Once again, the Giants could not get the job done, losing 5-2 on the road to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Thursday. Rookie pitcher Blade Tidwell took the mound, and while he threw well for most of his outing, a rough first inning was enough to spoil the Giants’ efforts and send them to New York on a sour note after spoiling another chance to claim a series victory.Reflecting on his start, Tidwell knew that he needed to pitch a good game and avoid forcing the Giants to go deep into their ailing bullpen. Tidwell struck out five batters in five innings, while walking five and allowing two runs on two hits but it took digging deep after a 40-pitch first inning to get through the rest of the game.
“Just didn’t come out the sharpest,” Tidwell told reporters postgame about his first inning. “After coming back in I knew our bullpen has been hurting so, I had to find a way to get through at least five [innings].”
At one point in the game, Tidwell needed a spark, and after a mound visit from pitching coach Justin Meccage, something clicked. Speaking on what Meccage told Tidwell, manager Tony Vitello kept it simple.