SAN FRANCISCO — Throughout a 2021 season in which their roster has been decimated by injuries, the San Francisco Giants have prided themselves on a cliche “next man up” mentality.
During a week in which the Giants stayed healthy, they applied that same mentality in a different sense. Regardless of the number of outs in an inning or the score of a game, the next man up in the Giants lineup has been a dangerous hitter.
After scoring 37 runs in a four-game sweep of the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Giants extended their win streak to five games with a 5-3 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
Leadoff man LaMonte Wade Jr. drove in a pair of runs, No. 8 hitter Jason Vosler ignited a three-run second-inning rally with a RBI single and the team’s hottest hitter, Brandon Belt, launched his 10th home run of the season. The Giants didn’t score in double digits for the third straight day, but they didn’t need to as Johnny Cueto allowed three runs over six innings and relievers Dominic Leone, Tyler Rogers and Jake McGee combined to hold the Phillies scoreless the rest of the way.
Nearly every position player on the roster has made critical contributions during the club’s latest win streak, which moved the 45-25 Giants 20 games over .500 for the first time since July 19, 2016. A well-rounded roster has led the Giants to their best start through 70 games since the 1993 season (47-23) and highlights the way Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi has built the club.
Before focusing on adding as much depth as possible, one of Zaidi’s first moves in San Francisco was to push for a superstar.
The Giants didn’t land former National League MVP Bryce Harper, but they were one of the few teams willing to entertain the type of long-term deal that would have paid the current Philadelphia Phillies outfielder upward of $300 million.
Failing to acquire Harper and other well-known major league players made Zaidi the subject of criticism from Giants fans, but in his third year on the job, the Giants’ top baseball executive has proven quite adept at building a roster filled with valuable contributors.
Wade is the latest example.
A former Minnesota Twins prospect with 95 career major league at-bats entering the season, Wade was acquired in an offseason trade for former Giants reliever Shaun Anderson. On Friday, Anderson was claimed on waivers by the Texas Rangers while Wade was busy having a productive night on offense and defense in the leadoff spot for the Giants.
After doubling home Steven Duggar to give the Giants a 2-1 lead in the second inning, Wade drilled a triple to right center field to bring Cueto all the way home from first to push the Giants ahead 4-3 in the fourth.
With one out in the sixth, Harper drilled a line drive off the left field wall that likely would have been a double with most other major league outfielders playing in the corner. Wade kept Harper from reaching scoring position by fielding the ball cleanly off a bounce and firing a perfect strike to second base to retire the Phillies right fielder.
Wade’s triple was the most entertaining play of the night for either team, but it was Cueto who provided the biggest spark. After reaching first on a five-pitch walk, Cueto asked for a jacket to keep him warm on the basepaths. The veteran starter then decided to ditch the jacket and leave it in the hands of first base coach Antoan Richardson, which proved to be a wise decision.
When Cueto saw Wade connect, he darted toward second base, flipped his helmet off his head and reached full speed on a sprint that led to his first run since September 19, 2017.
Cueto appeared winded in the Giants’ dugout, but returned to the mound and held the Phillies scoreless over his final two innings. The quality start marked only the second for Cueto in his eight outings since returning from the injured list on May 9.
