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What we learned as Giants’ late collapse leads to extra-innings loss

What we learned as Giants' late collapse leads to extra-innings loss

What we learned as Giants’ late collapse leads to extra-innings loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

If the Giants fall short in their playoff quest, Friday night’s game in Seattle is one they will look back on painfully for a long time.

San Francisco broke out the big bats early and seemingly was cruising to victory to open a six-game road trip, only to see it all fall apart after blowing a four-run lead in the eighth and then losing 6-5 in 10 innings.

There was plenty of blame to go around for this defeat, which dropped the Giants (65-65) five back in the NL wild-card race with 32 games to play.

Despite crushing three home runs — all magnificent blasts — at T-Mobile Park, the Giants combined to strike out a whopping 18 times.

Starting pitcher Hayden Birdsong didn’t stick around very long, throwing just four innings on 80 pitches. He allowed only one hit and had five strikeouts but issued a career-high four walks.

The bullpen handled Birdsong’s early exit fairly well until the eighth, when the Mariners (65-64) jumped all over Tyler Rogers, wiping out a 5-1 Giants lead.

Seattle won it in the 10th off Erik Miller after San Francisco failed to even move up its automatic runner 90 feet in the top of the frame.

The Mariners didn’t need much to score theirs. Pinch-runner Dylan Moore stole third base on a play close enough to convince Giants manager Bob Melvin to challenge. But the call was upheld, and Leo Rivas followed with a single to center for the game-winning hit.

At one time, though, the Giants had been in control, as LaMonte Wade Jr., Michael Conforto and Heliot Ramos all went deep to get them going early.

Wade started the fireworks when he blasted a 2-2 change-up from Luis Castillo 402 feet to center.

After Ramos beat out an infield single in the fourth, Conforto slammed his 14th home run of the season, a two-run, 419-foot blast that put the Giants ahead 3-0.

Seattle didn’t break through until after Birdsong left, and even then it wasn’t much. Luke Raley hit a solo home run off Sean Hjelle in the fifth.

The good times for the Mariners didn’t last long.

Wade doubled in the sixth, then trotted home after Ramos absolutely demolished a Castillo pitch into the left-field upper deck. Ramos’ drive traveled an estimated 492 feet, according to Statcast.

At this point of the season, the Giants have very little margin for error, and this loss hurts — especially considering it came against the Mariners, who had lost eight of nine and were…

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