Willy Adames kept finding grass, and the Giants kept finding just enough in the late innings.
Adames finished with three hits and drove in a run with a single in a two-run eighth, helping San Francisco edge the Colorado Rockies 3-1 on Sunday afternoon. Trevor McDonald did the heavy lifting early, then Erik Miller and a pair of relievers finished off a three-hitter as the Giants held on at home.
The game was tied after both clubs scratched out single runs through the first four innings, but San Francisco broke through in the eighth after Rafael Devers drew a walk off Rockies reliever Antonio Senzatela (9-2). Jung Hoo Lee then flied out, and Bryce Eldridge followed with a single that moved Devers to third. Grant McCray came in as a pinch-runner at first and stole second on the next pitch.
That set up the key defensive mistake. Hunter Goodman’s throw went into center field for an error, allowing Devers to score the go-ahead run. Adames then came through again with his third single of the day, bringing McCray home from third for the final margin.
Miller (2-0) got the win after striking out Mickey Moniak with the score tied and a runner at second to end the top of the eighth. He stayed on for the ninth and protected the two-run lead even after Goodman opened the inning with a single.
Colorado had grabbed the first lead in dramatic fashion. On McDonald’s second pitch, Jake McCarthy sent an inside-the-park home run to right-center field. The ball only briefly got away from Jung Hoo Lee in right, and McCarthy beat the throw home for his 10th homer of the season.
That was all the Rockies could manage against McDonald, who settled in and allowed just three hits over seven innings. He walked one and struck out four.
San Francisco answered in the fourth. With two outs, Michael Lorenzen walked Eldridge and then gave up back-to-back singles to Adames and Drew Gilbert, with Gilbert driving in the tying run.
Lorenzen exited after five innings, charged with one run on five hits. He struck out one and walked three.
Heliot Ramos added two hits for the Giants, who took three of four from Colorado and evened the season series at 5-5. Goodman collected two of the Rockies’ four hits in a game that featured no extra-base hits after McCarthy’s opening blast.
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The bigger issue for the Giants is that this has not been confined to one side of the ball. Adames has also been shaky defensively, which puts added pressure on a lineup that needs him to be more than just a source of occasional damage. The encouraging part is that his bat speed and exit velocity have stayed close to his usual standards, so this does not look like a player who has simply lost his tools. For now, the question is whether the Giants can get him back on track quickly enough before the conversation around him shifts from slump to something much more structural. [Read more 🡒]