Giants win on sac fly by pitcher, pick up a game on Dodgers.
Dramatic finish pushes S.F.’s NL West lead to two games
Everything that’s put San Francisco in its major-league best position was on display Friday in a typically unexpectedhero, last-gasp win at Oracle Park. Peak Giants 2021 — ended with a big pinch hit, normal for the team. But the man with the sacrifice fly to give the Giants a 6-5 win was hardly expected: with the bench emptied out, it was starter Kevin Gausman.
The win pushed the Giants’ lead in the NL West to two games over the Dodgers, who lost to Cincinnati.
San Francisco hauled out some oldiesbut-goodies early on: plenty of homers, a great defensive play by Brandon Crawford and a sterling performance by emerging ace Logan Webb. Then, in his first appearance since closer Jake McGee went on the injured list, Tyler Rogers gave up a three-run, game-tying homer by Braves catcher Travis d’Arnault in the ninth.
Anyone familiar with the Giants’ work this season knows what happened next: a guy just added to the roster hit a pinch-hit game-tying homer. You’re right: It was Donovan Solano, and for even greater 2021-ness, he was just off the COVID IL, and in his first at-bat since Aug. 24, he belted a two-out, 2-2 pitch from Will Smith into the seats in left. San Francisco’s 16 pinch-hit homers are an ongoing franchise record.
In the 11th, the Giants loaded the bases — and with the bench emptied out, Gausman got his second career pinch-hit; he walked in his first.
Rogers’ 14-inning scoreless streak came to an end; it was just the third time in his past 28 outings that the submariner has allowed a run. He had allowed only four homers in his previous 71 appearances this season. He leads the majors in appearances.
Crawford banged one of the Giants’ four homers, his 21st. Brandon Belt hit a two-run shot in the first, his career-high 26th. And with his parents in town from Baltimore, LaMonte Wade Jr. did exactly what he did the first time they visited and plopped a Splash Hit into the cove.
Wade has been nothing short of a revelation this season after coming over from Minnesota in what at the time appeared to be a minor deal that sent Sean Anderson to the Twins. Wade, never a regular with the Twins, has 18 homers with the Giants, in a platoon role yet.
All of the Giants’ hits Friday went for extra bases; along with the four homers, they had four doubles. San Francisco has homered in a season-high 12 consecutive games. The team leads the majors with 16 games with at least four homers.
Crawford has been thrown out trying to go for an extra base a few times recently, and Friday he was out trying to stretch a triple in the fourth. Considering the rest of his night, he’s off the hook, with the go-ahead blast to left center off Ian Anderson in the second and a marvelous play in the sixth, when Austen Riley hit a rocket into the hole. Crawford dove, got up from deep short and made the long throw to first, dead on the money, and made the whole thing look easy.
It was not easy. Recognizing that, Riley tipped his helmet toward Crawford as he trotted off the field.
Webb gave up three consecutive two-out hits in the first, with the last of the bunch, a double by Adam Duvall, giving the Braves an early 2-0 lead that didn’t hold up long with all the Giants homers. San Francisco has 226 homers, tied with the 2000 team for most in team history.
After the first, Webb was back to his stingy self, allowing three singles the rest of his seven-inning outing. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out nine, and in 1321⁄3 innings this season, Webb has 141 strikeouts and 32 walks. He has allowed more than two runs in a start just twice over his past 17 outings, compiling a 1.97 ERA in that span and putting himself in the driver’s seat for a No. 1 or 2 playoff start.
Lifetime against the Braves, Webb is 3-0 with 21 strikeouts and a 1.35 ERA in three starts.
Belt extended his hitting streak to 10 games, Kris Bryant his on-base streak to 16 games.