Rodón reaches 200-K milestone in Giants' walk-off win

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants appear destined to miss the playoffs this year, but most players will still have plenty to play for in September, especially pending free agents such as Carlos Rodón.

Rodón certainly appears motivated to finish strong, as he continues to put the final touches on one of the most dominant campaigns by a starting pitcher in San Francisco history. The 29-year-old left-hander secured his first career 200-strikeout season after punching out 10 over six shutout innings in the Giants’ 5-3 walk-off win over the Phillies on Sunday afternoon at Oracle Park.

“It doesn’t really tell the story of how good a player is, but it certainly tells the story of how durable a player is,” manager Gabe Kapler said of Rodón’s milestone. “With Carlos inching towards the finish line, you can see the light at the end of the tunnel. This is an indication that he’s really had a durable, consistent and very impressive overall season.”

Rodón, who lowered his ERA to 2.92 over 27 starts this year, now ranks second in the Majors with 201 strikeouts, trailing only Yankees ace Gerrit Cole (204). His nine double-digit strikeout performances this year are tied with Tim Lincecum and Jason Schmidt for the most in a single season for the Giants since 1900.

Rodón saved his biggest K’s for when he needed them the most, striking out the side to leave the bases loaded in the sixth. The Giants led, 3-0, behind a trio of fourth-inning RBI singles from LaMonte Wade Jr., Austin Wynns and Bryce Johnson -- his first career hit and RBI -- but the Phillies threatened by putting runners on the corners with no outs after Rhys Hoskins doubled and advanced to third on a single by Alec Bohm.

That brought up reigning National League MVP Bryce Harper, who went down swinging on a 97.6 mph fastball above the zone. J.T. Realmuto followed with a walk to load the bases with one out, but Rodón managed to keep the Phillies off the board by fanning Jean Segura and Bryson Stott for his 200th and 201st strikeouts, respectively.

“I’ve never done it. It’s a cool feat,” said Rodón, whose previous career high was the 185 strikeouts he notched for the White Sox last year. “But there’s a handful of games left, so just keep going.”

The Giants flashed a congratulatory message on their scoreboard after Rodón finished off Segura with a low slider to reach the impressive plateau, and he received another standing ovation from the sellout crowd when he escaped the jam by getting Stott to swing through a 98 mph heater on his 106th pitch of the day.

The two-time All-Star roared after finally getting through the 36-pitch sixth, walking off the field as his warm-up song, Alice in Chains’ “Rooster,” blared through the ballpark.

“I was a little fired up,” Rodón said. “That sixth inning, they made it tough. They strung together some really good at-bats. They hit some good sliders and they went deep into counts. … It’s a good lineup. It really is.”

Rodón was in line to earn his 13th win of the season, but the Giants nearly squandered his gem after John Brebbia surrendered a game-tying, three-run home run to Realmuto in the eighth. Still, Wilmer Flores saved the day by drilling a two-run homer off David Robertson to snap a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the ninth and help San Francisco finish off its first three-game home sweep of the Phillies since June 1-3, 2018.

Johnson, playing in only his sixth career Major League game, set up the rally by drawing a leadoff walk against Robertson, who then misplaced a first-pitch slider that Flores yanked down the left-field line for his 17th home run of the year. It was Flores’ fifth career walk-off homer and his 11th walk-off RBI since 2014, tied with Josh Donaldson for the most in the Majors over that span.

“I thought it was a pretty gutsy effort by the group,” Kapler said. “It was certainly led by Carlos. He set the tone early in the game.”

The Giants signed Rodón to a two-year, $44 million deal over the offseason, but he earned the right to opt out of the final year of his contract after crossing the 110-inning threshold in July. If he finishes the year healthy, he’s almost certain to re-enter the free-agent market, especially now that he appears poised to land an even more lucrative deal this winter.

The Giants allowed another All-Star starter, Kevin Gausman, to depart via free agency last offseason, so it remains to be seen if they’ll be willing to re-sign Rodón to a long-term deal, especially with Logan Webb, Anthony DeSclafani, Alex Wood, Alex Cobb and Jakob Junis each under team control next year.

Still, Rodón seems to have enjoyed his tenure in San Francisco so far, praising Giants fans for continuing to pack the ballpark even with the club a distant eight games back of the Phillies in the NL Wild Card race.

“We lost seven straight before [the sweep],” Rodón said. “It’s nice to still have fans in the stands. We have very faithful fans. Giants fans are probably the best fans in the game. I’m grateful for them.”