Giants 7, Cardinals 2
Despite Kevin Gausman’s absence, San Francisco wins second-half opener.
ST. LOUIS — Kevin Gausman’s anticipated first start of the second half was pushed back because of a family emergency, and rookie Logan Webb stepped in for the AllStar and threw four solid innings.
Webb was sent to TripleA Sacramento to get in some work during this week’s AllStar break. But instead of starting for the River Cats on Thursday, he wound up working Friday at Busch Stadium, where he helped the Giants open the second half with a 72 victory over the Cardinals.
San Francisco did have an unwelcome development, even while improving to a bigleague best 5832 — AllStar shortstop Brandon Crawford came out of the game in the eighth with hamstring cramping.
Crawford, who leads the club with 18 homers and 58 RBIs, looked uncomfortable during his final atbat and while running up the line on his base hit to right. Manager Gabe Kapler said that Crawford was getting treatment Friday night and might get more Saturday.
San Francisco kept up its homerhappy ways Friday, with Mike Yastrzemski delivering two, a solo shot and a threerun homer, and LaMonte Wade Jr. adding a threerun drive.
The Giants led the majors with 132 homers in the first half; Yastrzemski has 14, despite two stints on the injured list. Wade has added eight, though he primarily has been a fillin for Brandon Belt and has played in only 40 games — none of them against lefthanded pitchers. “Those were quality swings,” Kapler said.
“We really did a good job of sticking to our game plan, that’s what made us so successful the first part of the year,” Yastrzemski said.
Gausman was placed on emergency family leave in order to be with his wife, Taylor, who was hospitalized near their home in Louisiana with pregnancy complications. “Taylor’s well, and it’s possible she’ll be out of the hospital in the next couple of days,” Kapler said.
Webb blazed through the first three innings, allowing two hits, but the Cardinals made him work in the fourth. Nolan Arenado singled and, with two outs, Tommy Edman sent him in with a bloop to left. St. Louis proceeded to load the bases before Webb struck out pitcher Adam Wainwright, but it took Webb 26 pitches to get through the inning.
The Giants got excellent work from the bullpen, especially two men brought in in sticky situations. Jarlin Garcia took over in the sixth to face pinchhitter Matt Carpenter with two on and one out and got a grounder that was a shade too slow for a double play. Garcia then struck out Dylan Carlson.
The next inning, the Giants got yet another new contributor: Jay Jackson, called up Friday, took over with the bases loaded and two outs. And Jackson, who has played everywhere from Peoria to Mazatlan to Hiroshima, struck out Harrison Bader looking, Jackson’s first strikeout in the majors since Sept. 27, 2019. He also picked up the win.
“That wasn’t the soft landing spot we were hoping for,” Kapler said. “We probably put him in the most difficult possible situation.”
Cardinals manager Mike Shildt tried a similar maneuver in the top of the seventh. With one on and one out, he brought in lefty T.J. McFarland, the former A’s reliever. But after Thairo Estrada made an out, Yastrzemski crushed a homer to right center. Oh, the hazards of the threebatter minimum rule: Yastrzemski is 9for10 with three homers off McFarland.