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SF Giants Press Clips

Monday, June 19, 2017

San Francisco Chronicle

Giants pitcher Ty Blach’s Father’s Day gift to his dad

John Shea

DENVER — The Giants lost an ugly one Sunday, but Ty Blach will remember the good parts of

the afternoon.

“That was pretty special, especially because it’s Father’s Day,” Blach, a Denver native, said of his

first Coors Field start. “I came to so many games as a kid here with my dad and mom. It was

pretty neat to be able to celebrate that.”

With a bunch of family and friends in attendance, Blach took a 2-1 lead into the seventh inning

before surrendering two home runs and exiting. Hunter Pence’s homer in the ninth put the

Giants ahead, but Nolan Arenado hit a walk-off homer against closer Mark Melancon.

Blach’s parents, Randy and Karen, saw it all.

“My dad and I spent countless hours out on the field, taking extra batting practice, getting extra

swings, taking me to pitching lessons, whatever it was,” Blach said. “He was right there for me

supporting my dream. So that was pretty special to be able to kind of give back to him today.”

Blach made his big-league debut at Coors Field in September, out of the bullpen, and made

another relief appearance here in April, before he replaced Madison Bumgarner in the

rotation.

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Pitching a mile above sea level was nothing new for Blach. He grew up at altitude, a 2009

graduate of nearby Regis Jesuit High School.

“Ty did a terrific job,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “He threw a great game for us. It’s a shame

we couldn’t get him a win.”

Briefly: Bumgarner’s next simulated game will be Wednesday in Arizona. ... Jarrett

Parker (shoulder) will begin his minor-league rehab assignment Monday with Triple-A

Sacramento. ... Arenado has four career walk-off hits, and the Giants are three-time victims. ...

Arenado was the 31st player in history whose walk-off homer completed a cycle.

John Shea is The San Francisco Chronicle’s national baseball writer.

On deck

Monday

at Braves

4:35 p.m. NBCSBA

Cueto (5-6) vs. Dickey (4-5)

Tuesday

at Braves

4:35 p.m. NBCSBA

Moore (2-7) vs. Teheran (6-4)

Wednesday

at Braves

4:35 p.m. NBCSBA

Samardzija (2-9) vs. Colon (2-7)

Leading off

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DL for Arroyo: Infielder Christian Arroyo was placed on the disabled list at Triple-A

Sacramento a few days after he was hit on the hand by a pitch. X-rays were negative, but he

remains sore.

San Francisco Chronicle

Giants lose again to Rockies, Mark Melancon blows save chance

John Shea

DENVER — Their animated conversation down a long hallway in the visitors’ clubhouse lasted

longer than the bottom of the ninth. Mark Melancon and Buster Posey broke it down in private,

and no one bothered them.

It was getaway day, but the closer and his catcher were in no hurry to shower, pack and leave

Coors Field, where the Giants were swept in a four-game series that was capped with the

sorriest moment in the sorriest season.

Melancon threw a first-pitch fastball to Nolan Arenado, who hit his second career walk-off

home run and completed his first career cycle to send the Giants out of town with a 7-5 loss.

Melancon accepted a $62 million contract in the offseason to erase last season’s bullpen

problems, though the Giants’ woes run far deeper than a single reliever. Melancon retired his

first batter but yielded four straight hits to blow his fourth save opportunity (he has converted

seven) and balloon his ERA to 5.09.

“My performance has been absolutely terrible,” he said. “I need to be better. That’s it.”

Thus, the talk with Posey, the 2012 MVP, four-time All-Star and three-time world champion.

Posey stood against a wall, and Melancon faced him. Each took turns getting his point across,

and Melancon afterward called it a positive exchange.

“It’s good to talk,” he said. “Those conversations are about learning and getting on the same

page. It’s valuable to capture those moments and thoughts each other has. That’s where you

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get better.”

Posey called for a fastball in. Hoping for a double-play grounder, Melancon threw it in at 92

mph but a bit up from Posey’s target. Arenado sent it 374 feet over the left-field wall for a

three-run homer, and the Giants lost their sixth in a row and 15th in 19 games.

And to think, the vibe in the Giants’ dugout was all good moments earlier. Hunter Pence hit his

first career pinch homer in the top of the ninth to turn a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead, and Brandon

Crawford added an RBI single.

That made Melancon’s meltdown admittedly tougher to take.

“A hundred percent,” he said. “I mean, gosh. When we have the lead in the ninth, it’s a special

day, and I want to capture that. For Hunter to step in and pinch hit and do that, it’s awesome.

That’s a positive we can take away and start building on.”

Maybe not. But that’s the way ballplayers tend to think. Pence, the eternal optimist, pointed

out positives in the game. Indeed, Crawford had three hits, including a homer. Denard Span

reached base four times and stole two bags. Ty Blach entered the seventh leading 2-1 before

giving up homers to Trevor Story and Pat Valaika.

But what could be said of Melancon, who insisted his elbow (he was on the disabled list last

month) is fine and his recent inactivity (no save opportunities since June 8) didn’t affect him?

“I know how hard he works,” Pence said. “I know the kind of guy he is, and I believe in him

100,000 percent. These things happen.”

The postgame clubhouse was more quiet than normal except for a few cuss words heard in the

distance, a few beer bottles opening, a few packed bags tossed into the middle of the room and

one player murmuring the start of a tune, “Oh, happy day. ...”

In the manager’s office, Bruce Bochy said Melancon threw good pitches, and balls weren’t hit

hard until Arenado homered. For the first time, the Giants got swept in a four-game series by

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Colorado, which has beaten them nine straight times.

San Francisco Chronicle

Posey, Giants recall special Atlanta moment, await new ballpark

John Shea

DENVER — The start of the Giants’ postseason dominance began in 2010 at Turner Field, a

facility built for the 1996 Olympics that the Atlanta Braves made home for only 20 years before

moving into their new digs this season, SunTrust Park.

That’s where the Giants will begin a four-game series Monday.

Reflecting on Turner Field, Buster Posey, who grew up a Braves fan in Leesburg, Ga., three

hours away, has one memory that stands above all others.

“The last out of the Division Series in ’10 and seeing Bobby Cox waving farewell to everybody,”

Posey said. “I watched Bobby Cox manage the Braves my whole childhood, so it was pretty cool

for me to be able to be there for his last game.”

Posey was a rookie with the 2010 Giants, the team that sent Cox into retirement. In one of the

most memorable and touching moments of the season — and Cox’s career — the Giants

delayed celebrating their first postseason-series victory in eight years by gathering in front of

the visitors’ dugout to salute Cox. They clapped and tipped their caps, and an emotional Cox

waved back.

How much did Posey admire Cox, who led the Braves to 14 straight division titles and the 1995

World Series championship? When they were in New York one offseason for an awards

ceremony, Posey found himself in an elevator with him and recalls being “star struck.”

“He always seemed to stay calm, but then obviously. he had the record for most ejections,”

Posey said. “So as a fan, you appreciate he has that passion for the game and has the players’

backs and just seemed like a likable guy.”

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Posey didn’t make it to Turner Field much as a kid — he was busy playing ball himself — but

saw a bunch of games on TV and said, “I vaguely remember Sid Bream sliding into home against

the Pirates. My granddad wore a shirt with the picture of Sid Bream sliding.”

That slide was at Atlanta Fulton County Stadium, beating Barry Bonds’ throw from left field in

Game 7 of the 1992 NLCS and sending the Braves to the World Series.

Bruce Bochy also fondly remembered his first postseason-series victory as Giants manager and

the Cox tribute.

“Bobby was a manager all the young managers looked up to and revered,” Bochy said. “Not just

the success he had but the way his team played the game. They were so professional. And it

was all due to Bobby. As much as we were celebrating the victory, we kind of acknowledged

one of the greatest managers of all time on the other side. For me, it was special because of

how much I think of the man.”

Giants video-replay analyst Shawon Dunston played in the first game at Turner Field. He was

the Cubs’ shortstop April 4, 1997. Dunston made an eighth-inning error during the Braves’

winning rally.

Dunston was on the Giants’ 2002 team that clinched a Division Series at Turner Field, and he

was a coach on the 2010 team that did the same — and then saluted Cox.

“We all stopped,” Dunston said. “We all knew it was his last game. He was kind of embarrassed

to come back out. It was kind of awkward because they lost, but you’ve got to pay respect to

good baseball people, and he’s an icon in Atlanta.

“His baseball team whupped up on everybody and never bragged. They never disrespected an

opponent, so that goes a long way for players. You want to play for a man like him.”

The 2010 Giants beat the Phillies in the NLCS and Rangers in the World Series, their first of

three Series championships under Bochy.

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The Giants played their final game at Turner Field last season. Madison Bumgarner got the win

and hit a three-run homer. Posey homered, too.

The Braves now play in a suburban park in the Cumberland neighborhood of Cobb County.

Outside the facility, a statue of Cox was unveiled in April.

San Jose Mercury News

Melancon’s blown save negates Pence’s first pinch homer as Arenado’s cycle beats Giants

Andrew Baggarly

DENVER – The Giants have found every which way to lose to the Colorado Rockies this season.

They needed an analgesic to endure the latest one Sunday afternoon – even if sore-armed and

struggling closer Mark Melancon insists he doesn’t require one.

The Giants wrested the lead on Hunter Pence’s first career pinch home run in the ninth inning,

but euphoria soon gave way to stunned silence in the visiting dugout. Melancon blew the save

in the bottom of the inning, Nolan Arenado hit a thunderous, three-run home run and the

Rockies won 7-5 in front of a delirious crowd at Coors Field.

Arenado hit for the cycle by popping a wheelie. He already had the triple, the double and the

single. He said his shot into the left field seats was the best moment of his All-Star, Gold Glove,

Giant-slaying career.

The Giants could call it their worst loss of the season. But at 26-45, what’s the point in ranking

them?

Their signature acquisition of the winter, Melancon, already had become as useless as heated

leather seats in a junker on cement blocks. Teams on pace to lose 103 games do not need a

pricy, one-inning reliever to pitch the ninth.

The fact that Melancon has been hurt and minimally effective, beginning with a blown save on

opening day, makes it all the more cruel and unusual. Melancon’s fourth blown save (in 14

chances) already matched his total from last year (in 51 chances).

“My performance has been absolutely terrible,” said Melancon, who signed a four-year, $62

million contract over the winter. “I need to be better, and you know … that’s it.”

The Rockies had never swept a four-game series from the Giants, home or road, in their

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franchise history. They have never won an NL West title, either. One down, then. Another to go.

The Rockies continued to press down their thumbs on the Giants, beating them for the 10th

time in 11 games and stripping them of contender’s clothes. The Rockies are 19 ½ games ahead

of the Giants in the NL West.

The Giants dressed at their lockers as an angry expletive or two from the coaches’ room pierced

the clubhouse silence. They are going to Atlanta, a place that so famously burned in the Civil

War. They arrive already in an ash heap.

Pence, whose two-run shot in the ninth gave the Giants a one-run lead, lauded the Rockies for

their relentless play and talented lineup. It was a valid statement. It also beat the hell out of

introspection.

“We had clutch hitting and they had clutch hitting,” Pence said. “They’re playing outstanding

ball and sometimes you’ve got to tip your cap to a team making crazy plays and finding holes.”

The Giants only find holes if they examine their roster. They were desperate for a soul

freshening moment before Pence provided one in the ninth.

Pence had tried to talk his way into Sunday’s lineup, and why not? He is more persuasive than a

timeshare salesman. He has made a career of playing every inning of every game. He can talk

his way past any velvet barricade.

It makes sense, then, that Pence had played in 1,426 games over 11 major league seasons and

had just 20 appearances as a pinch hitter. It is not in his nature to be confined to the dugout.

But Pence had an awful time in right field over three games here. He was fouling so many

pitches down the middle of the plate. He did not talk his way into Sunday’s lineup, and it was

beginning to become fair game to wonder if the Giants’ 34-year-old amateur philosopher was

reaching the end as an everyday player.

Then came one startling swing in the ninth. Pence followed a one-out walk to Gorkys

Hernandez and ripped a foul ball before turning around a 96 mph from left-hander Jake McGee.

“I just … I wanted to give us a spark,” Pence said.

The Giants added a run when Joe Panik singled, took second base on a botched pickoff play and

scored on Brandon Crawford’s double.

Melancon needed the extra run, and more. He was pitching for the first time in 10 days and just

the third time in June, his absence due to a paucity of save chances along with a sore elbow

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that he has attempted to tread around with minimal success.

The Rockies strung together three consecutive one-out singles to get within a run. They had

runners at the corners and Melancon was a pitch away from escaping. But Arenado did not

oblige with a double-play grounder.

“I wanted to surprise him in, and go from there,” Melancon said. “I was hoping to get a ground

ball to short.”

Instead, Arenado became the eighth Giants opponent to hit for the cycle in the club’s San

Francisco era, and the first since Arizona’s Kelly Johnson in 2010.

Giants manager Bruce Bochy did a better job defending Melancon than his closer did protecting

a two-run lead.

“I mean, look at those hits,” Bochy said. “A blooper in center field, another one we couldn’t

quite get to in center field, an eight-hopper between first and second, and of course, their guy

came through. But he should have fared a lot better than what happened.

“No, no, he made great pitches. I mean, sure, they hit the home run at the end. But the first hit,

(the pitch) was on the dirt. That was a great pitch. He jammed (Charlie) Blackmon there and

made great pitches on (DJ) LeMahieu. They just put it in play.

“If he had walked guys and didn’t have his command, then you might look at that. But no, he

made some great pitches.”

Melancon claimed after the game that he felt fine, but he had acknowledged earlier in the

series that he wasn’t sure if he could pitch on consecutive days. Describing the the elbow

tendonitis that sent him to the disabled list earlier in the season, he said he was “good enough

to be out there.”

“I didn’t execute as good as I wanted to,” Melancon said. “That’s why they were able to make

contact. Just one more tick and it’s different.”

Said Pence: “I know how hard he works and what kind of guy he is, and I believe in him 100,000

percent.”

Not even the most creative math can find a way for the Giants to be a factor this season. Their

goals will turn from winning a pennant to winning the hearts and minds of their fans –

especially when those season-ticket renewal forms arrive.

They must look to the future, and at least Ty Blach is offering a bright twinkle. The left-hander

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took a shutout into the sixth inning, and before both teams combined for seven runs in the

ninth, he looked to be the story of the game in a losing effort.

Blach grew up in Colorado. His lungs and legs are equipped to endure here. His pitches are

designed to grow the same results – ground ball outs and pop-ups – regardless of barometric

pressure.

He said it was special that his first career start at Coors Field came on Father’s Day, since he

watched so many games here while bonding with his dad, Randy.

“My dad and I spent countless hours on the field, hitting, taking me to pitching lessons,” Blach

said. “He supported my dreams. It was pretty special to give back to him today.”

But a middle-middle mistake cost the Giants the lead in the seventh. And two batters later,

even Blach could not resist the concussive charms of Coors Field.

Trevor Story hit a tying home run on a pitch over the heart of the plate, then Pat Valaika

popped up an inside offering that snuck into the left field seats as the Colorado Rockies took a

3-2 lead.

Valaika came off the bench geared up to swing at the first pitch. Blach’s inside fastball had a hit

probability of just 14 percent, according to Statcast. It left the bat with a launch angle of 41

degrees – a souped up pop fly, essentially. Just 23 of the more than 2,500 home runs hit this

season have been hit at that angle or higher.

“He did a good job sucking his hands in and getting it up in the air here,” Blach said.

The two pitches that made the difference left Blach’s hand, but blame the Giants’ staccato

offense. A team that scored nine and eight runs in high-pitched losses Thursday and Friday

could not produce when they received competitive starts to make winners of Matt Cain on

Saturday or Blach on Sunday.

The Giants had given Blach a 2-0 lead with one swing in the fifth, when Crawford hit his second

opposite-field home run of the series. But that was all their scoring until the ninth.

They lamented a combination of bad baserunning and lousy luck in the first inning, when

Denard Span got a poor read on Crawford’s single up the middle and stopped at third base.

Buster Posey followed with a rocket off the bat that Rockies second baseman DJ LeMahieu

speared after a hop. LeMahieu, as if swinging on a trapeze, flung his body and the baseball to

Story, who accepted it and stamped a foot before a stunned Crawford, who did not slide, could

find second base. Story’s one-motion throw to first base arrived in plenty of time to beat Posey.

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Crawford was ruled safe on the field and Span was credited with a run, but it was taken off the

board following a replay review that resulted in an inning-ending double play.

If only the Giants could replay the entire season. Starting with the blown save on opening day.

San Jose Mercury News

Mark Melancon shocked by Giants’ awful season: “This team has taken a differnet path, but

I’m a part of that path”

Andrew Baggarly

DENVER – What a cruel irony.

Last season, Giants GM Bobby Evans joked that he was a “knucklehead” for not pushing harder

to trade for All-Star closer Mark Melancon at the July 31 deadline. The Giants’ bullpen

destroyed their season and cost them an NL Division Series against the Chicago Cubs.

So the Giants went out this winter and gave Melancon a record-setting contract worth a

guaranteed $62 million over four years to protect leads.

But now that they have him, the leads haven’t been there. The Giants are 26-44 and on pace to

lose 102 games. Melancon was their signature acquisition of the winter, and he’s been as useful

as heated leather seats in a junker on cement blocks.

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Melancon is as shocked as anyone at what has transpired this season. But if he has any buyer’s

remorse, he isn’t saying.

“The team has taken a different path than expected,” said Melancon, “but I’m a part of that

path.”

Last year, Melancon blew just four save chances out of 51. He already has blown three out of

13 this season, including one in Arizona on opening day. The Giants bullpen took two more

losses in the 12 games that Melancon missed while on the disabled list with elbow tendinitis.

Even if Melancon were 13 for 13 in save chances, the Giants still would still be 29-41 and 15 ½

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games out of first place.

“Yeah but you know what?” Melancon said. “I’m in this with these guys. I’m a part of it. I’m not

going to jump ship. We’ve dug this hole ourselves. This team isn’t really that much different

than last year. There’s nobody to blame except ourselves.

“This organization from ownership, the front office, the coaching staff, they’ve done a great

job. It’s us. We’ve done a bad job. We’ve just got to take ownership of it and change it.”

Even if he had more leads to protect, Melancon can only do so much. It is a loosely guarded

secret that the pronator strain in his forearm is a lingering issue. The only reason it has

remained hidden is because the Giants haven’t required him to pitch often – he is on pace to

appear in just 41 games this season — or take the ball on back-to-back days.

Could he do that if asked?

“We’ll see,” he said, with a soft chuckle. “Yeah. I haven’t experienced it, so I don’t know.”

Why not just take another timeout and let the elbow calm down completely?

“I’m looking at it, like, if I can be out there, I’ll be out there,” he said.

How compromised is he right now?

“I’m good enough to be out there,” he said.

He has not been the same pitcher, though. Melancon is averaging 10.4 hits per nine innings –

far worse than the 6.8 hits per nine innings he averaged over the previous four seasons. He

already has allowed two home runs after giving up just three all last season.

Melancon said he recently took a deep dive into the PITCHF/x and TruMedia metrics and was

encouraged that his peripheral numbers were similar to past years. He said his issue has been

location, which is fixable.

“That’s where I’ve gone wrong, so that’s good news for me,” he said.

What has gone wrong on a macro level with the Giants this season?

“I don’t know,” Melancon said. “I don’t think it’s a camaraderie thing. It’s more of, you know,

just playing a little bit better, more sound baseball.

“You’re constantly trying to think what’s the quickest way to get this thing turned around. I

didn’t really think one of the first three draft picks would be a part of that thought process, and

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I still don’t. You know, most of us are signed up for a long time. So we need to come together as

a group and start playing better.”

Melancon’s performance, his health concerns and his contract all keep him from being a

tradeable asset. Regardless, the Giants would not be looking to deal him. Even if they sell off a

few parts at the July 31 deadline, they are not wired for a rebuild. Realistic or not, they

anticipate returning to contention next season – and having a solid closer in Melancon will be a

part of their plan.

Melancon can opt out of his contract after 2018, though, and leave a pair of $14 million salaries

on the table.

For now, he and the Giants are joined together.

Melancon was excited for free agency last winter. He knew he would walk into a curated

market for his services as an All-Star closer. Every team that pursued him would have serious

aspirations of contending. Second-division clubs do not spend millions to protect leads that do

not exist.

He wasted little time picking the Giants and their guaranteed $62 million.

He does not feel like a knucklehead for doing so.

“Yeah, I have all the faith in the world in these guys,” Melancon said. “I still do. I don’t have the

secret sauce, but the potential is there. As long as we don’t buy in to being a losing team, then I

think we have a shot.”

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—

Outfielder Jarrett Parker will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Sacramento on Monday.

He hasn’t played since breaking his collarbone two weeks into the season. So he’s expected to

be there for several weeks as he tries to regain his timing at the plate.

—

Madison Bumgarner threw 25 pitches in Saturday’s simulated game at the Giants’ minor league

complex in Arizona. He is scheduled to throw another time against hitters in simulated game

conditions on Wednesday.

—

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Hunter Strickland suspension update: there is no update.

—

Hunter Pence gets a break after three miserable games in right field here. Brandon Belt returns

to the lineup, albeit moved down in the order. If the Giants hope to achieve even a modest

goal, such as playing .500 ball the rest of the way, they need greater contributions from those

two key players.

Lineups as the Giants try to beat the Rockies for just the second time in 11 games this season,

and avoid getting swept by Colorado for the first time in a four-game series (home or road) in

franchise history:

CSNbayarea.com

Nolan Arenado walks it off for cycle, hands Giants toughest loss in season full of them

Alex Pavlovic

DENVER — In a somber visiting clubhouse at Coors Field, a veteran position player shook his

head as he slowly peeled off his jersey.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” he said. “Do you think someone put a voodoo curse on us?”

That might be the best explanation at this point. Sure, the Giants are bad in a traditional way,

and they’re outmatched talent-wise against most of the teams in the National League at this

point, but losses like Sunday’s almost defy description.

Losers of 14 of their previous 18, the Giants appeared to have avoided their first ever four-

game sweep at the hands of the Rockies when Hunter Pence hit a pinch-hit, two-run homer in

the top of the ninth. Twenty-eight minutes later, they suffered the worst of their 45 losses to

date.

Nolan Arenado hit a three-run, walk-off homer off Mark Melancon to give the Rockies a 7-5

win. The blast, his 21st in just 80 career games against the Giants, clinched the cycle. Arenado

became the 31st player in MLB history to hit a walk-off homer to complete the cycle, and

afterward, he called it the best moment of his career.

The mood was much different down the hallway.

Melancon has two save opportunities in the last 22 days and he has blown them both. In the

first season of a four-year, $62 million deal, he has a 5.06 ERA and four blown saves in 14

chances.

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“My performance has been absolutely terrible,” Melancon said. “I need to be better. That’s it.”

Melancon, who spent time on the disabled list earlier this season with a right pronator strain,

said he is fine physically. Some others in the organization believe he is not 100 percent, though,

and his usage backs that up. The Giants aren’t giving their closer save opportunities, but Bochy

also is not using him in non-save situations. Melancon has pitched just four times in June.

Asked about the situation, Bochy backed up his closer.

“Mark could have come out better. I mean, look at those hits,” Bochy said. “A blooper in center

field, another one we couldn’t quite get to in center field, an eight-hopper between first and

second. Of course their guy (Arenado) came through but he should have fared a lot better than

what happened. He made great pitches. I mean, sure, there’s the home run at the end, but the

first hit the ball was on the dirt. He jammed (Charlie) Blackmon there and then made great

pitches on (DJ) LeMahieu. They just put it in play.”

There’s an alternative path, of course. Most of the game’s dominant closers get through the

ninth on strikeouts, but that has never been Melancon’s calling card. For years, his method has

worked beautifully, but in a park like Coors Field, relying on the BABIP Gods is a recipe for

disaster. All five Rockies who came to the plate in the ninth put the ball in play. While the hits

were relatively soft until Arenado’s, Melancon tipped his cap, saying Colorado’s lineup “has all

the tools.”

“I didn’t execute as good as I wanted to,” he said. “That’s why they were able to make contact.”

Three straight singles with one out put one run across, cutting into a two-run lead the Giants

had built in the top of the inning. Pence’s blast got Ty Blach off the hook for a loss on a day

when he pitched well and got burned by two solo shots in his final inning. Brandon Crawford,

who had homered early in the game, added an insurance run with a double. It wasn’t enough.

Melancon said he was trying to go in on Arenado, who already had a triple, single, and RBI

double. The world’s preeminent Giant-killer came up with runners on the corners.

“I was hoping to get a ground ball to short,” Melancon said.

The first pitch wasn’t in far enough and Arenado knocked it into the first row of the seats. He

raised his arms as the sold-out park shook and chanted “M-V-P.”

“It’s a dream come true,” Arenado said in an on-field interview. “My whole goal was to get the

ball in the outfield. We had a chance to tie the game, but thank God the ball went out.”

Arenado thanked the fans as he was showered with ice water. “It’s fun to be in Denver right

now,” he said.

The Giants couldn’t get to the airport fast enough.

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CSNbayarea.com

Instant analysis

Alex Pavlovic

DENVER — Pitching for the first time in 10 days, Mark Melancon found a familiar result.

The closer got his first save opportunity since June 8, and like that day in Milwaukee, Melancon

couldn’t hold on. The Rockies scored four in the ninth, winning on Nolan Arenado’s walk-off

homer that clinched a cycle for the Rockies superstar.

The Giants fell 7-5, losing for the 15th time in 19 games. The four-game sweep was Colorado’s

first ever against the Giants. Here are five things to know from all the earlier action ...

—- Hunter Pence’s homer in the ninth was the first pinch-hit blast of his career. He got a 96

mph heater from Jake McGee and put it well into the seats in left. The homer went an

estimated 440 feet.

—- Ty Blach, pitching in front of about 100 family members and friends, threw well in his first

Coors Field start. The Denver native gave up three runs in 6 2/3 innings, and two of them came

on solo homers in the seventh. Throw in a pinch-hit RBI single on Thursday and pinch-running

appearance Friday and that’s a pretty nice homecoming for the lefty.

—- Crawford hit his second oppo homer of the series in the fifth inning, bringing in the first runs

of the game. Crawford slumped through the last homestand, but he was 6 for 14 in the series at

Coors.

—- The other Brandon was hitless in 18 at-bats entering the day but he poked the first pitch he

saw from Tyler Chatwood for a single. Belt then struck out twice and flied out to deep center.

—- Nolan Arenado broke up Blach’s shutout with an RBI double in the sixth. This was Arenado’s

80th career game against the Giants. He has 32 doubles and 72 RBI. He also had a single and

triple Sunday.

17

CSNbayarea.com

Giants’ Jarrett parker to start rehab assignment Monday

Alex Pavlovic

DENVER — Jarrett Parker was supposed to spend Sunday morning taking some hacks against

Madison Bumgarner. Instead, the big lefty headed to Scottsdale to throw pitches on Saturday.

Parker didn’t join Bumgarner, but he’ll soon make a trip of his own.

Parker’s rehab assignment starts Monday with the Sacramento River Cats. He has not played

since suffering a fractured right clavicle on April 16, but he has been taking swings for several

weeks and finally felt ready to get back into games.

Parker was hitting just .143 when he got hurt, but Bruce Bochy felt he was finally starting to

find his swing in the at-bats leading up to the collision with the left field wall at AT&T Park. Left

field belongs to Austin Slater right now, and with a .386 average in 12 games, it doesn’t look like

Slater is going to be giving up any playing time. Still, this is an important rehab assignment for

the Giants.

They still need to figure out if Parker will be part of the 2018 mix, and it’s possible that he starts

to see serious time in right field. Hunter Pence has struggled offensively and defensively, and

there’s a sense with team officials that some veterans will start losing playing time soon. Parker

has played a bit of center field in the past and the Giants should probably figure out if he can

add that to the plate, too. The current backup plan in center has not worked.

--- As for Bumgarner, it was actually 25 pitches yesterday, not 40 as reporters were first told.

He’ll throw another simulated game Wednesday in Scottsdale, and then likely one more. If all

goes well, you’re probably looking at a rehab start sometime around June 29-30.

--- Ty Blach grew up a few minutes from Coors Field and used to come to games here all the

time. He’ll have about 100 family members and friends in the seats today, including his father,

Randy.

--- The Giants have never been swept by the Rockies in a four-game series. Those are the stakes

for Blach today.

18

MLB.com

Giants fall on Arenado’s walk-off homer

Chris Haft and Thomas Harding

DENVER -- Nolan Arenado completed an improbable cycle with a three-run homer off Mark

Melancon in the bottom of the ninth to give the National League West-leading Rockies a 7-5

victory to complete a four-game sweep of the Giants at Coors Field.

"It's getting loud here -- that's the loudest it's ever been," said Arenado, who was serenaded

with "MVP" chants after delivering the Rockies' colorful fifth straight win. "I think the fans and

people in general are starting to get the hint that we are for real."

Full Game Coverage

• Cast your Esurance All-Star ballot for Arenado and other #ASGWorthy players

Arenado's cycle is the eighth in Rockies history and the third by any player at Coors Field this

year, after the Padres' Wil Myers did it April 10 and the Nationals' Trea Turnercompleted the

feat April 26. No current park has seen more than two cycles in a season. Also, it was the 17th

cycle at Coors Field, which ties it with Fenway Park (opened in 1912) for most in a current park.

By the way, all cycles involving the Rockies -- by them or their opponents -- have occurred at

Coors Field.

The Giants had taken a 5-3 lead with three runs in the top of the ninth -- Hunter Pence's two-

run, pinch-hit homer and Brandon Crawford's RBI double against Jake McGee, before Carlos

Estevez fanned Buster Posey to end the frame.

"After Carlos struck out Posey, there was still life in the dugout," Rockies manager Bud Black

said. "There was a lot of, 'Come on, let's go.' 'We can do this.'"

Melancon, who hadn't pitched in 10 days, gave up one-out singles to Raimel Tapia, Charlie

Blackmon and DJ LeMahieu, whose hit drove in a run. Arenado became the Rockies second

player to finish a cycle with a walk-off homer. Carlos Gonzalez did it against the Cubs on July 31,

2010.

• Melancon laments 'absolutely terrible' results

Before the wild ending, the day belonged to Giants lefty starter Ty Blach, a Denver native who

was making his first start at Coors Field. His cheering section included his father, Randy, and his

mother, Karen. Blach's 6 2/3-inning, five-strikeout effort was marred by the last of the Rockies'

seven hits -- Trevor Story's seventh-inning leadoff homer, followed two batters later by Pat

Valaika's pinch-hit homer.

19

• Valaika, Arenado homer on Mother's Day, Father's Day

"It was pretty special," Blach said of his initial Denver start, "especially to do it on Father's Day. I

came to so many games here with my dad and my mom."

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Feeling that old, familiar pain: Often, and usually at home, Chatwood has suffered when walks

lead to home runs. He escaped most of his baserunners Sunday, but two batters after

walking Denard Span he watched Crawford's opposite-way fly ball -- 35-degree launch angle,

93.9 mph exit velocity -- clear the raised wall in the left-field corner.

Chatwood threw 114 pitches, gave up five hits and walked four in six innings.

"When he walked off the field when he was done, he gave up two runs in six innings," Black

said.

The man with the answer: For nearly three times through the batting order, no Rockies player

had an answer for Blach except for Arenado, who tripled in the first inning and singled in the

fourth. After LeMahieu drew a leadoff walk in the sixth, Arenado drove a double into left-center

to score LeMahieu and cut the Giants' lead to 2-1.

"Ty did a terrific job," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said.

QUOTABLE

"After they took that lead in the ninth inning, something special was going to happen, because

we never quit." -- Tapia, who also delivered a walk-off single in Thursday night's 10-9 victory

over the Giants. Tapia spoke in Spanish, with first-base coach Tony Diaz interpreting.

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

The Rockies are 44-0 this season when leading after seven innings.

AFTER THE BALL

A first-inning replay review (after a manager's challenge) overturned a call at second, made a

dazzling Rockies defensive play count, and gave Chatwood a much-needed double play. With

one out and runners at first and third, Rockies second baseman LeMahieu dove opposite his

momentum for Buster Posey's grounder and flipped to shortstop Story covering second. Story

relayed to first to retire Posey. Originally, Crawford was ruled safe at second, but the review

showed Story's foot beat Crawford's to the bag.

WHAT'S NEXT

20

Giants: San Francisco makes its initial visit to SunTrust Park, the Atlanta Braves' new

home. Johnny Cueto, who has won once in his last eight outings, will start for the Giants in

Monday's 4:35 p.m. PT series opener. He's 2-3 with a 3.58 ERA in eight lifetime appearances

against Atlanta.

Rockies: Righty German Marquez will start the opener of an important NL West series against

the D-backs -- like the Rockies, a team that has exceeded early predictions -- on Tuesday at

Coors at 6:4 p.m. MT.

MLB.com

Melancon laments ‘absolutely terrible’ results

Chris Haft

DENVER -- Since closers often are barometers of their team's success, Mark Melancon's self-

criticism may not have been too surprising.

Asked to evaluate his overall performance after yielding Nolan Arenado's game-winning, three-

run homer that sealed the Colorado Rockies' 7-5 victory Sunday over the Giants, Melancon

replied without hesitation.

Full Game Coverage

"My performance has been absolutely terrible," he said. "Yeah. I need to be better. That's it."

The same could be said of the Giants, who tumbled to their season-high sixth consecutive

defeat. That left them 19 1/2 games behind first-place Colorado in the National League West

standings.

The Giants appeared destined for a stirring victory after pinch-hitter Hunter Pence's two-run

homer fueled a three-run surge in the ninth inning that put them ahead, 5-3. Then Melancon

surrendered four consecutive one-out hits, a sequence punctuated by Arenado's homer, to

record his fourth blown save in 14 chances.

Asked whether his role in dissolving the euphoria following Pence's homer made this loss

particularly difficult to absorb, Melancon said, "A hundred percent. Gosh -- when we have the

lead in the ninth, lately, it's been a special day. For him to step in, pinch-hit and do that -- that's

a positive that we can take away from and start building on."

21

This was the first appearance since June 8 and only the second of the month for Melancon, who

signed a four-year, $62 million contract with the Giants last offseason. His lack of activity has

been partially due to the scarcity of save opportunities his teammates have provided for him.

He also spent time on the disabled list during May with a pronator strain in his throwing arm,

but on Sunday he described his health as "fine."

Said Pence, "I know how hard he works, I know what kind of guy he is and I believe in him a

hundred thousand percent. These things happen."

Melancon skirted excuses and blamed himself for his lapse.

"I didn't execute as good as I wanted to. That's why [the Rockies] were able to make contact,"

he said. Describing what he meant by execution, Melancon indicated his timing was off in his

delivery: "Just one more tick, and it's different."

There was some lamentation among the Giants over the hits preceding Arenado's homer.

Manager Bruce Bochy characterized pinch-hitter Raimel Tapia's single to center field as a

"blooper," called Charlie Blackmon's single "another [blooper] we couldn't quite get to" and

dismissed DJ LeMahieu's single as an "eight-hopper."

Melancon, summarized Bochy, "should have fared a lot better than what happened."

MLB.com

Cueto eyes encore performance vs. Braves

Jaylon Thompson

Johnny Cueto and R.A. Dickey will battle on Monday night in a rematch of their May 28

matchup as the Giants and Braves start a four-game series at SunTrust Park.

The Giants have been slumping since they last faced the Braves. They have lost five of their last

six series and come into Monday's game in last place in the National League West.

Full Game Coverage

Offensively, San Francisco ranks in the bottom-third of the league in batting average, slugging

22

percentage and on-base percentage. The Giants turn to Cueto, who looks to build off his recent

success and get the pitching staff back on track.

In eight career starts, Cueto is 2-3 with a 3.58 ERA against the Braves. On May 28, he pitched a

gem, allowing one run and striking out eight batters across six innings.

The Braves hope Dickey rebounds from his worst start of the season. He surrendered eight runs

and three homers in five innings on Tuesday. Dickey has a 4.15 ERA at home, but the Braves

have won his last three starts at SunTrust Park.

Dickey gave up seven runs (six earned) with five walks and two strikeouts over six innings in the

May 28 contest versus the Giants.

Three things to know to about this game:

• Entering Sunday, Giants infielder Eduardo Nunez has a 29-game on-base streak, the longest

current stretch in the Majors.

• Braves outfielder Matt Kemp is hitting .353 with three homers and three RBIs in 34 career at-

bats against Cueto.

• On one hand, when a batter swings at Cueto's changeup, he is missing 50.3 percent of the

time -- one of the highest whiff rates on that pitch of any pitcher. On the other hand, when

those batters do connect, they are doing damage. The 39 at-bats in which Cueto's changeup has

been put in play have produced six home runs and a whopping 1.026 slugging percentage,

which ranks as the highest slugging mark allowed with that pitch in MLB.