Many expected some form of fireworks after Tuesday night’s 13-2 drubbing that included a coach confrontation Antoan Richardson considered racist in the moment, plus a spat over unwritten rules of the game big enough to inspire thinkpieces.
Instead, an explosive pitching performance occurred in Oracle Park. Nobody got thrown at on purpose. No benches cleared. No warnings issued. No ejections delivered.
It was baseball. Competitive, intense baseball, from Logan Webb’s first pitch to Camilo Doval’s last. Dramatic for the right reasons. Just how the Giants want it.
Webb, San Francisdco’s ace, shut down the Padres in a classic pitching matchup, limiting San Diego to one run in a career-high eight innings. Webb fanned seven and walked none, extending his franchise-record unbeaten streak to 24 games. He set the table for Camilo Doval to record the save in a 2-1, brilliantly executed Giants (4-2) win.
Before Wednesday’s game, Richardson and Mike Shildt met on the field and found some common ground before addressing local reporters behind home plate. They wanted to bring attention to the power of language and how microaggressions can affect marginalized people, but also hoped not to distract from Wednesday’s series finale.
Manager Gabe Kapler said he spent the morning talking to players about what transpired between Richardson and Shildt the night before. Baseball was secondary compared to tough, important conversations the Giants have committed to having, he said.
But there was also the threat of retaliation Kapler and the Giants needed to be aware of. They knew exactly what they were doing when they committed this spring as a team to play hard regardless of game score and situation, it just played out for real on Tuesday. Before first pitch, Kapler and Padres manager Bob Melvin convened behind the plate with the officiating crew.
“I think it’s important that everything that went on last night doesn’t spill over into retaliation,” Kapler said pregame.
The only thing that spilled over was — yet another — Giants ball dude falling over.
After surrendering a double and triple in the first, Webb retired the Padres in order in the second, third and fourth inning. Constantly inducing weak contact with his nasty sinker and ledge-dropping slider, the righty was virtually unhittable after settling in.
On the other side, Sean Manaea kept the Giants’ bats quiet as well. The former Oakland Athletic entered the game with seven no-hit innings to his name, then nearly began Wednesday with an immaculate first inning. But Luke Williams touched him for a two-RBI double in the second to give SF — and Webb — the lead.
As sharp as Manaea was, Webb outdueled him. To extend his unbeaten streak that stretches back to last Cinco de Mayo, Webb grinded through San Diego’s order four times.. He came back out for the eighth inning with 86 pitches to his name, only to retire three Padres in order.
Webb’s 96th pitch of the afternoon, a changeup falling out of the bottom of the strike zone, brought Trent Grisham to his knees, where he momentarily froze as Webb hollered and headed back to the dugout.
The next Giants pitcher to take the mound was Doval, San Francisco’s ascendant closer, who recorded his first save of the season by striking out Matt Beaty to strand the bases loaded. After releasing the game-clinching slider, Doval balled his right fist and tapped his chest. Oracle Park’s fans, chewing their fingernails for 10 minutes, rejoiced with him.
With all the extracurriculars removed, all that was left was beautiful baseball. If the ceasefire between the Padres and Giants continues, they can deliver 16 more classics.
But here, the Giants made it abundantly clear that their goal is to win the series, and they did just that.
