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What we learned as Schmitt's walk-off double gives Giants series win

michael wagaman
·5 min read
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What we learned as Schmitt's walk-off double gives Giants series win originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

SAN FRANCISCO – Casey Schmitt hit a walk-off double in the bottom of the 10th inning, lifting the Giants to a 6-5 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday at Oracle Park.

LaMonte Wade Jr. also went deep as part of a five-run fourth inning, while Wilmer Flores and Heliot Ramos added two hits apiece while celebrating Mother’s Day in front of a crowd of 36,210 at Oracle Park.

Luke Jackson (1-2) got the win with one inning of scoreless relief. The Reds got runners to second and third in the 10th before Jackson got Elly De La Cruz to strike out swinging to work out of the jam.

Reds reliever Lucas Sims retired the first two Giants batters in the 10th before San Francisco got going.

With pinch-runner Luis Matos at second base, Blake Sabol walked before Schmitt lined an 0-2 pitch into the gap in left-center. Reds left fielder Spencer Street appeared to have a shot at making the catch before the ball hit the ground and bounced over the wall.

It’s the Giants’ third walk-off win of the season, but the game started off in the worst way for San Francisco.

Starting pitcher Kyle Harrison hit TJ Friedl with his first pitch of the afternoon -- a 90.6-mph fastball – then walked Spencer Steer and Stuart Fairchild before Jeimer Candelario blasted a three-run double to center.

Jung Hoo Lee tried to make a leaping catch on Candelario’s hit but missed and crashed hard into the fence. He sat on the warning track for several moments before being helped off the field holding his left arm.

San Francisco broke through in the fifth after stranding two runners in the first inning then leaving the bases loaded without scoring in the fourth.

Tyler Fitzgerald, who was inserted into the game as a replacement for Lee, doubled then scored on Matt Chapman’s sharp single to center.

Wade, who was robbed of potential extra bases in the fourth inning, followed with his game-tying homer. Wade clubbed a 3-2 fastball down the right field line then slowly made his way toward first base before the umpire gave the signal indicating home run.

Flores then singled, took second on a wild pitch, advanced to third on a fielder’s choice then strolled home on Ramos’ two-out single that chased Reds’ starter Frankie Montas, who pitched under Melvin when both were across the San Francisco Bay in Oakland. San Francisco added an unearned run later in the frame.

Next up for the Giants is a pivotal three-game series at Oracle Park against the NL West-leading Dodgers. San Francisco was swept by its Southern California rivals in a three-game series in early April.

Here are the takeaways from Sunday’s game:

Another Day, Another Injury Or Two

Less than an 30 minutes after placing Michael Conforto on the 10-day injured list, the Giants saw another one of their outfielders get hurt when Lee was forced out of the game with a left shoulder strain after smashing into the center field wall in the first inning.

It was the latest injury in what has felt like an every day occurrence for San Francisco over the last week.

Equally concerning, catcher Patrick Bailey was a late scratch due to a viral illness. Bailey had just returned from the concussion list on Saturday. Bailey was penciled in at DH but was replaced by Wilmer Flores.

Control, We Have A Problem

Harrison has been one of the Giants’ most efficient pitchers this season but had all kinds of problems with his control against the Reds.

The lefty hit Cincinnati’s leadoff hitter and walked four of the first 11 batters he faced.

Despite the wildness, Harrison did a solid job limiting the damage. The Reds didn’t get another runner past second base while Harrison was on the mound.

Harrison allowed three hits and three runs in five innings and had five strikeouts, but he finished with five walks after throwing a career-high 98 pitches – only 53 for strikes.

Walker's Streak Ends

Ryan Walker had been one of San Francisco’s stingiest relievers in baseball over the past three weeks before giving up Mike Ford’s game-tying home run leading off the eighth. It was the first run that Walker allowed since April 16 – a span that covered 12 outings by the right-hander.

Before his scoreless streak ended, Walker had been outstanding on the mound.

Called on after Spencer Street’s two-out single off Sean Hjelle in the seventh, Walker came in and allowed back-to-back hits – including Jonathan India’s RBI single – before fanning Candelario with a 96.9-mph sinker. The run was not charged to Walker because he inherited the runner.

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