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San Francisco Giants score 13 as the Big Sadowski pitches shutout
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Starting pitching Ryan Sadowski earns his second win. (William Mancebo/Tri-City Voice)
SAN FRANCISCO---This was no ordinary game in San Francisco. Naturally, many of the AT&T Park’s staples remained—the cool breeze, the lurking seagulls, the traveling aroma of garlic friends, and the loud “Peanuts!” vendor.
Along with the every-game occurrences, the ballpark hosted a number of out-of-the-ordinary events during the San Francisco Giants’ 13-0 win over the Houston Astros.
In the second inning, first baseman Travis Ishikawa hit a ball toward the right field arcade which was deemed a ground-rule double. After an official review, the hit was ruled a home run, giving Ishikawa three RBI. That wasn’t the only unique event of the evening, however.
The Giants’ total of 13 runs marks their highest run total this season. The last time the team scored more runs than they did this evening was on July 1, 2007 and, judging by the roar of the crowd, the fans were elated to witness such a deluge of runs.
Fans who attend San Francisco Giants home games do not usually participate in “the wave,” but tonight they did—another oddity. The wave whipped around the park and most of the fans participated. It was fireworks night in the city and fans came and brought the park its eighth sell-out of the year.
Rookie sensation Ryan Sadowski put on a show for the 42,199 that showed up—giving up only three hits in seven scoreless innings. The starting pitcher, affectionately known as the “Big Sadowski,” has now pitched 13 scoreless innings since his major league debut.
The 26-year-old has been a pleasant addition to the strong pitching staff and although he wasn’t one of the big name pitchers, he starting to capture the attention of many.
“When it’s a guy you haven’t really heard a whole lot about coming in and your pitching, especially your starting pitching, is already your strength, to have a guy come in a pitch well is a nice boost,” outfielder Randy Winn said.
One thing that Sadowski has received that other pitchers on the staff may be envious of is run support. The Giants scored all 13 of their runs in the first three innings of the game.
“We don’t do that very often,” said Giants manager Bruce Bochy. “But the offense was there, the kid was good, he was outstanding. We had it all going tonight.”
Once the team scored the plethora of runs, the pressure was off of Sadowski.
“That’s makes huge difference,” he said. “You could just go out there and throw strikes. As long as you keep the ball on the ground, it’s tough to put three singles together.”
While seemingly calm and collected, the right-hander admits that he was nervous for his home field debut at AT&T Park.
“If you guys would’ve watched me warm up, you would’ve had [Jonathan] Sanchez go on before I even got out there,” said Sadowski. “I was nervous, I really just didn’t throw well when I warmed up.”
Despite his pre-game jitters, the young pitcher provided the home crowd a great performance. He has given everyone an outstanding first impression, but also acknowledges that he can’t pitch a shutout every time he takes the mound.
“It’s just a bigger stage—it’s cool, it’s great. It doesn’t change, really, anything in life," Sadowski explained. "It’s just a game that I was playing when I was a kid. That’s kind of the way I took it. I’m sure I’ll lose and you’re not going to get a different person on that day.”
Based on his last two starts, Bochy said that the rookie has earned a spot in the rotation. His next start will be on Wednesday against the Florida Marlins.
For more on the SF Giants: SF Giants Examiner, Theo Fightmaster
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