What we learned as Robbie Ray’s eight-inning gem fuels Giants’ win vs. Braves

SAN FRANCISCO – For a team that has essentially given away a handful of games this season due to sometimes shaky defense and starting pitching, the Giants finally had the pendulum swing in their favor.On a sunshine-filled Sunday at Oracle Park, the Giants caught a few breaks and scored both of their runs on errors to back a superb outing by Robbie Ray, the combination pairing for a 3-2 win over the Atlanta Braves. Put the ball in play, and good things happen pic.twitter.com/eyhoP0ZdZt — SF Giants on NBCS (&commat;NBCSGiants) June 28, 2026Matt Chapman and Luis Arraez paced the offense with two hits apiece. Heliot Ramos singled and scored in his first game back from the injured list. Six of San Francisco’s starting position players had at least one hit, and Drew Gilbert singled as a pinch hitter. Put the ball in play, and good things happen: Part 2 pic.twitter.com/1bfBJ9PiD9 — SF Giants on NBCS (&commat;NBCSGiants) June 28, 2026That was more than enough on an afternoon when Ray was almost untouchable. He allowed four hits and one unearned run over eight solid innings with two strikeouts and one walk.After pitching out of a jam in the seventh, Ray was touched for an unearned run in the eighth following third baseman Matt Chapman’s one-out fielding error.Beyond that, Ray was a beast.Ray’s day capped a strong past week for Giants’ starting pitchers. In the last seven games, San Francisco’s starting rotation has a 1.53 ERA (7 runs/48 innings).Caleb Killian allowed a run in the ninth and got his sixth save of the 2026 MLB season.Ray was perfect through four innings, setting down all 12 batters he faced with relative ease. Matt Olson ended the streak when he singled up the middle leading off the fifth.Arraez got the Giants’ offense going in the sixth with a leadoff single. Ramos followed with another single before Rafael Devers hit a short infield dribbler. Braves third baseman Austin Riley fielded the ball but made a wild throw toward first, allowing Ramos to score.A second error in the inning, this one by second baseman Ozzie Albies, allowed another run to score for San Francisco.Here are the takeaways from Sunday:Ray of HopeRay was flat-out dominant all afternoon in what was a second consecutive strong outing after his gem against the Athletics last week. He was perfect through four innings then settled down quickly after Matt Olson broke up the no-hit bid in the fifth, giving San Francisco’s beleaguered bullpen a needed break.Backed by some solid defense behind him, Ray didn’t even seem to break a sweat as he breezed through the Braves lineup. Ten of the first 12 outs he recorded came via strikeout or balls that didn’t get beyond the infield.Coming on the heels of Logan Webb’s outstanding start on Saturday, the Giants’ 1-2 pitching punch is finding a good groove, and the timing couldn’t be better.Chappy Leads it OffManager Tony Vitello’s season-long search for a leadoff hitter landed back on the shoulders of Chapman, who was atop the Giants’ batting order for the fourth time this season.Chapman’s season, at least offensively, hasn’t been anywhere near what most people expected, but he has done some of his best work hitting leadoff. The veteran third baseman was batting .250 with five walks from that spot before going 2-for-4 on Sunday.Because he possesses one of the bigger bats in Vitello’s lineup, Chapman isn’t likely to remain in the leadoff spot for long. But he’ll continue to be an option for that job until someone else emerges and takes control.The five-time Gold Glove infielder also flashed some glove love when he made a lunging, tumbling catch off a smoked line drive by Drake Baldwin in the second inning. Chapman was charged with a fielding error in the eighth. Chappy the vaccuum cleaner pic.twitter.com/EMvGvvucXf — SF Giants on NBCS (&commat;NBCSGiants) June 28, 2026Giants on Sale, FinallyThe Giants finally slayed the dragon that is Chris Sale.For several seasons, the nine-time MLB All-Star and former Cy Young Award winner had dominated San Francisco’s lineup with relative ease. Sale also carried a 36-inning scoreless streak into Oracle Park, which was the longest active streak by a starting pitcher in Major League Baseball this season.The Giants immediately put pressure on Sale and had runners on base in the first four innings before breaking through in the sixth.It’s Sale’s first loss to the Giants in five career starts.Download and follow the Giants Talk Podcast

What we learned as Robbie Ray’s eight-inning gem fuels Giants’ win vs. Braves

Trending News