Giants observations: Michael Conforto's late heroics secures win over Royals
What we learned as Conforto's heroics secure Giants' win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
SAN FRANCISCO -- Bryce Johnson sprinted his way to a roster spot in Scottsdale. On Sunday, his speed helped keep the Giants from getting swept.
Johnson scored from first on Wilmer Flores' double in the bottom of the eighth, and Michael Conforto put the Giants on top with a long two-run homer. They held on 3-1, salvaging the final game of a three-game series with the Royals.
Starters Anthony DeSclafani and Kris Bubic combined to retire 18 of 19 through the first three innings, which lasted just 38 minutes. The game moved along at such a quick pace that vendors were calling out the last call for beers at 2:25 p.m. PT, which wasn't great news for a Giants lineup that went down quickly most of the afternoon.
Johnson brought life to the yard in the eighth after reaching on a bloop single to left. The young outfielder stole an MLB-leading 12 bases in the spring and tried to go twice after reaching base. The second time, Flores yanked a pitch down the line and Johnson scored from first despite sliding into second. His time of 10.39 seconds from first to home was the fastest in MLB this season.
Conforto's 429-foot blast to right-center landed deep in the arcade and finally put the Giants on top. With Camilo Doval down, Tyler Rogers clinched the save.
All the way back
DeSclafani's six-shutout-innings season debut wasn't a fluke. He was even better Sunday, allowing just three hits in 6 1/3 innings and showing an uptick in velocity across the board.
DeSclafani retired the first 11 hitters he faced before a double and single got the Royals on the board. He bounced back by retiring seven straight. Through two starts, the right-hander has allowed one earned run in 12 1/3 innings, with 11 strikeouts and no walks.
The final line Sunday was impressive, but what was even more encouraging is how DeSclafani arrived there. He pounded the zone with his sinker and repeatedly dotted it on the corners. The pitch averaged 93.7 mph, a step up from his 92.2 mph last weekend. DeSclafani said after his first outing that he hoped to see a few more 95s, and got there a couple times on Sunday while throwing 15 sinkers at 94-plus.
Chaos in the seventh
The game was zooming along until the bottom of the seventh, when the Giants ended up with a matchup they didn't want after several minutes of confusion.
With two outs and Joc Pederson on first, the Giants sent Blake Sabol up to hit for Austin Wynns. At the same time, a Royals trainer came out to check on right-hander Carlos Hernandez, who appeared to get hurt while recording the second out of the inning.
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Left-hander Ryan Yarbrough was warming up and started to come into the game, only to turn around when Hernandez returned to the mound after it appeared he had been pulled. Gabe Kapler was livid and spent several minutes arguing with the umpires, but to no avail.
What is going on?? 🤨 pic.twitter.com/71EXhZiPW4
— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) April 9, 2023
The Giants ended up with the left-handed-hitting Sabol against a lefty reliever. Sabol struck out to end the inning.
Welcome back
Nearly a year to the day after his debut, the Giants recalled outfielder Heliot Ramos to give them another option against left-handed pitching.
Ramos struck out on three pitches in his first at-bat and tried a different approach the next time up. With a runner on and two outs, he put down a bunt and beat out the throw. That got a runner to scoring position, but Johnson flied out. Ramos popped up to short in his final at-bat.
