DENVER — For a while, it looked like Steven Duggar's breakthrough with the Giants had finally arrived.

Long known for his elite speed and defense, Duggar began to show enough at the plate to briefly seize the everyday job in center field earlier this year. A roster crunch and an ill-timed slump ultimately sent him back to the Minors last month, but he never stopped believing that he’d be back to help the Giants continue their playoff push down the stretch.

When Austin Slater landed on the seven-day injured list with a concussion on Sunday, Duggar got the chance to return to the Majors for the first time since Aug. 7. He’s made the most of the opportunity thus far, going 3-for-5 with two triples and three RBIs in an 12-3 trouncing of the Rockies on Tuesday night at Coors Field.

Since being recalled, Duggar is 6-for-14 with three triples over three games, helping the Giants (89-50) win five of their last six contests to maintain a one-game lead over the Dodgers in the NL West with 23 games left to play.

“Steven Duggar has provided such an incredible boost to our club,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “It’s hard to imagine the last few games going the way they did without his contributions. He just picked up right where he left off with us. I think when we optioned him, he had a couple of different ways he could have gone.

"He just went down there and got to work. He never complains. He’s an incredible teammate, and we’re all lucky to have him around. When he’s swinging the bat good and running the bases like he is, we’re just a better club.”

Duggar broke the game open with a two-out bases-clearing triple off Robert Stephenson that stretched the Giants’ lead to 8-1 in the fifth inning. It was the second three-bagger of the night for Duggar, who also tripled and scored on right-hander Logan Webb’s RBI double in the second. The 27-year-old Duggar became the first Giant to triple twice in a game since Stephen Vogt on June 15, 2019.

“It was just hit in the right spot,” said Duggar, smiling. “Just split the gaps. It’s a big yard here, so there’s room to run. I was able to get a couple of pitches over the heart tonight and was on them.”

The Giants outhit the Rockies, 15-11, and finished with a season-high 10 extra-base hits. Tommy La Stella, Brandon Belt and Buster Posey opened the game with three consecutive doubles, marking the first time the Giants have accomplished the feat in the San Francisco era, according to Sportradar.

Remarkably, only one extra-base hit left the yard -- Mike Yastrzemski’s two-run shot off former Giants Rule 5 Draft pick Julián Fernández in the seventh inning. Yastrzemski, who entered Tuesday hitting only .136 over his previous seven games, is now in sole possession of the team lead with a career-high 22 homers this year.

It was more than enough cushion for Webb, who gave up three runs over seven innings to improve to 8-0 with a 1.65 ERA over his last 15 starts. Tuesday marked the first time Webb had allowed more than two runs in an outing since May 11, an impressive run that had spanned 14 starts. Only Ferdie Schupp, who went 16 consecutive starts without allowing more than two runs between 1916-1917, has had a longer such streak in Giants history.

“It’s awesome, I’m happy, but I’m more happy that we won the game,” Webb said. “That’s the main focus for every game. It was the same today. I can honestly say I wasn’t thinking about it at all.”

Pitching prospect Kervin Castro replaced Webb in the eighth and worked two scoreless innings in his Major League debut.

The contributions of Duggar and Castro highlighted an ongoing theme for the Giants, who have seen several players come up from Triple-A Sacramento and deliver key lifts for the Major League club this year.

While he was disappointed to be sent down last month, Duggar didn’t allow himself to wallow in frustration and instead focused on keeping himself mentally prepared to return to the Giants when the opportunity presented itself. It’s proving to be a productive mindset so far.

“When I come to the field every day, it’s just a laser focus,” Duggar said. “It definitely stings when you get sent down. It’s never a conversation that you look forward to having by any means. I acknowledge the fact that I didn’t play up to my standards for that three-week stretch. I knew guys were getting healthy and coming back, so yeah, it sucks getting optioned. But I think quickly turning the page and understanding that I’ve got my best baseball in front of me -- that’s the way I approached it.”