Logan Webb won his fourth consecutive start with 7 2/3 shutout innings, Grant McCray recorded his first two big-league hits, including a home run, and the San Francisco Giants salvaged one win in their four-game home series against the Atlanta Braves with a 6-0 victory Thursday afternoon.
Casey Schmitt also homered for the Giants, who began the showdown series 1 1/2 games behind the Braves in the National League wild-card race and needed Thursday’s win to finish it 3 1/2 games back.
Webb (11-8) didn’t allow a run for the second time in his last four starts, limiting the Braves to four hits and one walk. He struck out seven.
The All-Star has lowered his ERA from 3.72 to 3.17 by allowing just two runs in his last 29 1/3 innings.
Playing in his second major league game, McCray got the Giants on the board in the second with a bases-loaded squeeze bunt that plated a sliding Jerar Encarnacion. The bunt was ruled a hit, McCray’s first.
When Tyler Fitzgerald followed with a sacrifice fly off Braves starter Max Fried (7-7), the Giants had a 2-0 lead.
Fried and Webb traded zeroes after that until the last of the sixth, when the Atlanta left-hander walked Mike Yastrzemski with one out and was pulled from the game. He then watched Schmitt belt his fifth homer, a two-run shot, off Braves reliever Jesse Chavez before McCray went deep with a solo blast.
Fried was charged with three runs on five hits in 5 1/3 innings. He walked three and struck out five.
Back-to-back doubles by Heliot Ramos and Matt Chapman completed the scoring in the seventh.
Webb’s day ended after Ramon Laureano drew a walk and Whit Merrifield singled with two outs in the eighth. Tyler Rogers came on to retire Michael Harris II on a fly to left to maintain the shutout.
Schmitt finished with three hits for the Giants, who snapped a four-game losing streak. Yastrzemski scored twice after a single and a walk.
All four Braves hits were singles as Atlanta fell to 4-3 on a 10-game trip that continues Friday against the Los Angeles Angels.
–Field Level Media