PHOENIX — The Giants are trying desperately to make one last run with an aging group. Practically the entire lineup is on the wrong side of 30, two starters in their 30s are on rehab assignments after arm injuries, and the bullpen is full of guys who are generally pitching well but need plenty of rest days.
And hey…it’s working.
The all-in plan has this group just 4 1/2 games out of first place in late June, with reinforcements on the way. The plan is working. It also could use an alteration. At some point, the Giants will have to part ways with some veterans in favor of young players who are simply better, and perhaps that process started Friday night at Chase Field.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Andrew Suarez capped a strong month with one last gem, throwing six innings and doing the heavy lifting in a 2-1 win over the Diamondbacks. Both runs came courtesy of Austin Slater, who, like Suarez, is just 25. On this team, that practically makes you a teenager, and another 25-year-old, Reyes Moronta, pitched a scoreless frame out of the bullpen.
“It’s fun,” said Will Smith, the closer-for-the-night. “It’s fun to see young guys come up and have success like that.”
Will it continue, though? Suarez and Slater look more than capable, but they also need an opportunity.
Suarez, who had a 2.62 ERA in June, appears to have vaulted to the front of the line in the race to stay in the rotation. His last four starts, coming with Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto just about ready to return, have been particularly sharp: 23 innings, six earned runs. But this goes deeper than numbers.
San Francisco Giants
Few young pitchers called up by the Giants in recent years have competed better than Suarez, who has the stuff to match his makeup. Five of the seven Diamondbacks hits came on infield singles, often because the defense had taken a poor step, but Suarez buckled down and allowed just one run on a sacrifice fly.
“That kid pitched his heart out,” Bochy said. “The kid is not in awe of anything. He’s got a quiet demeanor there, but he’s very confident.”
Asked about all the infield singles, Suarez shrugged, smiled, and said, “It happens.”
“I made sure to minimize the damage,” he continued. “It was weird. I’ve never seen it like that. It worked out, thankfully.”
Moronta, Tony Watson and Smith carried it home, making a winner of Suarez for the third time in his rookie season. He certainly looks more than worthy of continuing on, but Bochy is hesitant to publicly set any rotation plans with so much uncertainty. Samardzija will make a final rehab start Monday. Cueto threw four shutout innings in Sacramento on Friday and will be evaluated when he arrives in Phoenix.
“We have some difficult decisions,” Bochy said.
The decision in left field appears cut and dry. Slater has hit at every level, and he might have won this job last season if not for an injury. He had two opposite-field doubles against Patrick Corbin, the Diamondbacks’ ace, and later added a single. Bochy indicated that Slater and Alen Hanson have pulled ahead in left field.
“You’ve got to go with the guys swinging the bat well, and you hope the other guys understand and have patience,” he said.
The Giants have had plenty of that this season. But it’s almost July, the season is more than half over, and it’s time to ride the hot hands, no matter how young they might be.