Slow start to big week against two contenders
Omar Narvaez hit a first-inning single for the Brewers in their 3-1 win over the Giants on Monday night at Oracle Park. After three more games with Milwaukee, the second-pace Dodgers come to S.F. For the game story, please see
Considering that the Giants wound up with an unexpected bullpen game Monday, the relief staff did a fairly respectable job. The problem for San Francisco was on the other side of the diamond: Corbin Burnes started for the Brewers.
Burnes, an All-Star for Milwaukee this season, threw his second gem of the month against the Giants in Milwaukee’s 3-1 win. He allowed four hits and one run while striking out nine in six-plus innings, lowering his ERA to 2.27. San Francisco, which managed only one run against Burnes on Aug. 8, is stagnant at the plate, scoring one run over the past 18 innings.
The Giants and Brewers are a terrific matchup, as they showed in a whale of a series at Milwaukee earlier in August, with two extra-inning games in the mix. Both teams entered this week leading their respective divisions, and Monday was the first time in 28 years in which the Giants and their opponents both entered a series at least 25 games over .500, according to Stats LLC. The teams have split the four games they’ve played, with three more games at Oracle Park this week.
Even with the loss, the Giants still have the majors’ best record, at 84-47, but after losing three of their past four, the Rays (83-48) and Dodgers (83-49 after Monday’s 5-3 win over Atlanta) are closing in. The Dodgers trail San Francisco by 1½ games in the NL West, with a three-game series between the teams opening at Oracle Park on Friday.
On Monday, San Francisco was missing one of its better hitters of late; Tommy La Stella, who’d hit .289 with two homers and eight RBIs over his past 14 games, was scratched with left side tightness about an hour before the game. On the other hand, Kris Bryant returned from right side tightness after missing two games and, after a double by Brandon Belt, he singled in the seventh to chase Burnes. Brandon Crawford followed by bouncing a single to right off Brad Boxberger to cut the difference to one.
That was followed by two less than successful at-bats. Mike Yastrzemski hit a tapper in front of the plate that wound up erasing Crawford at second, and Dickerson, first-pitch swinging, popped up to shortstop.
That said, much of the Giants’ night offensively was spent watching searing liners settle into gloves. Darin Ruf ’s 107.6-mph pinch-hit drive with men at the corners with two outs in the seventh was emblematic of the evening — it rocketed straight to Christian Yelich in left field. LaMonte Wade Jr. also smoked two balls more than 104 mph and had nothing to show for it.
Milwaukee pushed its lead back to two in the eighth againt Dominic Leone. After a walk and a groundout, Rowdy Tellez’s single put men at the corners and Luis Urías hit a sacrifice fly.
Lefty José Alvárez, pressed into the starter’s role unexpectedly when Johnny Cueto went on the COVID-19 injured list, worked 12⁄3 innings and gave up two runs; Yelich doubled in the first and scored on a base hit by Omar Narváez, and in the second, Alvárez walked leadoff batter Jace Peterson, who went to second on a groundout. Alvárez then allowed Burnes an RBI single on an 0-2 cutter down the middle.
Jay Jackson, who previously pitched for Milwaukee, entered with men at the corners and struck out Avisaíl García, then Jarlín García turned in some strong work, with 32⁄3 scoreless innings. He allowed one hit and struck out four while throwing a season-high 40 pitches, his most since May 25, 2019, when he threw 46 with Miami.
Bryant doubled to lead off the ninth against Josh Hader, but the Giants couldn’t get him across; Crawford popped up, Yastrzemski grounded out and pinch-hitter Austin Slater flied out to shallow right field.