Rick Scuteri-USA TODAY Sports
PHOENIX — If Kevin Gausman wanted to definitively announce himself as the Giants’ Opening Day starter, Monday’s effort was not the outing that separates him.
It is spring training, and none of this matters, especially with a pitcher of Gausman’s ability and pedigree, which is greatly improved after his breakout 2020 with the Giants. And yet, being knocked around by one of the better offenses in baseball 10 days before Opening Day is not fun.
“Today was kind of frustrating, and I felt like I’ve been a lot sharper this spring than I was today,” the Giants’ ace said after he allowed six extra-base hits in 3 2/3 innings to the White Sox. “But you’re going to have those during the season. … We kind of grinded through it.”
For two innings, seemingly whatever he was throwing was being hit hard. Tim Anderson, Chicago’s leadoff batter, jumped on a slider and pulled it to left for a home run. Yoan Moncada saw a 94-mph fastball (according to the stadium gun) that was too low and sent a double to right. Eloy Jimenez crushed a fastball that registered at 93 mph to deep center to make it 3-0.
Even the outs and foul balls were loud. The second inning included lined doubles from both Adam Eaton and Anderson, accounting for another run, before the 30-year-old settled down.
“It just kind of took me two innings to really make an adjustment,” Gausman said during the Giants’ 7-2 loss to Chicago at Camelback Ranch. “My goal is always to pitch up in the zone with my fastball, and those first couple of innings I just couldn’t get it up there. … Against these guys, you’ve got to have your A game.”
Gausman was going on the same day Johnny Cueto threw about 80 pitches in Scottsdale in a five-inning sim game. Both are lined up for a potential Opening Day start on April 1 in Seattle, with a decision about who will get the ball expected in the next few days.
Gabe Kapler did not have that decision just yet Monday and said Gausman’s next outing likely will be in a sim game. He wasn’t concerned with Gausman’s crispness, chalking it up essentially to it being March 22.
“He didn’t have the same life that he normally does, which isn’t unusual for this time of spring for pitchers to go through that,” Kapler said of Gausman, whose fastball sat about 93-94 mph. “That doesn’t concern us with a pitcher of Gausman’s caliber.”
In Gausman’s next turn, he said he will throw about 75 pitches, then be set for about 90 to begin the season either April 1 or 2.
Beyond his arm continuing to stretch out, if there was a positive to take away for him, it was a nice bunt down the first-base line to advance Jason Krizan to second. Gausman was the first Giants pitcher to take an at-bat this spring before a season in which there will be no NL DH (until further notice, at least). For the uninformed — which is most Giants fans because they never saw him bat last year — Gausman is a lefty hitter.
“I have an older brother, and that’s kind of just what he did. I think I just always watched him,” Gausman, who’s 2-for-56 lifetime without a sacrifice, said over Zoom. “My righty swing was pretty ugly, so I think my dad was like, if we have any shot, we’ll just have him hit lefty.”