What we learned as Giants get wild walk-off win on Opening Day originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants went all-in on the Captain theme before Friday's game, driving a boat out onto the field and letting Brandon Belt, with a bootlegged 'C' on his chest, throw out the ceremonial first pitch. By the end of the day, the spotlight was on Thairo Estrada, Austin Slater and youth.
Estrada had a huge game-tying homer in the ninth and Slater won it with a double to left that brought Darin Ruf screaming home in the 10th.
The 6-5 win over the Miami Marlins was the Giants' first walk-off win in their opener in 35 years, and it came with plenty of drama.
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Camilo Doval blew a two-run lead in the top of the ninth but Estrada tied it back up with a blast in the bottom of the inning.
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The automatic runner rule is back, but John Brebbia and Jose Alvarez combined to keep the Marlins off the board in the top of the 10th.
Mauricio Dubon was placed on second in the bottom of the inning, but he was thrown out trying to retreat to the bag after he tagged on a fly ball to right. Slater got him off the hook, yanking the game-winner into the left field corner.
Early on, the stars were a pair of 25-year-olds.
Joey Bart hit his first career homer and caught another strong outing from Logan Webb, who like Bart was making his first Opening Day start. The Giants were extremely sloppy at times, but they benefited from Miami's mistakes, too. An error led to the first run of the season and Bart added an insurance run with his blast halfway to the Bay Bridge.
Webb looked like last season's version, leaving with a 3-0 lead in the seventh inning. Two batters later, it was 3-2, but Tyler Rogers entered for Dominic Leone and got the Giants out of the inning with a pair of strikeouts.
Jake McGee took the lead to Doval, who got a two-run cushion thanks to Captain Belt's solo shot. Doval, the closer down the stretch last season, gave up three runs, including a two-run homer by Jazz Chisholm Jr., but the lineup got him off the hook.
On The Board
The Giants didn't make a splash in the offseason, but this was still a pretty big day for some of their new players and some familiar faces in new roles. Joc Pederson went 0-for-1 with a walk in his debut. Estrada homered and showed off a slick glove in his first game in what could end up being an everyday role.
Bart had the biggest day, scoring the first run, shepherding Webb through his six-plus innings, and then blasting a solo shot to left in the fifth. Bart's first in The Show left his bat at 108.9 mph and went an estimated 414 feet.
He became the first Giants rookie to homer on Opening Day since J.R. Phillips in 1995 and the first Giant to get his first career homer on Opening Day since Will Clark in 1986. Clark was the last Giant before Bart to be taken second overall.
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It was appropriate that Tim Flannery was in town for NBC Sports Bay Area's pre- and post-game shows, because the first run of the season was a Run Thrown In that would have fit in perfectly in 2012.
With two outs in the third and Bart on first, Belt pushed a bunt the other way to try and beat the shift. It was placed well enough that Belt would have gotten a single, but when Joey Wendle threw the ball down the right-field line, Bart ended up scoring all the way from first.
Bart was the eighth-fastest catcher in the league in 2020, so at least in that respect he'll bring something Buster Posey didn't. He got up to 26.7 feet-per-second while scoring, just a tick below the league average of 27 for all position players.
In his first game as third base coach, Mark Hallberg made a good call and Bart scored standing up as Avisail Garcia scooped the ball and made a weak throw home. Belt made it 2-0 on Ruf's hard single to right.
Right Where He Left Off
Webb was on a pitch count because of the short spring, and he nearly didn't get a chance to reach it. While covering first base in the third inning, Webb caught a spike on the grass and appeared to hurt his right leg. Trainer Dave Groeschner and manager Gabe Kapler came out to check on him, but Webb stayed in the game.
He was still on the mound in the seventh, but was lifted after a leadoff walk. A two-run homer off Leone put a run on Webb's line, but it was still another very successful day at Oracle Park for the staff ace. Here are his last four starts, all at home, all in pretty big spots:
- Game 162: 7 innings, 4 earned runs, 8 strikeouts (also hit a homer)
- NLDS Game 1: 7 2/3 innings, 0 earned runs, 10 strikeouts
- NLDS Game 5: 7 innings, 1 earned run, 7 strikeouts
- Opening Day: 6 innings, 1 earned run, 3 strikeouts
Webb has now gone 23 consecutive starts without taking a losing decision, breaking Carl Hubbell's franchise record. Hubbell went 22 straight in 1936-37.
