SAN FRANCISCO _ Young players experience setbacks quite frequently, but some are so severe that teams can't afford to have them iron out issues at the major league level.
That was the case for San Francisco Giants right-hander Chris Stratton, who was a leader in the rotation for much of April before summer struggles forced the franchise to demote him to Triple-A.
San Francisco sent Stratton on a mission to rediscover his command with the Sacramento River Cats, and in his second start back as a member of the rotation, the journey has fostered hope.
With the division leaders in town, Stratton fired a career-high eight shutout innings on 117 pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks in a 2-0 Giants win.
Stratton joined ace Madison Bumgarner as the only Giants pitchers to record an eight-inning start this year as he retired 10 in a row and 18 of the final 19 batters he faced to conclude his outing.
Manager Bruce Bochy wanted to stay away from closer Will Smith due to a heavy workload of late, so he called on Tony Watson to record the first two outs of the ninth before Hunter Strickland picked up his first save since June 10.
Though Stratton's season ERA climbed to 5.52 after a dreadful three-inning start against the D'backs on Aug. 3, the right-hander lowered it more than half of a point with 6 1/3 innings of two-run ball against the New York Mets and one of the best performances of his career Monday.
Rookie outfielder Steven Duggar understands the challenge quite well. After a breakout 2016 season with Double-A Richmond put Duggar on the fast-track to the big leagues, a hip injury sidelined him for the first half of last season. The lost time likely cost Duggar a chance to prove he could start in center field right out of the gate in 2018, but after spending more than three months adjusting his swing at Triple-A Sacramento, Duggar has finally received a chance to show he belongs.
After Duggar's RBI triple proved to be the difference in Sunday's win over the Texas Rangers, the Giants center fielder provided another key hit in Monday's game against Arizona lefty Patrick Corbin, who made his sixth start against San Francisco this season.
With two outs and the pitcher on deck in the bottom of the second, Duggar lined a two-run home run into the right field arcade for his first career homer at AT&T Park. The fastball from Corbin was right on the inside corner, but Duggar turned on it for his second homer of the season and became the first player to homer off Corbin since Michael Conforto of the Mets took him deep June 16.
Though the rookie outfielder is known more for his glove than his bat, Duggar has used the last two months to establish himself as an everyday player the Giants can rely on heading into 2019. He has the range to cover gaps in the vast outfields of the National League West, the speed to make an impact on the base paths and a developing approach at the plate that could help him take over as the Giants' regular leadoff hitter as soon as next season.
After Duggar's home run, the Giants didn't record another hit against Corbin until Andrew McCutchen doubled in the sixth, but Stratton was as dominant as he's been in any start since he tossed seven innings of one-hit ball against the San Diego Padres April 12.
Stratton allowed leadoff singles in each of his first three innings, but induced a key popout from D'backs slugger Paul Goldschmidt with one out in the first and pitched around singles in the next two frames.
The right-hander had plenty of help from shortstop Brandon Crawford, who was all over the diamond Monday as he continued to build his Gold Glove candidacy. With one out in the sixth, Crawford stole a single from Goldschmidt with a diving stop in the hole between third and short on a play that will end up on his end-of-season highlight reel.
With back-to-back impressive outings, Stratton has given himself an opportunity to remain in the rotation and build his resume for a spot as a starter next year. Though the odds of the Giants being able to rely on Stratton were slim at the beginning of the month, a fix he made with his mechanics during a bullpen session with former San Francisco right-hander Ryan Vogelsong has triggered a drastic change in his results.
