Rafael Devers went from an 0-2 hole to working a key lead-off walk in the 9th.<\/p>\n
He hadn\u2019t done his job, per se. Devers didn\u2019t knock a game-tying shot through the roof of Miami\u2019s Loan Depot Park, a shot with the force and consequence of a pair of proton torpedoes colliding with a main reactor, effectively blasting that awful surf n\u2019 turf fish bowl off the face of the earth while absolving the star of his many sins at the plate so far. No, Devers did not hit a walk-off, 2-run homer with no one on base as a member of the visiting team \u2014 but he did get on base.<\/p>\n
For the fourth time over the final five frames, San Francisco\u2019s leadoff batter reached base. The previous three times, the offense did nothing with the opportunity. The 5th, 6th, and 7th innings ended with that runner standing in the same place he started, on first, twiddling his thumbs. The last time a Giants runner reached scoring position was way back in the 3rd inning.<\/p>\n
Down 2-1, down to their final three outs, someone needed to make something happen. The issue of scoring had to be forced. So after Devers worked an admirable walk, Tony Vitello signaled for speedster Jonah Cox to take his place as a pinch runner.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s when the finger got wagged.<\/p>\n
Seeing Cox make his way out onto the field, helmet on, Devers emphatically gestured back to Tony Vitello, trying to get his manager\u2019s attention to tell him that he was staying put. The rookie slowed his trot down first, looked back to the dugout and back to the veteran Raffy, like a kid caught between two parents in an argument. Devers gave Cox a thumbs up, told him I\u2019m good, I\u2019m good as he nodded sheepishly, not wanting to impose himself on the base Devers had earned, nor wanting to return to the dugout against the wishes of his manager. Eventually the first base umpire stepped in, and Devers acquiesced, covering his face in the hollow of his helmet as he walked back to the dugout, muttering words meant for no soul to hear. In an attempt to calm himself, he stretched his arms out and exhaled. Bench coach Jayce Tingler greeted him with a butt tap that Devers rejected with a shimmy and squirm.<\/p>\n
Pissed about what exactly? As someone who notoriously does not talk to the media, we might never know. There was possibly a misunderstanding in which Devers, who had been dealing with some leg soreness over the weekend, felt healthy enough to run. I\u2019m sure there\u2019s an emotional cocktail of pride mixed with frustration rearing its ugly head here too. No, Raffy didn\u2019t punch a hole through the roof. In fact, he had gone hitless in three official at-bats and flew out to center with two runners on in the 3rd. Zooming out a bit, yes, the team stinks, and he\u2019s partially to blame for this stinkiness considering how off-and-on-and-off-again he\u2019s been in what is shaping up to be the worst offensive season in his career. Devers wants to be a competitor, and neither he, nor his team, are competing. He worked a walk, but some pitches got by that he wanted back. He wanted a do-over, probably at all of it. Staying on the field was his way of getting a second chance at changing the game. Vitello said as much when asked about it after the game: he\u2019d rather have players arguing to remain on the field than begging to be taken off of it (maybe we\u2019ll get to that point sometime soon).<\/p>\n
That\u2019s a diplomatic approach to what many on the outside perceived as a dollar diva on a bad team showing up a rookie manager. We nearly witnessed a mutiny.<\/p>\n
In terms of strategy, there isn\u2019t much of an argument for Devers to stay at first. Sacrificing Devers\u2019 bat for some basepath speed makes sense, especially if the plan was to steal second. From that vantage point, any hit that finds its way to the outfield would surely allow Cox to tie the game. If he advances on that first at-bat, the Giants heart of the order has three chances to force a bottom of the 9th.<\/p>\n
Based on what Vitello said, that was the thinking. The only problem: Cox never broke for second. Jung Hoo Lee saw three pitches, flying out on the third, and the runner never even flinched towards second. Two pitches to Willy Adames, same deal. No attempt. Cox stayed at first and was routinely forced out on a game-ending double play. Devers could\u2019ve done that! Maybe that\u2019s what he was saying when he shooed away the pinch runner: It doesn\u2019t matter. You ain\u2019t going anywhere. You or me, we\u2019ll both just be standing here when the game ends. <\/p>\n
Considering what occurred, it\u2019s only fair to question what happened. Was there a signal given on a specific pitch, a more general green light given, and the kid just couldn\u2019t shift into gear? Or was the plan to see if an opportunity to swipe second presented itself, and if not, feel good about Cox\u2019s ability to score from first on a double in the gap? Or was there no real plan at all? Just vague suggestions from the coaching staff that sound too much like wishes and hopes: Wouldn\u2019t it be cool if you stole a base here? If only we could figure out how\u2026 <\/p>\n
I guess this is the problem of a team in the middle of a long downward spiral \u2014 you can\u2019t make heads-or-tails out of reality. Devers wagged his finger in the face of logic. He poo-pooed it. Then Cox took over and got stuck in a similar stagnancy. He had trouble remembering the number of outs before, this time, he touched first and blacked out.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s a sorry state of affairs made all the more sorry when next to excellence.<\/p>\n
Logan Webb was excellent. Maybe not excellent excellent, but way better than a lot of other things we\u2019re seeing done in a Giants uniform. Webb limited Miami to 2 runs (the most he\u2019s allowed in a start since his return from the IL<\/a>) on five hits while striking out 5 over 8 innings pitched.<\/p>\n Webb has gone 8 innings in each of his last three starts, becoming the first Giant to do so since Madison Bumgarner in 2015<\/a>. He was nearly the first Giant since Juan Marichal in 1966 to throw 8 innings in three consecutive starts without giving up a walk<\/a>, but Kyle Stowers broke his streak at 21.2 innings with two outs in the 4th.<\/p>\n