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<\/p>\nSAN FRANCISCO \u2014 The Giants already knew that Jung Hoo Lee had the speed to make running catches in center field. They knew he was fast enough to stretch doubles into triples. But they hadn\u2019t seen him at his quickest and most elusive.<\/p>\n
For that, Lee had to collect the first walk-off hit of his career. He played the hero in the ninth inning Thursday afternoon, slashing a line drive to right field for the last of the Giants\u2019 three consecutive singles against Chicago Cubs closer Daniel Palencia. Pinch runner Christian Koss scored easily from second base while sliding headfirst across the plate, sending the resurgent Giants to a 4-3 victory and a three-game sweep of the NL\u2019s wild-card leaders.<\/p>\n
Lee\u2019s game-winner also sent his teammates charging onto the field, led by Willy Adames, who contributed a pair of home runs. Adames got a hold of Lee\u2019s jersey and rookie Drew Gilbert had him in his grasp in the grass beyond second base. But Lee broke free before Heliot Ramos, toting a cooler sloshing with ice water, could join the scrum. It turns out that Lee is more water-averse than a cat in the grass when the sprinklers turn on. He moves almost as quickly, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was trying to run away from the boys,\u201d Lee said through Korean interpreter Justin Han. \u201cThe water in the dugout is really cold. I remember last time when I got hit by the water, it was freezing. And I\u2019m usually the one that beats up the guy when somebody hits a walk-off. So I thought there might have been a little bit of revenge there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\ufeff<\/p>\n
Revelry, not revenge, was on everyone\u2019s mind, including an elated crowd that chanted Lee\u2019s name all the way until he descended the dugout stairs. It hasn\u2019t been an easy first full season in the major leagues for Lee, who could only establish so much last season when he sustained a dislocated shoulder in his 37th game. After a hot start in April, the hits stopped coming. Lee was frustrated with strike calls on the outer half so he tinkered by moving up on the plate. In June and July, only the Yankees\u2019 Cody Bellinger stood with his center of mass closer to the plate than Lee did. The adjustment didn\u2019t work. Lee batted just .158 on balls in play in June.<\/p>\n
The hits are falling now. Lee has hit safely in 22 of 24 games in August. He\u2019s batting .347 on balls in play this month. Even though he hasn\u2019t been a consistent difference maker at the plate, he\u2019s still managing to compile some impressive numbers. When he hit a double Wednesday night, he became just the fifth Giants player in the club\u2019s San Francisco era to collect 30 doubles and 10 triples in a season. There are no slouches on that list. The other names are Willie Mays, Bobby Bonds, Garry Maddox and Angel Pag\u00e1n.<\/p>\n
Lee\u2019s coaches and teammates have tried to create a supportive environment. They\u2019ve expressed concern at times with the amount of pressure he\u2019s put on himself to perform up to expectations and establish his value as a major-league player. So they took maximum satisfaction in his first career walk-off hit \u2014 even if he was able to dodge Ramos and the cold water this time.<\/p>\n
\u201cI guess I didn\u2019t try hard enough,\u201d Adames said with a laugh. \u201cWe have a lot of faith in him. We trust him. We know what he\u2019s capable of. He\u2019s been the same guy no matter if he\u2019s doing good or bad. We\u2019re always pulling for him. In that moment today, I feel like nobody has a doubt. He was going to be the hero and he delivered for us and for the city. I mean, you can tell people love him here. He comes through like that, I\u2019m happy for him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lee said the chants from the crowd gave him goosebumps.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just want to say thank you to the fans always,\u201d Lee said. \u201cMajor League Baseball is so data-oriented. The defensive shifts are amazing. It\u2019s so hard to get a hit here. Sometimes you\u2019ve got to be really lucky. So I was just (trying) to put more quality on the pitches I hit and lay off bad pitches. I\u2019ve been thinking to myself recently to do a lot of nice things that can bring luck into the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Giants\u2019 three-game sweep was straight out of the \u201ccan\u2019t predict ball\u201d playbook. When the series began, the Giants had lost 13 of their previous 15 home games. The Cubs hadn\u2019t been swept in any series of three games or more this season. For the Giants to take all three games required contributions from a roster core that might be resurrecting itself too late to make a playoff push but early enough to restore faith in the outlook for next season.<\/p>\n
Rafael Devers hit two home runs and a double in Wednesday night\u2019s victory. Adames, who entered Thursday\u2019s game in a 3-for-40 slump at home, hit a two-run home run in the first inning and a tying, solo shot in the sixth. Adames also continued to make solid contributions at shortstop, ranging far to his right and throwing across his body to take a hit away from Nico Hoerner in the sixth inning. Devers, who is looking better and better at first base after learning the position midseason, picked the throw out of the dirt.<\/p>\n
\ufeff<\/p>\n
Maybe everyone just needed a little time to adjust to a new environment, whether it\u2019s Lee experiencing his first full season or Adames creating a comfort zone after signing a seven-year, $182 million contract or Devers settling in following the mid-June blockbuster trade with the Boston Red Sox.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, it feels like that,\u201d Adames said. \u201cIt feels like when we all get together and get comfortable around each other, it\u2019s going to be fun. Yeah, I\u2019m really excited about that. \u2026 It\u2019s been a challenging year for me on the offensive side. I haven\u2019t been able to figure out how to keep it consistent. I\u2019m happy it\u2019s coming now.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite the ups and downs, Adames\u2019 season is beginning to resemble his career norms. His home runs were his 23rd and 24th of the season, matching Brandon Crawford (in 2021) and trailing only Rich Aurilia (37 in 2001) for the most by a Giants shortstop in franchise history. Especially with road series at Colorado and Arizona still on the Giants\u2019 schedule, Adames still has a viable shot at breaking a 21-year drought and becoming the first Giants player since Barry Bonds to hit 30 home runs in a season.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s the same every day no matter what,\u201d Giants manager Bob Melvin said of Adames. \u201cWinning, losing, playing well or not, it\u2019s the same. It\u2019s one of the reasons we signed him: not only the production and what he does on the field but his enthusiasm. It rubs off.\u201d<\/p>\n
Maybe Adames didn\u2019t allow the team\u2019s struggles to dampen his enthusiasm. But that enthusiasm is so much more infectious on a winning team.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s hard to smile when you\u2019re not winning,\u201d Adames said. \u201cIt\u2019s been fun, these last two series. The boys are having fun and I\u2019m all in for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Willy Adames has had four two-homer games this season, including two over the past week. (Ezra Shaw \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
The Giants\u2019 victory was their 10th in walk-off fashion this season but their first since July 8, when Patrick Bailey beat the Philadelphia Phillies with an inside-the-park home run.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s probably too much ground to make up for the Giants to make a playoff push. Even after winning five consecutive games against the Cubs and NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers, they are 66-68 and would have to post a 20-win September to give themselves any realistic chance. On an individual basis, though, there are plenty of goals still within reach.<\/p>\n
Logan Webb has a chance to accomplish something that no Giants pitcher has done since the World War II era. He completed seven innings while adding to his major league-leading total. He also struck out seven to give him 187 strikeouts this season, which trails only the Phillies\u2019 Zack Wheeler among NL pitchers. With Wheeler undergoing season-ending thoracic outlet surgery, Webb could finish the season as a surprising league leader in strikeouts if he can stay ahead of Paul Skenes and Dylan Cease. That\u2019d put Webb in rarefied air. He\u2019d join Tim Lincecum as the only Giants in the San Francisco era to lead the NL in strikeouts (2008-10). No Giants pitcher has led the NL in innings and strikeouts since Bill Voiselle in 1944.<\/p>\n
As much as Webb takes pride in being an innings-eating throwback pitcher, he places far more importance on being a part of a winning club. After the past five games, it\u2019s a lot easier for him and everyone else to envision that possibility next season.<\/p>\n
The Giants have hit 22 home runs over a streak of 11 consecutive games with at least one longball, which is their longest since 2021. Maybe that\u2019s not a sustainable power supply, but it\u2019s reassuring to see that this group is capable of it. For a sinkerball pitcher like Webb, it\u2019s probably even more assuring to see Adames making plays in the hole and Devers looking like a potential defensive asset at first base. Adames posted minus-6 outs above average in April. Since then, he\u2019s posted plus-10.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you look to the future, that\u2019s nice,\u201d Webb said.<\/p>\n
Showing their fans that they can still win with a late flourish in their own ballpark? That\u2019s pretty nice, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to say thank you for my teammates for celebrating with me,\u201d said Lee, still wearing the dry jersey that Adames had tried to rip off him. \u201cGetting the win today is more important than anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n
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