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Justin Verlander got ahead in the count on Daniel Schneemann, throwing two quick strikes, a perfect opportunity to waste a pitch. Try to make the batter wave at something up and in. Instead, the 42-year-old pitcher threw a fastball down the middle of the plate, and Schneemann crushed it.
The ball sailed deep into the San Francisco night, a three-run, opposite-field homer into Oracle Park’s left-field bleachers, the big blow in the Giants’ 4-2 loss to the Cleveland Guardians Wednesday evening.
Not exactly the way you want to kick off the Rafael Devers era.
The Giants are 0-2 on Devers’ watch and have their first four-game skid since May 9-12. The offense, even with the presence of Devers, acquired in a Sunday trade from the Red Sox, has been lethargic. After going 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position Tuesday, the Giants went a meager 0-for-6 in those situations Wednesday.
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Verlander, a future Hall of Famer, put the Giants’ funk in perspective when asked about Devers, who might be in his own Hall of Fame conversation one day.
“I’ve been a big fan of his from afar,” Verlander said. “Happy to have him here. I think he’s going to be huge. I think he’s going to have an impact on this club. First couple of games didn’t go our way. That’s baseball. You win seven in a row and eight out of nine and think you’re on top of the world, and then here you are, thinking you suck. It’s a fickle game.”
Devers was hitless in three at-bats and drew a walk. He had a chance to tie the game in the eighth inning, coming to the plate after Willy Adames opened with a single, but hit a lazy fly to left.
The Giants are confident their offense will get on track with Devers a major contributor, but the designated hitter is still waiting for his first win. The Giants conclude the series with a Thursday matinee and host Devers’ former team, the Red Sox, in a three-game weekend set.
“It’s fun to see him in the lineup,” Verlander said. “He brings a lot of energy, not only himself but fans are really into it, obviously, and that’s been a lot of fun. In a storybook world, we win these games and he hits a walkoff homer. But you’ve got to look at the big picture, and he’s going to help us. A lot.”
For Verlander, who made his first start in a month after sitting out with a strained pectoral muscle, he didn’t get much support from either the offense (beyond Heliot Ramos’ two-run homer) or defense. Right fielder Mike Yastrzemski lost a ball in the sun hit by the game’s second batter, Kyle Manzardo, who legged out a double and scored on José Ramirez’s single.
First baseman Wilmer Flores didn’t stop Schneemann’s screeching second-inning one-hopper, 100.2 mph off the bat, and second baseman Tyler Fitzgerald made a fourth-inning fielding error ahead of Schneemann’s decisive home run.
“One of the worst fastballs I threw all day,” Verlander said of his fateful 0-2 pitch to Schneemann. “Just really flat.”
It seemed to be a trend. He got ahead 0-2 on the two batters who did first-inning damage, Manzardo and Ramirez. That Verlander didn’t finish them off might have been a result of his inactivity and timing, though he cited the Guardians’ impressive two-strike approach and his own inconsistency, “putting pitches where I’d ideally not want to with two strikes.”
Verlander, still winless in 11 starts as a Giant, coughed up seven hits over 4 ⅔ innings, and one of the four runs he surrendered was unearned, thanks to the Fitzgerald error. He threw 83 pitches, a good sign considering he made no minor-league rehab assignments and threw only simulated games.
Both Verlander and catcher Patrick Bailey came off the injured list before the game and formed the battery, and Tristan Beck and Logan Porter were optioned to Triple-A Sacramento. Bailey entered hitting .185 and collected two of the Giants’ six hits.
Asked if it was a mental challenge returning to the mound for the first time in a month, Verlander said, “I wouldn’t say it was a mental challenge. This season’s been a mental challenge. Just trying to find my groove. Feeling like I was close and then unfortunately having an injury, so kind of hoping I’m not back at square one.”