San Francisco Giants Set Franchise Record in Sweep of Rockies

San Francisco Giants pitchers dominated the Colorado Rockies over the weekend.

Jul 28, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants pitcher Camilo Doval shakes hands with catcher Patrick Bailey. / Robert Edwards-USA TODAY Sports

Heading into the weekend, the San Francisco Giants desperately needed a strong showing against the last-place Colorado Rockies. Not only were the Giants coming off an ugly 2-5 road trip against the Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers to start the second half, but it was also their last chance to make a statement before the July 30 MLB Trade Deadline.

Well, San Francisco made a statement alright, beating Colorado in all four games at Oracle Park. It was the Giants' first four-game sweep of the season, matching their longest winning streak of the year.

Much of the credit belongs to San Francisco's pitching, which dominated Rockies hitters all weekend long. The Giants held Colorado to just 10 runs combined in the four games while racking up 53 strikeouts -- a franchise record for a four-game series.

5️⃣2️⃣ Ks

The Giants set a franchise record for the most strikeouts in a four-game series pic.twitter.com/JybcnCqB5f

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) July 28, 2024

Most of the whiffs came from the starting rotation. Kyle Harrison set the tone with 11 strikeouts during Friday's series opener. Not to be outdone, trade candidate Blake Snell rang up 15 punchouts in Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader, becoming the first San Francisco pitcher with 15 Ks in a game since Tim Lincecum in 2009.

Hayden Birdsong followed him up with eight strikeouts in the nightcap, while the bullpen combined for 11 whiffs in Sunday's series finale.

Granted, the Rockies have the second-highest K rate in baseball, behind only the contact-averse Seattle Mariners. Giants pitchers also rank top 10 in K/9, making this series a perfect storm for punchouts. Colorado even set a record with 64 swings and misses during Sunday's contest.

With five wins in its last six games, San Francisco improved to 53-55 heading into Monday's off day -- the closest it has been to .500 since early July. Time will tell if Snell and others are still with the Giants when they resume play on Tuesday night against the Oakland A's at home.