{"id":3062,"date":"2026-06-25T23:11:59","date_gmt":"2026-06-25T23:11:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=3062"},"modified":"2026-06-25T23:11:59","modified_gmt":"2026-06-25T23:11:59","slug":"sf-giants-bullpen-melts-down-again-blows-four-run-lead-to-athletics-to-prevent-first-series-sweep","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=3062","title":{"rendered":"SF Giants bullpen melts down again, blows four-run lead to Athletics to prevent first series sweep"},"content":{"rendered":"
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SAN FRANCISCO \u2014 If the Giants are going to claw their way out of the massive hole they\u2019ve dug for themselves, they\u2019re going to need to win a lot of baseball games in a very short time. Recording a sweep would certainly help.<\/p>\n

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The team\u2019s troublesome bullpen let another opportunity slip away.<\/p>\n

San Francisco\u2019s relievers allowed seven runs over the final three innings, the crescendo being when closer Caleb Kilian allowed four runs in the top of the ninth. A 6-2 lead and potential sweep turned into an absolute gutpunch of a 9-6 loss to the A\u2019s on Thursday afternoon at Oracle Park.<\/p>\n

Kilian entered in the top of the ninth inning to protect a 6-5 lead and was one out away from recording a save when the A\u2019s Jonah Heim snuck an opposite-field single past the outstretched dive of third baseman Matt Chapman. Henry Bolte scored the tying run, and the disaster was just getting started.<\/p>\n

Lawrence Butler followed Heim with an RBI single, giving the A\u2019s a one-run lead, then Max Muncy expanded the green and gold\u2019s advantage to 9-6 on a two-run bloop single.<\/p>\n

Victor Bericoto, wearing a \u201cVZ\u201d on the side of his cap after multiple devastating earthquakes struck his native Venezuela on Wednesday, became the first Giant since Dusty Rhodes in 1953 to record a home run and outfield assist in consecutive games<\/p>\n

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Before Bericoto\u2019s two-run blast in the sixth, right fielder Jung Hoo Lee continued making his case for his first All-Star appearance with a bases-clearing, two-out triple. The Athletics\u2019 Butler went all out to field Lee\u2019s fading line drive but couldn\u2019t corral the ball on the dive, allowing three runs to score.<\/p>\n

Landen Roupp made his first start at Oracle Park since the Pride Night controversy on June 12, when he wrote a Bible verse on the team\u2019s special Pride caps. He received a smattering of boos during introductions, then Roupp turned in a second straight quality start, allowing two earned runs over six innings with six strikeouts to one walk.<\/p>\n

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Roupp helped his own cause by making a nifty play to turn two in the sixth, spearing a comebacker behind his back before firing to shortstop Willy Adames to kick-start a 1-6-3 double play. The right-hander also got an assist from Bericoto, who recorded his second outfield assist in the last two days by firing a 94.2 mph seed to second base to throw out Tyler Soderstrom.<\/p>\n

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Worth noting<\/strong><\/p>\n