San Francisco Chronicle - (Sunday)
First a blown save, then it all falls apart
They got a pinchhit, threerun homer from Austin Slater to cap a fiverun seventh inning. They had Jake McGee open the ninth with a tworun lead.
They got a goahead RBI double from Brandon Belt with two outs in the 10th. And they were still up a run with two outs in the bottom of the 10th.
All those positives for the Giants made their 76, 10inning loss in Miami on Saturday night that much more difficult for them to swallow.
“We didn’t think Jake was going to convert every save opportunity this season,” manager Gabe Kapler said of the lefty who had converted all six of his save chances this season before Saturday and had allowed one hit in 71⁄3 scoreless innings.
“So, obviously, we’re disappointed in the outcome of the game, but nothing has changed from a standpoint of us knowing that Jake is the right guy for these opportunities.” After McGee allowed Miami to tie the game in the ninth, the Giants had runners at the corners with no outs in the 10th.
Because the Giants were out of position players, Kapler used starting pitcher Anthony DeSclafani to pinch hit for McGee. DeSclafani laid down a pretty good bunt, but catcher Jorge Alfaro’s excellent throw to second forced Donovan Solano.
With two outs, Belt unloaded a drive to the gap in rightcenter. Slater scored the goahead run, but DeSclafani was held at third. Almost any position player would have scored on Belt’s hit.
DeScalfani’s failure to come home became even more of an issue after shortstop Jazz Chisholm Jr. and first baseman Jesús Aguilar combined to make a fabulous play to rob Mauricio Dubón of a hit to end the inning.
Jarlín García took the mound to begin the bottom of the 10th. The lefty struck out Brian Anderson, walked Chisholm and got pinchhitter Chad Wallach on a fly to right.
The Giants were one out from a victory, but Jorge Alfaro drilled a García pitch to left. Courtesy runner Adam Duvall scored easily from second and Chisholm, who has great speed, motored all the way around from first.
Alfaro’s double enabled the Marlins to celebrate their sixth win in seven games.
McGee’s streak of converted saves ended the prior inning.
Singles by Chisholm, Miguel Rojas and Alfaro made it 54. McGee then got two popouts, but Starling Marte — who hit the goahead, threerun homer in the eighth inning of Miami’s 41 win Friday night — ripped an RBI single to left to tie the game.
Kapler and McGee said the lefty’s problems stemmed from not getting his fastball higher in the strike zone. McGee, who’s in his 12th bigleague season and owns 51 career saves, said it’s “fairly easy to turn the page” after a tough outing.
“I just need to execute getting the ball up more, especially in leverage counts and against guys who you know are going to swing really early.”
McGee has appeared in nine of the Giants’ 14 games, and he threw 35 pitches Saturday, but
Kapler doesn’t believe McGee has been overworked.
Said Kapler: “I thought even at the end, when he was up north of 30 pitches, there was still life on his fastball. The location was just a little bit off.”
Through six innings, the Giants looked every bit like a team that brought a .203 batting average into Saturday night’s game. Sandy Alcantara had held them scoreless on three singles.
Then came the seventh. San Francisco scored five runs and banged out five hits, four for extra bases. Belt opened the seventh by taking Alcantara deep to right to cut Miami’s lead to 31.
With one out, Evan Longoria stung a double to left and came home on Brandon Crawford’s single to center to make it 32.
Alcantara’s 92nd and final pitch of the night was a 32 offering that drilled Buster Posey’s left elbow. The Giants’ catcher stayed in the game briefly but was replaced by Curt Casali in the bottom of the seventh. Kapler said Posey has a contusion and that Xrays were negative.
Slater greeted reliever Richard Bleier with a bolt over the centerfield wall. Slater’s second homer of the season gave the Giants their first lead of the night at 53.
But at the end of a 3hour, 56minute rollercoaster ride, the Giants had to deal with their first losing streak of 2021.