SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants lost a significant piece when Brandon Crawford landed on the injured list with a right calf strain earlier this week, but the emergence of two young middle infielders is helping to soften the blow.

Shortstop Thairo Estrada and second baseman Brett Wisely each homered to back a brilliant outing by right-hander Alex Cobb as the Giants beat the Brewers, 4-1, on Saturday evening at Oracle Park, extending their winning streak to four games.

Estrada cranked a two-run blast off Milwaukee right-hander Colin Rea to stake San Francisco to a 3-0 lead in the third inning while Wisely added a solo homer to straightaway center field for his first career Major League home run in the seventh.

It proved to be enough support for Cobb, who fired seven scoreless innings to lower his ERA to 2.01, which ranks seventh-best in the Majors among qualified pitchers. After winning seven of their past eight home games, the Giants (15-17) are now within two games of .500 -- thanks largely to a starting rotation that appears to be hitting its stride.

Over their past 13 games, San Francisco’s starters are 7-1 with a 2.71 ERA, the best mark in the National League.

“That’s going to be the recipe for success for our team,” Cobb said. “If we want to get to where we’re going, it’s going to start with the starting pitching.”

The Giants will also need consistent production from key players like Estrada, who has been an invaluable contributor since coming over from the Yankees in exchange for cash considerations in April 2021. The 27-year-old Venezuelan took a major step forward by establishing himself as an everyday player for San Francisco last year, but he appears poised for an even bigger breakthrough in '23.

Through 31 games this season, Estrada has crushed five home runs and ranks in the top 10 in MLB in hits (41), batting average (.336) and stolen bases (9). He’s already been worth a team-high 1.5 WAR, according to FanGraphs, putting him on pace to easily surpass the 2.7 WAR he recorded in 2022.

“I just think we’re getting to the point where Thairo is one of the best players in baseball,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “Whenever you have a guy that can play up the middle like he does and be the type of offensive performer that he is for us right now, you have to mention him as a guy that’s kind of at the top of the league.”

With Crawford on the mend, Estrada has been filling in as the Giants’ primary shortstop, and he has remained durable despite taking on a heavy workload early this season.

“Thairo’s an animal,” Cobb said. “He just shows up every single day ready to go. He gives an incredible amount of effort in the batter’s box, on defense and on the basepaths. It exhausts me to watch him go through a game. He’s just dirt head-to-toe, pants ripped, getting drilled by pitches. He never complains, never says a word. He just goes out and posts every single day. He’s definitely the heart and soul of the lineup right now.”

Wisely entered Saturday batting 2-for-27 (.074) over his first 13 Major League games, but he’s received more opportunities following the injuries to Crawford and center fielder Mike Yastrzemski, and he’s impressed with his defense up the middle.

The 23-year-old rookie finally got a chance to flash his power in the seventh, driving an 0-1 changeup from Brewers reliever Tyson Miller over the center-field fence for his milestone homer.

“It was probably the best moment of my life,” Wisely said. “Hitting a home run in the big leagues, everyone dreams of that. Having that today was phenomenal.”

Wisely made two eye-opening plays at second base as well, ranging up the middle to make a diving stop on William Contreras’ grounder in the sixth and then easily chasing down Willy Adames’ popup to shallow right field in the eighth.

“It just gives you momentum,” Cobb said. “When you have plays being made like that, you’re not pitching so delicately. You’re not trying to strike everybody out. You feel like the attacker when you have guys with range like that, making plays like that.

“I think we’re playing the best defense we’ve played in a couple of years right now. It just allows us to go deep into the game, and when that happens, we’re just going to be a better baseball team. I think that’s pretty obvious."