SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS NOTES:

TODAY’S GAME: SF will look to snap its five-game losing streak, and end its season-long 11-game road trip on a high note with a win at Detroit today…the current losing streak (July 19-23) is tied for the Giants’ longest of the season, with the other coming April 12-18, which included their two games in Detroit (April 14-15)…even so, a Giants win today would clinch a winning record on this road trip out of the break.

TIP OF THE CAP: This is the last time the Giants and Tigers will play this season and that means it’s the last time SF will see IF Miguel Cabrera…in 54 games (including the 2003 NLDS with Miami and 2012 World Series with Detroit) against the Giants during his career, Cabrera has slashed .294/.352/.515 with 10 doubles, 11 homers, 41 RBI and 29 runs scored.

RINSE & REPEAT: Today marks SF’s 11th straight day with a game out of the All-Star break…they won’t enjoy an off day until Thursday later this week in between series on their next homestand…in total, SF is playing 13 straight games out of the break without a day off.

IN-N-OUT: Today’s game is a makeup of the rainout that occurred on April 16 after both teams waited over five hours through some weather…following today’s game, the Giants will return home to open up a nine-game homestand beginning Tuesday night vs. Oakland, and continuing to Aug. 3 with two three game series (Boston and Arizona)…after this trip concludes, the Giants do not leave the state of California travel-wise for over three weeks.

THE LAST TIME: SF finished 1-5 against the Nationals this season, and were outscored 38-16 (-22)…the Giants were three-game swept on the road for the first time in 2023…the last time the Giants were swept in a three-game road series was last season at Minnesota (Aug. 26-28).

A TALE OF TWO TRIPS…: The Giants won the first five games of this 11-game road trip but have since dropped their last five…below is a breakdown of the two streaks.

ROCK N’ JOC: While the Giants struggled, OF Joc Pederson had a strong series in Washington, going 4-for-7 (.571) with two doubles, two home runs and three RBI…a trip to Comerica Park could continue this stretch, as Pederson’s career 1.049 OPS in six games at the Tigers’ field is his highest at any ballpark (min. five games).

I CAN BUY MYSELF FLORES: IF Wilmer Flores added another two hits, one being a double, yesterday…in nine games out of the break, Flores is batting .429 (12×28) with seven runs, four doubles, four home runs, seven RBI and a 1.469 OPS…Flores has been hot since the beginning of June, going 33-for-84 (.393) with 14 runs, eight doubles, six home runs, 15 RBI and a 1.162 OPS in 29 games.

THE (D)OVAL OFFICE: RHP Camilo Doval became the first pitcher in the Majors this year to reach the 30-save mark with his two saves last Tuesday…the 26-year-old leads the Majors in that category…his 45 appearances this season are tied for 10th-most in the Majors.

TOUGH SLEDDING: With yesterday’s defeat the Giants are now 26-23 (.531) versus teams that are currently below the .500 mark…the .531 winning percentage is 20th of 30 MLB teams… SF has lost 15 series on the year and of those 15, seven have been to teams that are currently below at .500.

ANOTHER LEFTY?: The Giants will face the second of four-straight left-handed starters today…southpaws have held the Giants to a .206 batting average and .647 OPS this month…on the season, SF’s .680 OPS vs. left-handed starters ranks 25th in MLB.

SADDLE UP, BOYS: This 11-game trip is SF’s longest of the season and one of two trips this year where they will visit three or more cities…the other three-city, 10-game trip this year comes in September when SF visits Colorado (four games), Arizona (two games) and the Dodgers (four games) from September 14-24…below is a look at some of SF’s recent three-city trips and how they fared.

NO MARGIN FOR ERROR…: SF has gone 8-10 this month, and been outscored 82-60 (-22)…the Giants’ .631 OPS this month is 29th of 30 teams in MLB…only the Pirates (.627) have a lower July OPS than the Giants…additionally, SF’s 3.33 runs/ game is lowest in MLB this month.

TODAY’S STARTER – ROSS STRIPLING RHP #48
2023 RECORD: 0-3, 5.92 ERA

WITH THE GIANTS: The 33-year-old right-hander inked a two-year Major League contract with the Giants this past December… the deal included an opt-out following this season.

TODAY’S GAME: Today marks Stripling’s 10th start and 15th appearance this season…as a starter this year, Stripling is 0-3 with a 5.45 ERA (23er, 38.0ip), 27 strikeouts and a 1.26 WHIP in nine starts.

LAST OUTING: Stripling’s three earned runs came off a home run from CIN’s Will Benson in the 3rd inning…his 6.0 innings pitched were a season-high and extended his streak without issuing a walk to three games.

VS. DETROIT: Stripling will make his third start and fourth appearance against Detroit in his career…in his two outing at Comerica Park, Stripling hasn’t allowed a run over 8.0 innings with one hit and eight strikeouts.

MOTOR CITY MATCH-UPS: Although Stripling has held IF Miguel Cabrera, OF Riley Greene and IF Spencer Torkelson to a combined 0-for-9…IF Javier Baez is 8-for-12 (.667) with a home run and four doubles in his career against Stripling.

BACK IN ACTION: Stripling will make his sixth appearance since he missed 35 games with a low back strain, which he sustained against the Phillies on May 17…he made three rehab outings, the final of which he struck out 10 in 4.0 innings for Single-A San Jose on June 22…while on the IL, Stripling told the SF Chronicle’s Susan Slusser that he was using his time on the IL to tweak things in his delivery…more specifically, he was working on standing taller through his delivery.

ON THE UPSWING?: Since returning from the IL on June 25, Stripling has a 3.72 ERA (8er, 19.1ip) in five games (four starts) with 16 strikeouts, a 0.93 WHIP and one walk.

MINIMIZE THE FREEBIES: Stripling has just one walk over 74 batters faced (1.4 BB%) in his five games since returning from the injured list…Stripling had walked 10 of the 146 batters he faced (6.8 BB%) in his nine games prior to his stint on the IL.

SLIDE ON OVER: The damage vs. Stripling has been rather spread out between his three primary pitches (slider, four-seam fastball and changeup)…the three pitches all have usage rates of at least 23%, yet also have opposing slugging percentages of at least .450…Baseball Savant also shows a notable change in production
from Stripling’s slider, which had an impressive +7 run value last year, and currently is -3 in 2023.

CHANGE IT UP: Sports Info Solutions noted a statistical drop off this season in Stripling’s changeup…opponents hit .203 vs. his changeup in 2022…they are batting .303 vs. the pitch this year…SIS also noted that Stripling’s changeup, which had a +2 run value last year, is now -6.

THEY KEEP FINDING THE BARREL: The righty currently has a 11.4% barrel rate and a 28.9% line drive rate, both of which are the highest marks of his career…Stripling’s four-seamer is getting hit the hardest at a 51.5% rate, yet he has a 18.6% put-away rate and 23.9% whiff rate with the pitch, both the best amongst his three main pitches.

LAST YEAR: Stripling completed his seventh big league campaign last season and set career bests in wins (10), starts (24), innings pitched (134.1), ERA (3.01) and WHIP (1.02).

DETROIT TIGER NOTES:

TIGERS SALVAGE SERIES FINALE WITH 3-1 WIN: The Tigers defeated the Padres 3-1 on Sunday to salvage the series finale. Spencer Torkelson had a pair of hits, including a solo homer in the first inning, while Andy Ibáñez also added a solo blast. Kerry Carpenter went 2×3 with a RBI and Riley Greene also contributed a pair of hits with a run scored. Alex Faedo started for Detroit and picked up his second win, scattering one hit over 6.0 shutout innings with four walks allowed and two strikeouts. Jason Foley pitched a perfect eighth inning and Alex Lange walked one and struck out one in a scoreless ninth for his 17th save.

ROSTER MOVES: The Tigers have announced the following roster moves:

• Following yesterday’s game, optioned RHP Alex Faedo to Triple A Toledo
• Placed RHP Mason Englert on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to July 23, with left hip tightness
• Recalled LHP Zach Logue and RHP Brendan White from Triple A Toledo

FULLY TORKED: Spencer Torkelson was on base three times in yesterday’s win, finishing the contest 2×3 with a solo homer, his 15th of the season, and a walk. Since June 27, Torkelson ranks tied for second in the American League with seven home runs, while he is tied for third with 19 RBI, tied for sixth with 12 extra-base hits
and eighth with a .605 slugging percentage.

GREENE MEANS GO: Riley Greene had a pair of hits in yesterday’s game, notching his 20th multi-hit game of the season. Greene has hit safely in 34 of his last 42 games, over which he is batting .346/.416/.516 with 10 doubles, a triple, five home runs and 16 RBI. Among American League players with at least 250 plate appearances this season, Greene ranks seventh with a .302 batting average.

AT COMERICA PARK: The Tigers are 1-2 on their current seven-game homestand, which includes three games vs. San Diego (1-2), one game vs. San Francisco (July 24) and three games vs. Los Angeles (AL) (July 25-27). Detroit is 21-27 at Comerica Park this season. As a team, the Tigers are hitting .241/.309/.376 at home, while the pitching staff has a 4.63 ERA (441.0IP/227ER).

TIGERS AND GIANTS: The Tigers and Giants wrap up their season series this afternoon. Today’s contest is a makeup game from the postponement on April 16. Detroit won both games from San Francisco back in April. The all-time series between the two teams is tied 12-12, with the Tigers holding a 9-7 edge at Comerica Park.

INTERLEAGUE ACTION: The Tigers continue their interleague schedule today against the Giants. Detroit is 15-16 against National League foes this season, including a 5-6 record against NL West teams. The Tigers have finished with a winning record against NL opponents in each of the last two seasons.

ON DECK: The Tigers homestand continues tomorrow as they open a three-game series against the Angels. Detroit and Los Angeles (AL) split six games last season, including the Tigers winning two-of-three games at Comerica Park.

TIGERS ON THE IL:

• LHP Tyler Alexander (left lat/shoulder strain, 60-day IL on July 4, retroactive to July 3)
• LHP Matthew Boyd (left elbow sprain, 60-day IL on June 27)
• RHP Mason Englert (left hip tightness, 15-day IL on July 24, retroactive to July 23)
• OF Austin Meadows (anxiety, 60-day IL on April 8, retroactive to April 7)
• RHP Casey Mize (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL on February 17)
• RHP Freddy Pacheco (right elbow sprain, 60-day IL on March 27)
• RHP Spencer Turnbull (neck discomfort, 60-day IL on May 12, retroactive to May 7)
• RHP Will Vest (right lower leg strain, 15-day IL on June 27)

TODAY’S TIGERS STARTING PITCHER

29 Tarik Skubal • 0-1, 5.25 ERA (12.0IP/7ER)

• Skubal will make his fourth start of the season today vs. San Francisco.
• Took the loss in his last start on Tuesday at Kansas City, giving up seven runs on eight hits with a walk and three strikeouts in 4.0 innings…marked his first earned runs allowed since July 13, 2022, snapping a streak of 27.0 innings without an earned run.
• Made his only career start against the Giants last season on June 28 and took the loss, giving up three runs on four hits with four walks and five strikeouts in 4.2 innings…in 32 career outings, including 30 starts, at Comerica Park, Skubal has a 9-12 record with a 3.29 ERA (166.2IP/61ER) and 165 strikeouts.
• Made his season debut for Detroit on July 4 vs. Oakland, throwing 4.0 hitless innings with no walks and six strikeouts…his only baserunner came on a hit by pitch…marked his first start in the Majors since August 1, 2022 vs. Minnesota.
• Started 21 games for the Tigers last season and had a 7-8 record with a 3.52 ERA (117.2IP/46ER) and 117 strikeouts.
• Allowed just one walk to a lefthanded batter last season, becoming the 16th player to face 100-or-more batters in a season and allow one walk-or-less.