The San Francisco Giants came into their series at Arizona with some momentum after back-to-back home series wins over the Athletics and the Atlanta Braves. None of that carried over in the opener, though. Just like every other meeting between these teams this season, the Giants came up short.
That’s the bigger story here: San Francisco is now 0-7 against the Diamondbacks in 2024, and the pattern has been hard to miss. The Giants have had trouble getting enough pitching, enough timely hitting, or really enough of anything to slow Arizona down.
The first meeting came in May at Chase Field, when the Giants were sitting at 20-27 before the matchup even started. Over those three games, San Francisco gave up 23 runs and managed only eight of its own. That set the tone for what’s followed.
After splitting time with the Chicago White Sox and winning two of three, the Giants hosted Arizona at Oracle Park. The result was more of the same.
In that three-game set, the Diamondbacks scored 16 runs while the Giants put up nine. Through those first six games, San Francisco had allowed 39 runs, and the pitching staff was carrying most of the blame.
Monday night at Chase Field gave the Giants their closest look yet at breaking through, but the result still went Arizona’s way, 5-4. San Francisco battled back with three runs in the final two innings, but Tyler Mahle’s rough start left too much ground to make up.
The numbers tell a pretty clear story. Arizona’s team batting average sat at .238 at the end of June, 23rd in Major League Baseball.
The Giants, meanwhile, were hitting .256, fourth-best in the league. So this isn’t simply a case of one offense being much better than the other.
It’s been Arizona doing damage against San Francisco’s pitching.
And when the game gets tight, the Giants haven’t cashed in often enough. On Monday, they went 1-6 with runners in scoring position, while Arizona was 2-4. Across the season series, San Francisco is just 7-45 with runners in scoring position, a .156 mark that has helped explain why the Diamondbacks keep walking away with these games.
In Other News...
Giants Fans Are Getting Dragged Back Into This Free Agency Debate
Several weeks after the Giants Pride Night, the fallout from four pitchers protesting the teams Pride hats is still echoing around San Francisco. What started as a game-night controversy has turned into a broader conversation about the city the Giants represent, and whether that environment can become a factor when the club tries to bring in outside talent.
San Francisco Chronicle reporter Susan Slusser said the debate could linger because the citys prominent LGBTQ community is part of the reality free agents have to consider. The question hovering over the Giants now is not just how they manage the public reaction to the protest, but whether that reaction becomes something players weigh when the offseason market opens up again. [Read more 🡒]
Brandon Pfaadt Is Back In A Huge Moment For Arizona
Arizona has been piecing together its pitching plans while working through injuries to Michael Soroka and Ryne Nelson, and that pressure has pushed the club into some familiar roster juggling. The latest move gives Torey Lovullo another option as the Diamondbacks try to steady a rotation that has had to absorb a heavier bullpen workload than planned, and the timing matters with the Giants next on the schedule.
Brandon Pfaadt has been working his way back after time spent in the bullpen and Triple-A, where the results were enough to keep him in the conversation for a return to the starting group. His next outing comes with real significance for a Diamondbacks staff that has been stretched thin, and the corresponding roster move should tell more about how Arizona is trying to manage the rest of the week. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Keep Embarrassing Themselves In The One Area Posey Preaches Most
For a club that has spent much of the season talking about cleaner habits and sharper execution, the Giants keep finding ways to undercut that message with the same old baserunning sloppiness. It has shown up in recent days in more than one form, from Willy Adames losing track of the outs while chatting with Mookie Betts to rookie Jonah Cox making a similar mistake, which only deepens the sense that this is becoming more than an isolated lapse.
The bigger issue for San Francisco is that these are exactly the kinds of details Buster Posey has said matter most, the little things that should be nonnegotiable on a well-run team. Instead, the Giants are leaving the impression of a club that is not nearly attentive enough in the areas that most reward discipline, and that puts pressure not just on the players but on Posey, Tony Vitello and the rest of the staff to make sure the message finally sticks. [Read more 🡒]