SAN FRANCISCO —The Giants’ best, maybe last, chance at a postseason push got off to a good start this weekend, though it was nearly derailed Sunday afternoon before some ninth-inning heroics.
With a walk-off 8-7 win to complete a three-game sweep of the Pirates, the Giants did exactly what it will take over their final 48 games to close the gap for the final National League wild card spot. They were resilient, coming back from deficits of 6-5 and 7-6 after letting a 5-0 lead slip away, and racked up three wins against a lesser opponent.
Thairo Estrada ended the back-and-forth marathon with a walk-off blast to left field — the first walk-off home run of his career — only made possible after Mike Yastrzemski legged out a potential double-play grounder the previous batter.
Evan Longoria nearly played the goat, airmailing a throw to first base that allowed Pittsburgh to take a 7-6 lead in the top of the ninth, but ultimately played a critical role in the win, singling to lead off the bottom of the ninth.
“I do think it was a signal that there’s a lot of fight left in that room,” manager Gabe Kapler said afterward, speaking about the smoke-filled, bass-thumping clubhouse that welcomed Estrada after his game-winning hit with a line of high fives.
THAIRO!!!! pic.twitter.com/tmPN8LyvFI
— Alex Wood (@Awood45) August 14, 2022
San Francisco still trails San Diego by 6.5 games and Philadelphia by 6.0 games for the third and final spot, with the Brewers between them, but has a chance to make up more ground over the next nine games, all of which come against opponents that share something in common with the team the Giants just easily dispatched: a losing record.
Behind a solid start from Alex Wood, the red-hot wood of LaMonte Wade Jr. and Estrada’s late theatrics, that is a designation that, for now, no longer applies to the Giants, who improved to .500 again (57-57) with their three straight wins over the Pirates.
“You come in and you play a young Pirates team, we expect to sweep them,” said Wood, who struck out a season-high nine batters over six innings and left with a 5-3 lead. “That’s the way it is. We’re an older group. We’ve got guys that know how to win, so luckily we came out and won three straight against them.”
“It’ll be a big next two weeks for us. … Hopefully that’ll have some momentum carrying into this week and down the stretch.”
The win could have pulled Giants within 2.5 games of the Padres, if their bullpen hadn’t imploded in their final two games against San Diego earlier this week. For a moment, it appeared Sunday’s game was trending in a similar direction.
After taking over for Wood to start the seventh, John Brebbia faced four batters and retired none of them. He walked the leadoff man, No. 9 hitting catcher Jason Delay, and allowed a single before serving up the longest ball hit at Oracle Park this season to former San Francisco outfield prospect Bryan Reynolds.
Reynolds’ three-run homer landed 442 feet away, clearing the visitor’s bullpen in center field, and erased what was left of the initial 5-0 advantage the Giants built in the first three innings. Reynolds, who was traded away for Andrew McCutchen before the 2018 season, drove in five of the Pirates’ seven runs, with two more RBIs coming on a fifth-inning double off Wood.
Camilo Doval was not as sharp as usual in the top of the ninth, allowing a single and a walk, which set up the tough dribbler to Longoria and ultimately put Pittsburgh ahead again, 7-6.
Doval was pitching in his third straight game. Brebbia was making his major-league-leading 55th appearance.
“I think it’s reasonable to wonder,” Kapler said of the possibility of Brebbia feeling the effects of his usage.
On Sunday, at least, the Giants’ shaky bullpen only set up Estrada to play the hero.
With Yastrzemski representing the tying run on first, Estrada whacked the first pitch he saw from Pirates reliever Wil Crowe — a sinker, down and in — and started walking down the first base line, gazing toward left field.
“As soon as I made contact, I knew it was gone,” Estrada said through Spanish-language translator Erwin Higueros. “I enjoyed every minute of it.”
When he made it to home plate, Estrada was mobbed by his teammates.
“He’s just been so dependable for us. It’s rare that he gets to be the star of the game, though he’s deserving often,” Kapler said. “You know, you don’t expect a home run. But you probably should now. He does hit homers. He hits homers in big spots. It shouldn’t surprise us anymore.”
While Estrada’s home run won the game, Wade’s second-inning shot put them in position to mount the comeback.
Wade’s home run ball, which initially landed beyond the 391-foot sign in center field, was sitting in the chair in front of his locker when he arrived to answer questions from reporters. Wade said he planned to give it to his mom, Emily, who has been in attendance with his dad for the entire home stand.
“It’s a good feeling. It definitely helps you sleep at night,” Wade said, explaining his renewed confidence in the batter’s box after his fourth home run in the span of seven games. “I don’t think it was ever in question. It was just, when was it going to come back? With all the injuries I had, the stopping and going and stopping and going, it was tough to get in a groove. But I feel like I’m about to start to get in that groove right now.”
The three-run homer gave the Giants a 4-0 lead, coming after Tommy La Stella doubled home Brandon Crawford.
Flores doubled home Joc Pederson to make it 5-0 in the fourth for his team-leading 58th RBI, one away from matching a career-high. Pederson and Crawford, two of the slowest runners in the majors, both scored all the way from first base, something only five teams had done fewer times than the Giants this season entering Sunday.
Pederson reached base after getting hit by a pitch in his hand and was replaced the following inning on defense by Austin Slater. X-rays on Pederson’s hand came back negative, and he expected to be available Monday (though, with left-hander Madison Bumgarner scheduled to start for Arizona, is more likely to be an option off the bench).
Source: www.mercurynews.com