Giants endure rare S.F. rainout
“I Left My Heart in San Francisco” was not played at AT&T Park on Friday night, although someone walking by might have heard the faint strains of Ella Fitzgerald singing “Cry Me (An Atmospheric) River.”
The Giants’ series opener against the Dodgers was postponed by rain, with the club calling it in the morning when it became clear the unusually wet April storm would not abate or shift course.
The Giants also delayed Saturday’s first pitch from 1:05 p.m. to 3:05 p.m. in case the storm lingers and to give the grounds crew more time to dry the field.
Friday’s game will be made up as part of a split-admission doubleheader on Saturday, April 28, when the Dodgers return to AT&T Park.
Tickets for Friday’s game will be honored for the newly scheduled 1:05 p.m. game on the 28th. The scheduled 6:05 p.m. game will begin at 7:05 p.m.
Manager Bruce Bochy has altered his rotation and will have Chris Stratton pitch Saturday against Rich Hill and Ty Blach on Sunday against Clayton Kershaw in an Opening Day rematch. Derek Holland, who was supposed to pitch Friday, instead will make his AT&T Park debut Monday against the Diamondbacks.
Johnny Cueto will pitch Tuesday, getting an extra day’s rest.
The Giants still need to add a
fifth starter next week, either Tyler Beede or Andrew Suarez, but on Wednesday instead of Tuesday. Both pitched Thursday night on Opening Day for the minor leagues, Suarez for Triple-A Sacramento and Beede on loan to Class A San Jose. Either could make his majorleague debut on five days’ rest.
Beede allowed one run in five innings with three walks and four strikeouts at San Bernardino. Suarez pitched four shutout innings, allowing one hit with four walks, at Tacoma.
Friday’s rainout was the sixth at AT&T Park since it opened in 2000 and the first since 2006, when the Astros and Giants were washed out on April 11 and 12. They played a split-admission doubleheader on April 13 to make up one of the rainouts.
The last doubleheader at AT&T Park was an odd one, on July 23, 2013, making up a July 4 rainout at Cincinnati. The league decided to play it in San Francisco to prevent a onegame Giants trip to Cincinnati. The Giants were the “road” team and batted first in Game 1 of the doubleheader.
The Giants and Dodgers have a mutual off day Thursday, April 26, ahead of their scheduled weekend series at AT&T . In years past that probably would have been the day selected for a makeup.
But players have become more adamant about getting full days off. The Collective Bargaining Agreement that took effect last season requires more of them, which is why the 2018 season began on March 29 and forced many teams to open in conditions better suited for the Iditarod.
Baseball also has a new, more formal procedure for picking makeup dates, which Commissioner Rob Manfred enacted.
Major League Baseball hears from both teams and the Players Association before rendering a decision. The union has to sign off on all day-night doubleheaders and approved the April 28 twin bill. Long-ago mates: Right fielder Andrew McCutchen reiterated Thursday that he still needs to learn the range and tendencies of all three outfielders who will play center for the Giants, although McCutchen has played alongside one of them.
McCutchen and Gorkys Hernandez were Pirates teammates in parts of 2012 and 2015. When Hernandez made his first career start, on May 23, 2012, he was in left and McCutchen in center. They batted second and third, respectively.
After homering in Thursday’s 10-1 victory over the Mariners, Hernandez said he sees the same defender in McCutchen he saw in Pittsburgh.
“Of course,” Hernandez said. “He’s great everywhere. You can put him in right field, left field, center field, whatever, and he’s going to do the job and help the team.” Shortstop suspended: C.J. Hinojosa, who played shortstop for Double-A Richmond, Va., last year, was suspended 50 games for a second violation of baseball’s policy on drugs of abuse. He was on Class A San Jose’s roster this year.