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San Francisco Giants' Nate Schierholtz makes his mark in win over Oakland A's
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San Francisco Giants' Nate Schierholtz, right, is congratulated at the end of the baseball
game against the Oakland Athletics Sunday, June 14, 2009, in San Francisco.
(AP Photo/Ben Margot)
SAN FRANCISCO---In the San Francisco Giants’ 7-1 win over the Oakland A’s, two Giants shined brighter than the others. Pitcher Matt Cain and outfielder Nate Schierholtz had great games, proving that the youngsters are fully capable of leading the team to victory.
The Giants swept the A's as 24-year-old Cain pitched his seventh complete game of his career—his third CG of the season. The win gave him one more win than his 2008 total. With this ninth win, Cain is tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Chad Billingsley for most wins in the National League. He gave up one run on four hits and struck out nine.
Cain, again, received ample run support for the offense—something many knew was non-existent to Cain in previous years.
Outfielder Schierholtz contributed with two hits and three RBI. The Danville native hit AT&T Park’s fourth inside-the-park home run in the third inning, scoring Pablo Sandoval and Rich Aurilia, but didn’t know it was a home run right away.
“I was just thinking triple out of the box if it fell,” Schierholtz said. “By the time I got to third I was just trying to get every last bit of energy in my stride home.”
It wasn’t until Schierholtz hit third that he saw third base coach Tim Flannery “jumping up and down” and waving him home that he realized that this could be an inside-the-parker.
“I wasn’t stopping him. Once I saw that we had a little bit, I went up the line and greeted him,” Flannery said. “I’m like the greeter—c’mon let’s go.”
Schierholtz didn’t need the greeting, as he showed off his speed right out of the box. By the time Oakland A’s outfielder Jack Cust retrieved the ball in right-center field, there was no catching the speedy Schierholtz.
“Well, it shows you how fast he is. A lot of people don’t realize the speed of Nate Schierholtz,” Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. “He kicked it into another gear once he got between first and second. You don’t see that too often. Usually inside-the-parkers, it’s going to carom off something, or the outfielder dives for the ball, but he hit it in the perfect spot there, right-center, he just took off, there was no play.”
Days after his birthday, the outfielder showed what he is capable of—something Bochy has taken notice of.
“He’s earned some playing time, the way he’s playing,” said Bochy. “I think it’s fair to say he’s warranted some extra playing time.”
With a humble attitude and positive outlook, Schierholtz is willing to continue working for the chance to be on the field.
“I just try to prepare myself every day to play and to start. If that doesn’t happen, then it doesn’t happen. I’d like to think that one day I could start. So I just try to get my confidence up and play the best I can to help the team,” said Schierholtz. “I’m just thankful that I’m getting more playing time. I’m going to just try to play hard when I’m out there and let things fall into place.”
Things are definitely falling into place for the Chabot Community College alum. So can fans look forward to more exciting inside-the-park home runs from the young outfielder?
“I don’t know if I would want to do it again. I would rather hit it out next time.”
For more information:
Theo Fightmaster-SF Giants Examiner
Scott Sabatini-Oakland A's Examiner
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