Hayden Birdsong was rocked in the first inning while recording just one out but the other nine Giants pitchers went 8.2 scoreless frames and the batters provided more than enough runs with a lot of help from the sun and the Mariners defense. Key Lines:
Harrison Bader CF- 1 for 3, 2B, 2 RBI. Bader drove one off the RF wall for a 2-run double in the second inning.
Bryce Eldridge 1B- 1 for 2, 2B, BB, R, RBI. Eldridge quick swing inside-outed a drive over the LF head for an oppo-field double in the third inning. I saw somewhere it left the bat at 104.3 MPH, or something like that.
Jake Holton 1B- 2 for 2, 2 RBI. Jake who? I must have missed a signing during the Hot Stove League season.
Heliot Ramos LF- 1 for 2, 2B, HBP, R. The double came of Mariners Closer Andres Munoz RHP.
Jared Oliva CF- 1 for 2, SB, R. Oliva had a nice 7'th inning with a hard infield single off the third baseman, SB, took third on a groundout and scored on Holton's single.
Hayden Birdsong RHP- 0.1 IP, 3 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 0 K. Birdsong came out firing 98 MPH 4-seamers and got a quick 0-2 count on the leadoff batter who then reached on an infield grounder. The next batter walked on 8 pitches and the wheels came off. Someone named Miles Mastrobuoni finished him off with a grand slam HR. In short, Birdsong looked a lot like he did last season.
Blade Tidwell RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K. Tidwell looked nasty with a mid-90's FB and a sweeping slider. Some to keep an eye on as the spring progresses.
Michael Fulmer RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's. Fastball topped out at 91.6 but was able to keep hitters off balance with a mix of 5 pitches: 4-seam, sinker, cutter, sweeper and curve. Someone else to keep an eye on.
Caleb Kilian RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K. The Kris Bryant trade comes full circle. Kilian got 3 flyball outs but it will warm some hearts to know that he topped out at 99.1 MPH. Wowza!
Other scoreless frames came from Jose Butto RHP, Nick Margevicius LHP, Juan Sanchez LHP, Braxton Roxby RHP and Nick Zwack LHP.
Robbie Ray LHP makes his first game appearance of the spring tomorrow in Scottsdale.
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I just want to thank everybody who contributed to a great discussion of several interesting topics on the Open Forum/AQA post. We had 50 comments including my responses. It was a vigorous discussion with a range of opinions. Everybody was constructive and respectful. I only had to hit the button on 2 comments.
Followed the game some. Its good that they are working with Birdsong to correct his mechanical flaw and throwing his breaking pitches. The Giants should keep running him out there all spring, he has a great arm don't give up on him.. If he doesn't earn a job this spring, pitching in Sacramento might be good for him to gain consistency.. Tidwell's stuff sounds interesting for late inning bullpen arm. Tony V was communicating to him from the dugout the same way he did at Tennessee.sounds like there's a comfort level between them. Let's see if he can keep up the good outings all spring.
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