Tony Vitello thinks Logan Webb’s imperfect start vs. Padres will be a ‘favorite’

SAN DIEGO — If you looked at the box score Tuesday night, you wouldn’t be surprised to know that Logan Webb screamed into his glove as he came off the mound after one of the innings. But the actual inning when it happened would probably be a shock.Webb struck out Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill in the fifth, a sequence that might go down as one of the most impressive — on paper, at least — of his career. But that didn’t bring the smile back to his face. He had some words with himself as he came off the mound. Logan Webb plowed through Tatis, Machado and Merrill in the fifth pic.twitter.com/e3CQi3SXMM — SF Giants on NBCS (&commat;NBCSGiants) April 1, 2026 For the staff ace, this first week has been a grind. Webb allowed just three runs over six innings in Tuesday’s 9-3 win, but the bullpen was up in the third after getting loose in the second inning of his rocky debut last Wednesday. Webb gave up just three hits Tuesday but walked four, which he called “not acceptable at all.”These first two starts aren’t totally what Tony Vitello probably expected as he prepared for his first season with Webb. But Vitello said he actually came away from Tuesday more impressed with his ace. “I just think it showed his guts,” Vitello said. “I was talking about (this) to Logan and the other coaches: That will be one of my favorite outings of the year, even though you could take a step back and say it was one of the uglier ones too at times. It just showed a lot of guts.”Vitello said there were about a half-dozen times when it seemed the coaching staff would have to pull the plug. But he never went out and got the ball from Webb. After 104 pitches — and 10 straight outs to end his night — the right-hander walked into the dugout and shook Vitello’s hand.“Subconsciously or consciously, he wouldn’t let us take him out of the game,” Vitello said. Webb admitted it has been a struggle early on to find his mechanics, and he made a change midstream on Tuesday to try to get back on track. He also smiled when the obvious question came up.Is this related to the World Baseball Classic?“I’ve been waiting for that question,” he said. “No, I don’t think so. I signed up for that, it’s what I chose to do. Yeah there is some different travel and some different atmospheres that I went through and adrenaline, but if I was tired hypothetically, it’s my own fault. I feel great right now. It’s not that. “I just think I’m a little off, to be honest. I’m trying to figure it out as we go, and luckily it’s a long baseball season.”That was the mantra on the other side of the ball after the season-opening sweep, and on Tuesday, just about everybody figured it out. Willy Adames had four hits, including his second career leadoff homer. Jung Hoo Lee had three, including a couple of doubles. Matt Chapman hit a solo homer early to help pad the lead for Webb, who for years has gotten the worst run support in the league. The most impressive play, though, might have been an infield single. Rafael Devers got down the line at an above-average 27.8 feet-per-second in the sixth to beat a throw to first and help extend a four-run rally. That’s the kind of effort that wins you a few extra games over 162.“I mean, Rafi is hauling butt around the bases,” Vitello said. “When he gets into his stride he’s got some speed to him, but the biggest thing is he’s just trying to win. If we were guilty of anything early in the season it was just trying so hard. He’s trying to win.“When you’re gripping a fastball or slider, try-hard can hurt you, but the baserunning deal, once you know a ball is down and you’ve got an opportunity to haul butt, these guys in my opinion have been hustling around the bases when they’ve got the opportunity to.” They're calling Rafael Devers the fastest man to ever live pic.twitter.com/c4rtBV65RJ — SF Giants on NBCS (&commat;NBCSGiants) April 1, 2026 The infield single was one of 16 hits on the night. That will go down as one of the better offensive nights of the year, but it’s also not too far from what the Giants envision doing every night. The strength of this roster is the depth of the lineup, along with the consistency atop the lineup. The bats came around Tuesday, and Webb figures it won’t be much longer before he’s back to being himself. “I’ve been working with the pitching coaches and have done a lot of different things to try to get it back to just neutral,” he said. “It’s been really fun to work with them and this whole week has been a blast to do some new things, try some new things, get back to normal.“I wish I could take one inning away (tonight). I feel like that’s been the story of these first two games, but I’ll keep working to try to figure it out.”Download and follow the Giants Talk Podcast

Tony Vitello thinks Logan Webb’s imperfect start vs. Padres will be a ‘favorite’

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