PITTSBURGH — The Giants at least put a twist on things Saturday night. Their lineup did not strike out quite as often. Their starting pitcher lasted just a bit longer.
But the end result was the same.
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SIGN UP HERE Tony Watson, a former Pirate, hit Jordy Mercer with the bases loaded in the eighth inning of a tie game. The Giants lost 6-5, dropping their sixth straight game in the state of Pennsylvania. Watson had been just about perfect until returning to his longtime home, but he has given up late runs in both games of this series.
Here are the other details...
—- Jeff Samardzija’s stuff took a noticeable tick up in the fifth and sixth, and he was a strike away from a quality start and an outing to build off. But with two outs and two strikes in the sixth, Francisco Cervelli smoked a two-run homer into the right field seats. After a single, Samardzija’s day was done. He was charged with five earned. He has a 6.94 ERA.
—- Andrew McCutchen got ovations before all of his at-bats again, and he doubled the second time up. It appeared he wanted to show the Pirates he’s still got that speed. Per Statcast, he was going 29.7 feet/second on his way to second, his fastest recorded time this year and the fourth fastest by a Giant. McCutchen also doubled and scored in the seventh.
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—- Alen Hanson drilled a solo shot to right to tie it up in the top of the second. The homer was his fourth since getting into the Giants’ starting lineup. He never hit a homer in 92 at-bats for the Pirates in 2016 and 2017. Unfortunately, he appeared to hurt himself running the bases in the eighth.
—- Evan Longoria got the Giants on the board with a laser shot to left. The homer was his team-leading eighth. All the dudes who played third base for the Giants last season combined for just nine homers.