SAN FRANCISCO — In another nail-biter, the Giants (38-26) snuck past the Dodgers (33-31), 2-1, in a homestand that’s featured only extra-inning or one-run games. Jake Peavy (3-6, 5.83 ERA) pitched six shutout innings to one-up Julio Urias (0-2, 5.82 ERA) in the series-deciding game. Here’s how the Giants’ Sunday night played out.
The big moment
Brandon Belt hit the go-ahead, game-deciding home run in the sixth inning off a pitcher who was in fourth grade when Belt graduated high school. It was a flat slider that proved to be the Giants’ only runs of the game, upping the team’s record to 15-7 in one-run games.
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At the plate
Urias was the most talked about teenager in the baseball world, as evaluators drooled over his rapid maturation on the mound. Then he had to face Jacon DeGrom in New York for his major-league debut, and the anticipation cooled after lasting only 2.2 innings, and realizing how short a leash the Dodgers had him on.
But it got a little longer Sunday night, and Urias battled Giants hitters for 5.1 of the best innings in his short career. He tied a career high with 86 pitches, the last a home run from Belt to abruptly end his outing. It was Belt’s eighth home run of the year, and second in the last four games. This one with much less fanfare than Splash 69, though.
The Giants wasted a golden opportunity to increase their lead after Brandon Crawford laced a leadoff triple in the seventh inning. A shallow flyout and infield dribbler didn’t score Crawford from third, and the bats fell silent from there.
On the mound
Much like Johnny Cueto and Clayton Kershaw mirrored each other for eight innings on Friday night, Peavy and Urias tangoed in sync for five innings. Both starters didn’t allow a run through five innings, both on 77 pitches. Through four frames, the Giants right-hander only yielde a pair of Chase Utley singles among the 14 hitters he faced.
Peavy only ran into trouble during the fifth inning, allowing Joc Pederson and Howie Kendrik to reach at the start of the inning. But A.J. Ellis doused the rally, grounding into a double play started by Joe Panik, and finished gracefully by Brandon Crawford.
The sixth inning marked the third time Peavy would traverse the Dodgers’ lineup, an experience that undid Peavy multiple times last year. Utley started the inning with a ground ball that pulled Belt away from first base, causing Peavy to tumble on his back in a footrace to the bag. But Peavy got through the heart of the lineup in short order, inducing three fly outs after Utley reached to end his evening on 90 pitches.
In the ‘pen
A night after using eight pitchers , Bochy indicated all his relievers were available. He started the seventh inning with Hunter Strickland, who set down the only hitter he faced on Saturday. After retiring Trayce Thompson, Strickland served a 98 mile-per-hour heater for Pederson to mash. He dunked it 416 feet away into McCovey Cove, drawing the Dodgers within a run.
The inning ended quietly after the home run, and Kontos started the eighth inning, pitching on his 31st birthday. His present was Kike Hernandez, who struck out swinging on four pitches. Josh Osich was then brought in to face Utley and Corey Seager for the second time in as many days, and again couldn’t retire both. Seager snaked a single past Crawford, reeling in Cory Gearrin as the next bullpen representative.
He struck out Turner looking to end the inning, and his outing. Bochy mixed and matched his way through the ninth inning, using Javier Lopez against Adrian Gonzalez and Casilla to finish the game on nine pitches.
On deck
After facing a string of left-handed starters, the Giants get a break with the Brewers coming to AT&T Park. Chase Anderson (4-6, 4.21 ERA) opposes Matt Cain (1-5, 5.20 ERA), who’s making his first start in two weeks after straining his right hamstring. First pitch at 7:15 p.m. on KNBR 680.
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