Happy birthday, Yaz: Homer seals sweep

SAN FRANCISCO -- On his 30th birthday, Mike Yastrzemski continued to take flight for the Giants.

For the second consecutive game, Yastrzemski drove in the go-ahead run for San Francisco, homering in the sixth inning to help the Giants complete a three-game sweep of the D-backs with a 6-1 win in Sunday afternoon’s series finale at Oracle Park.

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With the game tied, 1-1, Yastrzemski golfed a 3-2 changeup from Arizona right-hander Luke Weaver out to the Giants’ bullpen in left-center field for his seventh home run of the season. He became the first Giants player to homer on his birthday since Gorkys Hernandez on Sept. 7, 2016, at Colorado.

“You can’t write that stuff,” Yastrzemski said. “It’s just been really fun to have these opportunities and try to make the most of them. The most important thing is it’s been fun and we’ve been winning games.”

The moment capped a festive weekend for the Yastrzemski family, which also celebrated Hall of Famer Carl Yastrzemski’s 81st birthday on Saturday. The younger Yastrzemski gifted his grandfather what manager Gabe Kapler called the club’s “best catch of the year,” as he made a sensational leaping grab at the right-field wall to rob Ketel Marte of extra bases and help left-hander Tyler Anderson log his first career complete game.

Yastrzemski’s performance against the D-backs encapsulates the all-around play that has made the late-bloomer into a star for the Giants in 2020. A little over a year since making his Major League debut as a 28-year-old rookie, Yastrzemski has turned himself into a bonafide National League MVP candidate, batting .309 with a 1.074 OPS, seven homers, 23 RBIs and 23 walks over 30 games. He entered Sunday leading the Majors with 2.1 WAR, according to FanGraphs.

“I think he’s become more and more patient and assertive on pitches that he can drive in or out of the zone,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “I think what’s standing out to me is the patience and the confidence.”

At the season’s halfway point, the Giants (14-16) are suddenly riding a six-game win streak that has thrust them back into the NL Wild Card picture with eight days to go until the Trade Deadline. The surge is reminiscent of the club’s 19-6 run in July last year, which prompted president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi to hold on to his two biggest trade chips -- Madison Bumgarner and Will Smith -- while dealing from his surplus of bullpen arms.

It’s hard to predict how teams will behave at this year’s Trade Deadline given the unusual circumstances of the 2020 season, but the Giants believe the expanded playoffs will give them an opportunity to contend and stay together through the end of the season.

“It feels like [last July], but it also feels a little more complete,” Yastrzemski said. “I feel like we’re doing things on both sides and we’re really comfortable where we are. We’re feeling good. Hopefully we’ll be able to ride it for a little bit longer than we did last year.”

The Giants have been receiving contributions from up and down their roster during their recent hot stretch, most notably from their starting rotation, which has logged a 2.48 ERA over the last six games. San Francisco’s rotation took some hits early this season after losing Drew Smyly and Jeff Samardzija to injuries, but the group has now solidified behind Johnny Cueto, Kevin Gausman, Logan Webb, Anderson and Trevor Cahill, who struck out eight over 5 1/3 innings of one-run ball on Sunday.

“Hitting is contagious, pitching is contagious,” Cahill said. “Watching these guys pitch, I feel like the ceiling was there, the capability was there. I think the last time through the rotation, everybody kind of came out. We also have guys making plays, where if they don’t make those plays, it could be a long inning.”

Cahill benefited from one of those defensive highlights on Sunday, as top prospect Joey Bart made an impressive tumbling catch in front of the Giants’ dugout on a popup in foul territory in the fifth inning.

“I’m like, ‘There’s no way he catches it all the way down there,’” Cahill said. “And then he did like a weird, somersault, Spider-Man catch. I just told him, ‘Dude, that’s going to be a web gem.’”

After ramping up their starters slowly to give them time to safely build up their arms, the Giants have finally begun to receive more consistent length from their rotation, which has helped take some of the pressure off their beleaguered bullpen, which entered Sunday with a 5.86 ERA, the second-worst mark in the Majors behind the Phillies.

The offense has been rolling as well, outscoring opponents by a 42-13 margin over the last six games. Alex Dickerson also homered on Sunday, launching a three-run shot that gave the Giants a comfortable 5-1 lead in the seventh inning.

“In 60 games, anybody has a shot, it doesn’t even matter where you’re at in any division right now,” Dickerson said. “If you can get hot and maintain that for just over a month -- and we did it last year -- you’re in the playoffs. We’re starting to feel it. You take a peek at the standings now and then and see us moving up, that’s what you play for.”

The challenge for the Giants will be to sustain their momentum against the first-place Dodgers, who arrive at Oracle Park on Tuesday for their final clash of the season.

“I believe in this club,” Kapler said. “I believe in the resilient nature of this club, I believe in the offensive strides we’ve made. Obviously, the starting pitching has been one of the strengths of this club; I believe in our capability from every angle right now.”