PHOENIX _ No one in baseball played more games over the last five seasons than Evan Longoria, the Tampa Bay Rays ironman who showed up in at least 156 box scores every year from 2013-2017.
So when Longoria had his ability to work robbed of him by a fastball that fractured his pinky finger in June, the pain he felt on the inside was worse than the discomfort he felt in his hand.
After a six-week stint on the disabled list, Longoria is attempting to make up for lost time and he did so Sunday by smashing three hits including the go-ahead home run in the eighth inning to lead the Giants to a 3-2 win over the D'backs.
Longoria crushed a fastball over the 413-foot sign in left center field off of reliever Archie Bradley to untie the game and help the Giants secure their first winning road trip of 2018.
To finish off their fifth win in their last seven games and a 4-2 trip, the Giants needed Sam Dyson to escape a bases loaded jam in the eighth and closer Will Smith to record his seventh save in eight chances.
After falling 6.0 games behind the first-place D'backs with back-to-back losses, the Giants split their series in Arizona after starter Derek Holland worked deeper into a game than any San Francisco pitcher had this weekend.
Holland's most recent start in Arizona lasted just 3 2/3 innings, as he allowed seven hits and was pulled from the Giants rotation altogether following the outing. The left-hander's poor start coupled with the return of Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija from the disabled list left the Giants with a surplus of starters, but the team's situation would change rather quickly.
The Giants reinserted Holland into the rotation after Samardzija was placed on the disabled list for the third time this season and the left-hander has responded with a string of impressive starts.
After the D'backs roughed up starters Chris Stratton and Andrew Suarez on consecutive nights, the Giants a quality performance from Holland who turned in 5 1/3 innings of two-run ball. Despite allowing a solo homer to Steven Souza, Jr. in the bottom of the second and an RBI single to Ketel Marte in the fourth, Holland largely limited the D'backs opportunities to do damage at the plate.
Though the Giants offense had more chances to chase D'backs starter Robbie Ray early in the game, the team ran into four outs on the base paths and never scored multiple runs in an inning against the Arizona left-hander. San Francisco got on the board in the third inning as Longoria singled home Andrew McCutchen, who led off the frame by reaching base in his seventh straight plate appearance.
Back in January, the Giants dreamt of days when both Longoria and McCutchen would be pacing the offensive effort, but those dreams have rarely been realized this season. Sunday's game did feature productivity from both players, as Longoria drove in two and scored two runs while McCutchen reached base three straight times to begin his afternoon.
Since returning from the disabled list July 26, Longoria has recorded multiple hits in five of his 10 games and delivered five extra base hits.
While Longoria and McCutchen are running out of chances to serve as catalysts for the Giants offense together due to McCutchen's status as a pending free agent, the club should be encouraged by Longoria's resurgence at the plate considering he's under contract through 2022.
