Giants Baseball Corner

Cubs are good, not going to lie.

Justin Verlander showed a variety of pitches, and elaborated against hitters, throwing 82 over five innings in which he gave up a couple of walks, a couple of earned runs, and struck out five. Here was his 4th:

This was the most thought-out Verlander start. He relied less on the fastball. It was a workout for the vet that showed he is trying to evolve.

The two runs were yielded on one swing by Miguel Amaya the Cubs catcher, batting eighth. The Cubs bottom of the order has been exceptional this year, a big part of their early success.

The third run was scored on an infield hit by Jon Berti, ninth in the order, on a grounder that young Brett Wisely, filling in at 2nd for Tyler Fitzgerald, couldn’t handle.

Verlander fought with a diverse array and in the fifth gave up a base on an HBP amidst the shifting command. Still, he fought with command and not over reliance on the fast ball:

The Giants bats used small ball brilliantly to support JV with five runs.

Chapman drew a walk, Adames singled, and Patrick Bailey hit a sac fly for an RBI. Brett Wisely had an RBI on a bunt sacrifice. The Giants took advantage of Cubs mistakes to get in scoring position. Jung Hoo Lee added a a two-run homer.

The Wall returned to shut down the 6th. Randy Rodriguez allowed a couple of base runners with a walk and a single, but stalked off the mound confidently after striking out Amaya swinging – on three pitches – to end the inning,

Camilo Doval had a seven-pitch shutdown 7th – Berti, and then top of the order Ian Happ and Kyle Tucker, fell. Quietly mowed ’em down.

The Giants looked good, confident, today.

Tyler Rogers, who had a terrible game against the Rockies last Thursday night, blowing the save and taking the loss, came in for the 8th and made short work of Seiya Suzuki, Michael Busch and Nico Hoerner on just nine pitches.

Quietly mowed ’em down.

Sweet.

The Ninth Inning

Ryan Walker was outside the zone to start the 9th, missing on three straight pitches, then being granted a strike on a wide pitch before finally throwing one to Nick Crow-Armstrong.

They struggled to a full count and Walker walked him – on a pitch well outside.

He looked better against Dansby Swanson. Controlled low 80’s sliders. He struck him out looking with the two-seam sinker at 94. Nice.

Ryan looked a little wild working the full count to pinch-hitting Carson Kelly. When he walked him to bring the go-ahead run to the plate, the place went nuts and Walker got a mound visit from J.P. Martinez.

Kyle Turner’s RBI grounder that slid under Yastrzemski’s glove in right, scoring one and putting runners on the corners with one down, was an inside-out hit. Turner just beat Walker. Giants 5, Cubs 4.

Happ was down 0-2 after a dribbled foul. Walker struck him out swinging, with a 97 mph four-seam fastball. Whew, two down. But that was the end of Ryan Walker’s time on the bump.

Erik Miller came in and gave up the tying run on a grounder up the middle to Tucker, but got Suzuki on a strikeout to end the 9th and send us to extra innings at Wrigley. Both runs were charged to Ryan.

Walker’s walks blew the save.

Another ND for JV. sigh.

The 10th

The Giants had their best foot forward, with Willy Adames on 2nd as the zombie runner, Jung Hoo Lee at the plate and Chapman on deck, but Cubs reliever Porter Hodge popped up both too shallow to advance Adames. Sigh.

A two-out walk drawn by Wilmer Flores gave the Giants a breath of hope in the tenth, with Late Night LaMonte Wade, Jr. at the plate, but he flied out to left.

Erik Miller stayed on the mound for the tenth and looked rocky working a full count to, and then walking 1B Michael Busch. Hoerner’s deep sac fly on the next pitch advanced the zombie.

With runners in the corners, pitching coach J.P. Martinez made a mound visit. A double-play would send us to eleven. A swinging strike to Crow Armstrong, advanced the runner with no throw. A crazy swing and it’s 1 -2.

Miller strikes out Crow-Armstrong. Two down, RISP for Dansby Swanson. Everybody at Wrigley on their feet.

Miller is brilliant. It’s 1-2 on a swinging strike. He misses twice low, Dansby just looks.at them, and it’s a full count. The place is going nuts with the winning run 90 feet from home.

Miller throws and Swanson drills a hard liner straight in the air to Chapman at third! out!

We go to the 11th.

Ryan Presley pitching for the Cubs and Christian Koss is the zombie. Heliot Ramos doubles deep to center left! Koss goes to third.

Patrick Bailey singles! Koss scores, Ramos to third. Brett Wisely gets his second RBI on a second sacrifice bunt of this game!

Giants take the lead 7 to 5 in the 11th.

Adames had bases loaded with nobody out after a walk. And there was ANOTHER FAIL HBP CALL.

Just like I reported on in San Diego. The elderly home plate ump, Bill Miller, granted the HBP when Adames wasn’t hit and called a dead ball. That killed the passed on ball (or wild pitch) going back to the backstop which would have scored one and left Adames at the plate.

They went to New York and AGAIN THE BALL OBVIOUSLY HASN’T HIT ADAMES, JUST LIKE THAT BALL LAST WEEK TO SHEETS.

But it was called a dead ball. Sothe call on the field is HBP. New York AGAIN HAD TO SAY IT HIT HIM WHEN IT DIDN’T, TO SAVE FACE.

Only one run came in. Wack.

that made it 8 to 5.

Jung Hoo Lee drives in a run on a base hit to right! 9 to 5.

Base hit for Chapman! Drives in two more. It’s 11 to 5.

Base hit! and that’s another RBI for Wilmer Flores, it’s 12 to 5, still two on and nobody out.

Bye-bye, Ryan Pressly.

The Giants blew this game up in the 11th. After a strikeout, Heliot Ramos drove in a run, 13 to 5 and Pat Bailey added a sac fly to make it 14 to 5. Wow.

NINE RUNS IN THE ELEVENTH

Bo Mel had Kyle Harrison in his back pocket for the 11th, and the young call-up had a quiet 11 pitch, three-up, three-down inning at Wrigley Field, striking out Ian Happ in the bottom of the 11th to end it. Whew.

The Padres and Bums both lost tonight, to the Yankees and Marlins, respectively. Not that I’m scoreboard watching, I’m not and will deny it if pressed on the matter.

We used a lot of guys on the second day of the road trip in an 11th inning win. I approve. BoMel knows what he is doing. Cubs are good, not going to lie.

Way to go Giants!

Well done, Bo Mel!