Rodriguez’s latest gem wasted; losing streak reaches nine
SAN FRANCISCO >> The Giants wasted a gem of a pitching performance Monday night. And so the defeats go on.
Derek Rodriguez, the 26-year-old rookie who should certainly garner some Rookie of the Year votes, allowed two runs (one earned) over 6 splendid innings, but Giant hitters managed only three hits of their own and lost to the Atlanta Braves before an announced crowd of 35,996 at AT&T Park.
The loss was the ninth in a row for the Giants, who remain winless in September.
The game was tied 1-1 until the seventh, when Braves second baseman Ozzie Albies stretched a hit to center into a double, continued to third on a throwing error by Gorkys Hernandez and scored on Dansby Swanson’s sacrifice fly. The run was unearned.
“You saw the effort,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. “The kid pitched great. It’s a shame we couldn’t get him some runs. He’s thrown some fine games.”
Rodriguez (6-3) allowed five hits, walked two and struck out three. He threw 110 pitches.
“We’ve been taking care of him,” Bochy said. “His sixth inning was a very good inning. He started the seventh and could have kept going, but we had to find a way to get some runs.”
Said Rodriguez, “I asked him if I could stay out there. I feel strong.”
Rodriguez should get three more starts. But it’s not going to do much good for the Giants’ record-wise if they keep flailing like they did on Monday.
Other than Austin Slater,
the Giants went with a veteran lineup, respecting Atlanta’s status as a contender in the National League East. Brandon Belt had a first-inning single, and Slater and Gorkys Hernandez had hits in the third.
After that. Nada.
The Giants scored their run when Hernandez opened the inning with a single, was sacrificed to second by Rodriguez and stole third. Slater then singled to left to drive in Hernanez.
Bochy made sure to note that the Giants’ only run was manufactured, but he was clearly unhappy with the overall effort by his offense.
“We didn’t make a lot of hard contact,” he said. “That was the story. Give their pitcher credit. But we were late (on pitches) a lot tonight.”
Newcomb hadn’t exactly been on a roll coming into the game. In his last five starts, he was 1-3 with a 7.98 ERA. A hard-throwing lefty with command issues, he had walked 15 batters in 23 1/3 innings over that fivegame stretch.
Against the Giants, he didn’t issue a single base on balls. He struck out eight.
Of course, Monday’s performance will likely raise
more questions about whether Bochy will use some of his younger players over the 17 games that remain.
Any realistic hopes of the post-season evaporated on the trip, and Bochy knows fans might like a glimpse of players such as top outfield prospect Chris Shaw and infielder Abiatal Avelino, who was acquired from the New York Yankees in the Andrew McCutchen trade.
“We’ll mix in the young guys,” Bochy said before Monday night’s defeat. “But we want to finish strong. Even if we put in the young guys, we’ll try to win the game.”
The Giants don’t have that many call-ups on the roster. Shaw and Avelino are the most promising.
Catcher Aramis Garcia is in San Francisco because of Buster Posey’s season-ending hip surgery. Infielder Ryder Jones will have surgery this week because of a left knee patella dislocation. Outfielders Slater and Steven Duggar were up well before September.
• No timetable yet for the return of pitcher Jeff Samardzija. He has only made 10 starts this season because of shoulder miseries.