Giants fall to Braves in 11th; Astros stifle A’s
ATLANTA — Weird stat of the day: 40.
That’s the number of quality starts for the Giants’ rotation. That’s the second-most in the majors behind the pitching-rich Nationals. That’s mighty peculiar.
Jeff Samardzija was the latest pitcher to add to the Giants’ total Wednesday night by yielding three runs in seven innings, but it came in the Giants’ rain-delayed 5-3 loss to the Braves, so what good was it?
Not much, because the Giants’ offense did its usual thing. Three runs on seven hits. Hunter Pence’s ninth-inning home run made it 3-3, giving the Giants hope for their first winning streak since May 27-28.
But Matt Kemp won it in the 11th on a two-run homer off Cory Gearrin, who walked Nick Markakis with one out. It was the Giants’ eighth loss in nine games and 17th of 22.
No one can blame Samardzija. For the third time in the series, a Giant had a quality start, which is defined as six or more innings pitched and three or fewer earned runs allowed. It’s a good way to measure a start, but not always.
The Giants are 1-2 in those games, including a Johnny Cueto loss in the opener, proving a quality start can be meaningless if it doesn’t come with run support.
“It’s one of the markers on your list as a starter, right?” Samardzija said. “It starts with a complete game shutout and goes down from there. If that’s what your day ends up being, it’s an OK day. It’s not what I’m going for.
“I’m looking to go a little deeper into the game, getting to the seventh, eighth, ninth inning and feeling strong and giving the bullpen a day’s rest.”
That’s what Samardzija would have done with some offensive support, which brings us to our next stat: 3.7. That’s how many runs the Giants average per game, ranking 29th in the majors. That says it all.
Thanks to Pence’s tying homer, Samardzija, who threw just 79 pitches, didn’t get the loss. Still, he’s 2-9, and some of that is a lack of run support — his is fourth lowest in the majors.
All while leading the staff in innings, with a strikeout-to-walk ratio that’s off the charts. He fanned eight and walked none Wednesday, giving him 77 K’s and three walks in his past 10 starts.
“You look at the numbers, the walks, the strikeouts, the body of work he’s given us, he’s really thrown the ball well,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “The record isn’t indicative of how he’s thrown, and he doesn’t let that bother him. This can get to a pitcher, and it doesn’t with him.”
The Giants are 21-11 when they score more than three runs, 6-36 when they don’t. Those are telling numbers in a season that’s gone bad. The offense hasn’t cut it. That’s not to say the rotation has. Its ERA ranks in the bottom half of baseball, but it hasn’t been as inefficient as the lineup.
“This game is about being resiliant, learning and fighting for your teammates,” Samardzija said. “So I’m going to go out there and try to get those guys in the dugout as fast as possible. I want them hitting. It doesn’t always go that way, and that’s OK.
“It’s not like guys are out there moping or giving less effort. Everybody’s out here battling their asses off, and it’s going to continue to be that way until we force it to turn around.”
The Braves homered twice off Samardzija, Matt Adams’ tworun blast in the fourth and Tyler Flowers’ solo shot. Two triples led to the Giants’ first two runs. Brandon Belt tripled home Pence in the second — the Giants’ lone hit with runners in scoring position — and Denard Span tripled and scored on a wild pitch in the eighth.