What we learned as Webb dominates, Bats wake up in victory against Rays originally appeared in NBC Sports Bay Area
As Nick Ahmed stormed the batter’s box in the top of the sixth inning, Thairo Estrada walked past Logan Webb in the visiting dugout at Tropicana Field. Webb smiled broadly as he watched his teammates celebrate a big inning. This is not something he has been able to do often.
The Giants scored three runs in the sixth and moved on, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 11-2 after days of frustration for the lineup. It was a shocking display, in part because it came behind Webb, who inherited Matt Cain’s unlucky streak.
The team’s ace usually doesn’t need much support, and on Saturday a couple of homers did the job. Thairo Estrada scored twice and the Giants scored five in total after 10 days without a slow trot. LaMonte Wade Jr., Jorge Soler and Matt Chapman also scored.
Webb did the rest, allowing just one run in seven innings. He earned his first win of the year in a game so lopsided that the Rays let catcher Ben Rortvedt take over in the eighth and ninth.
Thairo timetable
This Tampa-Miami trip is a homecoming for three Giants hitters – Soler, Estrada and Wilmer Flores – who live and train there, and so far Estrada seems very comfortable in the Trop. Estrada had its first Friday night multi-hit game of the year and hit a no-doubt in the fourth inning Saturday to score his first home run in two weeks. The second blast gave him his first two-home run game since last June 11.
Estrada’s first home run was the Giants’ first since Soler’s stunning shot at Dodger Stadium on April 3. They made 265 plate appearances between home runs and seven complete games. The seven-game streak without a home run was the longest since 2014 and the longest for any MLB team since the Kansas City Royals also played seven games last June.
Same old Logan
Webb entered the day with a 4.86 ERA, but he’s been here before. He went 0-4 with a 4.94 ERA in four starts last year and ended up finishing second in Cy Young voting, posting a 3.04 ERA the rest of the way. The Giants are hopeful Saturday will be the start of a similar streak.
Webb gave up six hits and walked just one on Saturday. He turned in a couple of double plays and 12 ground outs overall, including one on his final pitch. With Webb approaching 100 pitches and two runners, Bob Melvin came out to talk. He let Webb stay in the game and try to strand his own runners, and he hit a grounder to the right side to cap his best start of the year.
Late afternoon LaMonte
Wade quietly got off to a tremendous start, and on Saturday the energy finally showed.
Right-hander Ryan Pepiot threw a 3-2 changeup in the fifth and Wade hit a high ball that landed in the first row of seats as two Rays outfielders jumped the wall, giving the Giants a 4-1 lead. The home run was his first since September 24 against the Dodgers.
Wade also scored the first run of the game, rebounding on Michael Conforto’s leadoff double. He finished the day with a .368 average and a .478 on-base percentage that would rank fourth in the league if he had enough on-base appearances to qualify. His OPS is up to 1.004.
