SF Giants waste another gem from Logan Webb, lose to Mariners 6-5
The SF Giants lost to the Seattle Mariners on Monday night 6-5, falling to 46-39 on the season. In a battle between two starting pitchers with Northern California roots, Giants ace Logan Webb struck out double-digit hitters and held the Mariners lineup in check, but his offense and bullpen were unable to give him the run support they needed. The Giants are now one game back of the Dodgers for second place in the National League West and four games back of the Diamondbacks for the top spot.
SF Giants ace Logan Webb pitches against the Seattle Mariners on July 3, 2023.
Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports
Webb worked around a pair of hits and a walk in the first three innings before allowing the Mariners to score in the top of the fourth. Teoscar Hernández led off the inning with a single and advanced into scoring position on a base hit by Eugenio Suárez. Webb walked Mike Ford to load the bases with one out. While he struck out Dylan Moore, Hernández scored on a wild pitch that probably should have been blocked by catcher Blake Sabol. Then, with runners on second and third, LaMonte Wade Jr. snagged a line drive from Kolten Wong to end the inning. Wade's diving catch prevented at least two runs from scoring and likely stole an extra-base hit away from Wong.
The Giants, who played Sunday night in New York, did not land in San Francisco until after 3:00 am this morning. That was on the heels of a similarly early arrival in Toronto and New York over the past week. With nearly everyone on the team exhausted from the travel, injuries piling up, and the All-Star break right around the corner, the Giants could have easily shifted into cruise control once they fell behind.
The Giants were focused on not letting that happen, though. Manager Gabe Kapler emphasized how important it was for the Giants to find a way to succeed in spite of the conditions surrounding them. They fell just short of achieving that goal on Monday night.
"You just don't get a lot out of spending energy on, 'I wish it was different. Aw man, this really sucks,'" Kapler said during his pregame media availability. "Instead, it's a challenge, and it's a great opportunity for us to overcome that challenge by being strong in suboptimal conditions."
Following the Mariners' run-scoring rally, the Giants finally broke through against Bay Area native Bryan Woo. Woo issued a lead-off walk to Michael Conforto, who was back in the lineup at designated hitter, but retired the next two batters he faced. With two outs and Conforto on second, it was on Sabol to keep the rally going. While he fell behind in the count 1-2, Sabol hit a 94.9 mph fastball from Woo 407' to straightaway center field for a two-run homer.
Webb retired seven of the next eight batters he faced, but a pair of soft singles by Wong and J.P. Crawford sparked a rally with one out in the seventh. Webb induced a potential inning-ending double play from Julio Rodríguez, but the Mariners' star outfielder's impressive speed beat out the throw and allowed the tying run to score.
Kapler lifted Webb for southpaw Taylor Rogers, who retired the only batter he faced to end the inning. With his outing complete, Webb had racked up 11 strikeouts across 6.2 innings pitched, surrendering two earned runs on seven hits and two walks.
Mariners manager Scott Servais turned to his bullpen to start the bottom of the seventh, meaning neither Woo nor Webb would receive a win for their quality starts. Woo struck out seven, allowing a pair of runs on three hits and two walks in six innings pitched.
With the game tied, a battle between the bullpens ensued. Both Kapler and Servais deployed most of their best arms, likely motivated by the impending All-Star break. Both teams' top setup options (Tyler Rogers and Andrés Muñoz) completed shutout innings in the eighth.
The wheels fell off for the Giants in the top of the ninth inning, however, when closer Camilo Doval entered. Doval, who was selected to his first-career All-Star Game on Sunday, has quietly been showing signs of tiring over the past month. While he's remained incredibly effective, his strikeout and walk rate both moved in the wrong direction during June. Doval may be the Giants' only selection to the All-Star Game, but he needs a break as much as any other member of the staff.
Doval allowed a lead-off single to Mike Ford and seemed to fall victim to a bad call on a hit by pitch of Ty France (replay appeared to show the ball hitting the knob of France's bat, but the Giants lost a challenge). Then, Wade got overly aggressive on an infield grounder, allowing everyone to reach safely and loading the bases for the top of the lineup. A sacrifice fly, two-run double, and single later, and Doval had allowed four runs in an outing for the first time this season.
J.D. Davis doubled and Mike Yastrzemski singled against Mariners closer Paul Sewald in the bottom of the ninth inning before Sewald allowed a two-out three-run homer to Sabol that brought the Giants within a run. A pinch-hitting Wilmer Flores hit an infield single, bringing Brandon Crawford to the plate representing the winning run. However, he retired Crawford to end the game.
The loss marks the fifth time this season the Giants have lost a game where Webb allowed two earned runs or fewer across at least six innings pitched. In some ways, it's impressive that the Giants have been as successful as they have been despite wasting so many of their ace's quality starts. At the same time, it also highlights a significant missed opportunity.
The SF Giants will return to Oracle Park tomorrow afternoon for the second game of the series. Mariners righty Logan Gilbert will start for Seattle. The Giants have not yet announced their starting pitcher. First pitch is scheduled for 1:35 PM Pacific.
