Cardiac Giants do it again, then barely hang on to beat Mets
NEW YORK — If you are reading this, see a cardiologist immediately.
That has to be the first piece of advice for any fan who has recently watched these Giants, who climbed out of yet another hole late Friday night to seize the first game of the series against the Mets at Citi Field, 8-7, that once again looked out of grasp when the eighth inning began and nearly slipped out of their hands again in the ninth.
Trailing 6-2 after being held in check by a third rookie in a row, Mets right-hander Christian Scott, the Giants rallied for five runs against reliever Reed Garrett. Before this week, they had never erased deficits of four or more in consecutive road games but have now done it three days in a row.
Don’t look now, but with their ninth win in the past 12 games, the Giants evened their record back to .500 for the first time since they were 2-2.
“That’s a big deal,” manager Bob Melvin said. “We came on this road trip we were hoping to do something like that, come home .500 or a little bit better. We lose a really tough game to start in Pittsburgh, which puts us back at three (below) again, which didn’t feel too terribly good.
“But to win three in a row like that, in the fashion that we did, really good.”
The latest comeback was made possible by Patrick Bailey’s grand slam that capped a five-run eighth inning, crucial insurance provided by Mike Yastrzemski’s solo shot the following inning and potentially the defensive highlight of the career for Matt Chapman, who has no shortage of them as a two-time Platinum Glove winner.
With the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth and the tying run on third, Chapman charged a slow roller down the line off the bat of Mark Vientos. The 26,658 on hand roared, believing the home team was about to tie the score or more, but quickly fell silent as Chapman gloved the grounder and fired to first base, where LaMonte Wade Jr. made an acrobatic stretch, falling to the dirt and holding his glove up to first-base umpire C.B. Bucknor, who raised his fist in the air to signal the third and final out.
“Maybe the best,” said Melvin, who’s seen Chapman play third base since he managed him in Oakland. “That’s a ball that you just hope goes foul. That’s not a ball you make a play on. At some point in time, he’s got to figure out if he’s got a chance, and I didn’t think he did. And I’ve seen him make every great play he’s ever made.”
Game over. Deep breath.
“That was incredible, one of the better plays that I’ve ever seen,” Bailey said. “In that moment, he’s unbelievable over there. … That whole inning was full of good plays. I feel like LaMonte is a sneakily elite defender over there with what he’s done this year. It’s just really exciting to watch this team right now.”
They were very nearly sent backward in their quest to even their record as Camilo Doval loaded the bases and allowed a run in the ninth inning. Doval’s ineffectiveness, coupled with another high-stakes error from Marco Luciano at shortstop, made Yastrzemski’s solo shot in the eighth inning stand up as the decisive run.
A grand slam, one way or the other, seems to unlock something for this squad.
“Well,” Melvin said. “This one time, it was on our end.”
They became the fourth team in history to allow grand slams in consecutive games and win the past two days in Pittsburgh, and Friday night in Queens broke out the rye bread and mustard themselves.
“I was looking to see if we gave up four home runs,” Melvin quipped. “That’s the same thing as a grand slam. But we only gave up three.”
Sailing into bullpens beyond right-center field, Bailey’s grand slam traveled an estimated 420 feet and gave the Giants a second home run for only their 10th game this season. Jorge Soler provided one of the two runs they scratched across in six innings against Scott with a no-doubter to left field for his first homer since returning from a shoulder strain. When leaving the yard more than once, the Giants improved to 7-3.
Yastrzemski provided crucial insurance in the eighth with a third homer into the second deck in right field.
“Obviously I was looking for something middle-down that I could do damage with, and I was able to put a good swing on it,” Bailey said. “(We’re) just taking each bat at a time and never giving anything up.”
The late offense picked up Harrison, who was in line for the loss after being tagged for five runs (four earned) while failing to pitch deeper than the fifth inning for his third consecutive start. Missing armside time and time again, Harrison found the strike zone on only half of his 98 pitches.
When he took the mound in the fifth inning, Harrison’s gray jersey was soaked with sweat, and the Mets took advantage of the visibly tiring left-hander, teeing off for back-to-back home runs that extended their lead to 5-2. Another homer from Pete Alonso off Nick Avila in the seventh widened the gap to 6-2.
For the third game in a row, it didn’t matter.
“That’s insane,” said Harrison, who has been on the winning end his past eight starts. “It’s a credit to what they’re doing on offense. But we’ve got to be better on the pitching side, definitely.”
Notable
The Giants agreed to terms with LHP Drew Pomeranz on a major-league deal and activated him before first pitch, adding him to their bullpen and giving the 35-year-old veteran of flexor tendon surgery his first big-league opportunity since 2021.
It remains a long shot that either OF Austin Slater (concussion) or OF Michael Conforto (hamstring) is activated on this trip, but the Giants did get good news about a number of their injured players not with them. LHP Robbie Ray (elbow surgery) will throw 20 pitches in a live batting practice session Saturday in his first time facing hitters since undergoing Tommy John and flexor tendon surgeries, and RHP Alex Cobb (elbow) also resumed his throwing progression.
Next up
RHP Jordan Hicks (4-1, 2.38) vs. RHP Luis Severino (2-2, 3.48) in the second game of the series, with first pitch scheduled for 10:40 a.m. PT.