SAN FRANCISCO — “I think our bullpen is ugly. I think we’re the best bullpen in the league.”
Yes and no.
That quote came from starting pitcher Jordan Hicks after the Giants’ 5-3 extra-innings loss to the Chicago Cubs on Thursday at Oracle Park.
While San Francisco’s bullpen does possess some of the most durable and lethal relievers in MLB with the potential to be one of the best units in the league, the dysfunction of the entire pitching staff right now has prevented the Giants’ bullpen from providing the consistency and stability the team needs.
Hicks pitched five solid innings Thursday before turning over to the bullpen in the sixth with the score tied 3-3. Spencer Bivens, Erik Miller, Ryan Walker and Sean Hjelle did their job, silencing the Cubs offense and giving the Giants a chance to secure another comeback win.
Until right-hander Luke Jackson entered in the top of the 10th inning and allowed a two-run homer to Ian Happ that gave Chicago a 5-3 lead in extras.
Jackson has struggled mightily all season. In 28 appearances, the veteran reliever has a 6.23 ERA in 26 total innings. He has pitched better of late and certainly has moments where he looks like the reliever the Giants hoped he would be when he signed a two-year, $11.5 million deal before the 2023 season, but there have been too many departures that hurt San Francisco.
So why was he in the game?
Giants manager Bob Melvin went to Jackson in the 10th because closer Camilo Doval and reliable right-handed reliever Tyler Rogers were unavailable after both pitched in each of the last two games.
“Jackson pitched well yesterday, but we use everybody every day and today it was just one pitch,” Melvin said after the game. “I thought he threw the ball better yesterday and I thought he threw the ball well again today, except for one pitch that ended up being a home run.
“We’re trying to keep guys away from three-in-a-row pitches. I know they’re limited pitches, but (Doval) also throws very hard and the only time we’d use him three-in-a-row would have been in a save. Current situation.”
Would Jackson have pitched in a normal game with a bullpen that hasn’t thrown an alarming amount of innings this season? No. Melvin’s decision to go with Jackson is a symptom of a larger problem the Giants are dealing with.
San Francisco’s bullpen has pitched a league-high 338 2/3 innings this season because Giants starters have pitched more than five innings only 46 times this season, the fewest among any NFL pitching staff. the MLB.
The Giants also used more than five pitchers in Thursday’s game for the 38th time this season, the third-highest mark only behind the Cleveland Guardians (42 times) and the Miami Marlins (39 times).
Simply put, the Giants’ bullpen has been overworked all season. That’s caught up with them, putting Melvin in a tough spot to make in-game decisions with the next day’s game at the forefront of his mind.
“We’re trying to keep players available, depending on where we are in the game, for the next day,” Melvin explained. “Having long guys one day, having some long guys the next day. Other than (Logan Webb), we’re having some short guys right now. So it’s a little bit of a mix of players every day to make sure we have enough players to cover nine innings.”
When things get back to normal for the Giants’ pitching staff, though, Hicks’ claim will have some credibility. San Francisco’s bullpen features four relievers (Walker, Hjelle and both Rogers brothers) with ERAs under 3.00. Doval, when he’s hot, is one of the game’s most electric closers. Randy Rodriguez has had his streaks of dominance and massive-innings pitchers Bivens and Spencer Howard have impressed early on.
However, Walker and Tyler Rogers have been blessings for Melvin this season.
“It’s All-Star quality when you consider how much they’ve both had to throw,” Melvin said of Walker and Rogers’ seasons. “(Erik) Miller has also pitched a lot and I think he’s one or two appearances behind them. Really, over the course of the season, it’s unsustainable to continue pitching them at this rate. So there’s going to be times where we’re going to have to separate them. a bit”.
The Giants’ bullpen has plenty of potential. If starting pitchers Blake Snell, Robbie Ray, Alex Cobb and Kyle Harrison can get healthy and the staff as a whole can pitch consistently late in games, Melvin will love his late-game options.
Until then, the bullpen will remain a mess with too many all-hands-on-deck situations.
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