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Eddie Rosario’s homer buries SF Giants in crushing 6-5 loss to Atlanta

The SF Giants did not have the best version of ace Logan Webb on Saturday, but they should have beat Atlanta anyway.

Marc Delucchi

Eddie Rosario’s homer buries SF Giants in crushing 6-5 loss to Atlanta
Eddie Rosario’s homer buries SF Giants in crushing 6-5 loss to Atlanta /
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The SF Giants lost to Atlanta 6-5 on Saturday in devastating fashion. Just four outs away from ending a two-game losing streak, the Giants bullpen allowed a game-winning home run and fell to 64-59 on the season. With ace Logan Webb making a start against Yonny Chirinos, Atlanta's worst starting pitcher, it felt like a must-win game for San Francisco. It looked like they were going to get the job done, but they didn't.

SF Giants first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. rounds the bases on his solo homer against the Atlanta Braves during the first inning at Truist Park on August 19, 2023.
SF Giants 1B LaMonte Wade Jr. rounds the bases at Truist Park on August 19, 2023 / John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

It only took one pitch for the Giants to get on the scoreboard against Atlanta's starting pitcher Yonny Chirinos. First baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. jumped on the first pitch of the game, blasting a solo home run to right field. It was Wade's 12th homer of the season and his first in more than two weeks. Wade finding his early-season power stroke would be a massive boon for the Giants lineup, but he left the game in the seventh inning after appearing to deal with some discomfort in his lower back/side.

J.D. Davis started a rally in the second inning, leading off the frame with a line-drive double. He advanced to third on a single by Blake Sabol, scoring on a groundout by recent acquisition Johan Camargo, who recorded his first RBI with the Giants against his first professional organization.

After Chirinos held San Francisco scoreless in the third, Joc Pederson and Michael Conforto started off the fourth with back-to-back singles. Pederson advanced to third on Conforto's hit and scored on a sacrifice fly by Davis.

With two outs in the inning, Camargo worked a walk to extend the rally for Thairo Estrada. The former Yankees infielder lined an RBI single into left field, extending the Giants' lead to 4-2.

Going up against arguably the best lineup in MLB, Webb was unsurprisingly less effective than usual. Matt Olson and Marcell Ozuna singled to start the second inning. Eddie Rosario drove Olson in with a double, his first of three hits against Webb, and Ozuna scored two batters later on a groundout.

Rosario started another rally in the fourth inning, singling against Webb and coming around to score on a double by d'Arnaud. However, Ronald Acuña Jr. tied the game at four with an opposite-field solo home run in the fifth.

Webb allowed nine hits across six innings of work but did not issue a walk against a lineup rife with hitters ready to punish opponents who issue free passes. Ultimately, Webb allowed four runs and added five strikeouts to his season tally.

Given the Giants' recent skid, they were 3-8 in their most recent 11 games entering the day, manager Gabe Kapler had a well-rested back of the bullpen. With an opportunity at a win on the horizon, he entrusted submariner Tyler Rogers to try and complete two innings. Rogers breezed through the seventh inning on just seven pitches.

In the eighth, Rogers quickly recorded two outs. However, Ozuna nearly tied the game. The powerful righty blasted a pitch into the second deck down the left field line, but it was just foul. Instead of a game-tying home run, Ozuna settled for a single two pitches later. 

Closer Camilo Doval was ready in the bullpen, but the left-handed Rosario was due up. Rogers has historically had less extreme splits than Doval and had only thrown 20 pitches. Giants manager Gabe Kapler opted to stick with his top setup arm. It seemed like the Giants were going to avert disaster, but Rosario teed off on a first-pitch sinker from Rogers down the middle. It was a no-doubt go-ahead two-run homer.

With a one-run lead, Atlanta turned to closer Raisel Iglesias in the top of the ninth. He retired the Giants in order to record his 24th save of the season.

After dropping the first two games of the series, the SF Giants will return to Truist Park on Sunday afternoon looking to avoid a sweep. The Giants have not yet announced a starting pitcher, but a bullpen game with Sean Manaea and/or Jakob Junis serving as bulk options seems likely. Whoever takes the mound will face off against Atlanta southpaw Max Fried.

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Marc Delucchi
MARC DELUCCHI

Marc Delucchi (he/they/she) serves as the Managing Editor at Giants Baseball Insider, leading their SF Giants coverage. As a freelance journalist, he has previously covered the San Francisco Giants at Around the Foghorn and McCovey Chronicles. He also currently contributes to Niners Nation, Golden State of Mind, and Baseball Prospectus. He has previously been featured in several other publications, including SFGate, ProFootballRumors, Niners Wire, GrandStand Central, Call to the Pen, and Just Baseball. Over his journalistic career, Marc has conducted investigations into how one prep baseball player lost a college opportunity during the pandemic (Baseball Prospectus) and the rampant mistreatment of players at the University of Hawaii football program under former head coach Todd Graham (SFGate). He has also broken dozens of news stories around professional baseball, primarily around the SF Giants organization, including the draft signing of Kyle Harrison, injuries and promotions to top prospects like Heliot Ramos, and trade details in the Kris Bryant deal. Marc received a Bachelor's degree from Kenyon College with a major in economics and a minor in Spanish. During his time in college, he conducted a summer research project attempting to predict the future minor-league performance of NCAA hitters, worked as a data analyst for the school's Women's basketball team, and worked as a play-by-play announcer/color commentator for the basketball, baseball, softball, and soccer teams. He also worked as an amateur baseball scout with the Collegiate Baseball Scouting Network (later renamed Evolution Metrix), scouting high school and college players for three draft cycles. For tips and inquiries, feel free to reach out to Marc directly on Twitter or via email (delucchimarc@gmail.com).

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