SF Giants land on wrong side of history again after doubleheader disaster in Philly

It feels like the SF Giants have been on the wrong side of history a lot this season. Well, actually, it's not just an impression — it's a fact.

First, they got shut out in their first two games of the season against the New York Yankees, a first in franchise history. Then, 10 games into the season, they had posted their worst run differential (-25) since 1896. And finally, there is yesterday: losing on a walk-off is rather common in baseball; losing in that fashion in back-to-back games is unlikely; but losing on two walk-offs in a doubleheader almost never happens. As a matter of fact, it hadn't happened to the Giants since 1956.

SF Giants keep on making the wrong kind of history in 2026

Oh, and I almost forgot about the now well-documented walk issue. The Giants are on pace to draw just 345 walks this season, which would be their lowest total since 1902, when a baseball season was just 141 games long. Rafael Devers, who drew a career-high 112 free passes last season, is on pace to draw just 37.

But walks weren't the issue in the Giants' 3-2 and 6-5 losses on Thursday after Wednesday's game was postponed due to inclement weather. Their five walks in Game 2 of the doubleheader were even tied for a season high.

Surprisingly, the bullpen didn't hold up its end, something that hasn't happened often this season. It's been one of the few bright spots so far, especially considering how pessimistic most people were about it during the offseason. Had the bullpen been as bad as it was expected to be, the Giants would be in a very dark place right now.

But on Thursday, despite entering the doubleheader with the second-lowest ERA in baseball at 3.03, they couldn't get the job done, despite a stellar performance from Logan Webb (7.0 IP, 1 ER) and a passable one from Adrian Houser (4.2 IP, 3 ER).

"We just move on. Like it sucks. It was a tough three days. The rainout and then the doubleheader and whatnot, but all we can do is move on. We don't look back at it. The moment you start dwelling on stuff like this it starts snowballing, so pick each other up at the end of the day and go get them tomorrow in Tampa", Ryan Walker said after blowing his second save of the year and ninth since the start of 2025, which tied for the fourth-most in MLB. The bullpen gave up five runs during the three-game series after allowing just 30 in their previous 28 games.

As a two-pitch guy, Walker threw nine straight two-seam fastballs to Bryson Stott in the bottom of the ninth in Game 1 and never went to his slider. Stott eventually capitalized on the ninth one he saw, lining a triple that brought the tying run home and set the Phillies up for the walk-off.

"Two-seam has been working a lot. I think we overused it definitely today. Yes, it's in the back of my mind. If we utilized the slider in that situation, it's a different story," Walker said. "I have a tough time shaking, I'm not a big shaker. I put a lot of trust in my catchers, I still have a ton of trust in Bailey."

However, the most debatable pitching decision came in Game 2, when Tony Vitello decided to stick with Keaton Winn in the bottom of the ninth with Kyle Schwarber at the plate and the tying run in scoring position. Lefty Matt Gage, who had yielded just one hit to the 20 lefties he had faced this season, was ready to go in the bullpen.

The at-bat went just as the numbers suggested, with Schwarber — who entered the at-bat with a 1.173 OPS against righties — roping a double to right that sent the game to extra innings. Gage eventually took over in the 10th and gave up the winning sacrifice fly to Alec Bohm.

"Obviously not a good day. There's a lot of things you would like to replay, redo, but you can't do that so it's a better pill to swallow, get on a plane and see what you can make of the rest of the road trip," Vitello said. "It was a difficult decision. And, you know, if it goes well, right answer, if it doesn't, wrong answer," he said on the late-game choice.

Another call that raised some eyebrows was third-base coach Hector Borg's decision to hold Gilbert at third after a leadoff single from Ramos got deflected into center field. The run would have given the Giants the lead in the 10th, but with Chapman and Arraez on deck, Borg elected to play it safe.

"I feel pretty good holding him right there with Chapman coming up and Arraez," Borg said. "They both put the ball in plan. When the second baseman kind of hit the ball, it kind of killed the ball more than I thought. But I feel pretty good in that situation with those guys coming up."

To Borg's credit, Arraez and Chapman have been two of the Giants' most reliable bats this season with runners in scoring position. Chapman entered the doubleheader with a team-high 1.102 OPS in those situations and was 2-for-7 with three walks on the day when he stepped into the batter's box. Arraez, meanwhile, has batted .316 with runners in scoring position this season and had just lined a clutch two-run single earlier in Game 2.

The silver lining is that the Giants gave themselves far more chances to cash in during the doubleheader after managing just two total hits in their series-opening 7-0 loss. They earned 22 at-bats with an opportunity to drive in a run, but capitalized on just five.

The Giants also became the first road team this season — and the first since the Padres in June-July 2025 — not to hit a home run during a series at Citizens Bank Park. The Rangers, Nationals, Diamondbacks, Cubs and Braves all managed to get the ball over the fence at least once when they visited the ballpark earlier this year.

Definitely not the start to the road trip the Giants expected, especially given the situation in Philadelphia. They'll now travel to Tampa Bay to take on a Rays team that has won six of its last seven games.

"Painful, certainly not mistake-free starting in here, so not much you can do at this point. Not an easy flight, whether it be the time you get in or the mood of the travel. And certainly no easy opponent we're about to get into. Got to find a way to make the most of what we got left in this road trip," Vitello said.

"Not good enough, on everybody's part."

Not good enough indeed. Hopefully they can turn it around soon otherwise this is going to be a very long year.

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