San Francisco Giants 3 Up, 3 Down: A Winning Streak

3 DOWN

1 – Good Counts, Bad Pitches

Throwing fat pitches in 0-2 counts has been something of a problem for the Giants this year, and it cost them on Thursday. Hunter Strickland got into two-strike counts against Scooter Gennett and Zack Cozart, but threw pitches that were way too hittable. Gennett hit a triple and Cozart followed with a double to score Gennett, resulting in the go-ahead run in the eighth inning.

It’s a problem, and not one that afflicts just Strickland. As a team, the Giants have allowed 25 hits in 0-2 counts this season, tied for fifth-most in the game. That’s definitely something that needs to be improved.

2 – Solo Home Runs

This is pretty nitpicky, but the Giants hit seven home runs against the Reds, and all were solo shots. In fact, their last 10 home runs have all been worth only one run. The last multi-run homer was Hunter Pence‘s two-run blast against Jacob deGrom in the first inning of the series opener against the New York Mets. But for a team that had been struggling so badly to score runs of any kind, solo home runs are much, much better than nothing.

3 – Hunter Pence

Next: Giants Welcome Span, Crawford Back

A tight hamstring kept Hunter Pence out of the starting lineup during each of the last three games in the Cincinnati series, although he did make it into Friday night’s marathon as a pinch-hitter. The injury could land Pence on the DL, which would make yet another outfielder down for the Giants. Having Brandon Crawford and Span back does lessen that blow a bit, but losing Pence, even while struggling at the plate, is going to hurt.