SAN FRANCISCO -- It was a rough day for Mets fans, who watched the continued teardown of the most expensive roster in baseball when Max Scherzer was traded to the Rangers. Across the country, J.D. Davis decided to add on.
Davis blasted Kenley Jansen's first pitch off the foul pole in the bottom of the ninth, giving the Giants a 3-2 win over the Red Sox and lighting up a dugout that had just watched the Red Sox tie it up. The walk-off was the fourth of the season for the Giants and their third walk-off homer, with Davis joining Blake Sabol and Mike Yastrzemski.
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The Giants scored in the first, and for eight innings it seemed that would be enough. Ryan Walker, the opener, recorded eight outs and Sean Manaea took the lead into the eighth. That set the stage for Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval, but the All-Star closer had a rare stumble.
Doval walked pinch-hitter Masataka Yoshida and leadoff hitter Jarren Duran came a few feet away from a game-tying homer to the arcade. He settled for a double and Justin Turner followed with a single up the middle that tied the game and handed Doval just his third blown save.
Doval certainly was off his game, but the lineup held equal blame for the Red Sox even having a chance to crawl back. Through eight innings, they were 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position and had left 12 runners on base.
The Opener
San Francisco Giants
John Brebbia might return and find that his opener role is no longer available. Walker continues to thrive when starting games, and on Saturday, for a second straight appearance, the Giants got him through the whole lineup before turning to a bulk innings pitcher.
Walker gave up one hit and struck out three in 2 2/3 innings. Over his last two starts, he has allowed just two hits and zero runs over 5 1/3 innings, striking out six of the 18 batters he has faced. The rookie now has a 2.50 ERA.
By getting through the first nine, Walker set the stage for Manaea, who came in for a top of the lineup that has three left-handed batters in the first four spots and had one of his best days as a Giant.
Big Sean
Manaea struck out leadoff hitter Jarren Duran to end the third and then cruised through the next couple of innings, getting three straight popups at one point. The Giants had Jakob Junis warming up before the sixth, but Gabe Kapler stuck with Manaea after a one-out single by Duran, and he got Justin Turner to hit into a double play.
Getting through the one righty at the top of the order allowed Manaea to stay out there for the seventh, and he struck out the left-handed duo of Rafael Devers and Triston Casas, the latter being the hottest hitter in baseball in the second half.
Manaea got through his first 4 1/3 innings on just 47 pitches and then came back out for the eighth and retired Alex Verdugo. He allowed two hits and struck out five. The outing was Manaea's longest in a win since June 6.
Marco Mania
Marco Luciano showed his strength in his second at-bat, fighting off a fastball in on his hands and shooting it down the right field line for a double. In the sixth, he added a single to left, clinching his first multi-hit game in the big leagues, but he also had a couple of strikeouts.
Luciano is 3-for-9 through three starts with a couple of runs and four strikeouts. With Brandon Crawford back on the active roster, he could get his first day off on Sunday.