Schmitt's second career multi-homer game powers SF Giants to win over A's
WEST SACRAMENTO - Casey Schmitt found himself in something of a miniature slump.
Entering Saturday night, Schmitt had failed to reach base in his last nine plate appearances. In the Giants' series finale against the Dodgers, Schmitt struck out four times in a game for the first time in his career. Consider that mini slump a thing of the past.
Hours after the team placed Heliot Ramos on the injured list, Schmitt had four hits and blasted his seventh and eighth home runs of the season for the second multi-homer game of his career in the Giants' 6-4 win over the Athletics at Sutter Health Park.
"I just keep that confidence in myself," Schmitt said. "I'm not dwelling on past days or past mistakes. Every day's a new day for me. I try to just keep it as simple as that. A couple days ago, I struck out four times against the Dodgers, but just going in there and keeping it simple and not worrying about what happened in the past."
His blasts marked the second time during San Francisco's three-city road trip that a Giant has hit a pair of homers in a single game, the other being catcher Eric Haase against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Schmitt wasn't the only Giant who stuffed the box score Saturday. Second baseman Luis Arraez drew two walks, scored two runs and hit a double. Willy Adames had three hits and two RBIs. Rafael Devers had two hits and scored a run. Matt Chapman, who entered play hitting .083 in May, had an RBI double.
Right-hander Trevor McDonald turned in his second quality start in three games, allowing one earned run over 6 2/3 innings with five strikeouts and one walk. In three starts this season, McDonald has allowed five earned runs over 19 innings (2.37 ERA) with 17 strikeouts.
"In spring training, we knew this kid's tough, but so are all those other starters," Vitello said. "He's got good stuff, but other guys do, too. But he suffocates the strike zone, and as a former position player, there's just something about that that helps you play - or makes you play - better baseball."
"Watching him go out there and compete, he's got some really good stuff," Schmitt said. "For him to go out there and throw like he did again tonight was really special."
Left-hander Matt Gage, who leads National League relievers with 23 appearances, recorded the first save of his major league career with a scoreless ninth.
With right-hander Logan Webb nearing his return from right knee bursitis, the Giants' brass will soon have to decide whether they want to keep McDonald in the majors (potentially as a reliever) or send him back to Triple-A, and stay stretched out as a starter.
Schmitt gave the Giants an early 1-0 lead in the top of the first with a solo homer off A's starter Luis Severino, his seventh home run of the season.
Two innings later, Adames expanded the advantage to 3-0 in the third with an opposite-field, two-run single. Two more innings later, Schmitt poked one off the right-field foul pole for his second homer of the night, a two-run shot that expanded the Giants' lead to 5-0.
The A's scored their first run of the evening when Jeff McNeil drove in a run on a fielder's choice, but the Giants got that run back in the seventh with Chapman's double.
"It makes everything easier when the bats are rolling like that," McDonald said. "It just gives you comfort and some freedom out there, really. There's not as much pressure. You just get out there and try to make the innings quick and let them get back to doing it."
Brent Rooker cut into the Giants' lead in the bottom of the eighth with a three-run homer off reliever Caleb Kilian, trimming San Francisco's lead to 6-4.
Up next
Adrian Houser (1-4, 5.79 ERA) will take the mound against the Athletics' Jeffrey Springs (3-3, 4.22 ERA) on Sunday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. as the Giants attempt to win the series.
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