

Attendance: 36,048

By Stephen Ruderman

The Giants came back to win a crazy game against at Wrigley Field in Chicago, as Thairo Estrada hit a three run home run in the top of the ninth, and the Giants ended up beating the Cubs 7-6.

It was hot, and the wind was blowing out to right field at Wrigley, which meant the ball was flying out during batting practice. Usually, that also meant that it would be a high-scoring game. That would be good for a Giants’ offense that has gotten quite home run happy over the last 11 days. The heat and the wind blowing out also meant that this was likely going to be a crazy game.

Javier Assad, who looked more like an accountant than a pitcher with his glasses, made the start for the Cubs, and he threw a 1-2-3 top of the first inning. Brett Wisely and Heliot Ramos were both called out on nut cutter pitches by Home Plate Umpire Manny Gonzalez that they took umbrage to, and Patrick Bailey grounded out to first base.

Jordan Hicks made the start for San Francisco, and he walked former Giant Mike Tauchman to start the bottom of the first. Christopher Morel then flew out to left field, but Tauchman boldly tried to take second, and he was nabbed at second on a one-hop throw from left-fielder Michael Conforto. Cody Bellinger lined out to right, and Hicks ended up throwing a fairly-quick inning.

Assad threw a scoreless top of the second, as Gonzalez called Mike Yastrzemski on a pitch that was clearly inside to end the inning. Hicks walked Ian Happ with one in the bottom of the second but threw another scoreless inning.

The Giants would have their first opportunity in the top of the third. Thairo Estrada lined a base-hit to left to start the inning, and Trenton Brooks walked to put runners at first and second with nobody out for the top of the order.

Opportunities with runners in scoring position have been the real kryptonite for the Giants all season, and here they were with an early opportunity tonight. Wisely made Assad work through an eight-pitch at-bat before flying out to right and moving Estrada to third, but Ramos struck out swinging, and Patrick Bailey flew out to center to waste another opportunity.

Hicks pitched another scoreless inning in the bottom of the third, but with two outs, Tauchman reached on an infield hit, and ended up leaving when he hurt himself stepping on the bag first.

Assad walked Jorge Soler with two outs in the top of the fourth, and Yastrzemski hit a triple to the gap in right-center to put the Giants on the board. The Giants were able to get an RBI hit, but considering that runners weren’t in scoring position, that is probably why.

Hicks ran into trouble for the first time with two outs in the bottom of the fourth. After Hicks retired the first two men he faced, Happ and Nico Hoerner both singled, and Michael Busch walked to load the bases. However, Hicks was able to get Dansby Swanson to ground out to end the inning.

Ramos and Bailey singled with two outs off Assad in the top of the fifth, but you guessed it, the Giants were unable to come through, as Matt Chapman flew out to Seiya Suzuki. Though, to the Giants’ credit, Suzuki made a nice catch along the line and up against the side wall.

The Cubs almost got on the board in the bottom of the fifth. Patrick Wisdom, who pinch-ran for Tauchman in the third, walked with one out, and Morel singled Wisdom over to third.

Cody Bellinger flew out to shallow right, and when Wisdom tried to score, Yastrzemski, who ran in to make the catch, had all the momentum he needed to throw a perfect one-hopper to nail Wisdom at the plate. The Cubs challenged what was an extremely-close play, but there was not enough evidence either way, and the call was upheld.

Melvin noted the difficult situation catcher Patrick Bailey was in to make that play.

“They’re momentum swings,” said Manager Bob Melvin. “It’s a huge play. You gotta make a great throw, and now with the blocking the plate stuff, Bail[ey] has got to have the presence of mind to start in the right spot, which is very difficult. When it’s a one-run game, you’re just digging to get an out…..Bailey made a nice play at the plate. Now all the sudden, it’s a momentum swing in our dugout.”

That also ended the night for Jordan Hicks, who threw 87 pitches, gave up four hits, walked four and struck out four over five shutout innings.

Left-hander Luke Little came in for the accountant, Assad, for the top of the sixth and walked Michael Conforto to start the inning. Conforto advanced to second on a ground out by Soler. Yastrzemski then placed a beautiful bunt along the third base line that stayed fair and allowed him to reach. Hayden Wesneski came in and walked Estrada to load the bases, and here the Giants were again with a golden opportunity.

So what happened? Trenton Brooks struck out swinging in a really brutal at-bat. As Brooks was waiting for the first pitch from Wesneski, he was in the box but not facing the pitcher with eight seconds left on the Pitch Clock, which meant there was an automatic strike. Brooks then swung and missed at two pitches in the first, and Wisely flew out to left to end the inning and waste yet another opportunity for the Giants.

Randy Rodriguez was brought in for the bottom of the sixth and gave up a leadoff base-hit to Suzuki. Happ grounded into a double play, but Hoerner reached on an infield hit, and Busch hit a home run to left-center to give the Cubs their first lead of the night.

Heliot Ramos hit a home run into the wind in right-center on the first pitch from Wesneski in the top of the seventh to tie the game, and Bailey followed that up with a walk to put the go-ahead run on. Chapman grounded into a force play, and Conforto and Soler both walked to load the bases.

It was yet another golden opportunity for the Giants, as Cubs Manager Craig Counsell went to Mark Leiter Jr., the son of former Giants’ pitcher Mark Leiter Sr. The Giants appeared ready to waste it when Yastrzemski struck out swinging for the second out, but this would turn out to be an opportunity they would not waste.

Well, they got a little help. Thairo Estrada was hit on the right forearm to give the Giants the lead. Brooks struck out swinging, and that ended the inning.

Unfortunately, the Giants’ lead would not last long. Rodriguez was back out for the bottom of the seventh, and he got catcher Miguel Amaya to ground out to short to start the inning. Wisdom then hit a popup to the right side of the infield, but there was confusion between the infielders, and the ball dropped. Morel popped up to catcher Patrick Bailey in foul territory, and Melvin went to left-hander Erik Miller.

Miller’s first pitch to Bellinger was a nut cutter slider right on the inside corner called a ball. Bailey took exception to the call by Manny Gonzalez, and after Miller threw a changeup down and away for ball two, Gonzalez called the next two pitches that were both in the zone balls, and Bellinger walked to put runners at first and second with two outs.

Suzuki now came up to the plate, and he pulled a double down the left field line to tie it. Happ then hit a bomb to the back of the bleachers to give the Cubs a 6-3 lead, and the damage was done. Leiter was back out for the top of the eighth, and Bailey hit a solo home run off the scoreboard in right to make it 6-4.

Next up was Matt Chapman, and after Gonzalez called him out on a nut cutter sinker at the knees, Melvin got ejected from the dugout and came out to give Gonzalez an earful. This was Melvin’s third ejection through 73 games this season. That ties the total of three his predecessor, Gabe Kapler, had in his entire four-stint managing the Giants.

Miller stayed out and threw a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the eighth, and Cubs’ Closer Hector Neris was brought in for the ninth. Conforto grounded out to second to begin the inning, but the Giants caught a break when Soler reached on catcher’s interference. Yastrzemski then walked to bring the go-ahead run to the plate for Thairo Estrada.

Estrada, who had been struggling, has started turning it around over the last few days. Here, he had an opportunity to keep it going, and keep it going he did. Estrada hit a three-run home run to left on the first pitch from Neris to give the Giants a 7-6 lead, and the normally-mild-mannered Estrada showed a lot of emotion rounding the bases.

Camilo Doval was torched when he was brought in to close the Giants’ blowout of the Angels yesterday at Oracle Park, and he would get a chance to quickly bounce back tonight. Doval has had a rough go at things since allowing four runs in a blown save and loss to the Yankees on June 2, as his ERA had ballooned up to 4.88.

The first man Doval would face was Patrick Wisdom, and Doval was immediately down 2-0. He then caught a break when Manny Gonzelez called a sinker that appeared to be off the plate for ball 3 a strike. Doval settled down and got Wisdom to pop out to first.

Gonzalez’s ball calls to Cody Bellinger in the bottom of the seventh helped lead to Seiya Suzuki’s three run home run, and here in the ninth, his strike calls certainly helped Doval calm down. That’s just Baseball.

“Umpiring’s not as easy job, but both sides have to deal with it.” said Melvin. “Sometimes, it goes your way; sometimes, it doesn’t.”

In the ninth, it went the Giants’ way. Not only did Doval come back to get Wisdom to pop, he ended up throwing a 1-2-3 inning to close it out.

“That’s what [Doval] does,” said Melvin. “It was difficult having to bring him in that game yesterday, because that’s all we had left; and we’re trying to play chess with this thing and have certain guys available on a certain day, and that’s not an ideal situation for a closer. [It] doesn’t surprise me [that] he came back and pitched the way he did today.”

The Giants’ offense wasted a couple more opportunities tonight, but the wind blowing out at Wrigley carried the Giants’ now-home run-happy offense to a big win.

“These guys are really pushing hard,” said Melvin. “It seems like, for a lot of the year, our at-bats get better later in the game.”

Erik Miller got the win; Hector Nerris got the loss; and Camilo Doval got his 13th save of the year. The Giants improve to 36-37, and they can get back up to .500 for the first time since May 31 with a win tomorrow night.

Doing the honors on the hill for the Giants Tuesday night will be their ace, Logan Webb (6-5. 3.02 ERA), and he will be opposed by left-hander Justin Steele (0-3, 3.22 ERA). First pitch will be at 7:05 p.m. at Wrigley FIeld, and 5:05 p.m. back home in San Francisco.

Giants News and Notes:

Some news on the injury front:

Kyle Harrison, who was scratched from his start yesterday after spraining his right ankle in his bullpen session Saturday stayed behind in San Francisco.

Blake Snell threw a bullpen session on Saturday in San Francisco, and tomorrow, he will pitch three innings in a simulated game. It will be Snell’s first time facing live hitting since straining his left groin in his last start, which came against the Yankees on June 2. Snell could possibly return to the rotation as soon as Saturday or Sunday when the Giants take on the Cardinals in St. Louis.

LaMonte Wade, who has been out since May 27 with a strained left hamstring, did travel with the team to Chicago to continue baseball activities. According to Andrew Baggarly, the Giants Beat Writer for The Athletic, Wade is “pushing” hard to play in Thursday’s game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, Alabama. However, after comments from Manager Bob Melvin, it does not appear that Wade will get to play in Thursday night’s game.

Robbie Ray is scheduled to pitch three innings in his third Arizona Complex League appearance when the ACL Giants take on the ACL White Sox at the Giants’ minor league spring training complex in Scottsdale.

Alex Cobb and Tristan Beck both had bullpen sessions today in San Francisco. It is unknown how those went.

Willie Mays, whose career started for the Birmingham Black Barons in the Negro American League in 1948, will not make the trip to Rickwood Field, which was the first professional ballpark he called home. Mays, 93, put out the following statement.

“I’m not able to get to Birmingham this year but will follow the game back here in the Bay Area,” said Mays. “My heart will be with all of you who are honoring the Negro League ballplayers, who should always be remembered, including all my teammates on the Black Barons. I wanted to thank Major League Baseball, the Giants, the Cardinals and all the fans who’ll be at Rickwood or watching the game. It’ll be a special day, and I hope the kids will enjoy it and be inspired by it.”

My thoughts:

If the Giants are going to make a serious run at the Playoffs, they cannot rely solely on home runs. The Giants are not entirely built to hit home runs, and Oracle Park is not a ballpark made for home runs. Hitting home runs will work in certain ballparks, but if they stay home run happy like this, it’s going to get them into trouble, just as we saw in the homestand last week.

When the Giants have runners in scoring position in a situation to put up a crooked number, it’s pretty much a given that they are going to waste it. The Giants have wasted an incredible amount of opportunities this year, and teams that waste the amount of opportunities that the Giants do typically don’t end up in the Postseason.

The Giants are perfectly capable of playing fundamental situational baseball and getting the big RBI hits when needed. In fact, that’s what they did when they won 10 of 12 at the end of May this year, and that’s what they did when they made their 57-38 run from May 15 to July 23 last year.

That’s what made it so frustrating when then-Manager Gabe Kapler expressed his disappointment with the lack of home runs the Giants were hitting following a 6-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Aug. 26 of last year. Kapler didn’t get, and despite his genius, President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidi sometimes seems not to get that this team is built to play situational baseball.

Bob Melvin does get it, and he acknowledged just that following the Giants’ 5-3 win over the Houston Astros last Wednesday. It was more apparent yesterday, when they scored nine of their 13 runs in their 13-6 win over the Los Angeles without a home run.

This team is a good team, and they are a much better team than people think. If they can consistently play good situational baseball and get healthy, then they stand a real shot at getting back to the Postseason this year.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Giants pound Angels for 9 run fourth for 13-6 win

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Bat meets the ball in the bottom of the fourth inning as San Francisco hitter Jorge Soler connects for a three run home run against the Los Angeles Angels at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sun Jun 16, 2024 (AP News photo)

On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Marko:

#1 Marko, the San Francisco Giants bats woke up in their 13-6 win over the Los Angeles Angels at Oracle Park after the Angels beat the Giants twice on walk runs on Friday and Saturday.

#2 Jorge Soler was part of that Giants nine run rally in the bottom of the fourth inning with a three run home run.

#3 The Giants hitting had been struggling and against a Angels team whose had their share of troubles the Giants had to be relieved they were able to make some good contact on Sunday.

#4 Giants manager Bob Melvin said you don’t see a nine spot too often especially when you come off a couple of walk off loses and the hitting’s been snake bitten.

#5 Giants open a six game road trip at Wrigley Field in Chicago on Monday. The Giants have not decided on a starter and the Cubs will start Javier Assad (4-2, ERA 2.81) first pitch slated for 5:05pm PT

Marko Ukalovic does the San Francisco Giants podcasts Mondays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Giants’ offense wakes up to take out frustrations on Angels with 13-6 win

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Bottom of the fourth inning and the San Francisco Giants Jorge Soler rounds the bases after hitting a three run homer against the Los Angeles Angels at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sun Jun 16, 2024 (AP News photo)

Sunday, June 16, 2024

Oracle Park

San Francisco, California

Los Angeles Angels 6 (28-43)

San Francisco Giants 13 (35-37)

Win: Spencer Bivens (1-0)

Loss: Jose Suarez (1-2)

Time: 2:48

Attendance: 41,008

By Stephen Ruderman

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants were able to avoid an embarrassing sweep at the hands of the Los Angeles Angels, as the Giants pounded the Angels into submission with nine-run bottom of the fourth inning and a 13-6 blowout to salvage a game in this series.

The Giants lost the first two games of what was very much a winnable series against the lowly Angels. Sunday, they looked to avoid getting swept in front of a sold out crowd on a drop-dead gorgeous Father’s Day at Oracle Park.

However, Kyle Harrison, who was supposed to make the start Sunday, was scratched and placed on the 15-Day Injured List after he sprained his right ankle in a bullpen session Saturday. With Harrison suddenly on the IL, Bob Melvin was forced to have to navigate through another bullpen game.

Left-hander Erik Miller got the start, and he ran into some tough luck in the top of the first inning. Michael Stefanic grounded out to short to start the game, but with one out, Luis Rengifo hit a chopper along the third base line that skipped off Matt Chapman’s glove and got by, which allowed Rengifo to reach base.

The play was ruled a base-hit, and Rengifo would then take second base on a passed ball by Patrick Bailey. Taylor Ward grounded out to third for the second out, and Rengifo was unable to advance. However, former Giant Kevin Pillar floated a base-hit to center field to score Rengifo and put the Angels on the board.

It would also be a bullpen game for the Angels, and Ben Joyce would be the opener. Brett Wisely struck out looking, and then Heliot Ramos stayed white hot with a ground ball to right field for a base-hit. However, Joyce got through the rest of the inning without any problems.

Spencer Bivens, who was called up to replace Harrison on the roster, would be the pitcher for the top of the second. Bivens has quite a remarkable story. He made the baseball team at Penn State, but he was just as quickly booted off after testing positive for marijuana.

Bivens pitched in 2017 and 2018 for Rogers State University in Oklahoma, and after he wasn’t drafted in 2019, he went all the way to France to pitch in a league that only played on weekends. He returned to the United States in 2020 to pitch in the little-known Washington League for a team called the Steel City Slammin’ Sammies.

The Washington League was one of the very few leagues other than Major League Baseball that played baseball in the COVID Pandemic Year of 2020, and Bivens took full advantage of that.

“I’m happy I stuck with it,” said Bivens. “I’m happy I pursued baseball in the U.S., because if it wasn’t for COVID, I don’t know if I’m here.”

Bivens split time between the Frontier League and the Atlantic League in 2021. He started the 2022 Season in the Atlantic League, but he was finally brought into organized baseball by the Giants, who signed him to a minor league deal.

After pitching in the minor leagues throughout the 2022 and 2023 seasons, Bivens went 4-0 with a 2.81 ERA in 21 games for the Sacramento River Cats this season. He also pitched this past off-season in the Mexican League. Then last night, just over 12 days shy of his 30th birthday, he finally got the call that he was going to the big leagues.

“I don’t even think I’ve had time to think about it,” said Bivens. “It’s happened so fast. It’s been unbelievable. You can’t make it up, and I have no words.”

The first hitter Bivens faced was Zach Neto, who Bevins out swinging on a sinker in the dirt that Bailey threw to first to complete the out. Nolan Schanuel then hit a home run to straightaway center to make it 2-0.

“I was really high, and then really low, really quick,” said Bivens. “But [I] just [did] not let it overwhelm [me]. Solo home runs don’t usually beat you. I’m just happy to be able to stay composed and get after it.”

Indeed, Bivens stayed composed. In fact, he retired the next eight men he faced, and he ended up retiring nine of 10 and striking out four over three innings in what was quite an impressive major league debut.

“You never want to forget what that day’s like,” said Melvin. “Coming out of the bullpen [in front of] a packed house here [and being in the] big leagues, especially with what he’s been through in his career, that’s about as good as it gets.”

The Giants wasted a two-out opportunity against Joyce in the bottom of the second, and then they drew left-hander Jose Suarez in the bottom of the third. Brett Wisely led off the inning with a double, and Ramos singled him over to third, which brought Bailey to the plate.

Bailey hit a ground ball to third that was fielded by third-baseman Luis Rengifo, who caught Wisely leaning off the bag at third. Rengifo caught Wisely in a rundown and tagged him out for a rough first out. Rengifo banged himself up when he tagged Wisely, but he stayed in the game.

Matt Chapman flew out to left field, and Michael Conforto popped up to Rengifo in foul territory, as the Giants had wasted another opportunity.

The Giants would get another opportunity against Suarez in the bottom of the fourth, and this time, they would cash in. Jorge Soler walked to start the inning, and Wilmer Flores doubled him over to third. Soler appeared to have an easy score, but he was held at third by Third Base Coach Matt Williams to the chagrin of this impatient sellout crowd.

Austin Slater pinch-hit for Mike Yastrzemski, and he was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Thairo Estrada. Estrada has been struggling, but he had hits in each of the first two games of this series.

Estrada then lined a double down the left field line, as the ball deadened out at the ball in the corner, and two runs scored to tie it up. Wisely then shot a double to the gap out in right-center, as back-to-back doubles had given the Giants a 4-2 lead.

For the Giants, they were just getting started. Old friend Hunter Strickland struck Ramos out swinging for the first out, but Bailey lined a single to load the bases for Chapman, who singled on a sharp one-hopper that hit off the wrist of Rengifo at third. This time, Rengifo had to leave the game with a left wrist contusion.

Conforto fouled out, and then Jorge Soler, who has finally been swinging the bat better with runners in scoring position, hit a three-run home run to left. The Giants had now scored eight runs in the bottom of the fourth, and they led it 8-2.

“[Soler]’s done it his whole career,” said Melvin. “It’s just been a little bit of a struggle for him here to this point, but that’s who he is.”

Flores reached after Cole Tucker, who had moved over to third, bobbled a ground ball, and threw it away. That brought up Slater, and he lined a base-hit out to right-center to score Flores and make it 5-2.

All in all, the Giants ended up scoring nine runs in the bottom of the fourth. This was the fourth time in the history of Oracle Park that the Giants had a four-run inning. The last time was Sept. 7, 2008, when the Giants scored 10 runs in the bottom of the fourth inning of that game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Sean Hjelle came in for Bivens and threw a 1-2-3 top of the fifth. Jose Marte, who had finished the bottom of the fourth for Strickland, would have pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the fifth had it not been for a one-out error by Nolan Schanuel at first, but he ended up pitching the minimum regardless after Bailey grounded into a double play.

Luke Jackson pitched a scoreless top of the sixth, and Marte did the same in the bottom of the sixth. Taylor Rogers then worked his way out of some two-out trouble to pitch a scoreless inning in the top of the seventh.

Austin Slater led off the bottom of the seventh with a home run to straightaway center off Carson Fulmer to make it 10-2. Tyler Rogers replaced his brother in the top of the eighth and gave up a leadoff double to Cole Tucker, but he pitched a scoreless inning anyway.

The Giants decided to score three more runs in the bottom of the eighth. Soler hit a ground-rule double with nobody out to make it 11-2, which capped off quite a day for him. Soler went 2-for-4 with a home run, a double and four RBIs.

Trenton Brooks then got in on the action with an opposite-field base-hit to left to score Soler and make it 12-2. Angels Manager Ron Washington had enough, and he brought in infielder Luis Guillorme to pitch. Another run would score when Wisely grounded into a fielder’s choice to make it 13-2.

Melvin decided to bring in his closer, Camilo Doval, who had not pitched in four days, for a maintenance outing in the top of the ninth. To be blunt: it didn’t go well. Doval was all over the place, and he got torched for four runs and four hits over just a third of an inning. Doval kicked a cooler and slammed his glove to the ground when he returned to the dugout.

“It’s tough for a closer to come in in that situation,” said Melvin. “He’s used to the game being on the line…..[but] he was our last guy that was fairly rested, and obviously, it didn’t work out. Closers typically don’t want to be in games like that.”

Fortunately, Ryan Walker was able to put out the fire, and the Giants were still able to win easily. Hey, at least the Giants won and were able to let a bit of frustrations out with a 13-run day at the plate.

To cap off Spencer Bivens’ special day, he got the win in his major league debut, and Jose Suarez took the loss.

“It doesn’t really feel real; I’m just waiting to wake up from the dream,” said Bivens. “It’s nothing like I imagined it, and it’s even better that it’s that way.”

Bivens also received lengthy praise from his skipper.

“He [knew] he [was] gonna have to give us three innings,” added Melvin. “We were going to have to go through everybody in the bullpen today…..I [had] two guys I [didn’t] want to use, but Spencer knew that [he had to go] three innings and he [would] probably have to get through it, and he did it efficiently, too.”

Melvin also said that he thought about sending Bivens back out for the fifth, but with how long the bottom of the fourth was, and the fact that Bivens had to sit awhile, Melvin decided against it

Oh yeah, and how about those 13 runs by the offense. They also got 16 hits. Six guys in the Giants’ lineup had two-hit games: Wisely, Ramos, Bailey, Soler, Slater and Estrada.

The Giants improve to 35-37, and they will now head back on the road for a unique three-city road trip. First, they will travel to the North Side of Chicago to take on the Cubs for three Monday night. Then they’ll travel to Birmingham, Alabama for a special game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Rickwood Field Thursday night, followed by two more games against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium in St. Louis on Saturday and Sunday.

The Giants have yet to announce who they will go with in the series opener Monday night. The Cubs will go with their young right-hander, Javier Assad, who has had quite a good season. Assad is 4-2 with a 2.81 ERA.

First pitch will be at 7:05 p.m. in Chicago, 5:05 p.m. back home in San Francisco.

Giants News and Notes:

Prior to the game, the Giants released right-handed reliever Nick Avila. Avila was on the 40-Man Roster, and a spot had to be cleared for Bivens.

Sunday’s sellout crowd of 41,008 is the largest crowd at Oracle Park since Sept. 4, 2022, when 41,189 fans filed into Oracle Park to watch Wilmer Flores complete a sweep of the Philadelphia Phillies with a walk-off home run.

Sunday was also the sixth sellout of the season for the Giants, already doubling their total of just three last season. The Giants have had a total attendance of 1,247,527 through 37 home games this season, which is the highest total at this point of the season since 2018, when they had drawn 1,432,567 fans through 37 home games.

Headline Sports podcast with Charlie O: Astros Verlander out with neck discomfort; O’s Bradish on 15 day IL Sprained UCL; plus more news

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Houston Astros starter Justin Verlander throws against the Los Angeles Angels on Sun Jun 9, 2024 at The Big A in Anaheim. Verlander missed a start on Sat Jun 15, 2024 against the Detroit Tigers in Houston due to neck discomfort (AP News photo)

On Headline Sports podcast with Charlie O:

#1 The Houston Astros have had their share of tough luck this season but their a battling group now eight games off the pace in the American League West in third place. That said their number one starter Justin Verlander was scratched from Saturday’s game with neck discomfort. Astros Joe Espada said that Verlander had been suffering the last two weeks with the neck discomfort.

#2 Baltimore Orioles right hand pitcher Kyle Bradish is on the 15 day IL with sprained right UCL. Bradish left after pitching against the Philadelphia Phillies complaining about his elbow. The Orioles lost to the Phillies 5-3 on Friday night as Bradish suffered the injury at Camden Yards.

#3 MLB had announced that they have suspended umpire Pat Hoberg for violating the game’s rules. This being ten days after baseball had suspended four players and one was banished for life. Hoberg is appealing the case and is waiting for MLB to present evidence that he bet on baseball. If Hoberg is found to bet on games that he did not umpire in he will be suspended for a year. If he is found to have bet on games he umpired he will be banned for life.

#4 Houston Astros Jose Abreu was released by the Astros and is owed $30.8 million of his $58.5 million three contract. Abreu 37 years old was hitting .124, (14-113) with two home runs and seven RBIs for this season.

#5 Lastly it was learned that the Oakland A’s do have an escape clause out of Las Vegas if they were to get taxed. Other sports teams in Las Vegas do not pay a sales tax on tickets. Other entertainment venues like concerts, comedy clubs and live performances charge a nine percent sales tax. If a tax were to be levied on the A’s they would have an escape clause to leave Las Vegas. It’s very unlikely they will get taxed.

Join Charlie O for Headline Sports podcast Sundays at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Despite heroic performance from Ramos Giants fall to Angels 4-3

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo courtesy of Los Angeles Angels.

By Titus Wilkinson (@TitusWisme)

The Giants battled with the Angels in the second of their three-game series over the weekend.

On the mound for the Giants would be Keaton Winn who has had a rough start to the season but was looking for a bounce back win with his record sitting at 3-7.

While for the Angels it was Patrick Sandoval who has also had a similarly rough start to his campaign with a 2-8 record to start the season.

Things started off with a bang for the Giants offense as in the bottom of the first inning as the red hot Heliot Ramos launched on to center field getting a two-run homer. It was his eighth homer of the season and had an exit velo of 107.7 mph.

The Angels in the second responded with a long ball of their own this time off the bat of Mickey Moniak who made it a 2-1 ballgame.

Ramos’s night wasn’t quite done as in the fifth he would double getting Curt Casali home and giving the Giants their two-run lead back.

Once again though the Angels had a response and it what a response it would be. The tying runs came from Logan O’Hoppe who absolutely crushed one over the center field wall a total of 467 ft. Not only did it travel incredibly far it also exited off the bat at 110 mph. Truly a home run O’Hoppe will probably never forget.

With the game now tied 3-3 the Angles would take their first lead of the game in the seventh as Luis Rengifo singled to get Nolan Schanuel home.

Ramos managed to get another hit on the night as doubled in the seventh, but the Giants did nothing with it. That hit from Ramos ended up being the last hit from the Giants as they’d be shut down the rest of the way eventually losing 4-3.

Getting the win for the Angels would be Matt Moore who improves to 3-2 on the season. While Ryan Walker took the loss dropping his record to 4-3.

As mentioned above, Ramos had a stellar night with three hits and three RBI’s almost single-handedly leading the Giants to a win.

For the Angels the true best player of the game for them was O’Hoppe with his clutch home run and another hit in the game as well.

The loss drops the Giants to 34-37 and the Angels now move up to 28-42.

The Giants will look to avoid the dreaded sweep tomorrow these two teams will close out the weekend series at 1:05 p.m. on Sunday.

Giants’ Saturday Post-Game Notes & Quotes

Published on by moepeaLeave a comment

By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–When was today’s 4-3 loss to the Angels decided? When Luke Jackson, the Giants’ third pitcher of the afternoon took the mound, and after he recorded the first two outs of the inning. At that point, Jackson walked Nolan Schanuel in a lengthy eight-pitch at-bat. With Luis Rengifo batting, Schanuel stole his first major-league base, and advanced to third on Curt Casali’s throwing error. Rengifo followed with a base-hit that gave the Angels their first lead of the afternoon.

“(The steal and then the error) gave Rengifo a chance to put the ball in play, which he does. And he found an open space — and ended up scoring a run that ended up being the winning run.” manager Ron Washington said.

The Giants have lost 19 games this season in which they had a lead at some point during the game. Those 19 games are the fifth most in MLB.

Casali’s throwing error was the 45th Giants error of the season. That number 45 ranks them second in errors committed in the NL only to the Marlins (48).

Schanuel’s stolen base was the 73rd stolen against the Giants this season. That number 73 leaves them tied for the most allowed in MLB with the Mets.

Heliot Ramos homered for the second straight day to give him eight homers on the season. It’s the second time this month he’s homered in consecutive games.

“He needs some help, too,” manager Bob Melvin said of Ramos. “He knocked in all three runs today and we left some out there.”

The Giants fell to 2-3 on their current homestand (Astros, Angels) with only Sunday’s series finale remaining. The Giants are now 26-18 all-time versus the Angels, excluding their World Series together in 2001.

Washington, 72, gave his thoughts on the Giants’ upcoming appearance against the Cardinals at Rickwood Field in Birmingham, AL: “Baseball as a whole is bringing this thing back together in the way that it should.”

Washington never played in the Negro Leagues. He spent 10 seasons playing in the minor leagues for three different organizations (Royals, Mets and Dodgers). “Wash” expressed his gratitude that the Giants have vowed to bring all of their African-American players to Birmingham for the experience, regardless of whether they are currently on the active roster. LaMonte Wade, the Giants’ injured first baseman, has a chance to make his return to active duty at Rickwood Field on Thursday with that decision to be made early next week. Washington also lit up when retelling the stories of Josh Gibson and Cool Papa Bell, two of the Negro Leagues’ biggest superstars.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: Giants Spencer struggled, Halos get 3 runs in third and 4 runs in fourth to top SF

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

It was a painful exit for San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Howard Spencer (56) as he hands to ball off to manager Bob Melvin (left) in the top of the third inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sat Jun 15, 2024

On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris:

#1 Morris, San Francisco Giants starter Spencer Howard didn’t last long as he was lifted in the third inning after giving up seven hits and four earned runs. Not the kind of outing that Howard wanted to start the game off with.

#2 The Los Angeles Angels who have gone through their paces this season spent a deal of it in last place in the American League West but have moved out of the basement after last place the Oakland A’s have been on a steady decline currently losing 10 of their last 12 games and the Angels have won six of their last nine.

#3 One key thing to the Angels defeat over the Giants on Friday was they got a quality start from Tyler Anderson who went five innings with five hits, one earned run, five walks and five strikeouts.

#4 The Angels ball club has responded to manager Ron Washington. Washington who coached in Oakland, led the Texas Rangers to the World Series twice, and his last stint was a coach for the Atlanta Braves wants to really drive and make this Angels club relevant once again.

#5 It’s going to be a big week for you Morris, your headed off to Birmingham for the Negro Leagues Tribute at Rickwood Field in Birmingham when the Giants and the St Louis Cardinals play in the oldest park in the minor leagues on June 20th?

Morris Phillips is MLB podcast contributor at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Angels Moniak gets three hits and Anderson provides the pitching; Halos defeat Giants 8-6 at Oracle

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Francisco Giants’ Thairo Estrada, left, scores next to Los Angeles Angels catcher Logan O’Hoppe during the eighth inning of a baseball game Friday, June 14, 2024, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)

Los Angeles (AL) (27-42). 013 400 000. 8 11 0

San Francisco (34-36). 001 000 050. 6 10 1

Friday, June 16, 2024

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–Having won five of their last seven games, the Giants once more were flirting with competitiveness when they faced the Los Angeles Angels this cool and breezy Friday evening. They figuratively failed to reach first base, falling to the fallen Angels, 8-6, that seemed to be a walk in the park for the visitors until the Giants made it close in the eighth..

The home team was busy, even before the 7:16 first pitch, Nick Ahmed came off the injured list, who is expected to bring some needed stability to short, started at that position, where he made some nifty plays, and went two for four at the plate. Casey Schmitt, who had been filling the void left by Ahmed’s departure, was optioned to Sacramento, and Marco Luciano, another shortstop, wound up his rehab assignment and, like Schmitt, was optioned to the River Cats.

Spencer Howard, at 0-2, 2.03 and coming off a strong 4-2/3 inning stint in Arlington, looked like a good choice to start for San Francisco. He wasn’t.

The 27 year old native of San Luis Opispo lasted a scant 2-1/3 frames, in which he managed to throw 59 pitches, 25 of which were balls. He surrendered four runs, all of them earned, on seven hits and a walk. He took the loss and now has a record of 0-1, 4.02.

The ex-Giant and eight year big league veteran, 34 year old southpaw change up artist Tyler Anderson, started the evening at 5-6, 2.63 and ended it at 6-6, 2.58. Bay Area favorite Ron Washington, at the helm for the Angels, decided to pull him with Thairo Estrada at bat and runners on first and second with one down in the bottom of the sixth.

Ben Joyce got Estrada on a slow grounder to short and closed down the nascent threat with Ahmed’s ground out to third. In his 5-1/3 innings of labor Anderson held the orange and black to a single tally, which was earned, on five hits, fiver walks, and to keep things symmetrical, five strikeouts.

The Angels opened the scoring in the top of the second. Logan O’Hoppe’s hard line shot ate up Ahmed at short for a single to left. Zach Neto bounced into a short to second force out only to be followed by Mickey Moniak’s blast that hopped over the right centerfield fence for an automatic double that put two runners in scoring position.

One of them, O’Hoppe, scored on Michael Stefanic’s clean single to right. They padded their lead in their next turn at bat on a leadoff walk to Taylor Ward, Kevin Pillar’s double to right that sent Ward to third, where he didn’t stop but went on to score on Austin Slater throwing error on returning the ball to second. A walk to O’Hoppe put runners on first and second. Each moved up 90 feet on Neto’s sacrifice bunt. They didn’t stay there for long; Moniak’s down the line two bagger made the score 4-0. An infield single and base on balls later, Howard was through, and Randy Rodríguez was on the mound to get the final two outs.

He retired another batter in the fourth before the roof fell in. There’s no point in narrating the horror show; a list the Angels’ acts of mayhem will do.

1) An RBI double by O’Hoppe. (Pillar was on first with a walk after his fly into the left field seats, which had been ruled a home run became a foul ball upon review; a home run by Neto (his ninth); and a triple by Moniak). Anderson now had an eight run lead to work with.

He also had a chance for his arm to tighten up after his teammates had batted around while they rounded the bases. The Giants scrapped up a run in the home fourth on singles by Wilmer Flores and Jorge Soler, a walk to Michael Conforto, and a double play that brought Flores home to make it 8-1.

Luke Jackson pitched a perfect sixth , giving way to Taylor Rogers, who allowed a single and a walk but no runs in the seventh before being replaced by Erik Miller for the penultimate episode. He disposed of the Halos in 1,2,3 order.

The Giants drove Adam Cimber from the mound after he faced five batters in the home eighth. Four of them reached base. Leading off, Soler was hit by a pitch and went to second on a wild pitch and then to third on Soler’s ground out to second.

He scored on Estrada’s single to left. 8-2. Ahmed singled to left, moving Estrada to second. Mike Yastrzemski pinch hit for Slater and doubled off the bricks over the State farm advertisement in right, driving in Estrada. 8-3. Héliot Ramos sent an 82 mph sider 422 feet, over the center field fence. 8-6. Bailey bunted for a single but was wiped out when Chapman grounded into a 6-4-3 double play. But we had a ball game.

Sean Hjelle mowed the Angel down to take us into the do. or die bottom of the ninth. Carlos Estevezz was on the hill for the Halos. Flores sent a. high fly deep into left field, where Pillar caught it at the wall. Soler fouled out to first. And Conforto went down swinging. That earned Estevez his 11th save of the season

For the Giants it was a valiant attempt and a painful loss.

Saturday at 1:05, Keaton Winn (3-7, 6.94) will face the Angels and Patrick Sandoval (2-8, 5.23) in the second of this three game series.

Webb solid and Giants’ offense comes to life to take series over Astros with 5-3 win

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

San Francisco Giants pitcher Logan Webb delivers against the Houston Astros in the top of the sixth inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Wed Jun 12, 2024 (AP News photo)

Wednesday, June 12, 2024

Oracle Park

San Francisco, California

Houston Astros 3 (31-38)

San Francisco Giants 5 (34-35)

Win: Logan Webb (6-5)

Loss: Framber Valdez (5-4)

Save: Camilo Doval (12)

Time: 2:07

Attendance: 34,506

By Stephen Ruderman

SAN FRANCISCO–Wednesday, June 12, 2024

Oracle Park

San Francisco, California

Houston Astros 3 (31-38)

San Francisco Giants 5 (34-35)

Win: Logan Webb (6-5)

Loss: Framber Valdez (5-4)

Save: Camilo Doval (12)

Time: 2:07

Attendance: 34,506

By Stephen Ruderman

SAN FRANCISCO–The Giants’ offense came to life, as they backed up another solid start from Logan Webb with five runs enroute to a 5-3 win over the Houston Astros to take the series.

The home run-happy ways of the Giants’ offense have caught up to them, as they have been limited to just six runs over their last three games. As the Giants looked to take the rubber match of this series on this sunny but hazy getaway afternoon at Oracle Park, the offense would need to wake up and not solely rely on home runs.

With their ace, Logan Webb, on the mound, if the offense would be flexible, the Giants would be in pretty good shape today. Webb started the game with three scoreless innings.

The big left-hander, Framber Valdez made the start for Houston, and he pitched two scoreless innings to start his day, but the Giants would threaten in the bottom of the third. Mike Yastrzemski led things off with a line-drive base-hit up the middle on the first pitch of the inning, and that got things going.

“[I’ve] just been working on staying tall through the middle of the field lately, and it’s been feeling really good,” said Yastrzemski. It’s just about getting on base, honestly, at that point.”

Slater reached on a bunt single, and both runners advanced to second and third on a ground out by Heliot Ramos.

Wilmer Flores was then sawed off, as he hit a broken-bay fly ball to shallow left-center field, and Astros’ left-fielder Yordan Alvarez came in to make a running basket catch. It would be a sacrifice fly, as Yastrzemski scored the game’s first run, and Slater advanced to third. Matt Chapman then clubbed a double into the gap in right-center to knock in Slater and make it 2-0.

The Astros had a response in the top of the fourth. Alvarez doubled high off the wall in left with one out, and Jon Singleton grounded out to first to move Alvarez over to third. Jeremy Pena then hit a chopper the other way that first-baseman Wilmer Flores had to go almost all the way to second to field, but Webb was late in covering the bag, which allowed Alvarez to score and get Houston on the board.

The Giants had their own response off Valdez in the bottom of the fourth. Jorge Soler’s success with the bases empty continued, as he lined a base-hit to left to start the inning, and Brett Wisely stayed hit with a ground rule double to put runners at second and third with nobody out. Thairo Estrada swung out swinging, and Yastrzemski was hit by a pitch near his head to load the bases for the now-red-hot Austin Slater.

Slater hit the walk-off base-hit in the bottom of the 10th on Monday, and he was back in the lineup today to face Valdez, who he was 3-for-6 against coming into today. Slater already singled in his first two plate appearances before stepping in against Valdez in the bottom of the fourth.

With the count at 1-2, Slater took a low sinker from Valdez and flipped a base-hit to right-center to score a pair and make it 4-1. Make it 3-for-3 on the day for Slayer, and 6-for-9 in his career against Valdez. Ramos then knocked in Yastrzemski with a sacrifice fly to center to make it 5-1.

For his second straight outing, Webb had real run support. He had four runs of support in his last outing last Friday against the Rangers in Arlington, Texas, and Wednesday, he had five runs of support through the first four innings.

“It was awesome,” said Webb. “Those guys [have] been grinding [and have] been getting a lot of hits, and then [they] put it all together Wednesday. Obviously, as a pitcher, you love that, but it was great to see.”

Following the Giants’ three-run bottom of the fourth, Webb pitched a shutdown 1-2-3 inning in the top of the fifth. The Giants had runners at first and second with one out against the Astros’ new pitcher, Seth Martinez, in the bottom of the fifth, but this was the Giants’ offense, so they had to waste at least one opportunity today, and that’s what they did.

“Once we scored two, and then we scored again, I think that was a big thing for us,” said Yastrzemski. “We’ve had some tendencies of scoring early, and then not really keeping our foot on the pedal. Today, I felt like we did a better job at that. We still could’ve done it a little bit more [and] tried to blow the game open a little bit, but you never complain about a win.”

The Astros would narrow the gap in the top of the sixth. Alex Bregman led off the inning with a base-hit up the middle, and Alvarez, who nearly missed a home run his previous time up, hit a home run into the Giants’ bullpen that barely cleared the 399-foot marker out in left-center.

It was now 5-3, but Webb was then able to retire the side to end the inning. That would be it for another solid start for Webb. Webb did give up seven hits, but three runs over six innings is your classic quality outing, and he certainly gave the Giants what they needed Wednesday.

“It’s unfortunate and not fair to him that we expect that now at this point,” said Yastrzemski. “You never wanna put that type of level of success on somebody and expect that to be average. He just goes out there and gives his all every time he gets to pitch, and he’s so fun to play behind. He’s a bulldog out there, so there’s always those moments where he has those stellar games, but all those stellar games feel normal, which is not really fair to him. It’s just an attest to how good of a pitcher he really is.”

Webb had only thrown 83 pitches, but after hurting himself on the final play of his last outing, Bob Melvin did not want to push it with Webb Wednesday. Webb did not go into much detail about the injury when he was interviewed after the game last Friday, but he acknowledged that it was precursor to a shoulder injury that he had in 2021.

“I didn’t want to come out of the game, I can tell you that right now,” said Webb. “I trust Bob with every decision, and I agreed with him to be honest. I feel great, but it’s a long season and a long way to go, so I get why we were cautious with that.”

Slater nearly got his fourth hit with one out in the bottom of the sixth, as he reached on a wild throw from Alex Bregman on a ground ball to third. However, even though it was a very close play regardless of the throw, it was ruled an error on Bregman.

It was still quite a day for Slater, the longest-tenured Giant, who went 3-for-5, and has been swinging the bat well after a brutal start to his season. It was his first three-hit game since Sept. 25 of last year. Interestingly, the last time Slater had a five-at bat game was exactly a year ago today, when he went 3-for-5 against the Cardinals in St. Louis.

“He’s just grinded it out,” said Yastrzemski. “He has kept his attitude up; he’s kept his positivity; he knew it would turn around; [and] we all knew it would turn around, so it’s great to see him having the success we know he’s capable of, and a lot of credit to him for just working his tail off.”

Despite the error, Martinez ended up pitching a scoreless inning in the bottom of the sixth. The Giants’ bullpen took it from there. Ryan Walker threw a 1-2-3 top of the seventh, and Tyler Rogers pitched a scoreless top of the eighth. Shawn Dubin came in for Houston and threw scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth.

It was off to the ninth, which meant that it was time for Camilo Doval. Doval has been shaky as of late, and it showed a bit Wednesday, as he retired Singleton and Peña on well-hit deep fly balls. However, he did strike out Dubon on a check swing to end it, and hey, – 1-2-3 inning’s a 1-2-3 inning.

Logan Webb got the win; Framber Valdez got the loss; and Camilo Doval picked up his 12th save. The Giants improve to 34-35, and they’ll have a chance to pad their record against a weak Los Angeles Angels team this weekend.

“At this point, it’s just about trying to stay in the mix,” said Yastrzemski. “We’ve still got some guys that are banged up a little bit, and it’s about starting healthy and playing good consistent baseball. We’ll let the record just take care of itself.”

This win came without a home run, as they did get the key RBI hits when they mattered today.

“That’s the way we’re gonna need to be able to play, especially at home,” said Melvin. “Sometimes, it’s tough to hit homers here. It had a big impact, the home runs that we hit on the road, those get crooked numbers up right away, and that has a big impact, but here at home, it’s a little bit more difficult at times, so we’re gonna have to play the way we did today: Get guys on base, [and] get some key hits.”

The Giants will enjoy a day off at home Thursday, and then they will welcome in the Angels for three starting Friday night. Spencer Howard (0-0, 2.93 ERA) will take the hill for the Giants when they open the series on Friday. The Angels have yet to announce their starter for Friday’s game, which will get underway at 7:15 p.m.