The Giants had to wait a little longer than usual for a win tonight.
At the rate this season is going, they probably don’t mind.
Buster Posey launched a solo shot off Robert Stephenson to walk it off in the bottom of the seventeenth (yes, you read that right) inning, ending a five hour and twenty-eight minute game as the Giants beat the Reds, 3-2.
It was the first Giants walk-off homer of the season.
In other weird coincidences, it had been 51 years to the date since a Giant hit a home run in the seventeenth inning or later. Jim Davenport did it on May 13, 1966.
Cory Gearrin picked up his first win on the year, giving up two hits, one walk and striking ou two over two innings. He got himself into a jam in the 16th, but struck out Billy Hamilton with the bases loaded to end the inning.
For all the flack they’ve been under, the Giants bullpen was stellar. They yielded nine scoreless innings combined and four hitless innings of relief until the 14th, when Scott Schebler and Scooter Gennett hit back-to-back singles off Bryan Morris. Tucker Barnhart sacrificed them over, but Brandon Crawford threw Schebler out at the plate on an Jose Peraza ground ball. Morris ignited AT&T by picking off Gennett on second on the next play to escape the jam.
Morris went three innings, surrendering three hits and one walk, and struck out two.
Johnny Cueto turned in another quality start, giving up two runs on five hits and striking out six over eight innings. His command was much better than last week’s loss — of his 119 pitches, 75 were strikes.
He ran into trouble early against Cincinnati when Gennett sent a RBI-triple into Triples Alley in the second. Gennett scored one at-bat later, on a sac fly courtesy of Tucker Barnhart.
But Cueto settled into a groove and rolled through the Reds lineup for the rest of the game. He gave up only two hits over the next six innings.
Denard Span sparked the home crowd early, sending a 2-2 pitch from Feldman into the cove for the Giants first leadoff home run of the season. It was his second homer in as many games.
The Giants scored again in the fifth, thanks to some small ball. With Suarez playing deep at third, Eduardo Nunez lead off the inning with a bunt single to third. Justin Ruggiano followed with the same thing. Cueto moved both runners over with his second sacrifice bunt of the game, and Span sent a line drive into right, scoring Nunez.
Matt Moore (1-4, 6.52) is up next for the Giants tomorrow, where he’ll take on the newly-called up Lisalverto Bonilla (0-0, 7,20). Bonilla will make his first start for the Reds, but has appeared from them once already this season in relief. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m.
