Game Wrap 4/6/2026: Phillies 6 Giants 4

The Giants built an early 4-0 lead only to lose the game on another bullpen failure in the 7'th inning.  Key Lines:

Willy Adames SS- 2 for 4, 2 2B, BB, R.  BA= .214.  Nice game from Adames who seemed to have a more controlled aggression in his swing.  Alas, he only had a run-scored to show for it. 

Luis Arraez 2B- 2 for 4, SF, R, RBI.  BA= .295.  Arraez has been the team's best hitter.  The Sac Fly might have been a grand slam in some ballparks.  Instead the Giants got just one run out of a 1-out, bases-loaded situation.  

Matt Chapman 3B- 2 for 4, 3B, R, 2 RBI.  BA= .262.  Chapman stung the ball with a single that was 113 MPH in the first inning that nearly hit the 2B ump then drove in 2 runs with a 104 MPH triple in the 3'rd inning.  He also started a GIDP from 3B. The Giants first 3 batters in the lineup had a total of 6 hits, 3 XBH's and reached base 7 times.  Problem is the cleanup hitter, Rafael Devers went 0 for 4.  

Adrian Houser RHP- 6 IP, 9 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 3 K's, 10/3 GO/AO.  ERA= 3.97.  Houser had a Quality Start in hand after 6 innings.  He was only at 84 pitches so Tony Vitello let him go out for the 7'th inning.  He gave up a hard single to lefty batting Justin Crawford.  Trea Turner followed with a bloop single to RF.  With lefty-hitting Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper coming up, Tony Vitello brought in Ryan Borucki LHP to face them and all hell broke loose.  

Ryan Borucki LHP- 0.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 9.00.  Borucki is generally reasonably effective against LHB's but he walked Schwarber on 4 pitches then gave up a ground ball single to Harper which plated both of Houser's inherited runners tying the score.  Borucki is generally terrible against RH batters and now, because of the 3-batter rule, he had to face righty-batting Alec Bohm who hit a squibber down the first base line at 66 MPH that got past Devers, drove in Schwarber and sent Harper to 3B who later scored on a sac fly against Caleb Killian RHP.

Matt Gage LHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.  Tony Vitello said that Gage was the option to start an inning while Borucki was the situational lefty.  

Blade Tidwell RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.  Tidwell looked really good again with a 97 MPH fastball.  

The game really swung on the pitching decisions in the 7'th inning.  Each decision was defensible in isolation but ended as a disaster.  Ryan Borucki admittedly pitched in some bad luck but he is so bad against RH batters he should probably never face them or else walk them intentionally when he must.  If he can't reliably get LH batters out, he has no utility.  Hopefully he is not on the team by tonight's game.

Tony Vitello had other options.  Matt Gage could have started the 7'th inning with 3 lefty batters out of the next 4.  He also could have brought Gage in to face Schwarber and Harper when Houser ran into trouble.  He still would have had Kilian Tidwell and Ryan Walker  RHP available to pitch the 8'th and 9'th innings.  I am pretty sure there was not a fan in the stands or watching on TV who didn't audibly groan when Borucki came in.

Robbie Ray LHP tries to get things back on track tonight facing Christopher Sanchez LHP who comes in with an ERA of 0.79.  

Down on the Farm: 4/5/2026

 AAA:  Sacramento River Cats beat the Bees 9-5.

Drew Gilbert DH- 1 for 4, BB.  BA= .300.

Eric Haase C- 2 for 5.  BA= .385.

Bryce Eldridge 1B- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .281.

Will Brennan LF- 2 for 4, HR(1).  BA= .344.

Victor Bericoto RF- 3 for 5, 2B, HR(1).  BA= .357.

Will Bednar RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Gregory Santos RHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, Save(1).  ERA= 0.00.

I expect Bericoto to move up to the Jerar Encarnacion role before the season is over.  I could see him getting promoted before Bryce Eldridge.  

AA:  Richmond Flying Squirrels outscored the Erie Seawolves 11-9.  

Charlie Szykowny 1B- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .267.

Diego Velasquez 2B- 1 for 3, BB, HBP, SB(1).  BA= .400.

Drew Cavanaugh C- 3 for 4, 2B, HR1), BB.  BA= .625.

Aeverson Arteaga SS- 1 for 3, BB, HBP, SB(1).  BA= .333.

Jonah Cox CF- 1 for 3, BB, SB(3).  BA= .308.

Tyler Vogel RHP- 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

I don't have a good scouting report on Cavanaugh's defense at catcher but he can hit.  This season is probably Aeverson Arteaga's last chance to get himself back to prospect status.  

A+:  Eugene Emeralds defeated the Hillsboro Hops 6-4.

Gavin Kilen SS- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .545.

Jack Payton 1B- 3 for 4, 2 HR(2).  BA= .750.

Ty Hanchey RF- 1 for 4, HR(1).  BA= .250.

Yunior Marte RHP- 4 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 3 K's, 5/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 2.25.

Ryan Vanderhei RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

San Jose Giants were idle.

Game Wrap 4/5/2026: Mets 5 Giants 2

Logan Webb stood in the gap for 7 innings and looked like he might pull off a series split, but a familiar combination of poor run support and a bullpen failure doomed his effort.  Key Lines:

Matt Chapman 3B- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .237.  Chapman had by far the best day at the plate for the Giants lineup.  He did skip a throw to first that Devers whiffed on and was charged with an error, but it did not lead to any unearned runs.  

Logan Webb RHP- 7 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K's, 12/2 GO/AO.  ERA= 5.00.  Classic Webb Gem.  Tony Vitello got himself thrown out of the game apparently because he wanted out, but if anyone deserved to go off on the rest of the team in the clubhouse it was Webb.  How much more of this does he have to endure?  

Keaton Winn RHP- 0.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 6.23.  After looking unhittable on 3/30 in San Diego, Winn has been bad his last two appearances.  Apparently not ready for prime time.

Erik Miller LHP- 0.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 12.00.  Ditto Keaton Winn.

The Loss drops the Giants record to 3-7 and into last place in the NL West, 4.5 games behind the Dodgers and 2 games behind the second place D'Backs.

It doesn't get any easier as the Giants start a series at home against the Phillies with Adrian Houser RHP facing the latest ace pitching prospect, Andrew Painter RHP in game 1 tomorrow evening.

Down on the Farm: 4/4/2026

 AAA:  Salt Lake City Bees walked off the Sacramento River Cats 5-4(Game 1 of DH, 7 Innings).

Bryce Eldridge 1B- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .250.

Will Brennan LF- 2 for 3, 3B, SF.  BA= .333.

Nate Furman 2B- 2 for 3.  BA= .467.  

AAA:  Sacramento River Cats smothered the Salt Lake City Bees 7-1.

Logan Gilbert CF- 2 for 3, 2B, SF.  BA= .308.

Jesus Rodriguez C- 2 for 4, SB(1).  BA= .241.

Victor Bericoto RF- 2 for 4, 2B, 3B.  BA= .304.

Jake Holton 1B- 2 for 3, 2B.  BA= .333.

Carson Seymour RHP- 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K's, 7/1 GO/AO.  ERA= 0.00.

Wilkin Ramos RHP- 2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, 4/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 6.00.

Darien Smith RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Impressive line from Seymour, especially considering the environment.

AA:  Richmond Flying Squirrels outscored the Erie Seawolves 13-6.

Scott Bandura LF- 2 for 7, 3B.  BA= .273.

Dayson Croes 2B- 3 for 6, 3B.  BA= .444.

Maui Ahuna SS- 3 for 6, 2B, SB(1).  BA= .375.

Charlie Szykowny 1B- 2 for 5, HR(1), BB, SB(1).  BA= .200.

Sabin Ceballos 3B- 2 for 5, 2B, BB.  BA= .200.

Drew Cavanaugh C- 2 for 4, 2B, 2 BB. BA= .500.

Zach Morgan DH- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .400.

Manuel Mercedes RHP- 1.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Do we finally have a good hitting team in AA Richmond?  The first 7 batters all had at least 2 hits and at least one XBH.  

A+:  Eugene Emeralds beat the Hillsboro Hops 10-4.

Gavin Kilen SS- 3 for 3, 2 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .625.

Dakota Jordan CF- 1 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .222. 

Carlos Gutierrez LF- 1 for 3, 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .143.

Zander Darby 2B- 4 for 4, 2B, HR(1).  BA= 1.000.

Hunter Dryden RHP- 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K.

Austin Strickland RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

We are seeing more college first round draft picks near MLB ready.  Is Kilen one of those?

A:  San Jose Giants destroyed the Stockton Ports 15-4.

Jhonny Level DH- 4 for 5, 2B, HR(1), BB.  BA= .538.

Lorenzo Meola SS- 2 for 5, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .333.

Junior Barajas C- 3 for 6, 2 2B.  BA= .455.

Damian Bravo CF- 1 for 6, HR(1).  BA= .133.

Hayden Jatczak 1B- 0 for 2, 4 BB, SB(1).  BA= .500.

Broedy Poppell LF- 2 for 4, BB, SB(1).  BA= .250.

Isaiah Barkett 2B- 2 for 3, 2B, SF, BB.  BA= .667.

Argenis Cayama RHP- 3.2 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 4 K's, 6/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 9.82.

Brayden Risley LHP- 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Melvin Pineda RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Several SJ Giants off to great starts, most notably Jhonny Level.  

Game Wrap 4/4/2026: Mets 9 Giants 0

 2026 is my 17'th season writing Game Wraps.  In the 16 previous seasons I can count on one hand the number of games so devoid of any redeeming features I abandoned the Key Lines format.  This was the second such game in a row and there probably should have been two more out of the 9 games played.  This was a total breakdown on all levels of the game as the lineup managed just 3 singles and 2 walks.  Landon Roupp struck out the first 4 batters he faced but then collapsed from the combined weight of bad BABIP luck and horrific fielding including Matt Chapman's failure to catch the f***ing ball.  

The Giants set historic records for batting futility in the opening series.  Three of the last four games were possibly even more embarrassing.  I don't think it's alarmist or in any way a stretch to say this is a team in serious, serious trouble.  It's a team that had to at least slightly over-perform to make the postseason and right now they are dramatically under-performing and it's the core players of an expensive team who are the leading under-performers.

Logan Webb RHP tries to salvage a series split today facing Kodai Senga RHP.

Down on the Farm: 4/3/2026

AAA:  The Salt Lake City Bees topped the Sacramento River Cats 6-5:

Bryce Eldridge 1B- 0 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .238.

Osleivis Basabe SS- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .500.

Nate Furman 2B- 1 for 3, BB, SB(2).  BA= .417.

Carson Whisenhunt LHP- 4.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 5.19.  

Gregory Santos RHP- 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, 3/0 GO/AO.  ERA= 0.00.

Much improved start by Whiz.  Santos is a guy to watch for a future call up. 

AA:  Erie Seawolves held off the Richmond Flying Squirrels 7-6.

Dayson Croes DH- 1 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .333.

Diego Velasquez 2B- 1 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .500.

Turner Hill LF- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .500.

Adrian Sugastey C- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .250.

Jonah Cox CF- 2 for 4, 2B, SB(1).  BA= .500.

Greg Farone LHP- 4.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 1.93.

Dylan Hecht RHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Tyler Vogel RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Aggressive placement for Farone who split time between A and A+ ball last season.

A+:  Eugene Emeralds outscored the Hillsboro Hops 8-6.

Trevor Cohen RF- 0 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .000.

Gavin Kilen SS- 2 for 5, 2 HR(2).  BA= .400.

Lisbel Diaz LF- 2 for 3  BA= .667.  

Walker Martin 3B- 2 for 4, 2B, HR(1).  BA= .500.

Zane Zielinski 2B- 3 for 4.  BA= .750.

Tyler Switalski LHP- 3.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Darien Peterson RHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Huge game for Kilen,  the Giants 2025 first round draft pick including a walk-off 2-run home run.  Is this the year Walker Martin finally finds traction on his career?  Switalski pitched in relief but had the most dominant pitching appearance.

A:  Stockton Ports defeated the San Jose Giants 6-2.

Jhonny Level SS- 0 for 3, BB, SB(1).  BA= .375.

Hayden Jatczak 1B- 1 for 2, 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .667.

Jordan Gottesman LHP- 3 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 0.00.

Mauricio Estrella RHP- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00. 

Gottesman was the Giants 4'th pick in the 2025 draft in the 6'th round and the first pitcher they selected.

Game Wrap 4/3/2026: Mets 10 Giants 3

There were two key umpiring moments that set the tone for this whole game and they did not go the Giants way.  Tyler Mahle RHP was trying to shave the corners and just missing.  Patrick Bailey C tried to help him out with a couple of challenges. The first, on a 3-2 pitch was an overturn that got Mahle a K, but the second was  confirmed by 0.2 in which meant the Giants were down to 1 challenge in the first inning.  Then in the top of the second inning, the ump called a strike on Heliot Ramos LF on a ball that was at least 3 inches inside and which Ramos felt he couldn't challenge with the team down to one challenge.  Mahle hung in there for 5 innings but left with a 5-0 deficit and the Giants still looking for their first baserunner.  That's all I have to say about this stinker of a ballgame.  

Landen Roupp RHP tried to give the Giants a lead in the series today facing Clay Holmes RHP.

Jose Butto RHP was diagnosed with a blood clot in his arm and underwent surgery to remove it.  This puts leaving him out there on Wednesday long after it was obvious something was wrong all the more concerning.  It wasn't just his ego that was in danger but his life!