Webb’s dominant outing leads Giants to shutout win over Rockies
SAN FRANCISCO (Interstat) — On a day of individual milestones that secured a symbolic finish for the franchise, Logan Webb authored a fitting final chapter to his dominant season, pitching the San Francisco Giants to a 4-0 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Sunday evening at Oracle Park.
In a crisp game that took just 2 hours and 18 minutes, Webb struck out eight over 5 1/3 scoreless innings to clinch the National League strikeout title and cap a season in which he also led the majors in innings pitched. His performance, backed by solo home runs from Willy Adames and Rafael Devers and a key two-run single from Jung Hoo Lee, sealed a .500 season for the Giants, who finished with 81 wins and 81 losses.
The Rockies, meanwhile, concluded a historically difficult campaign with their 119th loss against just 43 wins.
Webb (15-11) was masterful from the outset, setting the tone by striking out the side in the top of the first inning. He allowed just three hits and walked none before handing the game over to the bullpen. His final strikeout total of 224 and innings pitched total of 207 made him the first Giants pitcher to lead the league in both categories since Bill Voiselle in 1944.
San Francisco’s offense provided an immediate spark. In the bottom of the first, Adames launched a solo home run to center field off Rockies starter McCade Brown (0-5). The blast was Adames’ 30th of the year, making him the first Giant to reach that milestone since Barry Bonds hit 45 in 2004.
The Giants added to their lead in the fourth inning when Devers connected for his 35th home run of the season, a solo shot to center field that made it 2-0.
Colorado’s best scoring chance came in the fifth inning. After Webb had retired the first two batters, Kyle Karros and Warming Bernabel hit back-to-back singles. But Webb escaped the jam by getting Ryan Ritter to ground out to shortstop.
The Rockies managed five hits in total but never seriously threatened again, as the Giants’ bullpen was flawless. Spencer Bivens was particularly dominant, striking out three over two perfect innings to record his third save of the season.
San Francisco put the game out of reach in the eighth inning. Heliot Ramos walked and, after a fielder’s choice and an error by shortstop Ezequiel Tovar, both Ramos and Rafael Devers were in scoring position with two outs. Lee then delivered the decisive blow, lining a single to right field that scored both runners, extending the lead to 4-0.
Bivens returned to the mound in the ninth and struck out the side, sealing the shutout before a crowd of 37,536.
The victory gave the Giants a three-game sweep of the season-ending series against their division rivals and provided a positive end to an otherwise middling year. For the Rockies, the loss was a final punctuation mark on a season of profound struggle, ending a 10-game losing streak in which they were outscored 57-18.