SAN FRANCISCO _ The slow march to 2,000 career wins for manager Bruce Bochy is taking much longer than the Giants anticipated.
On certain days, it looks less like a march and more like an attempt to walk through a brick wall.
The Giants entered a seven-game homestand with Bochy needing just five more victories to become the 11th manager in MLB history to collect 2,000 wins. After Thursday's 4-2 series-clinching loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Giants must win four of their final 15 games to help Bochy reach one last milestone.
With the landmark victory still in jeopardy, the Giants have at least created a sense of intrigue for the final two weeks of the season. This wasn't exactly the type of suspense the team hoped to generate back when the season began.
The Giants (70-77) are now 10 games under .500 at home this year (31-41) and must win six of their last nine at Oracle Park to avoid posting their worst record in the two-decade history of the stadium. San Francisco has won at least 37 games in each of its previous 19 seasons along the shores of McCovey Cove, but an anemic offense has done the 2019 club no favors.
The Giants had a chance to tie or walk-off in the bottom of the ninth on Thursday, but after a leadoff walk by Joey Rickard and a single from Donovan Solano, a pair of strikeouts followed by a Buster Posey groundout ended the threat.
A Giants team mixed with several struggling veterans and rookies receiving their first taste of September baseball doesn't have much to play for, but San Francisco shouldn't have had as much trouble with the last-place Pirates as it did this week.
The Giants, however, have had no shortage of issues since the end of July, whether it be with their various opponents or with injuries. They received more bad news on the injury front Thursday when rookie right fielder Jaylin Davis was forced to exit the game in the bottom of the sixth after taking a 97-mile per hour fastball off his left wrist.
Davis is one of the players the Giants have prioritized for an extended audition in September, but he's had a slow start to his big league career after receiving his first call-up last week. The former Twins prospect who was acquired at the trade deadline was 3-for-21 prior to the hit-by-pitch that sent him back to the trainers' room on Thursday.
Another rookie earning significant playing time fared better in Thursday's series finale. Second baseman Mauricio Dubon didn't record a hit in three at-bats, but made a pair of impressive plays in the field that showcased his strong defensive instincts.
In the top of the fifth, Dubon fielded a grounder at second and fired to third base instead of first to cut down Pirates second baseman Adam Frazier. In the sixth, Dubon left his post at second base to catch a slightly off-line throw from catcher Buster Posey and still managed to lay a tag down on Pirates left fielder Kevin Kramer, who was attempting to steal.
The small bright spots the Giants enjoyed on Thursday were not nearly enough to outweigh all the negatives that came from the team's fourth loss in five games.
Starter Jeff Samardzija, who has been the club's most consistent pitcher in the second half, gave up eight hits and four runs in 6 1/3 innings. Samardzija only struck out two Pirates hitters and allowed Pittsburgh to add to its lead immediately after Giants third baseman Evan Longoria put the team on the board with a two-run home run in the bottom of the sixth.
Attendance reached a series-high of 30,918 on Thursday, but the Giants barely sold 100,000 tickets for this week's four-game series and will likely have more trouble drawing fans for this weekend's set against the last-place Marlins.
San Francisco will at least benefit from starting ace Madison Bumgarner on Saturday and from sending starter Johnny Cueto to the mound Sunday against the Marlins as both games should increase Bochy's chances of picking up a few more wins.
