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SF Giants offense continues to struggle in 3-2 loss to Red Sox

The SF Giants offense was unable to give ace Logan Webb the run support he needed to avoid losing to the Boston Red Sox on Friday night.

Marc Delucchi

SF Giants offense continues to struggle in 3-2 loss to Red Sox
SF Giants offense continues to struggle in 3-2 loss to Red Sox /
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The SF Giants lost to the Boston Red Sox 3-2 on Friday night, wasting yet another quality start from ace Logan Webb. As the MLB trade deadline inches closer, the Giants offense continues to find itself in a horrendous slump. While San Francisco is expected to get several key bats back from injury before the end of the season, it's hard not to wonder if they need a more immediate upgrade in the next week. Following the loss, the Giants are now 56-48 on the season.

SF Giants starting pitcher Logan Webb delivers a pitch against the Boston Red Sox on July 28, 2023.
SF Giants RHP Logan Webb throws a pitch against the Red Sox on July 28, 2023 / D. Ross Cameron-USA TODAY Sports

Webb struggled to generate swings-and-misses against the Red Sox lineup, forcing him to rely on precise command and soft contact to be effective. Webb needed just 88 pitches to complete 7.1 innings of work but surrendered a pair of costly extra-base hits to young first baseman Triston Casas.

With Adam Duvall on second base in the top of the second inning, Casas golfed a slider from Webb at the bottom of the strike zone to Triple's Alley in Oracle Park for a ground-rule double, giving the Red Sox a 1-0 lead. Three innings later, Webb tried to put a sinker in on Casas' hands, but the pitch drifted too far toward the middle of the plate and turned into a 435' home run to left-center field.

Recent call up Marco Luciano (Giants #3 Prospect) sparked the Giants' first run-scoring rally against Red Sox starter Kutter Crawford in the bottom of the sixth inning. Luciano lined his first-career MLB hit into left field on the first pitch of the inning. Two batters later, after Luciano advanced to second base on a wild pitch, Michael Conforto lined a single into center field that brought the rookie around to score.

J.D. Davis and Patrick Bailey led off the bottom of the seventh inning with singles against righty Josh Winckowski. Red Sox second baseman Justin Turner robbed pinch-hitter Blake Sabol of a likely run-scoring single and recorded an out, putting runners on the corners for Brett Wisely (Giants Top 22 Prospect) and Luciano. Both rookies struck out.

Webb was replaced by southpaw Taylor Rogers with one out in the eighth inning and a runner on second base. Red Sox pinch-hitter Rob Refsnyder immediately lined an RBI single into left field, allowing the inherited runner to score. On the evening, Webb was charged with three earned runs on six hits and zero walks with four strikeouts.

Giants designated hitter Joc Pederson cut the Red Sox lead in half with a solo home run against Chris Martin to lead off the bottom of the eighth, but he was the last player on the team to reach base. Red Sox closer Kenley Jansen retired the Giants in order and recorded his 23rd save of the season.

The SF Giants have not announced the team's probably starting pitcher for Saturday's game, but whoever gets the call will square up against Red Sox veteran southpaw James Paxton. First pitch is scheduled for 4:15 PM Pacific.

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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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