Matt Chapman hit his 17th home run and made a crucial play by catching a slow roller with his bare hand, helping the San Francisco Giants to an 8-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday.
LaMonte Wade Jr. and Tyler Fitzgerald also homered for the Giants, who won two of three games against the Reds in this series, which featured teams vying for a spot in the NL wild card race.
“We’re off to a good start in the second half,” Giants manager Bob Melvin said. “We need to improve our performance on the road if we want to achieve our goals.”
Robbie Ray (2-1), in his third start of the season, gave up two runs on three hits in five innings and struck out nine batters.
With the Giants ahead 3-2 and two outs in the sixth inning, TJ Friedl hit a soft grounder to Chapman. Chapman fielded it with his bare hand and threw to first base, stopping Elly De La Cruz from scoring the tying run from third.
“It came off the bat oddly and was slow. I knew I had to make a quick play. I had to get a firm grip on it,” Chapman said. “Once I had it, I threw it as hard as I could. It was important to maintain the lead.”
The Giants extended their lead with a five-run eighth inning, highlighted by Fitzgerald’s two-run homer and Michael Conforto’s two-run double.
Jeimer Candelario and Santiago Espinal hit back-to-back home runs off Ray in the second inning, giving the Reds a 2-0 lead. Candelario’s homer tied him with De La Cruz for the team lead with 18.
“Even with the two home runs, I thought they were decent pitches. Solo home runs won’t beat you, especially in this park,” Ray said. “I got good work in. Batters will hit home runs even when you pitch well. I feel like I’m close to getting everything in sync.”
