Samardzija unable to catch break

Jeff Samardzija is an easy target for criticism because of his record and the home runs he has surrendered. They’re easy on-the-surface stats with which to condemn him because neither is pretty.

Samardzija’s season goes well beyond those numbers, however, and there’s extreme value in that he leads Giants pitchers in innings, by far, usually providing the bullpen somewhat of a break.

There was nothing but praise for Samardzija on Tuesday night. He didn’t get a win or give up a homer, but he gave the

bullpen the lead in the seventh inning and watched it quickly get erased in a 4-3 loss to the Brewers.

It’s typical 2017 stuff. Even when the starting pitcher gives up one earned run in six innings, even when the shortstop hits a two-run homer to turn a deficit into a lead, the Giants find a way to lose.

Brandon Crawford’s fifthinning homer made it 3-2, Giants, and in the seventh, Albert Suarez made it 4-3, Brewers. Samardzija was deprived of his ninth win. He’s 8-12.

“Maybe if I had been able to handle the bat a little bit better, I’d have been out there in the eighth,” said Samardzija, who twice struck out with the bases loaded.

Hitting isn’t exactly Samardzija’s job. He gave up six hits, walked two and struck out four, continuing his best stretch of the season. He was 4-11 with a 5.05 ERA through July 21. Since then, he’s 4-1 (3-0 at home) with a 3.43 ERA.

“I think my fastball’s been great when I’ve needed it, and to me, that’s important,” Samardzija said. “I’ve had a good slider and curveball, which has been a big pitch lately. When it’s been there, especially late in games, I’ve had success.”

Manager Bruce Bochy pulled Samardzija after 89 pitches and inserted Suarez, and then this happened: a walk (Eric Thames), a double (Neil Walker), a sacrifice fly (Ryan Braun), a double (Travis Shaw).

Suarez got the nod with Mark Melancon (working himself back to strength as a setup man) off after appearing in consecutive games. Hunter Strickland would have pitched the eighth if the Giants maintained the lead.

Bochy said he possibly could have gotten another inning out of Samardizja, but, “I just felt like he had gone far enough.”

Right fielder Gorkys Hernandez’s blunder cost Samardzija an unearned run in the fourth and gave the Brewers a 2-1 lead. Hernandez, replacing Hunter Pence (scratched with left hamstring tightness), dropped a deep drive hit by Keon Broxton, enabling Eric Sogard to score from first.

Buster Posey scored the Giants’ first run in the second on Hernandez’s infield single and moved from catcher to first base after Nick Hundley appeared as an eighth-inning pinch-hitter and singled.

Hundley advanced to second when Pence drew a walk as a pinch-hitter and tried to score on Denard Span’s single to right. Hundley easily was thrown out by Domingo Santana to end the inning.

Bochy didn’t send in a runner for Hundley because the last bench player was Orlando Calixte, and no one was available to play first.

“As much as they got him, I don’t know who would’ve made it,” Bochy said.

Pablo Sandoval, a day after exiting with a bruised forearm, was back in the lineup and got two hits. But it was Pence’s turn in the trainers’ room because of the hamstring tightness.

Bochy said Pence won’t play Wednesday and suggested he could be ready Friday after Thursday’s off day.

“It’s been kind of a buildup process and started to get worse and worse,” said Pence, who’s batting .348 in August with four homers and 14 RBIs. “Just trying to get it back to where it’s strong, where it won’t go way south.”