Giants put worst loss of season in rearview mirror, Belt records splash hit on the road

PHOENIX — For the last decade, the Giants have consistently counted on Madison Bumgarner in times of need.

They won’t have that luxury for much longer, but after turning in their worst performance of the season in a shutout loss on Friday, the Giants sent Bumgarner to the mound to reverse their fortunes on Saturday against Arizona.

Thanks to an offense that broke out with 11 hits, an ace who lasted 6 1/3 innings and a bullpen that took it the rest of the way, the Giants rebounded from a dismal series-opener to claim an 8-5 win over the second-place Diamondbacks.

The Giants tagged D’backs right-hander Zack Godley for four earned runs in 3 1/3 innings as Godley recorded the second-shortest outing by an opposing starter against San Francisco this season. Only Rays opener Ryne Stanek has failed to complete four innings against the Giants, but that was part of Tampa Bay’s pitching strategy as Stanek tossed two scoreless frames at Oracle Park on April 6.

Bumgarner wasn’t dominant, but he was far more effective than his opponent as he limited the D’backs to two runs until he struggled to locate pitches in the bottom of the seventh. A pair of seventh-inning walks and an RBI double by D’backs pinch-hitter John Ryan Murphy hurt Bumgarner’s final line, as he allowed four earned runs on a night when he gave up just five hits.

In 10 starts this season, Bumgarner has issued 11 free passes while striking out 64 hitters, giving him a 5.81 strikeout-to-walk ratio that ranks as the second-best mark of his career.

Coupled with an uptick in his fastball and cutter velocity, Bumgarner has put a relatively slow start to the season behind him with strong command as he owns an 3.70 ERA in the month of May. With the Giants sitting 9.5 games out in the National League West and president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi motivated to overhaul the roster, it’s possible the Giants won’t be able to count on Bumgarner for another 10 starts as they begin to explore possibilities on the trade market.

Parting with a franchise pillar and one of the most successful pitchers in the organization’s history figures to be a painful and necessary move for the Giants’ front office, yet seeing Bumgarner wear another team’s jersey will feel like watching Tim Lincecum don an Angels uniform for the first time.

Seven different Giants combined for eight RBIs against the D’backs on Saturday as shortstop Brandon Crawford was the only player to drive in a pair of runs. Crawford hit a sacrifice fly off Godley in the third inning and tripled home a run against lefty T.J. McFarland in the sixth.

Crawford’s first triple of the year came three innings after Steven Duggar recorded his second as both left-handed hitters yanked pitches into the right field corner.

The most impressive piece of hitting from a Giants left-hander didn’t take place until the eighth inning, however, as Pablo Sandoval came off the bench to deliver his second career pinch-hit home run (May 8, 2018). Sandoval pulled an inside fastball from Matt Andriese over the right field fence and temporarily matched Brandon Belt, Evan Longoria Kevin Pillar for the team-lead with six home runs.

Sandoval’s sixth homer came in his 82nd at-bat of the year, which means he’s averaging one home run for every 13.67 at-bats. When the switch-hitting infielder hit a career-high 25 home runs in 2009, Sandoval homered every 22.88 at-bats.

An inning later, Belt regained the team lead as he launched an Andriese pitch into the pool at Chase Field. Belt’s homer was the second ball that landed in the swimming pool this season, joining an April 10 splash hit blasted by his old friend, Rangers outfielder Hunter Pence.