Giants' record in Ray starts remains perfect as Walker rebounds in win over Cubs

Justice delos Santos, The Mercury News on May 7, 2025

Published in Baseball

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CHICAGO — The San Francisco Giants have yet to get Justin Verlander a win. When Robbie Ray takes the mound, all they can do is win.

Ray pitched six innings of one-run ball and closer Ryan Walker bounced back from Tuesday night’s costly outing to record a save as the Giants beat the Chicago Cubs, 3-1, to take two of three in the Windy City. San Francisco’s record when Ray starts improved to 8-0.

Following Ray’s departure from the ballgame, manager Bob Melvin stuck with his typical late inning formula: Camilo Doval for the seventh, Tyler Rogers for the eighth and Walker — who couldn’t hold Tuesday night’s two-run lead — for the ninth.

Following Doval’s scoreless seventh and Rogers’ scoreless eighth, Walker, once again, took the mound in the ninth inning with a two-run lead — the exact circumstances he inherited the previous night. This time around, Walker shut the door.

Walker allowed a leadoff single to Carson Kelly but immediately followed up by inducing a double play. The right-hander then got former Stanford star Nico Hoerner to ground out to record his seventh save of the season.

LaMonte Wade Jr., Christian Koss and Wilmer Flores, who tallied three hits, all drove in a run apiece for the Giants (24-14).

Ray has recorded a quality start in each of his last three outings, allowing three earned runs over 20 innings with 21 strikeouts to five walks. The left-hander has a 2.84 ERA over 44 1/3 innings this season.

Ray was far more efficient in the second half of his outing. The left-hander needed 65 pitches to complete his first three innings; in the third inning alone, Ray threw 33 pitches. To complete innings four, five and six, by contrast, Ray only needed 33 pitches.

The Giants are off Thursday — just their second in the past 28 days — before opening a three-game series at Minnesota on Friday.

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