SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS NOTES:
TODAY’S GAME: The Giants and Reds will pick up last night’s suspended game with the scored tied at two apiece and SF batting in the top of the 8th inning with runners at second and third base, one out and J.D. Davis at the plate…following the completion of that game, the two teams will take a brief break before the regularly scheduled game begins no earlier than 7:10 p.m. ET…SF can pick up its sixth straight victory if they pull out a win once the suspended game resumes.
NEVER TELL ME THE ODDS: According to Sports Info Solutions, the Giants have a 67% chance of pulling out a victory in the first game given the current game state when it will resume…essentially, 67% of visiting teams that were tied in the 8th inning with runners on 2nd and 3rd and one out have gone on to win.
TONY D’S RETURN: RHP Anthony DeSclafani will be returned from his rehabilitation assignment and reinstated from the IL prior to the start of today’s regularly scheduled game to make the start against his former club…a corresponding move will officially be made before the second game begins…tonight’s start will mark DeSclafani’s 59th career game (57th start) in this ballpark after spending five years here from 2015-2020… today’s outing will be his third against his former club in this ballpark but only his second since leaving the Reds after 2020…he made one relief appearance here with Miami in 2014 before he joined the Reds.
CENTRAL PERK: The Giants are 16-7 (.696) against the NL Central this season, which is the best winning percentage against that division (min. 10 games), and the second-most wins, behind Milwaukee (20-9)…SF pitchers have a 3.10 ERA vs. the NL Central, which is second-best among teams with at least 10 games against the division (Tampa Bay, 2.14).
WE WANT ‘BAMA: The Giants have lived up to the moment when facing MLB’s best teams this year…based on teams’ current records, SF ranks fifth in MLB (second-best in the NL) with a .553 win percentage (26-21) in games against opponents with winning records this year (Stats, LLC).
SMALL BALL: Two of SF’s three wins in Pittsburgh were won without hitting a home run (Friday and Sunday)…the Giants’ 14 wins this year without hitting a home run are tied for third-most in MLB according to Stats, LLC…only Cleveland (18) and Baltimore (16) have more.
GOING STREAKING: With RHP Logan Webb going 7.0 innings and allowing two runs before last night’s game was suspended, he continued the SF’s starters’ streak of allowing three runs or fewer…Giants starters have now done so in 14 straight games dating to June 29, which is the longest active streak in MLB…the streak is also tied for the longest such streak in MLB this season with Seattle (14 games from June 12-27)….the 14-game streak by the Giants is their longest since they had a 15-gamer from June 12-27, 2018.
GOONIES NEVER SAY DIE: It’s going to take some more late inning runs for SF to claim a victory in the suspended game…SF’s 109 runs in the 8th inning or later this year are second-most in the Majors behind Toronto’s 119.
WEAPON X: RHP Logan Webb worked another 7.0 inning outing last night, allowing the two runs on four hits (two solo homers) with seven strikeouts and no walks…in three starts this month, Webb has logged a 1.59 ERA (4er, 22.2ip) with 28 strikeouts and just two walks…he’s struck out 17 and walked none over his last two outings (16.0ip)…last night’s outing marked Webb’s eighth this season where he’s pitched 7.0 or more innings and allowed two or fewer runs…the Giants are 6-1 in the other seven outings he’s worked 7.0+ and allowed two or fewer this season.
FLO MOTION: Counting his day so far from yesterday’s suspended game, IF Wilmer Flores has now slashed .391/.456/.623 with seven doubles, three homers, nine RBI, 10 runs scored, eight walks and just seven strikeouts in 24 games since the start of June…Flores also missed a 10-game stretch in that time while he was on the IL after fouling a ball off his left foot on June 16 at the Dodgers…in this stretch, the Giants are 15-8 in games that Flores has appeared (outcome of last night’s game still pending , obviously).
THE FUTURE IS NOW: Both the Reds and the Giants have received plenty of production from their rookies…Cincinnati leads the Majors with 102 RBI from rookies while the Giants are right behind them with 101.
THE (D)OVAL OFFICE: RHP Camilo Doval has 28 saves in 30 opportunities this season, which is tied for most saves in 30 opportunities by a Giant since saves became a stat in 1969 (Stats, LLC)…the last Giant to achieve that feat was LHP Will Smith in 2019…others to do so are RHP Brian Wilson (2008, 2010), RHP Robb Nen (1998) and RHP Rod Beck (1993, 1994).
ON THE COME UP: RHP Luke Jackson (low back strain) made a second rehab appearance last night in the ACL…he threw 1.0 scoreless inning (11 pitches) with two strikeouts and one walk for the ACL Giants Orange…joining Jackson in the game last night was OF Luis González, who was playing in his first rehab game since lower back surgery in March cost him the first half of the season…González went 1-for-3 wtih a double, run scored and a strikeout in three at-bats as the DH. \
MARCO…POLO?: IF Marco Luciano, SF’s No. 2 prospect and the 15th-best prospect in MLB overall according to MLB. com, has been promoted to Triple-A Sacramento…Luciano, 21, slashed .228/.339/.450 (.789 OPS) with 12 doubles, 11 homers and 32 RBI in 56 games at Double-A Richmond… over his last 26 games dating to June 10, he’s slashed .309/.416/.564 (.980 OPS) with six doubles, six homers, 17 RBI and 18 walks.
TODAY’S STARTER – ANTHONY DeSCLAFANI RHP #26
2023 RECORD: 4-8, 4.44 ERA
TODAY’S GAME: Will be reinstated from the 15-day IL prior to tonight’s regularly scheduled game after missing the minimum time with right shoulder fatigue…the veteran, who returns from an injury-plagued 2022, is in his ninth Major League season and third in a Giants uniform..
LAST TIME OUT W/SF: Suffered his eighth loss of the year on July 1 at the Citi Field…matched his shortest outing of the season after throwing just 3.0 innings with three strikeouts…DeSclafani tied a career-high three homers, which accounted for all of his hits and runs in the start….he landed in the 15-day IL two days later.
REHAB ASSIGNMENT: Made a rehab start in the Arizona Complex League last Thursday, working 4.0 innings for the ACL Giants Orange…he allowed one run (on a solo homer) on five hits with four strikeouts and no walks.
VS. CINCINNATI: Is slated to face his former club for just the fourth time in his career…the right-hander, who spent five seasons with Cincinnati from 2015-2020, is 1-1 with a 0.84 ERA (1er, 10.2ip) in three appearances (two starts) against his former team…has last faced them in his final outing of 2022 (June 26), when he was removed after just 2.2 innings with a right ankle inflammation that led him to undergo surgery and miss the remainder of the year.
LIKE A SECOND HOME?: Tonight’s start will mark DeSclafani’s third as a visiting player in this ballpark and second since leaving the Reds after 2020…in his start here with SF on May 18, 2021 DeSclafani threw 7.0 innings of one-run ball while allowing six hits…he struck out seven and walked two to earn the win…overall, tonight will mark his 59th career game (57th start) in this ballpark…he’s 20-22 lifetime here with a 4.54 ERA in those games.
SLIDE AWAY: Over his last eight starts (since May 24), opponents are 25-for-72 (.347) 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) in 24 at-bats (.125) ending with his curveball while striking out 10… since May 24, the veteran has held batters to one hit in 14 at-bats (.071) that have ended with the pitch, retiring 13 of the 14 batters he faced while striking out eight…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 28 at-bats (.071) when the count is 0-2, tied for the fourth-lowest opponent’s batting average in the NL behind NYM’s David Peterson (.038), WSH’s Jake Irvin (.048) and NYM’s Kodai Senga (.065).
TRENDING UP: DeSclafani has struck out just 72 of the 386 batters he faced through 17 starts this season…his 18.7% strikeout rate is his lowest in a full season…however, the right-hander has fanned 19 batters (17.0ip)over his last four starts, a stretch that comes after striking out just six hitters over his previous three starts (16.0ip).
CINCINNATI REDS NOTES:
27th PLAYER
- The Reds will add to the roster RHP Tony Santillan (#64) as the 27th player for tonight’s scheduled game.
- Last night’s was the Reds’ first game suspended since 5/26-5/27, 2021 at Wsh (5-3 loss, 9 innings ) and their first suspended home game since 4/20-4/21, 2021 vs Ari (5-4 loss, 9 innings).
TONIGHT’S GAMES
- Are Games 1 & 2 of a 4-game series vs Anthony DeSclafani’s Giants and Games 4 & 5 (0-3) of a 10-game homestand (0-3 vs Mil, 0-0 vs SF, 3g vs Ari).
- Will follow this homestand with an 11-day, 10-game road trip (3g at Mil, off day & 3g at LAD, 4g at Chc)…won 7 of their last 8 road series.
- The Reds finished the first half with a 5-2 road trip (4-0 at Wsh, 1-2 at Mil).
SERIES NOTES
- In 2022, the Reds earned a pair of 2-1 series wins vs the Giants, their first series wins August 2018.
- Beginning with the 2008 season the Reds are 53-40 vs SF, at .570 the best winning percentage of any Giants opponent since then (minimum 50g).
- Beginning 6/29/12 and including the 2012 season’s National League Division Series, the Redlegs have won 21 of the last 35 meetings at beautiful Oracle Park to improve their all-time record there to 40-39.
FIRST PLACE NOTE
- The Reds haven’t been in first place this late in a full season since the end of the 2012 season, when they most recently won the Central Division (97-65, +9.0).
- Last season, the Reds were 37-58 after 95 games & 37-59 after 96 games.
RUNNING MEN
- The Reds’ 113 stolen bases rank second in the Major Leagues (TB, 114), their highest total since 2017 (120sb)…recorded 58 stolen bases all of 2022…are trying to lead the National League in stolen bases for the first time since 2015 (134sb).
- With Elvis Peguero pitching, Elly De La Cruz on 7/8 at Mil became only the fourth Reds batter ever to steal second, third and home in the same inning (Hans Lobert 9/27/1908, Dode Paskert 5/23/1910, Greasy Neale 8/15/1919)…became the first Major League batter to steal second, third and home in the same inning since Mia’s Jon Berti did it on 8/25/2020 at NYM…became the first Reds batter with a straight steal of home since Brandon Phillips did it on 7/10/2009 at NYM.
- The Reds recorded 50 stolen bases in June, their highest steals total in a calendar month since September 1912 (53sb).
- 5 times this season recorded at least 5 stolen bases in a game (6sb on 6/2 vs Mil, 9sb on 6/3 vs Mil, 5sb on 6/25 at Bal, 6sb on Tue at Wsh, 5sb on 7/8 at Mil)…prior to 6/2, the Reds hadn’t recorded 5 stolen bases in a game since 4/10/17 at Pit.
- Their 9 stolen bases on 6/3 vs Mil (Jake Fraley 3, Spencer Steer 2, Jonathan India 2, Will Benson, Stuart Fairchild) was their highest single-game total since 5/30/1976 vs LAD (9sb)…the Reds’ single-game record since 1900 for stolen bases in a game remains 10 (5/29/1913 at StL).
BIG ROAD MACHINE
- The Brewers’ 2-1 series win to end the season’s first half snapped a streak in which the Reds won 7 consecutive road series…won 7 straight road series for only the third time in their history…won 8 straight road series in 1976 (6/25-8/12) and 1923 (7/2-8/25)…courtesy @EliasSports.
- Beginning 5/26, the Reds are 20-5 over their last 4 road trips covering 8 road series.
- The Reds’ 27 road wins (27-20) was their highest total prior to the All-Star Game break since 1999 (29-13).
- Went 8-1 on their road trip to StL (2-1), KC (3-0) and Hou (3-0)…for only the second time ever, won 8 games on a road trip of 9 games or fewer (8-0, 9/21-9/27, 1964)…was their first road trip of any length with at least 8 wins since 5/28-6/9, 1999 (9-3)…courtesy @EliasSports.
RED HOTS
- The Reds’ 12-game winning streak from 6/10-6/23 tied their modern club record (5/16-5/27, 1939 & 4/30-5/12, 1957).
- From 6/14-7/8 Reds batters established a new franchise record for consecutive games with at least 1 home run (22g, 45hr), a streak snapped in the 1-0 loss at Mil in the final game heading into the All-Star Game break…the 1956 Reds held the team record by homering in 21 consecutive games.
- Reds baserunners in 70 attempts have scored 69 runs from second base on singles…both lead the Major Leagues.
- The Reds are the first team in Major League history to move into first place alone in 9 games or fewer after falling 5 or more games under .500 while facing a deficit of at least 5 games…on 6/9 were 29-35 and trailed the first-place Pirates by 5.0 games…beginning 6/10 won 9 straight games to move into first place alone on 6/19…courtesy @OptaSTATS and @EliasSports.
- The Reds went 18-9 in June, their highest victory total in any month since June 2014 (18-10).
- Elly De La Cruz and Spencer Steer on 7/4 at Wsh became the first set of rookie teammates in Major League history to finish in the same game 4-for-4 with at least 1 RBI (since RBI became an official statistic in 1920)…courtesy @EliasSports.
- The Reds have used 52 players…in 2022 used a club record 66 players.
- 12 Reds players have made Major League debuts this season, the most in the Major Leagues (RHP Casey Legumina, RHP Levi Stoudt, IF Matt McLain, LHP Brandon Williamson, RHP Eduardo Salazar, OF TJ Hopkins, LHP Andrew Abbott, IF Elly De La Cruz, RHP Ricky Karcher, RHP Randy Wynne, RHP Jake Wong, IF Christian Encarnacion-Strand)…16 rookies played in at least 1 game for the Reds.
Tonight’s Pitcher – #34 Luke Weaver, RHP
- Tonight is making his 10th career appearance and eighth start vs the Giants.
- Has been charged with 2 pitch timer violations, on 5/31 at Bos (Masataka Yoshida) and 6/18 at Hou (Cory Julks).
- In the 4-3 loss on 4/20 at Pit, came off the 15-day injured list to make his 2023 season and Reds debuts…in the first inning allowed all 4 runs on 3 hits, including 2-out, back-to-back home runs by Connor Joe (3-run) and Jack Suwinski (solo)…in his last 5.0 innings faced only 16 batters and retired his last 10 batters…Joe’s 3-run HR snapped Weaver’s career-high 29.0-inning homerless streak (24g) dating back to his only start of 2022 (6/18/22 vs Min, Gary Sánchez).
- On 3/8, left his third spring training appearance with right forearm tightness…didn’t pitch in another Cactus League “A” game for the Reds.
- On Opening Day went on the 15-day injured list with a right elbow flexor strain, snapping his 5-season streak on an active Opening Day roster (Cardinals 2018, Diamondbacks 2019-2022).
- On 4/9 and 4/14 made 2 rehabilitation apps with Louisville (0-0, 3.00, 9ip, 3h, 3er, 4bb, 9k, 1hr, 0.78whip, .107baa).
- On 1/13/23 was signed to a 1-year contract through the 2023 season
