© John Hefti | USA Today
If you’re a fan of pitcher’s duels, the first eight innings of Monday night’s 3-1 Giants loss were exactly what you’d hope for. The game featured a grand total of 18 strikeouts and eight hits.
But that seventh hit proved fatal for the Giants. After eight shutout innings, Will Smith took the mound with a chance to close out the game against a depleted Astros roster missing Carlos Correa, George Springer, Jose Altuve, Lance McCullers Jr. and Chris Devenski. Smith recorded an out, then a walk, then an out, and another walk.
With runners on first and second, Marwin Gonzalez stepped to the plate and hit a huge home run to left field, crushing the Giants hopes of a shutout and a win. Despite a hit from Brandon Crawford in the bottom of the ninth, the Giants fell flat, as Hector Rondon closed the game out to seal the 3-1 Astros win.
Despite the loss, Dereck Rodriguez was – you guessed it – outstanding. He continued to build his already strong case for Rookie of the Year with seven innings of no-run, seven-strikeout baseball. He retired his final 13 batters and allowed just three hits and no walks.
When asked about Rodriguez’s chances of winning Rookie of the Year before the game, manager Bruce Bochy was full of praise.
“I’d say really good,” Bochy said. “What a terrific job this guy has done. This kid has handled everything thrown at him. He’s just been solid since day one, since we brought him up here.”
It’s Rodriguez’s ninth-straight start of five or more innings in which he’s allowed three or fewer runs. By the end of Monday night’s game, his 2.59 ERA had dropped to 2.34. Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer are the only other National League starting pitchers with a sub-2.35 ERA.
Astros starter Charlie Morton was nearly as dominant. Morton’s only blemish was a solo home run given up to Brandon Crawford in the bottom of the sixth inning. Crawford sent AT&T Park into a frenzy, pulling the ball over Levi’s Landing in right field to give the Giants a 1-0 lead.
Aside from Crawford’s solo shot, the Giants struggled mightily against Morton. In seven innings, Morton struck out eight batters, allowing three hits and three walks.
The loss moves the Giants (57-57) back to .500 on the season, making the chance of an already-difficult late playoff push even slimmer.