Giants, winless Justin Verlander chase series victory vs. Braves
Justin Verlander will continue to search for his first elusive win with the Giants when San Francisco wraps up its six-game road trip with a series finale against the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday.
Atlanta won the opener of the three-game series 9-5 on Monday before San Francisco prevailed 9-0 on Tuesday. The latest result ended the Giants' six-game losing streak and gave San Francisco a 4-1 advantage over the Braves in the season series.
Verlander (0-8, 4.99 ERA) will be matched up against Atlanta's Spencer Strider (4-7, 3.59) on Wednesday.
Verlander is coming off an abbreviated start on Friday. The 42-year-old veteran pitched 2 2/3 innings -- only the ninth time in his career he failed to pitch at least three innings -- and allowed four runs on nine hits and two walks against the host Toronto Blue Jays. He failed to record a strikeout for the first time this season.
Verlander was ejected from the dugout on Sunday after complaining about perceived missed pitches by plate umpire Chad Whitson, who was caught on a live television microphone saying, 'How about you worry about getting out of the third inning, huh?'
The right-hander did not face the Braves when the teams met in San Francisco in June. Verlander has made four career starts against Atlanta, going 2-1 with a 3.75 ERA.
'Stuff-wise, I'm still fairly optimistic,' Verlander said. 'I had a tough one (against Toronto). They found a way to put a lot of balls in play and found a lot of holes. The ones they did hit hard found corners. I think about how the mechanical adjustments have helped my stuff. The velo is better. I think the breaking balls are sharper, all in all.'
Strider was outstanding in his first post-All-Star-break start on Friday against the New York Yankees, leading the Braves to a 7-3 win. He threw six scoreless innings, allowed three hits and three walks and struck out eight to log a seventh quality start in his past eight appearances. He is 4-3 with a 2.77 ERA in that span.
'We've got to show up every day and our job the rest of the season is to try to win the game we're playing today,' Strider said. 'Once the game starts, that can be the only focus, and I think that's going to give us the best chance.'
Strider faced the Giants on June 8 and took the loss, pitching six innings and allowing four runs, three earned. In five career starts against San Francisco, the 26-year-old right-hander is 2-2 with a 3.77 ERA.
The Giants made a couple of moves to bolster their bullpen on Tuesday. Right-handers Hayden Birdsong and Tristan Beck were both optioned to Triple-A Sacramento, with right-handers Carson Seymour and Sean Hjelle recalled as replacements.
Both new faces got into the Tuesday night game and delivered solid outings.
Hjelle pitched a scoreless inning but was hit on the right hamstring by a 107 mph liner off the bat of Michael Harris II. Hjelle remained in the game after a visit from the trainer.
Seymour closed the contest with two strong innings, striking out four.
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