SAN FRANCISCO – Following a 6-5 loss to the San Diego Padres Monday night, Giants outfielder Kevin Pillar discussed his fourth-inning grand slam and how he used the Padres intentionally walking Yangervis Solarte before him as motivation.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Giants led off the inning with a Tyler Austin single up the middle, followed by a Brandon Belt walk. The Padres loaded the bases when they intentionally walked Solarte after Austin missed with the first three pitches. When Pillar saw he was being forced to the plate after an intentional walk, he entered the at-bat with a chip on his shoulder.
“Yea it motivates you,” Pillar said. “Because it’s not just me, it’s anyone. If a team feels like you’re a better option to get out of an inning and to get outs, it’s always a little bit of a sign of disrespect. It is part of the game, you see it all the time. You typically see it where they walk the eight-hole hitter to get to the pitcher and I’m sure they feel the same way even though they’re not major league hitters like myself.”
Despite his motivation to make the Padres pay for walking the bases loaded to face him, Pillar discussed how important it is to stay focused on what he does best.
“Yeah it motivates you, but the biggest thing is staying in the moment, not trying to do too much,” Pillar said. “For me, when I get home run happy, it’s not pretty. My strength is just trying to hit the ball hard and stay to the middle of the field, and sometimes they go.”
Despite the grand slam from Pillar, the Giants dropped the first game of a three-game series against the red-hot Padres. After climbing out to a 5-0 lead, Madison Bumgarner and the Giants bullpen were unable to hold the lead.