Matt Cain was in the starting rotation prior to the All-Star break. Then he was sent to the bullpen to make room for the return of Madison Bumgarner. Days later, he found his way back in the rotation after Johnny Cueto hit the disabled list with blister issues.
It’s a situation that Cain has hardly experienced throughout his career. If his start on Wednesday is any indication, he’ll be ready, as represented by his six innings of three-run ball that put the Giants in a position to come back late and beat the Indians 5-4.
Switching between the bullpen and rotation – on top of the extended break with the All-Star game – put Cain in a position that pitchers don’t often face through the course of a season, but he felt ready to go in the series finale against Cleveland.
“It just ended up working out to where I was able to get a bullpen in and get normal stuff done in between because they had an idea of what would happen with Johnny (Cueto),” Cain said. “They did a good job of being able to communicate that I was going to start, so it was easy for me to get back on the routine.”
Facing an Indians team that is currently atop the American League Central, Cain was sharp in the first two innings, before a walk to pitcher Carlos Carrasco triggered a three-run rally in the top of the third for the Indians.
“The biggest thing is not to go down the dark hole and think ‘here we go again,’ because then bad things will happen during the game,” Cain said.
He didn’t go down the dark hole. While he’d like to have some of those pitches back from the third, he didn’t let it carry over, not allowing a run in innings four through six.
His outing allowed the Giants’ offense to keep taking its shots at the Indians. It was Buster Posey that finally got the big hit in the eighth to give the Giants the 5-4 lead with a pinch-hit, two-run double.
“I thought he (Cain) threw the ball well, I think he’s been pretty consistent this year, I know maybe the ERA doesn’t show it,” Posey said. “Yeah, it’s definitely nice to get him off the hook.”
Cain, Posey and the rest of the Giants will take a win any way they can this season. Two late-inning, gritty comebacks in as many days has the 2017 Giants winning in the same style the world championship teams that fans have come to love this decade did.
While he has been an anchor in the starting rotation for over a decade, it might be the bullpen where Cain finishes the season, and perhaps end of his tenure with the Giants.
Whether the wins follow or not, expect Cain and the rest of the Giants to keep battling all the way to the finish line of the 2017 season.