SAN FRANCISCO — The only thing colder than a summer night at Oracle Park is the Giants’ offense right now.
Manager Bob Melvin made some noticeable adjustments to his starting lineup on Tuesday in an effort to jumpstart San Francisco’s struggling offense, but the result was more of the same, as the Giants lost 2-1 to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The Giants sent Justin Verlander to the mound against Diamondbacks righty Merrill Kelly (W, 7 IP, 8 H, ER, 0 BB, 8 K) as they looked to snap a three-game losing streak. Spoiler alert: They did not.
Here are three takeaways from the Giants’ fourth consecutive loss that drops them to 24-18:
Doing Everything He Can
Verlander (L, 6 IP, 9 H, 2 ER, BB, 5 K), who continues on his unlikely journey to 300 career wins, has pitched well enough to earn at least three wins so far this season, but the Giants have continued to find creative ways to spoil each one.
He toed the rubber against a Diamondbacks team that he historically has pitched well against throughout his career.
Verlander was 5-2 with a 3.14 ERA with 58 strikeouts and a 1.13 WHIP in 48 2/3 career innings pitched against Arizona, and that trend continued on Monday.
Outside of two solo home runs off the bat of Diamondbacks star Corbin Carroll in the third and fifth innings, Verlander, as he has been over his last five starts, was excellent.
Different City, Different Team, Same Ramos
Heliot Ramos has been just about the only bright spot on offense for the Giants lately. He has been on fire since April 26, batting .419 with 11 runs, three doubles, four homers, nine RBI, five walks and a 1.267 OPS over his last 13 games.
He showed no signs of slowing down in the series opener on Monday, recording three hits in his first three at-bats against Kelly. He very easily could have had four hits in the game if not for an absurdly acrobatic catch by Arizona left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. in the bottom of the eighth.
Not only has he been on fire offensively, but Ramos has been excellent defensively after making minor adjustments to his approach in left field. After making two impressive diving catches in Sunday’s loss to the Minnesota Twins, Ramos made perhaps his best catch of the season in the top of the eighth.
Unfortunately for the Giants, one player only can do so much.
They Tried, It Didn’t Work
Melvin strayed from his and the team’s consistently harped-on theme of roster continuity this season.
Matt Chapman, who primarily has hit fourth, moved up into the second spot in the lineup, previously held by Willy Adames, who moved down to the six hole. Ramos, usually in the fifth or sixth spot, moved up to third in the order, while Jung Hoo Lee, usually third in the lineup, moved down to cleanup.
Meanwhile, utility man Wilmer Flores started at first base in place of the struggling LaMonte Wade Jr., who, according to Melvin, just received a day off.
It wasn’t for a lack of trying, but Melvin’s adjustments didn’t result in much offense.
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