Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports
The Giants might have lost significantly Wednesday, but not the game.
A monstrous shot from Austin Slater and bullet that represented Jason Vosler’s first career home run — as well as an escape-artist move from Tyler Rogers — made sure of that.
The Giants fell behind and might have lost Darin Ruf to injury but erupted in the eighth inning of a 5-4, comeback win that pulled them even with the Dodgers before their four-game series at Chavez Ravine begins Thursday. The Giants swept the brief two-game set from the Diamondbacks and have won seven straight against teams that are not the Dodgers.
San Francisco and LA (both 30-19) are 1.5 games back of the Padres — and yet would be leading every other division in baseball.
The Giants can thank their rotation for the spot they find themselves in, as well as veterans such as Buster Posey and Brandon Crawford, who have lifted them long after their bodies were supposed to let them down. It was a couple of quieter contributors who awoke the Giants’ bats late at Chase Field.
The Giants were down by two entering the eighth and had been shut down by Arizona pitching all night. With two outs and Donovan Solano on second, Arizona manager Torey Lovullo went to lefty Alex Young when Alex Dickerson was due up. And so Gabe Kapler turned to Slater, who turned on an inside cutter for his second pinch-hit homer of the year and third of his career — but none like this.
AUSTIN SLATER WITH THE 460 FOOT TO TIE IT
pic.twitter.com/3R6eFrPdUc— KNBR (@KNBR) May 27, 2021
The parabola in the sky soared, and Slater watched it go with a flip of his bat that signaled that he knew the ball was not coming back. It ended in the upper deck an estimated 460 feet away — one foot short of his career high, though he might want to demand a recount. His power is not in question, although his swing usually generates it toward the opposite field. When he gets around on balls, they go a long way.
Speaking of which, Vosler was the next batter. Only playing because Ruf had gone down with an apparent leg injury while trying to slow down after rounding first, Vosler saw nine pitches from Young, including three straight fouls with two strikes on him. The last he glimpsed was a down-the-middle fastball that he deposited directly into Jake McGee’s glove in the Giants’ bullpen beyond the right-field wall. Vosler should not have to do much coaxing to get his first home run ball back.
Jason Vosler’s first-career HR puts the Giants ahead in the 8th
pic.twitter.com/gEN5vL6hYY— KNBR (@KNBR) May 27, 2021
It put the Giants ahead to stay, with Rogers closing the door — with some drama — after strong efforts from Caleb Baragar, Nick Tropeano and McGee kept Arizona scoreless for four innings. The Diamondbacks loaded the bases against Rogers with one out, but he struck out Ketel Marte (a pitch after the home-plate appeared to miss an in-play ball that Posey jumped on) and got Eduardo Escobar to ground out.
The bullpen and the bats turned an awful day in Giants world into a, well, less awful day.
Hours after the Giants placed Brandon Belt on the injured list, their expected fill-in, Ruf, may have lasted five and a half innings as the heir apparent. He singled into left-center in the sixth, made a big turn around first and seemed to be smelling double. But he had a second-thought, slammed on the brakes and immediately pulled at what may be his right hamstring. He grimaced, made it back to first base and slammed his helmet in frustration. After a brief talk with a trainer, he exited the game. The Giants did not provide an immediate update.
Ruf would be among the league leaders in average exit velocity if he got enough plate appearances to qualify. Normally facing southpaws, the 34-year-old who spent three seasons in the KBO has been a revelation both last year and this year, consistently hitting the ball hard and for power while playing a passable first base and left field. Gabe Kapler indicated before the game that Ruf would see the lion’s-share of work at first — even against righties — while Belt is out for an estimated 10-14 days with an oblique strain. If Ruf’s chance is up already, it seems cruel.
In a game that the Giants nearly started a hole, Ruf’s pain dug them deeper.
It took two batters for the Diamondbacks to do what they hadn’t a night prior: score a run. Josh Rojas singled before Ketel Marte doubled, grabbing a first-inning lead after Tuesday’s 8-0 Giants win.
Johnny Cueto did not have much through five innings in which he allowed four runs on eight hits. He surrendered a lot of hard contact and watched the Diamondbacks stack four singles in five at-bats in the the second that buried the Giants in a 4-0 hole.
It would be a hole they escaped.
