BoMel attributes sloppy defensive play for Giants' 11-3 loss to Brewers
Wilmer feeling 'lucky' to have so many RBI opportunities
San Francisco designated hitter Wilmer Flores joins Laura Britt and Shawn Estes on 'Giants Postgame Live' after the team's 4-2 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday night.Wilmer feeling 'lucky' to have so many RBI opportunities originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
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New York Times
6 hours ago
- New York Times
Wilmer Flores comes through in a pinch, wins the day for Giants
SAN FRANCISCO — The Giants shook up the baseball world on Sunday when they acquired Rafael Devers from the Boston Red Sox, and although pragmatism will never prevent the punditry from declaring instant winners and losers, the truth is it'll take a year or five before anyone can conduct a full accounting of the deal. Advertisement But the second-order effects on both rosters following a blockbuster trade? The winners and losers in uniform? Those are a bit easier to analyze in real time. For Wilmer Flores, a broken-down player last season who opted into the last year of his contract, who might have come within one bad spring training from becoming a writeoff, who instead reestablished himself as a dangerous situational hitter and who entered the week with the fifth most RBIs among National League players, the Devers trade had a clear and immediate impact. It closed off Flores' avenue to at-bats at designated hitter. With Devers ensconced at DH and the No.3 spot in the lineup, Flores had to come off the bench in two of three games in the series against the Cleveland Guardians. That meant Flores was in the right place at the right time Thursday afternoon. Flores threaded a pinch double down the third-base line that scored two runs in the seventh inning, flipping the result for the Giants and Logan Webb in a 2-1 victory that snapped a four-game losing streak. Sometimes the apparent losers in a trade are actually winners. For all the ways the Devers acquisition could limit his opportunities, Flores remains a vital part of the Giants' roster. 'We expect so much out of him,' manager Bob Melvin said. 'We expect him to come through every time in those situations, and he does almost every time. But it's really, really difficult. Sit on the bench the entire game. Have the biggest at-bat of the game. He gets behind in the count, doesn't try to do too much, puts it in play with the infield in. It's just what he does.' Wilmer gives us the lead! 😤 — SFGiants (@SFGiants) June 19, 2025 Melvin sent Flores to pinch hit for second baseman Christian Koss, even though the manager knew the Guardians would go to right-hander Nic Enright. Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt did not have a lefty warming up alongside him. It would've been easy for Melvin to send up Daniel Johnson and get a left-handed matchup. But platoon advantages only count for so much. Sometimes, a slow heartbeat and a steely resolve are even bigger advantages. Advertisement 'It's just Wilmer,' said Webb, who struck out nine and walked none but was on the hook for an unjust loss when he walked off the mound in the middle of the seventh. 'He always seems to come up with the big one. He's been doing it for so long. It's always a pleasure. I actually (heard) a podcast, and they were talking about Wilmer. They were like, 'Just put him on base.' Any time you're in a big situation, it's just the way Wilmer goes. He's always prepared, always ready for the big moment. Obviously, I love that he did that.' It's never an advantage for a hitter to get to a two-strike count. But the more pitches Flores fouls off in an at-bat, the more the sense of inevitability grows that something good is about to happen. And the Giants were desperate for it. When Flores stepped to the plate, the team was 0 for 4 with runners in scoring position on the day and 1 for 23 in the series against the Guardians. Extending back a bit further, the Giants had been 4 for 33 with runners in scoring position over their four-game losing streak — and one of the hits was Casey Schmitt's grand slam on a 56-mph lob from position player Kiké Hernandez at Dodger Stadium. Devers hit an RBI double in his Giants debut on Tuesday, but it's not as if his presence lit the lineup on fire. The Giants scored just six runs in the three-game series against Cleveland, and they won't project to be at full strength for at least a couple weeks while Matt Chapman rehabs his sprained right hand. It's likely that many more games will hang in the balance of a pinch at-bat or two. Giants pinch hitters entered the day with a decent record of production: 10 for 40 with two home runs and a .250 average that ranked well above the league average of .202. But they've also had more riding on those pinch at-bats than any team. Their 2.21 leverage index, which weighs the context in which a pinch hitter is used (with 1.0 representing average pressure), is the highest in the major leagues. So the second-level effects of having Flores on the bench are no small matter. Melvin hopes that Devers will be playable at first base soon and that Flores will resume something resembling an everyday DH role. Until then, Melvin said he's hesitant to put too many demands on Flores' surgically repaired knee. Advertisement 'I don't want to run Flo out there too much in the field,' said Melvin, who started Flores at first base for the first time this season on Wednesday. 'Until we get Rafi in the field, it's going to be half-and-half (between Flores and Dom Smith at first base). 'But being able to come off the bench in those situations is really valuable.' How long before Devers becomes playable at first base? Well, probably not as soon as this weekend, when his former team, the Red Sox, visits the shores of McCovey Cove. It was Devers' refusal to plug a hole at first base in the wake of Triston Casas' season-ending knee injury that irreparably harmed his relationship with the Red Sox and compelled them to trade him barely 24 months after signing him to a 10-year, $313.5 million contract. As hilarious and amazing as it would be for Devers to start at first base against Boston, it almost certainly won't happen. You can't let the punditry have it that easy.
Yahoo
8 hours ago
- Yahoo
Brewers rookie Durbin, a Chicago-area native, hits home run in 'homecoming' at Wrigley Field
Milwaukee Brewers' Caleb Durbin is greeted in the dugout after hitting a two-run home run against the Chicago Cubs during the second inning of a baseball game Thursday, June 19, 2025, in Chicago. (AP Photo/David Banks) CHICAGO (AP) — Milwaukee Brewers infielder Caleb Durbin was able to thrill — and upset — a group of family and friends at Wrigley Field with one swing of the bat on Thursday. The 25-year-old rookie from the Chicago suburb of Lake Forest, Illinois, hit a two-run homer in the second inning that put Milwaukee ahead en route to an 8-7 win over the Cubs. He connected in his second game at the North Side ballpark and fifth in Chicago, following three against the White Sox earlier this season. Advertisement While Durbin's relatives and old high school pals were rooting for him, many also were pulling for the Cubs. 'They joke around, like 'Hey come on now,' " Durbin said. 'But yeah, it's a lot of fun knowing that I have family and friends that are, you know, pretty diehard Cubs fans who are here.' Durbin's drive off Jameson Taillon reached the left-center bleachers and gave the Brewers a 4-2 lead. Durbin has played in 54 games this season, 50 at third base. He's hitting .216 with three homers and 24 RBIs after taking a backdoor route to the major leagues. Durbin was on the baseball, football and wrestling teams at Lake Forest High School, then went on to play NCAA Division III baseball at Washington University in St. Louis. At 5-foot-7 and 183 pounds, he has a wrestler's build — and tenacity. Advertisement 'He's sure as hell low enough to the ground," manager Pat Murphy said. "Makes sense. I didn't think he was a long jumper.' Over his last 23 games Durbin his batting .269, boosting his average from .169 on May 20. "He's getting comfortable and he's getting confident," Murphy said. "He knows what he has to do and he's just a tenacious competitor, and no situation is going to be too big for him. He's resilient. He's relentless.' Durbin said Washington University's baseball program is underrated, but made it to the NCAA Division III baseball tournament in 2021 when he was a junior. Advertisement 'The top D3 programs are good baseball, maybe not the same as top D1 programs, but we were a competitive team,' Durbin said. 'Then I was able to get a chance post-college to keep playing.' Durbin worked his way up from the bottom of the minor leagues, eventually reaching Triple-A in 2024. Drafted by Atlanta in 2021, he was traded to the Yankees in 2022. Durbin came to the Brewers along with left-hander Nestor Cortes in a December 2024 deal that sent closer Devin Williams to New York. 'I was just trying to chip away to get a shot at the bigs,' Durbin said. 'And then you get to the big leagues and it's the same thing, you're chipping away to win.' ___ AP MLB:
CBS News
9 hours ago
- CBS News
Webb's gem, Flores' pinch-hit double help Giants edge Guardians to end 4-game skid
Logan Webb pitched seven splendid innings, pinch-hitter Wilmer Flores delivered a go-ahead double and the San Francisco Giants beat the Cleveland Guardians 2-1 on Thursday to stop a four-game losing streak. Webb (7-5) gave up seven hits but struck out nine. The right-hander did not issue a walk as he lowered his ERA to 2.49. Cleveland starter Gavin Williams held the Giants scoreless through six innings, but San Francisco got to the Guardians' bullpen in the seventh. Casey Schmitt greeted Matt Festa (1-1) with a single to open the inning. Festa walked Jung Hoo Lee before Patrick Bailey laid down a sacrifice bunt. Casey Schmitt #10 of the San Francisco Giants reacts after scoring on a two-run double by Wilmer Flores #41 in the top of the seventh inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Oracle Park on June 19, 2025 in San Enright replaced Festa and then Flores, batting for Christian Koss, drilled a double down the left-field line to score Schmitt and Lee. The Giants had been 1 for 23 with runners in scoring position during the series before Flores came through. Camilo Doval worked a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his 11th save. Steven Kwan had three hits and scored Cleveland's run on Carlos Santana's single in the third. Key moment San Francisco left fielder Heliot Ramos made a diving grab of Lane Thomas' liner to end the first inning, saving at least one run. Key stat Webb's outing was his 23rd start of at least seven innings since the beginning of the 2024 season. That leads the majors; Houston's Framber Valdez is second with 19. Cleveland RHP Tanner Bibee (4-6, 3.79 ERA) opposes Athletics LHP Jeffrey Springs (5-5, 4.52) in West Sacramento on Friday night. Up next Giants RHP Hayden Birdsong (3-1, 2.79 ERA) pitches Friday night against Boston RHP Hunter Dobbins (4-1, 3.74) as new San Francisco slugger Rafael Devers faces the team that traded him Sunday.
