The Giants got hit with a very different kind of misery Friday night at Citi Field.
One night after a loss in which their pitching staff mostly beat itself with walks, a hit batter and an error, San Francisco was blasted in a 10-6 defeat to the Mets. This time, the damage came off the scoreboard in a hurry: the Giants allowed a season-high five home runs, the first time they’d surrendered that many in one game since April 29, 2023.
Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez did a big chunk of the wrecking, leaving the yard twice. Mark Vientos opened the scoring with an opposite-field three-run homer in the first after Francisco Lindor singled and Bo Bichette drew a walk, and New York kept stacking damage from there.
The roughest stretch belonged to rookie left-hander Matt “Tugboat” Wilkinson, who gave up seven runs, four earned, in three innings. Three of the Mets’ five homers came against him. Fellow rookie Yunior Marte handled the long innings behind him and allowed three runs over five innings in his second career big league appearance, with the other two home runs charged to him.
“I think they had something on him,” said manager Tony Vitello. “They’ve also got really good hitters, so maybe they didn’t.
At the very least, regardless, they had a really good game plan on him, too. Fastball’s tough to hit, but they were on it.
… He’ll be better for it. It’s frustrating.
The ideal night was for us to split it almost kind of evenly between him and Marte. The one huge positive for us is Marte was great again.”
The second inning was where the game got away from San Francisco. Alvarez added a solo shot to make it 4-0, then Wilkinson walked Nick Morabito.
Lindor reached when shortstop Christian Koss couldn’t backhand a grounder, Juan Soto knocked in Morabito by beating out a potential inning-ending double play, and Bichette followed with a two-run homer. By the time the inning ended, the Mets were up 7-0.
San Francisco finally answered in the third. Rafael Devers drove in two with a double, but that was all the Giants could get against Mets rookie Nolan McLean. Devers finished with his 33rd home run of the season, two doubles and a season-high five RBIs, pushing his RBI total to 88.
Turner Hill also turned in a solid night at the plate with two hits and an RBI.
The Giants had a chance to make more of a dent in the fifth when they loaded the bases with no outs, but they came away empty.
“It boiled down to the bases loaded,” Vitello said. “We had an opportunity to disallow him to finish five innings.
… He wanted the ball, came back out in the sixth inning and he was really sharp in that inning and ran through that one. We did have him on the hook in the fifth; it was just a matter of not getting anything done with the bases loaded and nobody out.”
Lindor later launched New York’s fourth homer in the sixth, and Alvarez added the fifth and final blast in the eighth.
In Other News...
Giants May Have Won This Padres Trade Sooner Than Anyone Expected
The Robbie Ray deal at the 2026 MLB trade deadline already looks like the kind of trade that can reshape a farm system. San Francisco sent the veteran pitcher to San Diego and got back prospects Miguel Mendez and Joniel Hernandez, two names that have quickly given the Giants something to watch beyond the big league standings. For a club always trying to balance present needs with future value, that return has added an interesting layer to a move that initially seemed more about deadline pragmatism than long-term upside.
Mendez and Hernandez have both shown enough in the minors to keep the conversation alive about what the Giants may have landed. The Padres were clearly pushing for help in their playoff chase, but the early returns in San Francisco suggest the real payoff from the trade could come later, and perhaps sooner than expected. For Giants fans, the intrigue now is not just what Ray means in San Diego, but how quickly these two prospects can turn a deadline swap into something much bigger. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Just Sent Ryan Walker A Message About This Bullpen
The Giants made a notable bullpen shuffle by claiming right-hander Joel Kuhnel off waivers from the Brewers and placing him directly on the major league roster. To create room, they optioned Ryan Walker to Triple-A Sacramento and also shifted catcher Jesus Rodriguez to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster.
Kuhnels arrival carries some urgency because he is out of minor-league options, so the Giants have to decide quickly what he can give them at the big-league level. For Walker, the move is a clear reminder that the bullpen picture is still fluid, and every relief job is being treated as one that has to be earned and re-earned. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Face A Tough Offseason Squeeze With Few Easy Roster Cuts
The Giants are heading into an offseason roster squeeze that leaves very few painless choices. With at least 15 players on the 60-day injured list, the front office has to sort through a crowded group of rehabs and decide who gets activated back onto the 40-man roster and who risks being exposed on waivers, all while trying to keep the big-picture roster intact.
What makes the situation even tighter is the lack of obvious turnover elsewhere. JT Brubaker is the only Giant set for unrestricted free agency, and the club also has a decision looming on Rowan Wick, who is working back from Tommy John surgery. If that option is declined, it adds another layer to an already complicated winter, with the possibility of a lockout only heightening the urgency to settle the roster before the calendar turns. [Read more 🡒]