.180 Hitter Wins It, and One Manager's Quote Tells You Everything About the Giants' Wild Road Trip

Man, you gotta see what went down in Chicago. While our Mariners were out there handling business, the San Francisco Giants just wrapped up a brutal, 10-game road trip across Denver, Milwaukee, and the Windy City. This trip had *everything*: monster wins by 15 and 13 runs, but also a couple of gut-wrenching walk-off losses that'll make you scream at your screen. And let me tell you, their latest loss to the Cubs, a 3-2 walk-off on Saturday, sums up their whole vibe right now. Their manager, Tony Vitello, didn't mince words after that one, and it paints a clear picture.

Grand Slams Don't Pay the Bills When You Can't Close

You know, sometimes a team does something so wild, you almost forget their struggles. The Giants actually pulled off a rare feat on this trip, hitting grand slams in all three cities. Only two other teams in MLB history, the 1983 California Angels and the 2023 Houston Astros, have done that on a three-city swing. That's legitimately cool, right? But then you look at Saturday's game. They were up 2-1 in the ninth inning, one out away from their fifth win on the trip, and they blew it. Again. This was their fifth loss *this season* when leading in the ninth or later. You can practically hear the collective groan from their fanbase. Vitello was visibly frustrated, talking about poor execution in the tenth inning. He said it directly: "You've got to get that (automatic) runner over to third base, then get your knock (hit)." And guess what? "Then we ended up not getting the knock." Oof. That's the cold, hard truth of it right there. Eric Haase never moved from second in the top of the 10th. Brutal.

The Slumping .180 Hitter Who Didn't Even Bat

And then there's the truly wild part of that walk-off loss. The Cubs only needed four pitches in the bottom of the tenth to get it done. Michael Busch singled to right field, sending their automatic runner, Dansby Swanson, to third. Then, in a moment of pure chaos, Giants right fielder Victor Bericoto had the ball roll right under his glove as he rushed to prevent Swanson from scoring. Turns out, Swanson was being held at third anyway, but that error just gifted the Cubs the win. Here's the kicker: Swanson, who scored the winning run, came in as a pinch runner. Why is that a big deal? Because Cubs manager Craig Counsell had announced *before the game* that Swanson was taking "a few days away from the game" to work through a batting slump. The guy's average had plummeted to .180! He scored the winning run without even swinging a bat. Counsell even said they hadn't seen "many signs of positive results" from Swanson's hitting sessions and he'd likely sit Sunday out too. Talk about an ironic twist! The Giants will be ready to just be home after this grind, kicking off a new series against Washington on Monday. They'll have right-hander Trevor McDonald, 2-3 with a 4.50 ERA, on the mound for the finale against the Cubs. He's a young 25-year-old, never faced Chicago, and he's allowed three or fewer runs in five of his six starts this season. Meanwhile, our Mariners just shut down the Detroit Tigers 4-0. That's what we love to see, right? Steady wins, taking care of business. Let's keep that energy going back here in the Emerald City!

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.