Longoria, Posey power SF
Giants veterans Buster Posey and Evan Longoria have combined for more than 20 years of major league service time, earned nine AllStar nods, won five Silver Sluggers and brought home four Gold Glove Awards.
At this point in their respective careers, the days of competing for and receiving individual awards are behind them. The days of leading the Giants to victory, however, might still be alive and well.
Following a gut-wrenching loss on Opening Night, Posey and Longoria each homered for the second straight game while the team’s reigning Silver Slugger Award winner, Donovan Solano, delivered the goahead hit in a resilient 6-3 victory over the Mariners.
The Giants blew a fiverun eighth inning lead on Thursday, but came from behind to secure their first win of the season Friday
thanks to contributions from their eldest players.
After the Giants used five relief pitchers on Opening Night behind starter Kevin Gausman, the club was hopeful starter Johnny Cueto, 35, could provide length that would prevent a number of key relievers from needing to throw on back-to-back nights.
In the early innings, Cueto didn’t appear as if he was
ready to save the bullpen.
Cueto needed 29 pitches to navigate through a lengthy second inning and after Posey homered to tie the game in the third, the Giants’ starter battled command issues and gave up a pair of runs in a rough third inning.
With his pitch count climbing and the Mariners gaining confidence, Cueto turned the tables on Seattle
by staying as unpredictable as possible. The veteran finished his outing by picking up a strikeout on a changeup, a flyout on a fastball, a pop-up on another fastball and inducing a double play groundout on a slider.
Cueto threw 105 pitches, relying heavily on his offspeed offerings as he mixed in 29 sliders, 28 changeups, 25 fastballs, 19 sinkers and three curveballs, according to Statcast.