It's always a good time when Madison Bumgarner pinch-hits for the Giants, and there was a bit of added flavor Tuesday. After Bumgarner drew a walk from Cole Hamels, Logan Webb entered to run for the staff ace.
It was an interesting moment, but one Bruce Bochy didn't want to see so early in the first game at Wrigley Field. Bumgarner was hitting because Tyler Beede had thrown 91 pitches in four innings and was done for the night.
In a game the Giants would go on to lose 5-3, Beede gave up three solo homers to the Cubs in his four innings. He has allowed 11 homers over his last six starts, giving up 25 earned runs in 27 1/3 innings.
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"It's execution of pitches, the pitch quality, making mistakes. That's the key to pitching," manager Bruce Bochy told reporters when asked about the home run issue. "Sometimes it gets away from you and it gets over the heart of the plate. That's what happens to him. He's making great pitches at times and then makes that mistake. He's just not getting away with them. Those are good hitters, they're going to take advantage of them. That's the hump he's got to get over, is being consistent on every pitch."
The first homer Beede allowed Tuesday was a prime example of the recent trend of mistakes. It was a fastball that was located, well, just take a look:
That one was hit out by Nicholas Castellanos. The next two were off the bat of Anthony Rizzo, and while they weren't as dead-center as the first one, they were both mistake pitches. Rizzo hit a fastball that was down and in but in his sweet spot, then blasted a changeup two innings later.
“I don’t want to continue to feel like if I make a mistake, it’s going to leave the yard," Beede told reporters, including Kerry Crowley of the San Jose Mercury News. "But it seems to be the way things are going as of right now.”
San Francisco Giants
The staff discussed Beede's rotation spot after his last rough start, but when the Giants got to Phoenix a day later, Bochy announced that Beede would face the Cubs. The team was in a tough spot with the rotation, but there's a bit more breathing room if the Giants again want to discuss giving Beede a chance to step back.
[RELATED: Cueto close to making return to Giants]
Shaun Anderson made a rehab appearance for Triple-A Sacramento on Tuesday and should be ready to return if needed. On a longer timeframe, Johnny Cueto is also lined up to slide into the rotation spot. Cueto made a second rehab appearance for the San Jose Giants on Tuesday and now will make two starts for the River Cats.