What we learned as Giants eliminated from playoff contention originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
SAN FRANCISCO — The end came in a very appropriate way for the 2022 Giants, with costly defensive mistakes and the bullpen giving up a big number at the wrong time.
An 8-4 loss to the Diamondbacks brought an official end to their longshot end-of-season push for a Wild Card spot. The final two playoff spots in the NL will go to the San Diego Padres, Philadelphia Phillies or Milwaukee Brewers.
Entering the day, the Giants needed all 16 remaining outcomes between themselves, the Phillies and the Brewers to go their way to make the postseason, and they watched in the morning as the Phillies got blown out by the lowly Nationals.
The Giants held a lead through three, but the Diamondbacks scored three in the fourth — getting plenty of help from Jason Vosler’s misplay in left — and then broke the game open against Jarlin Garcia in the seventh. Garcia opened his outing by allowing three straight hits but Kapler stuck with him even with a deep bullpen, likely because the Giants have more bullpen games coming.
The final blow was Sergio Alcantara’s fly ball to left that Joc Pederson lost in the sun and couldn’t track down with a diving attempt. That brought two more runs home and gave the Diamondbacks a six-run lead.
The 20 Club
Thairo Estrada batted third in Gabe Kapler’s lineup and singled his first time up before taking off for second. The successful stolen base was his 20th of the season, making him the first Giant to reach 20 since Hunter Pence in 2013. You have to go all the way back to 2006 (Omar Vizquel) to find the last Giants infielder with at least 20 stolen bases.
Estrada didn’t waste any time getting the next one. He took off again in the third and again beat the throw. Estrada has been successful on 21 of 27 attempts this season and 27 of 33 in his career.
Just Dingers
There are not many hitters who can make Oracle Park look small, but JD Davis has done it several times since getting traded over from the Mets. Davis’ 12th shot of the year — and eighth as a Giant — was a no-doubter to dead center that went an estimated 436 feet and was 108 mph off the bat. Davis watched it fly, and center fielder Corbin Carroll did the same.
The solo blast got the Giants within a run in the sixth, and Jason Vosler kept the vibes going by hitting a double off the right field wall, but he was stranded there.
Bulk Innings Dude
The Giants entered the day with a 10-9 record in games started by an opener. Saturday was a mixed bag.
Scott Alexander pitched a scoreless inning and a third, giving him and righty John Brebbia 12 scoreless appearances when used as an opener. Jakob Junis entered with one out in the second and got off to a good start, but the Diamondbacks started putting plenty of traffic on the bases in the middle innings.
Junis worked out of jams but gave up three runs in the fourth, in large part because of a bad break. Sergio Alcantara hit a flare to left and Vosler — normally a corner infielder — couldn’t track it down, allowing two runs to score. Junis was charged with four runs on eight hits in 4 2/3 innings.
Download and follow the Giants Talk Podcast