Series Preview: SF Giants vs. Orioles - game details and how to watch
Don your creamsicles and raise your flags, because San Francisco's never seen a series this monochrome. The orange and black host the black and orange as the Orioles come to visit for a weekend series in the Bay. Like the Pittsburgh squad that the SF Giants just faced, Baltimore started the season hot. Unlike the Pirates, though, they never went ice cold, and enter San Francisco 14 games above .500 just two months into play.
That spells trouble for the G-Men, whose offensive and defensive lapses against the Pirates will only invite more trouble against a genuinely tough Baltimore squad led by catcher Adley Rutschman. Their outfield is better than anything that the Giants have hosted in nearly two decades, with Austin Hays (LF), Cedric Mullins (CF) and Anthony Santander (RF) all young talents with OPSs within a few percentage points of .850.
When you've got offense and defense established at premium positions like that, good things tend to follow. But the reason the Orioles have survived in the fierce AL East is their starting pitching. Baltimore "only" went 16-12 last month (still a 92-win pace, but worse than their 18-9 April), yet the three starters facing the Giants combined for a 2.54 ERA in their 16 starts in May.
The Giants have still been well above average when facing right-handers, but they'll have to prove they can keep doing damage against pitchers whose stuff is locked in. Hotshot rookies Casey Schmitt and Patrick Bailey continue to do damage against pretty much everyone, though Schmitt's cooled down a bit (despite still rocking a shiny .325 batting average). They'll need help from their veteran peers to make an impact against Baltimore, though. SS Brandon Crawford and OF Michael Conforto have both been hitting well as of late, especially against righties. Many of the vets have been hot and cold, though, and they'll have to make do this series without Thairo Estrada, Joey Bart, and perhaps Joc Pederson, all of whom are rehabbing while returning from injury.
The Giants will lead off the series with starter Logan Webb, who's about as good as you can get right now. His ERA during May was a sparkling 1.30, and he's finally racking up wins after his record reflected a frustrating 1-5 start. Behind him, DeSclafani will take the mound on Saturday, and a TBD for Sunday hints that the Giants may return to their "opener-short start" strategy with John Brebbia and Sean Manaea, who has looked sharp lately.
That setup portends good things for a San Francisco team that didn't look too sharp in their final two games against the Pirates. Those games were their 12th and 13th in a row, but with two off days around this series, there's reason to expect the team to go hard to end this homestand. If they do, they'll be able to leave the Bay Area feeling a lot better about themselves than they did after dipping back to .500. The Giants have put themselves in a winnable situation here against Baltimore, but against a team this good, they won't be given the series; they'll have to take it.
Series details:
Who: SF Giants vs. Baltimore Orioles
Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California
When: June 2-4, Friday (7:15 PM), Saturday (7:05 PM), Sunday (1:05 PM). All times Pacific.
Giants' current streak: L2, 6-4 in last 10, 28-28 overall
Orioles' current streak: L1, 5-5 in last 10, 35-21 overall
Projected starters:
Friday: Logan Webb (4-5, 2.75 ERA) vs. Dean Kremer (5-2, 4.58 ERA)
Saturday: Anthony DeSclafani (4-4, 3.48 ERA) vs. Kyle Bradish (2-1, 3.89 ERA)
Sunday: TBD vs. Tyler Wells (3-2, 3.29 ERA)
*Indicates LHP
How to watch, listen:
- SF Giants broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area, KNBR 680/1510 AM
- Orioles broadcast: MASN 2, WBAL NewsRadio/97.9 FM/98 Rock FM
- National broadcasts: MLB Network (out-of-market only, Friday and Sunday)
