The Diamondbacks entered this game coming off of a series loss to the Padres. The Giants came into this game riding a series win over a top of the league team in the Brewers. Both teams were also coming off of an off day entering this game so they would each be well rested. This game was the first game of a short 2 game series at Oracle Park in San Francisco. This was also Madison Bumgarner’s first game back at Oracle Park with fans. The Giants lineup in this game had LaMonte Wade Jr. (RF) hitting leadoff, Brandon Belt (1B) hitting 2nd, Buster Posey (C) hitting 3rd, Brandon Crawford (SS) hitting cleanup, Kris Bryant (3B) hitting 5th, Mike Yastrzemski (CF) hitting 6th, Alex Dickerson (LF) hitting 7th, Tommy La Stella (2B) hitting 8th, and finally, Alex Wood (P) hitting 9th. The Diamondbacks lineup started off with Nick Ahmed (SS) hitting leadoff, then had Ketel Marte (CF) hitting 2nd, had Kole Calhoun (LF) hitting 3rd, Carson Kelly (C) hitting cleanup, Asdrubal Cabrera (3B) hitting 5th, Pavin Smith (LF) hitting 6th, Christian Walker (1B) hitting 7th, Josh Rojas (2B) hitting 8th, and Zac Gallen (P) hitting last. The pitching matchup in this game was between Zac Gallen who was 1-6 with an ERA 4.62 entering this game and Alex Wood who was 9-3 with a 4.03 ERA. For the Diamondbacks to win they needed to hit well off of Alex Wood, find a nice start out of Zac Gallen, and win in 9 innings. For the Giants to win they needed to take an early lead, get runners on base, and find a great start out of Alex Wood. Would the Giants get their 3rd straight win or would the Diamondbacks stun the Giants and get the win? To the game!
The first pitch of the game was hit by Nick Ahmed for a pop out to Kris Bryant on the infield grass. Then Ketel Marte struck out swinging. To end the top of the 1st Kole Calhoun struck out swinging. Zac Gallen’s first pitch was hit by LaMonte Wade Jr. for a pop out to Nick Ahmed in center field. Then Brandon Belt doubled down the right field line on the 1st pitch. After that Buster Posey walked. Next up was Brandon Crawford who flew out to Pavin Smith via the infield fly rule. Kris Bryant then doubled scoring Belt and advancing Posey to 3rd. To follow that up Mike Yastrzemski doubled scoring Posey and Bryant. Alex Dickerson kept the streak of hits going with a single to center field scoring Yastrzemski. To end the inning Tommy La Stella grounded out to Christian Walker. This was an amazing 1st inning for the Giants where they took a huge early lead. The Giants led 4-0 after the 1st inning.
To leadoff the 2nd inning Carson Kelly flew out to LaMonte Wade Jr. in right field. Then Asdrubal Cabrera struck out swinging. To end the half inning Pavin Smith lined out to Tommy La Stella. To start the bottom of the 2nd inning Alex Wood struck out looking. Then LaMonte Wade Jr. flew out to Ketel Marte. To end the inning Brandon Belt flew out to Ketel Marte. This was an amazing inning for both pitchers each with a 1, 2, 3 inning. The Giants still led 4-0 after the 2nd inning.
To start the 3rd inning Christian Walker grounded out to Brandon Crawford. Then Josh Rojas struck out looking. To finish the half inning Zac Gallen struck out looking. To leadoff the bottom of the 3rd Buster Posey singled to left field. Then Brandon Crawford struck out swinging. After that Kris Bryant lined out to Pavin Smith. Next Mike Yastrzemski singled up the middle advancing Posey to 2nd. To end the inning Alex Dickerson grounded out to Josh Rojas. This was a great inning from both pitchers especially Alex Wood who had another 1, 2, 3 inning. The Giants once again led 4-0 after the 3rd inning.
To leadoff the top of the 4th inning Nick Ahmed lined out to LaMonte Wade Jr. in right field. Then Ketel Marte doubled. After that Kole Calhoun grounded out to Kris Bryant allowing Ketel Marte to advance to 3rd. To end the top half of the frame Carson Kelly flew out to LaMonte Wade Jr. in right field. To leadoff the bottom half of the frame Tommy La Stella grounded out to Josh Rojas. Then Alex Wood struck out looking. To end the inning LaMonte Wade Jr. struck out on a foul tip caught by Carson Kelly. This was another wonderful inning for both pitchers as Alex Wood got out of a jam and Zac Gallen threw a 1, 2, 3 inning. The Giants once more led 4-0 after the 4th inning.
To leadoff the 5th inning Asdrubal Cabrera grounded out to Brandon Crawford. Then Pavin Smith grounded out to Crawford as well. To end the top half of the 5th Christian Walker lined out to LaMonte Wade Jr. in right field. The bottom of the 5th started with Brandon Belt striking out on a foul tip caught by Carson Kelly. Then Buster Posey hit a solo home run to dead center field. To follow that up Brandon Crawford grounded out to Nick Ahmed. To end the inning Kris Bryant lined out to Ketel Marte. This was a great inning for the Giants where they tacked onto their lead. The Giants led 5-0 after the 5th inning.
To leadoff the 6th inning Josh Rojas flew out to Mike Yastrzemski. Then Zac Gallen, Nick Ahmed, and Ketel Marte hit 3 straight doubles and Gallen and Ahmed scored in the process. To follow that up Kole Calhoun grounded out to Tommy La Stella advancing Marte to 3rd. After that Carson Kelly tripled into triples alley scoring Marte. Next up was Asdrubal Cabrera who tied the game with a 2 run homer to center field. To end a disappointing half inning for the Giants Pavin Smith lined out to Alex Dickerson. To start the bottom half of the 6th Mike Yastrzemski struck out on a foul tip caught by Carson Kelly. Then Alex Dickerson struck out swinging. To end the inning Tommy La Stella flew out to Pavin Smith. This was an astonishing inning for the Diamondbacks who tied the game. The Giants and Diamondbacks were tied 5-5 after the 6th inning.
Dominic Leone entered the game for Alex Wood to pitch the 7th inning. To start the 7th inning Christian Walker lined out to Alex Dickerson. Then Josh Rojas struck out swinging. To end the inning David Peralta pinch hit for Zac Gallen and hit a grounder to Brandon Belt who tossed the ball to Dominic Leone for the out. Taylor Clarke entered the game in relief of Zac Gallen to pitch the bottom of the 7th. To leadoff the bottom of the 7th inning Wilmer Flores pinch hit for Dominic Leone and flew out to Ketel Marte. Then LaMonte Wade Jr. popped out to Nick Ahmed in foul territory. To end the inning Brandon Belt flew out to Ketel Marte. This was an amazing inning for both pitchers each with a 1, 2, 3 inning. The Giants and Diamondbacks were still tied 5-5 after the 7th inning.
Tyler Rogers relieved Dominic Leone to pitch the 8th inning. To start the 8th inning Nick Ahmed singled up the middle. Then Ketel Marte singled up the middle and Mike Yastrzemski gunned down Nick Ahmed trying to go 1st to 3rd on a single. Marte took 2nd on the throw to 3rd. After that Kole Calhoun flew out to Alex Dickerson. To end the half inning Carson Kelly struck out looking. To start the bottom half of the 8th Buster Posey walked. Joe Mantiply came into the game for Taylor Clarke to finish the inning. Joe Mantiply started by giving up a double to Brandon Crawford that scored Buster Posey from 1st. To follow that up Kris Bryant was intentionally walked. Then Mike Yastrzemski grounded into a fielder’s choice leaving runners on 1st and 3rd. Darin Ruf pinch hit for Alex Dickerson and when Torey Lovullo saw this he put Sean Poppen in to pitch for Joe Mantiply and finish the inning. On a throwing error on a pickoff attempt to 1st by Sean Poppen Crawford scored and Yastrzemski advanced to 3rd. After that Darin Ruf grounded out to Josh Rojas. Next Sean Poppen intentionally walked Tommy La Stella. To end the inning Donovan Solano pinch hit for Tyler Rogers and grounded into a fielder’s choice. This was a splendid inning for the Giants as they retook the lead. The Giants led 7-5 after the 8th inning.
Austin Slater replaced Darin Ruf (who pinch hit for Alex Dickerson) in center field forcing Mike Yastrzemski to move to right field and LaMonte Wade Jr. to move to left field. Jake McGee relieved Tyler Rogers to attempt to get the save. To start the 9th inning Asdrubal Cabrera and Pavin Smith singled leaving runners on 1st and 2nd. Daulton Varsho pinch ran for Pavin Smith a 1st base. Then Christian Walker walked loading the bases. After that Josh Rojas struck out looking. Josh VanMeter pinch hit for Sean Poppen and walked scoring a run a keeping the bases loaded. To follow that up Nick Ahmed flew out to LaMonte Wade Jr. scoring Varsho who tagged up to tie the game. Zack Littell entered the game for Jake McGee to finish the inning. To end the inning Ketel Marte struck out swinging. Daulton Varsho remained in the game in left field. Matt Peacock went into the game for Sean Poppen to pitch the 9th inning. To start the 9th inning LaMonte Wade Jr. hit an infield single on a ground ball to Josh Rojas. Then Brandon Belt grounded out to Christian Walker advancing Wade Jr. to 2nd. After that Buster Posey walked. Next up was Brandon Crawford who grounded out to Matt Peacock advancing Wade Jr. to 3rd and Posey to 2nd. Kris Bryant then hit an extremely hard ground ball to Christian Walker who made an error letting LaMonte Wade Jr. score in walk-off fashion. The Giants won 8-7.
Leo’s Extra Inning: This was a great win for the Giants where the Diamondbacks came near a miraculous comeback. This was another very close game between the Giants and Diamondbacks reminiscent of some of the games from a week before this one. The Giants were led by Buster Posey in this game who went 2 for 2 with 3 runs scored, an RBI, 3 walks, and a solo home run. Mike Yastrzemski was a huge factor as well going 2 for 4 with with a run scored and 2 RBIs. Kris Bryant also played a big part in this Giants win going 1 for 4 with a run scored, an RBI, and a walk. Alex Wood had a great first 5 innings giving up only 1 hit, 0 runs, and 0 walks in those innings. In the 6th inning Wood gave up 5 hits, 5 earned runs, 0 walks, and a home run. Wood also had 5 strikeouts and got no decision. The Giants bullpen didn’t pitch their best with 4 pitchers pitching 3 innings and giving up a combined 4 hits, 2 earned runs, 2 walks, and 0 homers. Dominic Leone and Tyler Rogers each struck out 1 and got no decision, Jake McGee got 1 strikeout and a blown save, and Zack Littell got a strikeout as well and got the win. The Diamondbacks were led by Asdrubal Cabrera in this game going 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored, 2 RBIs, and a 2 run homer. Nick Ahmed hit well too going 2 for 4 with a run scored and 2 RBIs. Ketel Marte had a nice game as well going 3 for 5 with a run scored and an RBI. Zac Gallen had a bad start in this game giving up 7 hits, 5 earned runs, 1 walk, and 1 home run in 6 innings of work. The Diamondbacks bullpen pitched well with 4 pitchers pitching 2 2/3 innings and giving up only 2 hits, 2 unearned runs, 1 earned run, 4 walks, and 0 homers. Taylor Clarke, Joe Mantiply, and Sean Poppen each recorded 0 strikeouts and got no decision. Matt Peacock didn’t strike a batter out either and got the loss. Overall, this was a nice win for the Giants where they were barely able to hold on after the Diamondbacks nearly came back.
Out of LF 