SAN FRANCISCO — As he walked into the dugout Wednesday night, Logan Webb smiled and said the key to ending this losing streak against the Los Angeles Dodgers was simple: just don’t pitch badly.
Simple, right?
That’s how it was on Wednesday. Webb overcame a long first inning to overcome six scoreless innings and the bullpen did the rest despite a key arm being inactive overnight. When Camilo Doval closed the ninth, the Giants earned a 4-1 victory, their first over the Dodgers this season after five straight losses.
Webb threw 32 pitches in the first but left the bases loaded. He allowed only two more hits the rest of the game, finishing with a flourish with strikeouts of Max Muncy and Teoscar Hernández in the sixth inning. It was a particularly difficult night for Hernández, who was also robbed of a solo home run by Luis Matos.
![Logan Webb and Luis Matos power Giants to 4-1 victory over Dodgers- NBC Sports Bay Area & California Logan Webb and Luis Matos power Giants to 4-1 victory over Dodgers- NBC Sports Bay Area & California](https://i0.wp.com/keynoteusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Logan-Webb-and-Luis-Matos-power-Giants-to-4-1-victory.jpg?resize=1170%2C658&ssl=1)
The Giants were without Ryan Walker, who is dealing with mild back tightness, but two young pitchers stepped up to close the gap. Sean Hjelle and Erik Miller combined for a scoreless seventh, with Miller freezing Shohei Ohtani with a 99 mph fastball that ended the inning.
The Giants never give much support to Webb, but tonight at least he had an early lead. Mike Yastrzemski hit a two-run homer in the third and Heliot Ramos extended the lead with an RBI double in the sixth, giving him nine hits and five RBIs in his first eight games in the majors.
Leading the way
Webb’s first appearance against the Dodgers this year was a nightmare, with a deep lineup that forced him to throw 96 pitches in just 3 2/3 innings and put five runs on his line. Webb threw his changeup, one of the best pitches in baseball, just 14 times that night, and then regretted his pitch combination.
On Wednesday, he put the change back in his back pocket and threw it just 15 times. But he had an adjustment for the Dodgers. Webb threw 17 four-seamers, his most since May 2021. The pitch wasn’t as effective in terms of getting outs, but it changed the eye level against a Dodgers lineup that has given Webb problems in the past when he lived at the bottom of the area.
With six scoreless innings, Webb lowered his ERA to 3.03. He has gone at least six innings in his five home starts this season and allowed just five runs total.
Commodore connection
Curt Casali was in New York when he found out he was trading in his Iowa Cubs jersey for an orange and black one. He had a long flight ahead of him, but that didn’t stop him from staying up late Tuesday to wait for the Giants game to finish. Casali wanted to connect with Yastrzemski, a fellow Vanderbilt product and close friend.
Casali said Yastrzemski’s first reaction via text message was emotional and full of expletives. On Wednesday afternoon, the two sat side by side in chairs in front of Casali’s locker, and a few hours later they had the Giants on the board.
Casali singled to right field in his first at-bat and Yastrzemski followed with his fourth home run of the year. The ball traveled only 345 feet, but it was enough as Yastrzemski pushed it to the line.
Casali had a single and a walk in his first Giants game since July 4, 2022. He had a strong night defensively, saving Webb from a wild pitch with an athletic stop in the first inning and then making two pitches back to the zone for strikeouts. by Ohtani.
![Logan Webb and Luis Matos power Giants to 4-1 victory over Dodgers- NBC Sports Bay Area & California Logan Webb, Luis Matos fuel 4-1 win vs. Dodgers – NBC Sports Bay Area & California](https://i0.wp.com/keynoteusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Logan-Webb-and-Luis-Matos-power-Giants-to-4-1-victory.jpg?resize=699%2C393&ssl=1)
Matos mania
Matos hit a three-run homer in his first major league at-bat, but it’s been a tough week for him defensively. He has misjudged multiple drives to the center or gaps and a fly ball slipped out of his glove in Tuesday’s loss.
The Giants are going to be patient, and in the fourth inning on Wednesday, Matos showed that he might be able to handle the position with some adjustments to his positioning and a little time. He was playing deep with Hernandez and that allowed him to get back to the wall in time to jump.
The outfield wall sent Austin Slater (concussion) and Jung Hoo Lee (dislocated shoulder) to the injured list in this homestand, and Matos went down hard in the same spot where Lee was hurt. Yastrzemski immediately called coach Dave Groeschner, but by the time he came out onto the court, Matos had already gotten up and was trying to leave the court. He stayed home and didn’t seem to have any problems the rest of the night.
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