Right-handed pitcher Slade Cecconi made his 2024 debut against the San Francisco Giants, holding them to two runs in six innings. Gabriel Moreno’s two-run single in the sixth inning helped the Arizona Diamondbacks secure a 5-3 victory on Sunday.
Cecconi (1-0) stepped in for the injured Merrill Kelly and played a key role in the Diamondbacks splitting the four-game series. He was called up from Triple-A Reno to fill in for Kelly, who couldn’t play due to a shoulder injury.
Most of the Diamondbacks players didn’t know they’d be playing without Kelly, the team’s No. 2 starter. Cecconi flew in from Reno the night before the game and only found out he was starting a few hours before the game began.
Manager Torey Lovullo praised Cecconi’s performance given the challenging circumstances.
The Giants struggled to get hits off Cecconi until Thairo Estrada’s infield single with two outs in the fifth inning. Mike Yastrzemski’s homer in the fifth gave the Giants a brief lead of 2-1, marking his first home run of the season.
Moreno’s single off left-hander Erik Miller (0-1) in the sixth inning put the Diamondbacks ahead 3-2.
Arizona scored two more runs in the ninth inning, extending their lead to 5-2. Giants manager Bob Melvin and third base coach Matt Williams were ejected for disputing a foul-tip call made by plate umpire Stu Scheurwater.
Melvin’s ejection was his second of the season. Video replays suggested Kevin Newman may have swung over Nick Avila’s two-strike pitch, but Scheurwater ruled it hit Newman’s bat. The ejections came after Newman extended his at-bat and hit an RBI double.
