SAN FRANCISCO _ His elbow was not shredded and his rotator cuff was not torn. Unlike many other pitchers who know the devastating pain of injury, Jeff Samardzija knew surgery was not going to save his career.
He also understand he could no longer pitch effectively with an ailing shoulder.
For much of last summer, Samardzija's future could be summed up with one big question mark. In Thursday's 1-0 San Francisco Giants win over the Colorado Rockies, Samardzija punctuated the victory with a gigantic exclamation point.
For the first time since April 20, 2018, Samardzija earned a win as the right-hander turned in seven dominant innings in front of 29,727 fans at Oracle Park.
Thanks to a solo homer in the seventh inning from center fielder Kevin Pillar _ his third home run of the week_ Samardzija hung a capital 'W' next to his name in the box score.
After spending the offseason rehabbing three-to-four days per week at Oracle Park, Samardzija entered the spring with the belief that he would eventually return to a starting rotation.
On Thursday, we learned Samardzija can still be effective in a starting capacity, but that wasn't the only big takeaway for a Giants team that snapped a three-game losing streak. Here are three big ones.
1. Shark smells the blood
During a pregame interview with reporters, manager Bruce Bochy said he hoped Samardzija could give the Giants five or six quality innings as he continues to build up his shoulder strength and confidence.
Instead, the veteran right-hander turned in seven shutout innings in his best performance since a complete game, three-hit shutout of the San Diego Padres on August 28, 2017.
Samardzija needed just 90 pitches to record 21 outs and become the third consecutive Giants starter to work seven innings in the milestone win. The right-hander dropped his season ERA to 1.62 and made another significant stride after shoulder trouble limited him to just 10 starts last year.
This spring, Samardzija discussed the importance of refining his approach and relying less on his four-seam fastball and more on a deep arsenal of pitches that includes a slider that's worked well for him in each of his three starts. In Thursday's outing, Samardzija threw 29 fastballs, 26 sliders and 23 cutters while also mixing in a handful of splitters and curves.
His ability to mix pitches effectively limited the amount of hard contact Rockies hitters produced and also gave Colorado just one chance to hit with a runner in scoring position.
2. Too much cap tipping
When an opposing pitcher enjoys a strong performance against the Giants, Bochy has a habit of saying, "You've got to tip your cap."
Bochy wasn't the only member of the Giants tipping his cap to Colorado starter Jon Gray for a strong effort, but the Giants have been doing far too much of that lately and Gray isn't exactly a Cy Young contender.
When the Rockies right-hander is on, his arsenal is electric and his 96-mile per hour fastball is tough for batters to square up. But in his previous 33 starts before Thursday's outing, Gray had allowed 256 baserunners in 185 innings and compiled a 5.16 ERA.
In other words, he's the type of pitcher who can bust an offense out of a prolonged slump. As you might have guessed, the Giants as a whole did not take advantage of the opportunity.
Outside of Pillar's solo shot in the bottom of the seventh, the Giants only mustered four more hits against Gray and failed to give their pitching staff any meaningful cushion.
That's not a sustainable formula for success, especially in a National League West division filled with solid offensive clubs.
3. If you want to see offense...
The 2019 Giants offense may not provide the type of entertainment fans are looking for, but an hour down the road, their Single-A affiliate celebrated its 2019 home opener.
After an impressive first week of California League play, the organization's top two prospects _Joey Bart and Heliot Ramos _ made their home debuts in front of a packed house in San Jose.
Bart made waves on social media earlier in the week with a laser shot of a three-run home run against the Visalia Rawhide while Ramos earned time in the spotlight with a multi-homer game against the Stockton Ports on Wednesday.
Bart and Ramos combined for eight extra base hits and 11 RBI in their first week of play and if they keep that pace up, it won't be long before both are headed to the next level.
