Tough first inning costs Webb despite strong rebound

TORONTO -- The first inning was out of character. The bounce-back was anything but.

Logan Webb posted arguably the worst first inning of his Major League career in the Giants’ 6-1 loss to the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on Wednesday night, allowing five runs on six hits in the opening frame. Both are career-worst marks for Webb since he arrived in the Majors in 2019.

It was more than enough for Toronto to even the series, as San Francisco’s bats struggled to create opportunities for a comeback. But Webb locked in after that ugly first, giving his team four more clean innings and allowing the bullpen a chance to breathe.

“I don’t think it was about Logan,” manager Gabe Kapler said after the loss. “I think it was about their hitters. They did a nice job of jumping on his pitches early in counts and getting just enough barrel on it.”

Some of it was bad luck; some of it was execution. And some of it was simply the reality of facing a dangerous lineup. Still, Webb’s early struggles were an unusual sight, especially considering he entered with a 2.25 ERA in the first inning this season.

Webb allowed three consecutive hits to open his start in Toronto, including a Bo Bichette RBI single and an RBI double by former teammate Brandon Belt. Webb followed that by retiring Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Matt Chapman, and for a moment, it looked like things would stay manageable.

But the Blue Jays seemed determined to swing early and often, especially against the sinker, and a pair of unconventional RBI doubles quickly widened the gap.

The first came from Daulton Varsho, who chopped a sinker past LaMonte Wade Jr. and into right field. Whit Merrifield then blooped another sinker into right for an extra-base hit with an exit velocity of 72.3 mph. There was no doubt about the fifth RBI of the inning, though, as Danny Jansen smoked a single at 109 mph to cap the first-inning scoring.

“Just, you know, baseball things,” said Webb. “Not great pitches, not great execution by me, not getting into good counts. Yeah, just a bad job by me.”

Four of the six first-inning hits against Webb came off his trusted sinker. His changeup, which sports a run value of -13, accounted for the other two hits, including Belt’s RBI double.

“I know Brandon hits balls down and in the middle of the zone really well,” said Webb. “I threw a couple to him there, so … respect.”

There was some clear frustration, but to Webb’s credit, he didn’t take it with him to the rest of the game. Instead, he settled in, retiring 12 of the last 14 batters he faced and keeping Toronto off the scoreboard.

“I just tried to get as many innings as I could,” said Webb. “It was still the same game plan, we just executed better.”

That was evident in the stats, too. Webb didn’t shy away from the sinker even after those early woes, though he did mix in some sliders and a four-seamer in addition to his primary pitch and the changeup.

Execution and mentality were at the core of his improvements.

Webb finished his outing with five runs on eight hits, five strikeouts and no walks over five frames. Ross Stripling took over for the next three innings, yielding one run with three strikeouts in his first outing since being reinstated from the injured list on Sunday.

“We covered the game with two pitchers,” said Kapler. “That's maybe the only silver lining from tonight.”

Another positive may have been Austin Slater’s second homer of the year, which traveled a Statcast-projected 402 feet to center field and left his bat at 105.3 mph in the fifth inning.

Slater came in off the bench after Michael Conforto exited in the top of the second with left hamstring discomfort. Conforto “felt a little something” after colliding with the sidewall as he made a catch in foul ground for the second out of the first inning, and he’s considered day to day, according to Kapler.

There wasn’t much more to the Giants’ offense other than the homer, however, as San Francisco failed to capitalize on the Blue Jays’ bullpen game, mustering just six hits on the night.