Webb Uses ‘Bread and Butter’ Speech to Eliminate A’s in Declaration Win originally appeared in NBC Sports Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO – Manager Bob Melvin didn’t talk to Logan Webb about the Giants’ ace leaving for the ninth inning on Wednesday night. The two men exchanged punches and Webb spoke briefly with pitching coach Bryan Price and then trotted to the mound to finish your masterpiece.
“I let him pass,” Melvin said afterward. São Francisco win 1-0 in the final edition of the Bay Bridge Series at Oracle Park. “If he had a problem, he would have said something. Bryan passed by and saw how he was pretty quick, but he was leaving. I hoped he wanted to come back.
One day after the MLB trade deadline, when general manager Farhan Zaidi made the proclamation that the Giants have the best rotation in baseballWebb made a strong statement to support this claim.
The 27-year-old All-Star handcuffed the Oakland Athletics to five hits, all singles, while recording his second career shutout and third complete game shutout. Webb walked one and had six strikeouts.
It was exactly the kind of outing Webb and the Giants needed. Webb is winless in his previous four starts as San Francisco clings to slim playoff hopes.
“It’s a known thing [that] I’ve been struggling a little. I just wanted to go out there and get back to what I’m good at,” Webb said. “Today was a perfect example. [Catcher Patrick Bailey] I thought it was a great game and the defense was incredible behind me. So it was a great game overall.”
With the exception of one offense that was so lacking it might as well have been on the back of a milk crate, it was a solid effort for the Giants.
No one was better than Webb, however.
The complete game was the Giants’ first since Webb worked his magic against the Colorado Rockies on July 9, 2023 and won 1-0. He allowed just one runner past second base and then took care of the problem at first round, achieving consecutive eliminations.
Webb, who leads the majors this season in innings pitched, recorded 12th game of seven innings or more. And he increased his ground ball total to 254 this season, also tops in MLB.
Asked if pitching in a close game helped him stay locked in, Webb shrugged.
“Maybe you feel like you need to be a little more perfect, which can be good or bad,” Webb said. “Whenever the game is 1-0, obviously you come back quickly. Sometimes it also helps with the rhythm part.”
Much of Webb’s success has come from his changeup, one of the best pitches in his arsenal but one he has had trouble controlling in recent games.
Against the A’s, Webb threw 54 changeups and routinely made Oakland hitters whiff.
“Not only was he hitting ground balls, he was hitting swings and misses,” Melvin said. “His movement was back today, backdoor sinkers, changeups going straight down. He’s been using the slider a little more, but the changeup is his bread and butter, and when it’s good, he leans on it.”
Webb was pitching so efficiently that Melvin was willing to stick with lefty even if the A’s scored a run in the ninth.
“That’s where I was,” Melvin said. “The pitch count was starting to get a little uncomfortable… but I couldn’t imagine killing him without giving up the run.”
Bailey, who also suffered Webb’s only other loss, said getting Webb headed in the right direction again is key to the remainder of the 2024 MLB season.
“He’s struggled a little bit this month, but to be able to get him back on track… obviously the rotation is what’s going to carry us through the rest of the year,” Bailey said. “That was a good start.”
