SF Giants Highlight of the Week: Wilmer Flores’ Go-Ahead Triple

The SF Giants staged a late-inning comeback against the Seattle Mariners on Thursday thanks in part to a clutch, two-run triple by infielder Wilmer Flores.

The SF Giants not only swept the series from the Mariners but finished the season with a pristine 4-0 record against Seattle.

Flores came over to the Giants on a two-year, $6.5 million pact with an option for 2022 this past offseason. Team president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has been extremely stingy with spending in free agency since taking over, but this is one move that looks to be well worth it.

On the year, the right-handed bat has slashed a .278/.328/.509 line (127 OPS+) with nine home runs and 25 RBI.

Though he is limited defensively, Flores has found his name in the lineup daily thanks to the designated hitter being added to the National League before the start of the year.

Good thing Flores was in the lineup on Thursday as the Giants quickly fell behind 4-1 after a disappointing start from Tyler Anderson that ended with him being ejected for arguing about the strike zone. The game did not look promising as the Giants bullpen would be tasked with finishing the final seven innings of the game.

However, as we have seen with this team several times this season, there is a lot of fight in them. Despite the three-run deficit, they scratched and clawed their way back into the game. In the top of the sixth inning, both Brandon Crawford and Evan Longoria collected an RBI to pull the game to within one run.

In the top of the seventh inning, Mauricio Dubon and Donovan Solano would set the stage with a single and a walk, respectively. With two outs, the Giants would need some magic to tie the game, and that is when Flores came to the plate:

Flores’ clutch hit gave the Giants the 5-4 advantage and he would cross home plate in the next at-bat as Alex Dickerson laced a single to give them an insurance run.

That was all the offense they would need as the Giants finished off the Mariners with a 6-4 victory with the bullpen completing seven scoreless innings.

In what has been a truly bizarre year, the Giants completed the sweep at Oracle Park as the visiting team due to the poor air quality in Seattle at the time of the series. Whether Flores is at home or on the road at Oracle Park, he has been a clutch contributor as the Giants continue their playoff push.