SF Giants rebound from shutout to bludgeon host Marlins

What a difference a day makes.

Thursday night, the SF Giants continued an up-and-down road trip by scuffling at the plate in the first of a four-game series at the Miami Marlins.

In the 3-0 loss, Marlins ace Sandy Alcantara scattered three hits (one to Giants catcher Joey Bart, who has been struggling mightily at the plate this season) while striking out eight and a pair of relief pitchers allowed just one baserunner in the final two innings.

So it might have been a surprise Friday night, when the Orange and Black came out ripping the ball all over the ballpark. The Giants hit five home runs among nine extra base hits and cruised to a 15-6 victory to even their record on the current road trip at four wins and four losses.

The scoring began quietly in the first, as Brandon Crawford grounded out to drive in Wilmer Flores. In the second the bats started to hit their stride, as Joc Pederson scored on a Flores two-out double. Mike Yastrzemski was next, and he launched a round-tripper to right-center field to open the score to 5-0 in the Giants favor.

Pederson added a blast, his team-leading 13th of the season (tied for sixth in the National League) in the third, but the Marlins cut the Giants lead to four in the bottom of the fourth on a two-out, two-run double.

San Francisco got those runs back just moments later, with Thairo Estrada homering following a Pederson walk in the fifth.

The Giants put up a six-spot in the seventh inning to put the game out of reach. Yastrzemski doubled in a pair with the bases loaded, and after Evan Longoria walked to load them again, Crawford hammered his fifth career grand slam over the right-center field wall for a 15-2 lead.

Bullpen game after Cobb was late scratch

Making things all the more impressive was the fact that the visitors had to use relievers to get every out until the ninth. Projected starting pitcher Alex Cobb was scratched a few hours before the game because of lower-back tightness, though the injury doesn't sound too bad:

John Brebbia was the opener in place of Cobb, and towering right-hander Sean Hjelle carried the team for three innings with five strikeouts. Gabe Kapler also ran Jarlin Garcia out to the mound to regain confidence after he took the loss two days prior in Philadelphia, surrendering a pair of two-run homers to allow the Phillies to come back from a 5-2 deficit.

The Marlins put up three final runs in the ninth when the Giants inserted infielder Donovan Walton to record the final three outs in garbage time.

The third game of the series is set for Saturday afternoon. The Giants will start Logan Webb (5-1, 3.52 ERA in 2022), while Miami plans to counter with Pablo Lopez (4-2, 1.83 ERA).