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Tyler Rogers surrenders costly home run in SF Giants 5-2 loss to Rockies

The back of the SF Giants bullpen has been dominant this season, but Tyler Rogers allowed a game-losing home run to the Rockies on Friday night.

Marc Delucchi

Tyler Rogers surrenders costly home run in SF Giants 5-2 loss to Rockies
Tyler Rogers surrenders costly home run in SF Giants 5-2 loss to Rockies /
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The SF Giants lost to the Colorado Rockies on Friday night 5-2, starting off their final series of the first half with a disappointment. The Giants pitching staff only allowed two runs early and entered the late innings with the game tied at 2. However, in an uncharacteristic night from the team's best setup arms, the Giants surrendered a late three-run home run to the Rockies that proved to be the difference. The Giants are now three games back of the Dodgers and 3.5 games of the Diamondbacks in the National League West standings.

SF Giants relief pitcher Ross Stripling throws a pitch against the Colorado Rockies during the first inning at Oracle Park on July 7, 2023.
SF Giants starter Ross Stripling throws a pitch against the Rockies on July 7, 2023 / Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

Things looked worrisome early for Giants starting pitcher Ross Stripling. Kris Bryant hit a dribbler through the middle of the infield that was just beyond second baseman Casey Schmitt's glove for a one-out single. Stripling immediately paid for the bad luck. On the 10th pitch of a grueling face off against Rockies third baseman Ryan McMahon, Stripling left a sinker right down the middle of the plate. McMahon launched the pitch over the left-center field wall for a two-run homer.

Stripling was able to avoid surrendering any more runs over his remaining 3.1 innings of work, but the veteran righty narrowly escaped a jam in the top of the second. Rockies designated hitter Randal Grichuk doubled with one out in the inning and advanced to third on a single by Harold Castro. Stripling, though, induced an inning-ending double play to escape without allowing a run.

Rockies starting pitcher Austin Gomber entered play on Sunday with a 6.27 ERA, but the 29-year-old lefty cruised through five shutout innings, only allowing a couple of hits and a few hard-hit balls. He was not overpowering the Giants lineup. He only had one strikeout and three swinging strikes at that point in the night, but he was deviating from expectations, throwing his four-seam fastball 91% of the time in the first five innings.

By the bottom of the sixth, the Giants adjusted to Gomber's tendency and were finally able to do some damage. Second baseman Casey Schmitt started the rally with a line drive single into left field that recorded an exit velocity north of 100 mph. Then, shortstop Brandon Crawford blasted a 3-2 pitch at the top of the zone over the right-field wall for a game-tying home run.

Gomber seemed a bit out of sorts following the home run. After hitting Austin Slater with a pitch, Gomber allowed a base hit to Wilmer Flores. All three hits in the inning had an exit velocity of at least 100 mph and all three came against Gomber's four-seam fastball.

The Rockies escaped the inning without falling behind, though. LaMonte Wade Jr. attempted a sacrifice bunt, committing the first out in the inning on a fielder's choice. Then, J.D. Davis just missed another four-seam fastball from Gomber, skying the pitch into shallow center field. For some reason, Slater and third-base coach Mark Hallberg made the brash decision to challenge center fielder Brenton Doyle's arm. Doyle, who has a plus arm, easily threw out Slater at the plate to end the inning.

Stripling retired the last six batters he faced before manager Gabe Kapler went to the bullpen. Stripling finished his outing with three strikeouts and zero walks across 3.2 innings pitched, having surrendered a pair of runs on three hits.

Lefty Scott Alexander entered, allowing one hit across 0.2 shutout innings of work before rookie swingman Tristan Beck (Giants Top 16 Prospect) took the mound. Beck continued building on his underrated rookie campaign, allowing one infield single in 1.2 scoreless innings pitched.

With the game tied heading into the seventh, Kapler replaced Beck with his top left-handed reliever, Taylor Rogers. The back of the Giants' bullpen has been one of the best in MLB this season, particularly over the past two months. Facing the cellar-dweller Rockies, San Francisco seemed to be in the driver's seat.

While Rogers recorded two outs, he issued a pair of walks. With young right-handed hitter Ezequiel Tovar due up, Kapler called upon Rogers' twin brother Tyler Rogers to try and end the rally. Instead, Tovar sat on a rising slider from the right-handed submariner for a three-run home run.

Rockies manager Bud Black turned to his bullpen in the bottom of the seventh after retaking the lead, and the Giants never threatened again. With a three-run deficit, recently recalled reliever Mauricio Llovera made his first MLB appearance of the season. Llovera looked good, allowing a pair of hits in two shutout innings with three strikeouts.

The bullpen will take the blame for this loss, but the Giants' offense arguably deserves as much responsibility. Facing one of the least effective starting pitchers in MLB and one of the worst teams, the Giants managed just one run-scoring rally. That performance continued a much more concerning recent trend, and one that needs to be corrected.

With the loss, the SF Giants fell to 47-41 on the season. They will look to salvage an opportunity to win the series on Saturday afternoon. The team has not yet announced their starting pitcher. Whoever makes the start will square up against Rockies righty Connor Seabold. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 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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