Missed Opportunities Cost Giants in 2-1 Loss
May 29, 2022 - California League (CalL)
San Jose Giants News Release
The San Jose Giants left 13 runners on base in a narrow 2-1 loss to the Modesto Nuts on Saturday night at John Thurman Field. The Nuts scored twice over the first two innings to take an early lead and held San Jose to 1-for-15 batting with runners in scoring position en route to the victory. With the defeat, the Giants (26-18) have now dropped three of the first five games in the series.
Aeverson Arteaga (3-for-5, RBI) had three singles and drove in the only run for San Jose to lead the way offensively. Vaun Brown (2-for-4, 2 2B) added a pair of doubles.
Modesto pushed across single runs in the first and second innings against Giants starter Matt Mikulski to build a 2-0 advantage. Harry Ford led off the bottom of the first for the Nuts with a check-swing infield single to first base. Ford then stole second, advanced to third on Edwin Arroyo's groundout and scored when Mikulski uncorked a wild pitch.
Back-to-back two-out doubles from Brett Rodriguez and Amador Arias in the bottom of the second then extended the Modesto lead to 2-0.
The Nuts would then manage only one more hit and two total baserunners for the remainder of the night, but were able to hold off San Jose. The Giants put runners on second and third with none out in the top of the third as Arteaga led off with a single before Brown doubled into the right field corner. Modesto starter Jordan Jackson though came back to retire Riley Mahan on a pop out to third, Adrian Sugastey on a line out to right and then struck out Victor Bericoto to escape.
In the top of the fifth, the Arteaga-Brown duo again set the table, but once more San Jose was unable to breakthrough. With one out, Arteaga singled and then Brown doubled into the right center gap putting runners on second and third. Jackson though induced back-to-back groundouts from Mahan and Sugastey to keep the Nuts 2-0 lead intact.
In the sixth, Modesto reliever Natanael Garabitos issued consecutive walks to Bericoto and Yorlis Rodriguez before Alexander Suarez was hit by a pitch to load the bases with none out. The Giants though were able to muster only one run in the frame and ultimately left the bases loaded. Garabitos struck out Rayner Santana for the first out before Andrew Moore entered from the bullpen and struck out Grant McCray. Arteaga then beat out a grounder to shortstop for an infield single as Bericoto scored to cut the deficit to 2-1. The run-scoring single was San Jose's only hit in 15 at-bats with runners in scoring position on the night. Moore then came back with a strikeout of Brown to end the inning.
The Giants threatened again in the top of the seventh putting the potential tying run at second base with none out, but failed to score. Mahan led off with a single before taking second on a wild pitch. Moore though recovered with consecutive strikeouts of Sugastey and Bericoto before Rodriguez grounded out to end the threat.
In the top of the eighth, McCray singled with two outs, but was stranded when Arteaga popped out to end the inning. The Nuts' Jorge Benitez then breezed through a 1-2-3 top of the ninth on a pair of strikeouts and a fly out to seal the Modesto victory.
Aeverson Arteaga had three hits and an RBI in Saturday's 2-1 loss to Modesto
GIANTS NOTES
Inside The Box Score: Modesto won despite being out-hit by a 9-4 margin. The Nuts had only five baserunners for the entire game. Riley Mahan (2-for-5) also had a multi-hit game for San Jose. Of the 13 runners left on base by the Giants, nine were stranded in scoring position. Jordan Jackson (5 IP, 6 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 SO) earned the win for Modesto.
Mikulski's Start: Matt Mikulski took the loss for the Giants despite matching a season-high with five innings pitched. Mikulski allowed two runs (both earned) on three hits. He walked none and struck out five. Mikulski retired 15 of the 18 hitters he faced, including 10 in a row to end his start.
Hit Streak Snapped: Adrian Sugastey finished 0-for-5 at the plate to snap his 10-game hitting streak. It matched the longest hit streak by a Giants player this season (Yorlis Rodriguez).
Rehab Appearance: Sam Delaplane pitched a perfect bottom of the sixth inning out of the San Jose bullpen in his first rehab appearance. Delaplane, who was added to the roster on Friday, missed all of 2021 after undergoing Tommy John surgery. The San Jose native joined the San Francisco organization last year after previously pitching in the Mariners system, including in 2019 with Modesto. Delaplane, who has pitched as high as Double-A in his career, struck out two of the three batters he faced on Saturday.
Road Trip Update: The Giants are now 5-6 on their road trip with one game remaining. San Jose will be looking to avoid losing their first road series of the season.
On Deck: The Giants and Nuts conclude their six-game series on Sunday afternoon with first pitch at John Thurman Field set for 2:05 PM. Eric Silva is San Jose's scheduled starting pitcher.
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