San Francisco Giants: Some Players Prove They Deserve Longer Looks

It was a big-time team effort in the San Francisco Giants’ Friday night win, and some guys proved that they’re deserving of longer looks in certain roles.

The San Francisco Giants needed some big efforts to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night. Patrick Corbin pitched another great game for Arizona, and the Giants had to have a great starting pitching performance to keep pace. They also needed some timely hits and a shutdown performance in the ninth inning, all of which they received. And they received them from players who have earned more extended looks.

Andrew Suarez was outstanding on Friday night against one of the hottest teams in the big leagues. He allowed just one run to the Diamondbacks, which is made even more impressive by the fact that he had to pitch through a lot of traffic. Across his six innings, he gave up seven hits and walked two batters, but there wasn’t much hard contact against the southpaw.

Five of Arizona’s seven hits didn’t leave the infield, and one of those walks was to Paul Goldschmidt, one of the most notorious Giant killers in the game. Suarez didn’t allow the Arizona first baseman, who entered the game hitting .380/.475/.780 in the month of June, to hurt him with two outs and a runner on base, so he pitched carefully. Goldschmidt didn’t chase and took the walk, and Suarez eventually escaped the inning with no damage done.

It was just another excellent start for Suarez in a string of excellent starts. The entire pitching staff has improved from a terrible month of May, during which the staff ERA of 5.39 was the worst in the major leagues. In June, the group has a 2.80 ERA that is the best in the National League. Suarez has followed that same pattern. After posting a 5.46 ERA in May, Suarez has become a comfortably reliable arm in the rotation in June, with a 2.62 ERA that ranks second among starters behind only Madison Bumgarner.

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As Suarez took care of things on the mound, someone needed to take care of things at the plate. The biggest offensive contributor of the day was left fielder du jour Austin Slater. The young outfielder who has wowed in the Pacific Coast League was all the offense the Giants needed, collecting a pair of doubles that drove in both of the Giants’ runs.

Slater hasn’t had many shots at the big league level this year, but has produced when given the chance. In just 10 games, he’s hitting .368/.500/.474, which isn’t far off from his AAA numbers. He hit .344/.417/.564 with the River Cats, and was an extra-base machine with 24 doubles, two triples, and five home runs.

The game came down to the ninth inning, where another new face took on the closer’s role hoping to get the final three outs. Will Smith got the opportunity, and he responded with a perfect inning, striking out a pair in the process to record his first save as a Giant and the second of his career.

Smith has become the most reliable arm in the bullpen since returning from Tommy John Surgery. He owns a 1.13 ERA and has allowed just 10 hits in 24 innings while striking out 33 batters.

The Giants have had trouble getting production from left field for the better part of a decade, and the closer role has been in flux for the past few weeks. Father Time continued his undefeated streak with Hunter Pence, Austin Jackson hasn’t produced at all this season, and Mac Williamson just couldn’t recover his swing post-concussion. Sam Dyson struggled in the closer role, giving up six runs in six appearances since Hunter Strickland’s injury.

The door has been left wide open for a guy like Slater to get his shot at left field, and for Smith to get his chance at the ninth inning. No one else has stepped up and grabbed it, so they needed to be given the opportunity to grab it.

For Suarez, he’s more than earned his spot in the rotation when Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija come back. The Giants have difficult decisions to make to get those two their spots, but it’s becoming clear that Suarez can’t be moved. No matter how it’s done, Suarez is a guy that has to keep pitching in the rotation.

Next: The Giants' Biggest Difference This Season

The Giants have to keep putting the best team on the field, and right now, the best team includes Slater in left field, Suarez in the rotation, and Smith in the ninth inning.

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