SF Giants: Three key takeaways from Rockies series

The Colorado Rockies took the series from the SF Giants after nabbing a 6-5 victory in the rubber match on Wednesday. After a blowout 12-4 victory in the first game of the series, the final result was obviously a disappointment for a Giants team hoping to extend their lead in the National League West. Here are the three takeaways from the series.

SF Giants: Three Key Takeaways from the Rockies Series

1. The bullpen woes continue

Pitching at Coors Field is a difficult task for any pitcher, but the bullpen struggles are becoming a trend that cannot be ignored. In the second game of the doubleheader, the Giants had a 6-2 lead against the Rockies in the bottom of the seventh inning. Due to the new rules, they needed just three outs to solidify a victory.

Manager Gabe Kapler called upon Jake McGee to finish the job, but he struggled badly once again, yielding four earned runs on four hits after recording only two outs. In fairness to McGee, he left the game with a 6-5 lead but one of his runners was still on base.

Interestingly, Kapler pulled McGee and replaced him with Camilo Doval. However, like McGee, Doval struggled to collect that final out, allowing a bad-luck bloop single to C.J. Cron. With two men on base, Doval threw a slider that caught too much of the strike zone and Charlie Blackmon blasted it over the right-field fence for a walk-off home run.

The bullpen continued to struggle against the Rockies on Wednesday. No reliever actually allowed a run, but the box score can be deceiving at times. Starting pitcher Logan Webb battled to get through the fourth inning, but he yielded three runs before departing with the bases loaded.

Matt Wisler came in and allowed consecutive singles to Jon Gray and Raimel Tapia that resulted in three more runs crossing the plate. All runs were applied to Webb’s ledger, but Wisler’s appearance gave the Rockies some much-needed breathing room. Wisler has a 7.94 ERA in 14 games to start the year, and it is fair to wonder how strong his hold is on a roster spot.

On a more positive note, Tyler Rogers continued his exceptional play, posting a 1.02 ERA through 17.2 frames. Similarly, Sam Selman had a nice appearance in Colorado that included three strikeouts across 1.2 innings of work. The left-handed reliever should be in line for some more work as the bullpen tries to regain its identity.

SF Giants: Three Key Takeaways from the Rockies Series

3. Mike Tauchman continues to see a lot of playing time

Mike Tauchman has not been with the SF Giants for a full month yet, but it sure feels like we have seen a lot of him since the trade. Part of that is due to his performance as he has been a sparkplug atop the Giants lineup.

However, part of it has been due to the struggles of Mauricio Dubón (.543 OPS) and Austin Slater (.616 OPS). The Giants have not gotten a lot of offensive production out of either of the right-handed-hitting center fielders and it has created an opportunity for Tauchman. In fairness to Dubón, he has seen more playing time in the infield lately as the injuries continue to pile up.

With that being said, Tauchman has taken advantage of the playing time. In 29 plate appearances, he has slashed .259/.310/.481 (121 OPS+) with three doubles, one home run, and five RBI. In the Rockies series, he only collected two hits in 11 at-bats but scored four runs, so he found a way to get on base a lot.

Throughout his career, the left-handed bat has not demonstrated extreme platoon splits ( .757 OPS against RHP, .747 OPS against LHP) and he could continue to see regular playing time even as Mike Yastrzemski is expected to return soon.