San Francisco Giants 3 Up, 3 Down: Second Straight Sweep
It took a long time to get the first sweep of the season, but the San Francisco Giants got the second sweep out of the way in quick fashion.
3 UP
1 – Another Sweep!
The Giants went through their first 24 series of the season without sweeping their opponent. Six times they found themselves on the wrong side of the broom, but they just couldn’t put together those consecutive wins. Then, in the 25th series of the campaign, they beat the Colorado Rockies in three straight games for their first sweep of the season, and they build on it in Pittsburgh.
For the second straight series, the Giants went undefeated to run their winning streak to a season-high six games. They also showed the ability to win a bunch of different ways. On Friday, they put together a season-high 18 hits to score 13 runs. On Saturday, the bullpen did the heavy lifting and allow the Giants to score the game-winning run on a wild pitch in the 11th inning. On Sunday, they came back from a two-run deficit in the seventh inning, scoring five unanswered runs to complete the sweep.
2 – The Reclamation Project Continues
One aspect of this season that has been a resounding success has been the reclamation of Sam Dyson. Since joining the Giants early in June, Dyson has worked diligently to overcome a miserable two months in Texas and has put himself in a prime spot in the bullpen.
After a rough outing in his first appearance with the team, Dyson has thrown 9.1 innings and allowed just two runs on six hits and a pair of walks. He’s also struck out 12 in that time, and opponents have mustered just a .182 average against the new Giants’ closer. His velocity was as good as it’s been on Sunday, hitting 97 on his fastball three times in 13 pitches.
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For the Texas Rangers, their bullpen troubles have only gotten worse since parting ways with Dyson. On Saturday, the same day Dyson recorded his first save with San Francisco, they removed Matt Bush from the closer’s role. On Sunday, when Dyson worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning against Pittsburgh, Jose Leclerc blew a lead in the eighth inning en route to a loss. One team’s trash is another team’s treasure.
3 – The Defense
Every facet of the Giants’ game has looked more and more crisp over the past week, and that certainly includes the defense. The team could have filled an entire highlight reel with just their performance this weekend, and everyone chipped in. Austin Slater made a pair of diving grabs in left field, while Hunter Pence put a few poor weeks behind him with a great series in Pittsburgh.
Jae-gyun Hwang made a nice, sliding catch in foul territory on Sunday, while Buster Posey made one of those plays that only Posey can make on Saturday. In the 11th inning, Posey jumped out of the squat on a squibber back towards the mound, and called off Dyson before reaching down, making a clean grab, and spinning and firing to first base to beat Andrew McCutchen by a fraction of a step. And in the eighth inning on Sunday, Brandon Belt made a ridiculous over-the-shoulder catch on a pop-up into shallow right field.