Rookie Dereck Rodriguez dazzles Astros but bullpen betrays Giants
SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy admits he doesn’t know all the candidates for National League Rookie of the Year.
He likes his guy, and 26-year-old right-hander Dereck Rodriguez delivered perhaps his best performance yet on Monday night, but the Giants couldn’t cash it in for a victory against the World Series champion Houston Astros.
Marwin Gonzalez spoiled the night for most of 40,251 fans at AT&T Park, crushing a three-home home run off reliever Will Smith with two outs in the top of the ninth, and the Astros escaped with a 3-1 win.
Rodriguez allowed just three hits through seven scoreless innings — none of them after the third inning — to out-duel Astros 12-game winner Charlie Morton. He tied a career-high with seven strikeouts before sitting down after 94 pitches.
Brandon Crawford’s two-out home run in the sixth inning positioned the Giants to win for the ninth time in Rodriguez’s past 10 starts.
Rodriguez, whose 2.34 earned run average is the best of any NL rookie, has impressed manager Bochy since his May 29 debut.
While admitting he’s not well-informed about the competition, Bochy suggested the son of Hall of Fame catcher Ivan Rodriguez will be part of the NL Rookie of the Year conversation.
“There’s no question this guy’s going to get really strong consideration,” Bochy said. “What a terrific job he’s done. He’s just got to go out and do his thing every fifth day and don’t think about that.”
The Rookie of the Year frontrunner is likely the Washington Nationals’ 19-year-old Juan Soto, who is batting .310 with 13 home runs and 37 RBI in 66 games.
The Astros arrived in town for a two-game set without most of the big names that helped them become world champs a year ago. Outfielder George Springer, MVP of the World Series, was placed on the disabled list with a dislocated thumb.
He joins four other Houston players on the DL, including 2017 National League MVP Jose Altuve (knee) and 2017 All-Star shortstop Carlos Correa (lower back soreness).
The Giants did little against Morton, who had a no-hitter until Evan Longoria blooper a single to right
with two outs in the fourth. Morton allowed just three hits while striking out eight, but Crawford sent a 2-2 pitch onto the right-field landing in the sixth for his 11th homer of the season.
— If former five-time AllStar Andrew McCutchen is worried about his future with the Giants, he isn’t giving it away.
During his nine seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, including a National League MVP campaign in 2013, McCutchen never had to ponder the possibility he would be traded. He was a Pittsburgh fixture.
As the Giants teeter between playoff contender or outsider in the final two months of the season, McCutchen’s name has emerged as one who could be moved if the team fades. The 31-year-old is a free agent at season’s end and he has value.
“It’s not strange at all, that’s baseball. It’s just the way it goes,” McCutchen said of the uncertainty that looms over him. “At the end of the day you’re still playing the game you love. I’m not focused on the future because that’s not promised. I’m enjoying where I am now. It’s been a fun run.”
— Pablo Sandoval was scheduled to undergo seasonending surgery Tuesday morning to repair his injured right hamstring, Bochy confirmed.
Sandoval suffered the injury Sunday, ending a season where he earned a roster spot in spring training, then batted .248 with nine home runs and 40 RBI while helping out at both third and first base.