Three games, five runs, zero wins.
That’s how the San Francisco Giants’ series vs. the Twins in Minnesota went this weekend, concluding with a sweep after Sunday’s 8-3 loss.
SF limped into this one — with three more players reporting to the ballpark at far less than 100 percent — and limped out of it — with Evan Longoria appearing to re-aggravate the right hamstring that recently kept him out for two weeks.
Sunday loss — the Giants’ fourth in a row — seems like a tipping point. SF is now four games under .500 (tying a season worst) and eight out of the final wild card spot. They went 2-6 on a road trip that included five games against teams with losing records, scoring 25 runs combined. They’ve won one of their past 10 road series. Many of their key players aren’t healthy and the ones that are aren’t contributing nearly enough. If there was ever a time to start looking at some younger players, it’s now.
The day started with the Giants already behind the eight ball. Outfielders Mike Yastrzemski (calf), Joc Pederson (groin) and Luis Gonzalez (illness) were all close to being scratched pregame. Yaz was healthy enough to go in right field, allowing the Giants to avoid an emergency option, with Yaz joining Austin Slater in center and LaMonte Wade Jr. in left.
Following the pregame concerns, it looked like the Giants might get tagged early when starter Jakob Junis allowed two baserunners with one out in the first, one reaching due to Junis misplaying an infield grounder. Junis got out of the jam, however, allowing SF to strike first thanks to Wade Jr.
The left fielder did his best to remind his former team that they made a mistake trading him away two seasons ago. First he made an incredible sliding catch in left field in the bottom of second, a ball it looked like he couldn’t possibly reach until he did.
Then Wade Jr. put the Giants on the board in the next half inning, with an RBI ground-rule double to deep left.
A double from the red-hot Carlos Correa tied things in the third, when Junis missed high with a breaking ball.
SF would’ve had a good chance to take the lead again early in the fourth, but Estrada was caught stealing second before Austin Wynns’ double. The out ended the Giants’ stolen bases streak at 28 in a row, the longest such streak for the Giants since those records began being recorded in 1974.
Ultimately it wouldn’t matter. Twins starter and former Giant Aaron Sanchez was pulled after hitting Yaz following the double. Reliever Emilio Pagan didn’t have much more control, walking Austin Slater and then walking Wilmer Flores with the bases loaded giving SF the lead.
That lead didn’t last long either, when Junis left another breaking ball up to Jake Cave who blasted a two-run shot to left field.
After J.D. Davis, starting for the first time in a week, struck out for the third time in five innings, Brandon Crawford knocked in Evan Longoria from second, his third hit of the day. Though Longoria looked good at the plate when he doubled, he appeared to be laboring significantly heading down the third base line, favoring the right hamstring that has been giving him trouble. The re-aggravation forced a sick Gonzalez to enter the game.
The game’s third tie was broken by Minnesota when Max Kepler and José Miranda hit back-to-back RBI doubles, both on sinkers that Junis left over the plate. Junis’ inability to keep the ball down in the zone got worse as Sunday’s game wore on, and the doubles in the fifth were enough to end his afternoon.
Evan after Alex Young took over the doubles continued. Gio Urshela and Cave hit two more to extend the lead to 8-3, adding a sixth earned run to Junis’ stat line. On the second one, Yastrzemski’s calf looked to be bothering him as he tracked down the ball. He would stay in the game out of necessity, but it might be time to give him, and a few other veterans, a break.