SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS NOTES:
TODAY’S GAME: The Giants and Mets play the second game of this three-game series this afternoon after SF snapped a two-game skid with a 5-4 comeback win yesterday…the Giants are now 2-2 on this six-game road trip and have won six straight series openers dating to June 12 at St. Louis after last night’s win…the Giants are 14-4 over their last 18 games dating to June 11…in that time they have averaged 5.9 runs per game with a +38 run differential in the stretch…more recently, since June 22, SF has gone 4-4 in their last eight games.
JUNEBUGS: The Giants went 18-8 (.692) in June, tied for the third-best winning percentage in the Majors during the month with Philadelphia (also 18-8, .692)…only the Braves (21-4, .840) and Marlins (19-8, .704) had better months than the Giants…largely a month where the Giants were forced to use a fair amount of openers, SF’s bullpen went 13-1 last month, working a league-high 129.0 innings and striking out an MLB-best 134 while posting a 2.65 ERA, fourth-lowest in the Majors last month.
THE GIANT RELAY RACE…: After scoring 60 percent of their runs in March/April via the homer, most in MLB, the Giants have gotten it done in other ways as the season has progressed…in May, only 40% of their runs came via the homer (17th of 30 MLB teams) and last month only 31% came with the long ball (23rd of 30 teams)…SF’s last runs scored of the month came on the C Patrick Bailey homer in the 8th inning last night (Sports Info Solutions).
THE GIANT PICNIC…: That Bailey home run came in a high-leverage situation and SF thrived in those spots during June, batting .377 with a 1.104 OPS…both of those numbers were tops in the Majors according to Sports Info Solutions.
THE GIANT RAFFLE…: Last night’s win was the Giants eighth win of the season when trailing after seven innings… seven of those eight wins came in June with many different Giants having a hand in the win (see below)…overall, SF’s 21 comeback wins this season are ninth-most in the Majors but 15 of them have come since May 15…those 15 comeback wins since that date are tied for second-most in MLB with Atlanta… only the Reds (18) have more in that time.
Giants, Wins When Trailing After 7 Innings in June
Date Opponent Score After 7 Final Score Go-Ahead Play
June 7 at Colorado COL 4, SF 3 SF 5, COL 4 Bailey Squeeze in 8th
June 8 at Colorado COL 4, SF 3 SF 6, COL 4 Wade Jr. Sac Fly in 9th
June 14 at St. Louis STL 5, SF 3 SF 8, STL 5 (10) Estrada Single in 10th
June 16 at Los Angeles LAD 4, SF 2 SF 7, LAD 5 (11) Crawford Single in 11th
June 19 vs. San Diego SD 4, SF 2 SF 7, SD 4 (10) Yaz 3R HR in 10th
June 20 vs. San Diego SD 3, SF 2 SF 4, SD 3 Pederson walk in 9th
June 30 at New York-NL NYM 4, SF 2 SF 5, NYM 4 Bailey 3R HR in 8th
AND THERE’S MORE…: According to MLB’s Sarah Langs, last night’s comeback win was the Giants 14th this season when trailing by multiple runs, two more than they had all of last season.
KEEP GRINDING…: The Giants have been one of the best teams in baseball over the last two months, posting a 35-20 record since May 1…SF’s .636 winning percentage in that stretch is the second-best in the Majors behind the Braves (36-18, .667)…this recent success is in large part due to the bullpen, who’s sporting a MLB-best 2.59 ERA with an MLB-high 258 strikeouts in that stretch.
ROAD TRIPPIN’: Much of the Giants recent success has come on the road, where they’ve won 11 of their last 13 and 16 of their last 20 games…since May 22, SF’s .800 (16-4) winning percentage on the road is second-best in the Majors behind Cincinnati (15-3, .833)…overall, the Giants have a 23-17 (.575) record on the road this season, fourth-best in MLB behind Atlanta (26-12, .684), Arizona (25-14, .641) and Baltimore (23-15, .605).
THE MET STEPS: This is the final regular season series between the Giants and Mets this season…the two clubs split a four-game set in San Francisco in mid-April with New York winning the first two games and the Giants swiping the last two…SF lost its series here in New York in 2022, going 1-3… in fact, the Giants have gone 1-4-1 in series here since 2016 (the two teams did not play in 2020)…the Giants are 10-11 in their last 21 regular season games here since 2016 with a -13
run differential.
YOU’RE NO ONE UNTIL YOU’RE TALKED ABOUT: C Patrick Bailey is riding a career-best 11-game hitting streak entering tonight’s contest…he’s the first Giants rookie to record an 11- game hitting streak since Buster Posey’s 21-gamer in 2010… Bailey was worth 1.2 fWAR for the Giants in June, most of any position player on the roster (Sports Info Solutions)…overall, Bailey has been worth 1.9 fWAR in 33 games since joining SF, third-best among the position player group behind IF Thairo
Estrada (2.6) and IF LaMonte Wade Jr. (2.0)…the Giants have gone 20-9 when he starts behind the plate.
Rookies, Giants, Most Recent Streaks of 11+ Games with 1+ Hits
Season Player Stk Start Date End Date
2023 Patrick Bailey 11 6/17/2023 active
2010 Buster Posey 21 7/4/2010 7/28/2010
1996 Rich Aurilia 12 4/26/1996 5/10/1996
1985 Mike Woodard 13 9/11/1985 9/24/1985
YOU KNOW YOU LOVE ME: IF/OF LaMonte Wade Jr. owns a .424 on-base percentage on the road this season and has reached base safely in 33 of his 39 road games this year… Wade’s .424 road OBP is third-best in the Majors behind SD’s Juan Soto (.434) and OAK’s Ryan Noda (.429)…Wade’s .416 overall OBP this year is third-best in MLB behind MIA’s Luis Arraez (.442) and Soto (.426).
CANCEL OUR DINNER WITH THE NY (FOOTBALL) GIANTS: Just a reminder that tomorrow’s game versus the Mets was picked up by ESPN for Sunday Night Baseball and will now
have a first pitch time of 7:10 p.m. ET / 4:10 p.m. PT.
TODAY’S STARTER – ANTHONY DeSCLAFANI RHP #26
2023 RECORD: 4-7, 4.28 ERA
WITH THE GIANTS: Is in his ninth Major League season and third in a Giants uniform…the veteran, who returns from an injury-plagued 2022, signed a three-year deal with SF following an outstanding first season with the Giants in 2021.
LAST TIME OUT: Suffered a tough luck loss on Sunday against the D-Backs at Oracle Park…worked 6.0 innings and allowed two runs on five hits with three strikeouts in the 78-pitch effort…was DeSclafani’s seventh loss of the season
VS. NEW YORK-NL: New Jersey native is slated to face the Mets for the 10th time in his career and second time this season…the righthander is 0-5 with a 6.08 ERA and .309 opposing average in the nine games (eight starts)…in his last six outings vs. the Mets since 2016, DeSclafani has a 3.72 ERA with 32 strikeouts (29.0ip)…he’s looking to get his first career win against New York-NL.
IN THE CITI: Despite a pretty healthy sample size vs. the Mets in his career, this afternoon marks only his third career start here at Citi Field…he made one here last year (5.0ip, 9h, 5r, 5er) and one back in 2019 with Cincinnati.
SLIDE AWAY: Over his last seven starts (since May 24), opponents are 24-for-66 (.364) with six walks in at-bats ending with his slider…they were 15-for-87 (.172) with 20 strikeouts and four walks in his previous nine starts this season.
AHEAD OF THE CURVE: Has found a lot of success with his knuckle curve this year, limiting batters to just three hits (all singles) n 23 at-bats (.130) ending with his curveball while striking out nine…since May 24, the veteran has held batters to one hit in 13 at-bats (.077) that have ended with the pitch, retiring 12 of the 13 batters he faced while striking out seven…in his last full season in 2021, batters were .224 (11×49) with two HRs and 13 strikeouts
off the pitch.
GET AHEAD: According to Sports Info Solutions, DeSclafani has been limiting opponents to two hits in 27 at-bats (.074) when the count is 0-2, the fourth-lowest opponent’s batting average in the NL behind PHI’s Zack Wheeler (.054), CHC’s Marcus Stroman (.059) and ATL’s Spencer Strider (063).
TRENDING UP: DeSclafani has struck out just 69 of the 374 batters he faced through 16 starts this season…his 18.4% strikeout rate is his lowest in a full season and the sixth-lowest in the NL so far this year…however, the right-hander has fanned 16 batters (14.0ip)over his last three starts, a stretch that comes after striking out just six hitters over his previous three starts (16.0ip).
NEW YORK METS NOTES:
METSCELLANEOUS: The Mets fell to the Giants, 5-4, last night…New York is 6-19 over their last 25 games…Tonight, the Mets continue a seven-game homestand (1-4) against the Brewers (1-3) and Giants (0-1)…Following this homestand, the Mets head out on the road one final time before the All-Star break…The team heads west to Arizona (three games) and San Diego (three games).
IN JUNE: New York went 7-19 (.269) in June, despite being outscored by a total of 11 runs over those 26 games (126-115)…The team’s pitching staff posted a 4.43 ERA during June and slashed .228/.298/398 as an offense…Max Scherzer ranked among NL leaders in strikeouts (46, second), innings (36.0, tied for second) and wins (three, tied for third) during the last calendar month… Brandon Nimmo led the club and ranked tied for seventh in the NL with seven home runs last month, the most he has hit in a calendar month in his career.
ONE IS THE LONELIEST NUMBER: Four of the Mets last five losses have come by one run, including last night’s 5-4 setback…Eight of the club’s 19 losses in June came by one run…This season, New York is 12-16 in one-run affairs…In 2022, the club was 21-15 in games decided by a single score.
HE SLAYS GIANTS: Jeff McNeil lined a pair of RBI doubles last night, raising his career slashline vs. San Francisco to .359/.400/.538 (42- 117) career hitter against San Francisco in 32 games…Among active players, his .359 average ranks third (min. 100 at-bats) behind former Met and current Giant Wilmer Flores (.387) and Matt Carpenter (.363)…McNeil’s .938 OPS vs.SF ranks sixth among the 91 players who have 100 or more career AB against the club…Pete Alonso has eight career home runs and 23 RBI in 25 appearances vs. the Giants.
ABSENCE OF PROOF: The New York Mets are teaming up with the national non-alcoholic pop-up Absence of Proof to bring a fun nonalcoholic experience to Citi Field…Fans ages 21 and up can enjoy a ballgame at Citi Field while sipping on refreshing craft mocktails and other non-alcoholic beverages during this special experience… The event, presented by Cadillac and Dunkin’, continues its run in the Piazza Club on the Excelsior level for the entirety of this series
against the San Francisco Giants.
PHAM-TASTIC: Tommy Pham has three consecutive multi-hit games, going 8-11 (.727) in those three contests with two home runs, two RBI and three runs scored…Over his last 26 games (since May 28), Pham is batting .363 (33-91) with 16 runs, eight doubles, six home runs, 22 RBI, nine walks, six steals and a 1.086 OPS…He ranks
among MLB leaders in average (fourth), slugging percentage (.670, fourth) and OPS (third) in that span.
WHEN YOU’RE IN SCORING POSITION, YOU’RE PHAMILY: Tommy Pham leads the Mets with a .350 (14-40) average with runners in scoring position…Since May 18, has 12 hits in 24 at-bats with RISP… He leads the NL in average (.500), on-base percentage (.567), slugging percentage (1.000) and OPS (1.567) with RISP over that timeframe.
GIRL DAD POWER: Over the last 13 games, Francisco Lindor is batting .310 (13-42) with 10 runs, two doubles, four home runs, 10 RBI, seven walks, three steals with a .404 OBP and a .643 SLG…Over the last 23 games, Lindor has posted a .919 OPS, batting .250 (20- 76) with 15 runs, four doubles, six home runs, 14 RBI, 13 walks, five steals with a .366 OBP and a .553 SLG…He has posted a 2.4 fWAR this year, which ranks 16th in the National League…His 35 extra-base hits are tied for the 10th most in the National League.
FIRST IS THE BEST: The Mets are 23-11 (.676) when scoring first this season…The Mets are 13-35 (.271) when their opponent scores first.
FIRST IS THE WORST: The Mets have been outscored 59-23 in the first inning this year…New York has posted a 5.93 ERA (54 ER/82.0 IP) in the first inning this season…That is the sixth-highest first inning ERA in the majors…Last year, the Mets posted a 4.39 ERA (79 ER/162.0 IP) in the first frame.
INVADER NIM: Brandon Nimmo has recorded five home runs over his last 13 games, posting a .924 OPS in that span…Nimmo is batting .317 (32-101) with 10 extra-base hits against left-handed pitchers this year…His .323 average is the fourth-highest mark by a lefty against southpaws this season…It is second in the National League behind Miamis Luis Arraez (.375).
FINALLY CAUGHT ME: Starling Marte was caught stealing last night, ending a franchise-record run of 35 consecutive stolen bases without being caught…The last time a Mets player was thrown out attempting a stolen base before last night was on May 10 (Francisco Lindor at second)…The Mets are first in the major leagues with a
89.7% stolen base success rate this season…Starling Marte has swiped 21 bags this year, tied for sixth in the majors and third in the National League…His 335 career stolen bases rank second among active players…Elvis Andrus is the active leader with 341 steals.
BACK IN THE CITI: The Mets are 18-19 at home this year and have posted a 4.01 ERA…The Mets went 28-15 at home before the All-Star break last season.
DR. ROBERTSON: David Robertson has posted a 2-2 record with 11 saves, and a 2.00 ERA (8 ER/36.0 IP) in 32 appearances this season… He has walked 10, while striking out 42…He ranks 11th in ERA among relievers…He is tied for 18th in the NL with 42 punchouts…He is holding left-handed hitters to a .191 (13-68) average this year.
WHAT A PERFORMANCE!: Congrats to Head Performance Coach Dustin Clarke who will manage the NL’s strength and conditioning at the 2023 All-Star Game in Seattle, WA…Clark is in his ninth season as the head performance coach and his 13th season in the organization.
THE FUTURE IS BRIGHT: RHP Mike Vasil was named to the National League 2023 SiriusXM Futures Game roster…The 23-year-old has made 12 starts between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse where he has combined to go 1-3 with a 4.37 ERA (28 ER/57.2 IP) with 13 walks and 66 strikeouts…He was selected by the Mets in the eighth round of the 2021 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Virginia.
STARTING PITCHER – JUSTIN VERLANDER RHP #35
2023 STATS: 2-4, 4.11 E R A
VERLANDER PITCH ARSENL
Pitch Type Usage Rate vs. LHB vs. RHB Avg. Velocity
Four-Seam Fastball 50.3% 52.8% 48.6% 94.3 mph
Slider 29.1% 25.4% 31.6% 87.2 mph
Curveball 16.7% 15.3% 17.7% 78.8 mph
Changeup 3.9% 6.5% 2.1% 85.0 mph
LAST TIME OUT: Threw 5.0 scoreless innings on June 26 against the Brewers at Citi Field… Surrendered five hits, issued two walks and struck out five batters in a 2-1 Mets loss.
HOME IMPROVEMENT: After allowing six runs over 5.0 innings in his Mets Citi Field debut on May 16 vs. Tampa Bay, Verlander has pitched to a 1.08 ERA (3 ER/25.0 IP) over his last four home starts…During that span, Verlander has a 0.84 WHIP, has held opposing batters to a .180 average and a .512 OPS.
GO WEST YOUNG MAN: In 19 career starts against NL West opponents, Verlander is 13-2 with a 2.64 ERA (37 ER/126.1 IP), a 1.00 WHIP, a 10.83 SO/9 rate and a .586 opponent’s OPS…15 of those stats have been quality starts and Verlander has recorded eight or more strikeouts in eight of those nine starts.
