{"id":770538,"date":"2026-08-05T09:30:16","date_gmt":"2026-08-05T09:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/770538\/"},"modified":"2026-08-05T09:30:16","modified_gmt":"2026-08-05T09:30:16","slug":"sf-giants-put-young-players-in-spotlight-but-cant-hold-off-rangers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/770538\/","title":{"rendered":"SF Giants put young players in spotlight, but can’t hold off Rangers"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Giants<\/p>\n

Giants rookie Blade Tidwell allowed two runs in the first inning but shut out the Rangers over the next four during Tuesday’s game in Arlington, Texas.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tony Gutierrez\/Associated Press\"The<\/p>\n

The Giants\u2019 Osleivis Basabe celebrates after hitting a two-run home run in the seventh inning against the Texas Rangers in Arlington, Texas, on Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tony Gutierrez\/Associated Press\"San<\/p>\n

San Francisco Giants third baseman Christian Koss reaches up to catch a pop-out by Texas Rangers’ Evan Carter in the first inning Tuesday in Arlington, Texas.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Tony Gutierrez\/Associated Press<\/p>\n

ARLINGTON, Texas\u00a0\u2014 Before Tuesday\u2019s game against the Rangers, Bryce Eldridge<\/a> was asked about now being one of eight San Francisco Giants<\/a> rookies. He thought about it for a beat, and first expressed gratitude to the six big-league players dealt away at the trade deadline, necessitating an influx of young players.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Then, Eldridge said, \u201cIt\u2019s great. It feels like we\u2019re playing for the San Francisco River Kitties now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eldridge, who wasn\u2019t in the lineup for the second game in a row because of a bruised left thumb, then came through with a game-tying pinch-hit single in the ninth. The Rangers, however, responded with a run in the ninth when right fielder Jung Hoo Lee<\/a> appeared to get a little turned around on\u00a0Ezequiel Duran\u2019s two-out flyball to the track and it dropped to send in the winning run, Texas prevailing 5-4.<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

Manager Tony Vitello<\/a> said that Lee had to position himself to be able to get off a good throw with a runner at second.<\/p>\n

\"Giants<\/a>\"Marcelo<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI thought off the bat it had a chance to leave the park, so he did what he needed to do on the break,\u201d Vitello said. \u201cHe just didn\u2019t finish the catch, but I think it\u2019s all about having to throw that runner out.\u201d<\/p>\n

That\u2019s postgame housekeeping but the main considerations from here out will revolve around how the Giants\u2019 younger group performs, with baseball\u2019s now third-youngest team sifting through any number of options the final two months. That ninth inning, with 21-year-old Eldridge coming through, included hits from Drew Gilbert and Grant McCray, also hopefuls for more regular playing time.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

San Francisco
\nAB
\nR
\nH
\nBI
\nBB
\nSO
\nAvg.<\/p>\n

Totals
\n33
\n4
\n6
\n4
\n5
\n8<\/p>\n

Basabe 2b-3b-2b
\n5
\n1
\n1
\n2
\n0
\n0
\n.294<\/p>\n

Lee rf
\n5
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n.305<\/p>\n

Adames ss
\n4
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n2
\n.222<\/p>\n

Devers 1b
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n1
\n.246<\/p>\n

Susac c
\n4
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n.257<\/p>\n

Kennedy dh-3b
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n2
\n.050<\/p>\n

Leonard lf
\n2
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n.000<\/p>\n

a-Gilbert ph-cf
\n1
\n2
\n1
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n.242<\/p>\n

McCray cf-lf
\n2
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n2
\n1
\n.120<\/p>\n

Koss 3b
\n2
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n.167<\/p>\n

b-Furman ph-2b
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n.000<\/p>\n

d-Eldridge ph
\n1
\n0
\n1
\n2
\n0
\n0
\n.256<\/p>\n

Smith p
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n—<\/p>\n

Texas
\nAB
\nR
\nH
\nBI
\nBB
\nSO
\nAvg.<\/p>\n

Totals
\n37
\n5
\n11
\n5
\n4
\n5<\/p>\n

Pederson 1b
\n3
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n.250<\/p>\n

Burger 1b
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n.237<\/p>\n

Langford lf
\n4
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n.264<\/p>\n

Seager dh
\n4
\n2
\n3
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n.201<\/p>\n

Nimmo rf
\n5
\n0
\n3
\n1
\n0
\n1
\n.271<\/p>\n

Duran 3b
\n5
\n0
\n3
\n4
\n0
\n1
\n.278<\/p>\n

Carter cf
\n4
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n.201<\/p>\n

D\u00edaz c
\n3
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n.240<\/p>\n

Lopez ss
\n4
\n0
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n.276<\/p>\n

Foscue 2b
\n2
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n2
\n.252<\/p>\n

c-Osuna ph
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n.255<\/p>\n

Cauley 2b
\n1
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n.208<\/p>\n

San Francisco
\n000
\n000
\n202_4
\n6
\n0<\/p>\n

Texas
\n200
\n000
\n021_5
\n11
\n0<\/p>\n

Two outs when winning run scored.<\/p>\n

a-walked for Leonard in the 7th. b-grounded out for Koss in the 7th. c-lined out for Foscue in the 7th. d-singled for Furman in the 9th.<\/p>\n

LOB: San Francisco 7, Texas 10. 2B: Susac (8), Lee (26), Nimmo (27), Duran 2 (22), Burger (17). HR: Basabe (3), off Silseth. RBIs: Basabe 2 (8), Eldridge 2 (28), Nimmo (41), Duran 4 (63). SB: Duran (9), Gilbert (1).<\/p>\n

Runners left in scoring position: San Francisco 2 (Koss, Susac); Texas 4 (D\u00edaz 2, Cauley 2). RISP: San Francisco 2 for 9; Texas 5 for 12.<\/p>\n

Runners moved up: Furman.<\/p>\n

IP<\/p>\n

H
\nR
\nER
\nBB
\nSO
\nNP
\nERA<\/p>\n

5<\/p>\n

6
\n2
\n2
\n1
\n3
\n100
\n3.18<\/p>\n

1<\/p>\n

0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n5
\n5.06<\/p>\n

1<\/p>\n

0
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n0
\n15
\n3.17<\/p>\n

3
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n14
\n7.71<\/p>\n

0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n2
\n4.70<\/p>\n

2
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n14
\n3.10<\/p>\n

IP<\/p>\n

H
\nR
\nER
\nBB
\nSO
\nNP
\nERA<\/p>\n

6<\/p>\n

3
\n0
\n0
\n3
\n4
\n99
\n4.55<\/p>\n

1
\n2
\n2
\n1
\n0
\n14
\n3.05<\/p>\n

1<\/p>\n

0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n2
\n13
\n4.37<\/p>\n

0
\n0
\n0
\n0
\n1
\n4
\n3.50<\/p>\n

1<\/p>\n

2
\n2
\n1
\n1
\n1
\n24
\n1.94<\/p>\n

Inherited runners-scored: Sanmartin 1-1, Houser 3-0. IBB: off Sanmartin (D\u00edaz), off Smith (Seager). PB: D\u00edaz (0).<\/p>\n

ABS Challenge: McCray (Strike-Overturned to Ball); Devers (Strike-Overturned to Ball); Tidwell (Ball-Overturned to Strike); Foscue (Strike-Confirmed); Adames (Strike-Confirmed).<\/p>\n

Pitch timer violations: Sanmartin (pitcher); Smith (pitcher).<\/p>\n

Umpires: Home, Adrian Johnson; First, Louie Krupa; Second, Adam Beck; Third, Dan Iassogna.<\/p>\n

T: 2:55. A: 26,959 (40,000).<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re three young guys and it\u2019s all left-on-left,\u201d Vitello said approvingly of that inning, adding the Rangers \u201ckind of had it set up the way they wanted but I just think it speaks to the effort\u00a0\u2014 we\u2019re not interested in consolation prizes or bronze medals or anything like that but I think the whole game the effort was there out of everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tuesday\u2019s top job contestant was Blade Tidwell, auditioning for the rotation after spending the past three months at Triple-A Sacramento. After allowing two runs in the first inning, the 25-year-old righted things and didn\u2019t allow a man in scoring position the rest of his five-inning outing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t come out the way I wanted to, I don\u2019t want to be the five-and-dive guy, but I think I bounced back and battled there after the first inning,\u201d Tidwell said, crediting rookie catcher Daniel Susac for getting him back on the right track.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The rotation has a vague outline right now: Logan Webb, Landen Roupp, Tidwell, Carson Whisenhunt (who starts Wednesday) and Adrian Houser, probably with an opener \u2014 but wait, Houser wound up getting the Giants out of the eighth inning, taking over for Reiver Sanmartin and getting a groundout. Does Houser go Friday at home against Detroit, which certainly would be possible after throwing two pitches Tuesday? Or does Landen Roupp just stay on turn given Thursday\u2019s off-day?<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy to imagine there will be other permutations of this group, but Tidwell has, at the least, earned himself a longer look after his solid work Tuesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The bullpen is a mystery\u00a0\u2014 asked about how things might look in the late innings, Vitello said, \u201cinteresting!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rookie Dylan Smith got the call with the game tied in the ninth and gave up a first-pitch double by Jake Burger; Smith nearly got out of that sticky situation, with Duran\u2019s catchable flyball.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Some of the young starters above might find themselves in relief eventually. The best bet is that the Giants look to free agency to rebuild this unit, but the looming potential lockout muddies that picture. Anyone who gets any shot there now would be well-advised to make their best possible push for a reliever spot now.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Vitello relates to the eight rookies. He\u2019s sort of the ninth rookie. \u00a0Before Tuesday\u2019s game, he said he got all the \u201cfresh faces together to kind of get on the same page for what we\u2019re looking for.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one thing about these new guys is there\u2019s a little bit of a tendency to impress too much and there\u2019s also a tendency to not want to step on anybody\u2019s toes. And I\u2019m the new guy\u00a0\u2014 \u00a0I think you\u2019ve got to find that range in the middle or maybe even outside of that entire equation, and just be who you are.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vitello said shortstop Willy Adames\u2019 advice to all the young players was \u201cjust to make sure you play the game the right way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think there\u2019s any one clear definition\u201d of that, Vitello said, \u201cbut everyone knows what it looks like.\u201d<\/p>\n

Adames, the old sage at 30, provided the game\u2019s highlight on defense, leaping high\u00a0for a liner by Nicky Lopez in the seventh. \u201cWilly jumped 8 feet off the ground for that,\u201d Vitello said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Buddy Kennedy, back with the organization after a five-week stay with Seattle and at DH Tuesday, is not a rookie but is a player hungry for an opportunity after bouncing around seven organizations, eight if you count both stints with San Francisco.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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He\u2019s glad to be back with many familiar faces from Sacramento and the Giants, and he\u2019s all in on seeing how far the youth movement can go. He was enthusiastic about the message Vitello delivered lumping himself in with the rest of the first-year crowd.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got all August, all September left, we\u2019re going to play fun baseball and see what it puts us at the end,\u201d Kennedy said. \u201cYou never know what can happen, right? \u00a0Don\u2019t take each day for granted, and overall, just really enjoy each other and push each other forward.\u201d<\/p>\n

Second baseman Osleivis Basabe, with all of 36 big-league games under his belt, hit his third homer in four starts with San Francisco, as his two-run shot in the seventh tied things 2-2. Sanmartin, just up Monday and in the lefty reliever spot left open when Erik Miller went to Boston, allowed Duran\u2019s opposite-field two-run double in the eighth inning.<\/p>\n

Other news from the youth movement: \u00a0Kennys Leonard made his big-league debut, batting seventh and playing left, and when he took the field in the first inning, he did a little shuffle backwards with a huge grin on his face, thrilled to be in the majors after a nine-year wait in the minors. He went 0-for-2.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Giants rookie Blade Tidwell allowed two runs in the first inning but shut out the Rangers over the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":770539,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2408],"tags":[5,162,4,378,66,4343,4340,4344,4341,4342,185],"class_list":["post-770538","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-francisco-giants","tag-baseball","tag-giants","tag-mlb","tag-san-francisco","tag-san-francisco-giants","tag-sanfrancisco","tag-sanfranciscogiants","tag-sf","tag-sf-giants","tag-sfgiants","tag-sports"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/117042205386150184","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770538","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=770538"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/770538\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/770539"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=770538"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=770538"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=770538"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}