By Morris Phillips
SAN FRANCISCO — Five innings pitched, three runs allowed, two of them earned, and a no decision on a dreary afternoon at Oracle Park. May not sound like much, but the dueling debuts put forth by Shaun Anderson and Edwin Jackson on Tuesday were accompanied with quite a bit of notoriety.
For Jackson, his first appearance for the visiting Blue Jays marked the 14th different major league team he’s played for–in 17 seasons–a big league record laced with nomadic perseverance.
For Anderson, his major league debut came with a statistical oddity, and a promise that if he keeps doing what he’s doing–unlike Jackson–he’ll stay right where he is–with the Giants–as long as professionally possible.
“He’s in the rotation right now,” said manager Bruce Bochy, in an agreeable mindset after Brandon Crawford’s solo shot broke a sixth inning tie and propelled the Giants to a 4-3 win.
Anderson made his no-decision memorable by getting his first two big league hits, striking out five, and committing an error. Definitely a statistical mixed bag, but a first, at least since Boo Ferris scared Red Sox fans with a similar line in his 1945 major league debut.
“He looked good out there,” said teammate Aramis Garcia. “A little debut magic.”
Anderson was acquired from Boston in the Eduardo Nunez trade in 2017, and the 24-year old elevated himself to the status of the organization’s top pitching prospect in the season plus since the deal. With Derek Holland demoted, Dereck Rodriguez and Tyler Beede optioned, Anderson got the nod after posting a 2-1 record in seven starts with the River Cats.
Anderson allowed an RBI double to Freddy Galvez in the first, but settled enough to give his club a shot at a win, despite uncorking a run scoring wild pitch in the third, and an errant pickoff throw in the fifth that contributed to the Blue Jays’ third run.
The rookie literally turned heads with his borrowed bat, smashing a double off the wall in his first at-bat, and a single through the infield in his second.
Garcia did his part, backing his familiar battery mate from Sacramento with a calming influence behind the plate, as well as his first home run of the season in the second. Garcia’s shot gave the Giants a 3-1 lead after two innings.
Jackson was acquired by the Jays from Oakland last week. He was obstensibly out of baseball prior to that after giving the A’s a meaningful contribution in their ride to the playoffs in 2018. Without the velocity on his pitches that he once had, Jackson showed why he continues to get opportunities by keeping the Jays within reach for five frames despite Garcia’s homer and Pablo Sandoval’s RBI double.
“I’m not one to give in,” Jackson said. “I feel like out of those 14 teams, some have been situations that would probably make people want to go home and quit and cry.”
“For me, the tougher it gets, the harder I work to prove that I can get outs in the major leagues.”
The Giants have Thursday off before starting a weekend series against the Diamondbacks in Phoenix. Jeff Samardzija gets the starting nod in the opener.
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