One of the best pitching matchups of the season lived up to the hype on Monday night in Atlanta, but it didn't work out for the Giants.
On a night when Max Fried and Logan Webb both were brilliant, the Giants tried to rally late but fell in the bottom of the ninth when Orlando Arcia lined a single to left against closer Camilo Doval, who got in trouble by issuing a leadoff walk. That brought an end to a tense stretch at the end of the night.
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SIGN UP HERE The Giants had absolutely nothing going against Braves lefty Fried for the first seven innings, but Luis González put a bunt down while leading off the eighth and reached when Fried's glove-flip brought first baseman Matt Olson off the bag. Thairo Estrada followed with a broken-bat flare to center and González read it perfectly, putting runners on the corners with no outs. A walk of Curt Casali loaded the bases, and that was it for Fried.
The Braves brought former Giants closer Will Smith in and it went just about as well as it could for them. With one out, Austin Slater lined an RBI single to center, but Smith struck out Wilmer Flores and won a footrace to the bag with Mike Yastrzemski to end the inning and leave them loaded.
Atlanta immediately pushed right back. A flare single led off the bottom of the eighth and Thairo Estrada booted a potential double play ball, putting two on with no outs for Dominic Leone. He made up for it quickly, snagging a line drive and starting a double play, and Leone struck out slugger Austin Riley to end the inning.
The Giants got two in scoring position in the ninth, but Estrada and pinch-hitter Brandon Crawford struck out.
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Welcome To Atlanta, Where Logan Likes To Play
Webb had allowed just one earned run in three previous appearances against the Braves, and he kept the dominance going Monday. He went seven innings, allowed six hits and struck out seven. The only run came on Travis D'Arnaud's solo shot. Webb left a sinker over the middle of the plate and D'Arnaud crushed it to left for his 10th homer of the season.
Webb has put together his best back-to-back starts since his first two of the season. Against the Kansas City Royals last week and the Braves on Monday, he allowed just one run over 14 innings, with 16 strikeouts to three walks.
Stretching It Out
Webb has made no secret of the fact that he wants to pitch deeper into games, and Gabe Kapler certainly is giving him a longer leash as this season goes on. Webb only hit triple-digits twice through his first 12 starts and both times it was an even 100 pitches, but he has now thrown 219 pitches over his last two starts.
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Webb went a career-high 112 pitches the last time out. When a runner reached in the sixth inning Monday, Zack Littell started warming up in the bullpen. John Brebbia and Jarlin Garcia were warming up as Webb started the seventh, but he had a quick frame and finished his seven innings at 107 pitches. Two of his three highest career pitch counts have come in the last week.
Welcome Back
Joc Pederson received his World Series ring before the game and pulled out his famous white pearls for the ceremony. He wasn't in the starting lineup against a tough lefty but did hit against former Dodgers teammate Kenley Jansen in the ninth.
Pederson got a standing ovation from the crowd and stepped out of the box to tip his cap. He nearly hit a homer but pulled a 400-foot shot foul down the right field line. Pederson ended up poking one through the vacated left side of the infield for a single and he took third on Gonzalez's double, but he didn't score.