If you missed the Giants doubleheader on Thursday, congratulations.
It’s hard to imagine a more disappointing 18 innings from an offensive perspective. The Giants scored three runs and had seven hits combined in Milwaukee, losing 2-1 in Game 1, and 4-2 in Game 2. San Francisco has now lost four in a row after winning four in a row, and are 65-72 with less than a month remaining in the season.
Game 1 started off on a high note, with LaMonte Jr. racing around the bases to score from first base on a Mike Yastrzemski double.
Unfortunately for the Giants, the offensive highlights would end there. Reigning Cy Young award winner Corbin Burnes gave a Hall of Fame level performance for the Brewers (73-65), striking out 14 batters in eight innings on just 100 pitches. Though Burnes benefitted slightly from a large strike zone, he painted the corners to an absurd degree, primarily with his elite cutter.
Burnes’ 214 strikeouts on the season are now 13 more than Carlos Rodon and just four behind major league leader Gerrit Cole. He generated 26 swing and misses from the Giants, the most for a SF team since 2015.
It was a tough break for Jakob Junis who took over for opener Scott Alexander and was solid in six innings of work. Junis had the backdoor slider working and struck out four, but also gave up two runs that proved to be the difference.
Both were earned the bottom of the fourth, when Christian Yelich hit an RBI double to center and Hunter Renfroe followed it up with an RBI ground-rule double of his own.
It was about as uneventful as a 2-1 game can be, clocking in at just two hours and 21 minutes.
Forty-five minutes later, Game 2 was more of the same.
Alex Young started bullpen game number two and was shelled, giving up three runs in the first inning before being pulled for longtime pitching prospect Sean Hjelle who was called up on Thursday.
Like Junis before him, Hjelle was solid as the bulk-innings guy, keeping the Brewers quiet for five innings while striking out six and allowing just three hits. Hjelle’s fastball hit 96 mph, and he could be in line for a rotation spot for the remainder of the season, especially with Alex Wood on the shelf.
Unfortunately Hjelle’s day ended unceremoniously, when he hit Luis Urias in the head after nearly hitting him in the head the previous time he was up.
Once Hjelle was pulled, the Brewers added an insurance run that was added to his stat line, while the Giants added two of their own.
