Nearly perfect Snell gives Giants a series win over Twins
San Francisco Giants left-hander Blake Snell pitches in the fourth inning against Minnesota Twins on Sunday. Snell allowed one hit in seven shutout innings during MLB game at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday, July 14, 2024. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle
2024.07.14 – San Francisco starter Blake Snell went perfect into the 7th inning as the Giants rallied for a wild 3-2 walk-off win over the Minnesota Twins and a series win.
The two-time Cy Young Award winner struck out eight and allowed only one hit over seven shutout innings on Sunday afternoon at Oracle Park.
Mike Yastrzemski tripled and scored in the bottom of the ninth when the relay throw skipped past Minnesota third baseman Diego Castillo, giving the Giants the walk-off win.
After San Francisco closer Camilo Doval blew a save in the top of the ninth, Yastrzemski laced a 2-1 splitter from Jhoan Duran (5-4) into the gap in right-center. Twins center fielder Manuel Margot fell while chasing the ball, allowing Yastrzemski to take third.
Minnesota second baseman Brooks Lee got the relay throw and fired the ball to third, but Castillo failed to make the play as the Oracle Park crowd roared.
“Not the way you expect it to end but it doesn’t matter how you get it done, just as long as you’re on the winning side,” said Yastrzemski following the Giants’ ninth walk-off victory of the season. “We can grind. We’re a group of very unselfish players. (Doesn’t) matter how it happens, we just want to win. Today shows it.”
2024.07.14 (Twins vs. Giants) See Full Highlights
San Francisco Giants left-hander Blake Snell pitches in the first inning against Minnesota Twins on Sunday. Snell allowed one hit in seven shutout innings during MLB game at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday, July 14, 2024. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle
2024.07.14 (Twins vs. Giants) See Full Highlights
2024.07.14 (Twins vs. Giants) See Full Highlights
Lack of a clear identity underlies the Giants’ mediocrity this season. They are 47-50, fourth in the National League West and three games back of the third wild-card spot. But in Sunday’s win, there emerged hints that they have the pieces and pride to distinguish themselves from the pack in the second half.
Most encouraging was Snell’s performance in his second start back from a groin injury. The lefty took a perfect game into the seventh inning, a feat disrupted by Margot’s leadoff two-strike bloop single to left field.
Not once in Snell’s nine-year career has he pitched a complete game and only four times has he pitched into the eighth inning, but on Sunday, the lefty was efficient from his first pitch. Snell is known to nip at the zone and walk batters as a result, but this time, he pounded the zone with his four-seamer and located his curveball perfectly to generate 21 swings-and-misses.
He struck out eight batters and walked none on 80 pitches and faced the minimum as Willi Castro hit into a double play two pitches after Margot’s single and Snell then struck out Lee to end the inning. Manager Bob Melvin and his coaching staff had a conversation about getting Snell back out for the eighth inning, but he was limited in his workload coming back from injury.
“How can you get much better?” Melvin said. “There wasn’t even any hard contact, really. Even the base hit was soft. But you could see from the very beginning his mechanics were perfect. He was throwing his breaking ball whenever he wanted to, he was throwing his change-up.
“All his pitches were working, and that’s what you get when you get a Blake Snell that’s healthy. Especially toward the second half of the season is when he’s really, really good. It was a little uneven to begin with with injuries and so forth, but he’s really hit his stride and he’s confident when he hits the mound.”
2024.07.14 – Twins vs. Giants (NBC Sports: Post Recap)
San Francisco Giants’ Mike Yastrzemski celebrates after hitting a triple and scoring the winning run on a Minnesota Twins’ error in the 9th inning of a Giants’ 3-2 win during MLB game at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday, July 14, 2024. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle
2024.07.14 – Twins vs. Giants (NBC Sports: Post Recap)
2024.07.14 – Twins vs. Giants (NBC Sports: Post Recap)
Twins manager Rocco Baldelli faulted his team’s lack of fundamentals in the ninth inning for the loss.
“It can happen kind of bam, bam real quick in this game and that’s exactly what we saw today,” Baldelli said. “A fairly well-struck ball to right-center field and then we don’t play the simple cut the way we need to and we didn’t have anyone backing up, which was also not right.”
Ryan Walker (6-3) retired two batters to win.
It was far and away the sharpest Snell has looked this season after signing a $62 million, two-year deal with the Giants in the off-season.
“Found some things that I liked today with consistency in my delivery and just repeating that,” Snell said. “Sequences, I was happy with them but a couple that I could have done better. But overall happy and feel good.”
The reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, who has been on the injured list twice this season and also spent time on the paternity list, is finally starting to look like his old self. He had been win less in his previous seven starts with a 7.85 ERA.
Snell’s outstanding outing followed a solid effort in his most recent start when he threw five scoreless innings against the Toronto Blue Jays on July 9.
Patrick Bailey and Thairo Estrada each drove in runs, while Yastrzemski doubled twice and walked.
2024.07.14 – Twins vs. Giants (Locked On: Post Recap)
San Francisco Giants’ closer Camilo Doval, right gets pulled during the 9th inning by skipper Bob Melvin, center left on a Minnesota Twins vs Giants’ 3-2 win during MLB game at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sunday, July 14, 2024.Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle
2024.07.14 – Twins vs. Giants (Locked On: Post Recap)
2024.07.14 – Twins vs. Giants (Locked On: Post Recap)
Snell’s efforts nearly went for naught when Doval blew a two-run lead in the ninth. After the Giants’ closer gave up a leadoff walk and double, Margot struck again with a two-run double to tie the game 2-2. Ryan Walker replace Doval with the potential go-ahead run on second base and got a groundout and flyball to end the inning.
Minnesota starter Chris Paddack remained winless since June 10 despite a strong outing. Paddack had six strikeouts in five innings and allowed both Giants runs, one unearned, in his second start since coming off the injured list earlier this month.
TRAINER’S ROOM
Twins: Carlos Correa was held out of the game after undergoing an MRI which revealed plantar fasciitis in his right foot. It’s unknown whether the injury will force Correa to miss Tuesday’s All-Star game in Texas. … INF Jose Miranda was placed on the 10-day injured list because of a lower back strain. Diego Castillo was called up from Triple-A St. Paul and started at third base Sunday.
UP NEXT
Twins: Begin the second half of the season Saturday at home against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Giants: Face the Rockies on Friday in Colorado.
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Read more at: San Francisco Giants Media Services / More AP MLB
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