Giants Go Yard Six Times to Bludgeon Mets in Citi Field Slugfest

Sometimes a baseball game isn’t about subtlety or strategy or the chess match between pitcher and hitter. Sometimes it’s just about one team deciding to obliterate baseballs into the New York sky with reckless abandon, and that’s precisely what the San Francisco Giants did Saturday at Citi Field. The final score of 9-5 doesn’t capture the sheer offensive dominance on display, because this wasn’t a competitive baseball game in the later innings. This was a home run derby masquerading as a regular season contest.

Pitching Decisions

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Star Performers

Rafael Devers

Season AVG: .258
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A.J. Ewing

Season AVG: .238
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The Giants cranked six home runs total, a reminder that in September, when contenders are separating from pretenders, raw power can be the great equalizer. Rafael Devers went deep twice and drove in three runs. Christian Koss, in what has to be the most encouraging sign for San Francisco’s future, also went yard twice in a single game for the first time in his career. These aren’t fluky swings either. These are the kinds of moon shots that make opposing pitchers bury their faces in their gloves on the bench.

Devers, Koss each homer twice in 9-5 win over Mets

Anthony Molina was the unlikely beneficiary of this offensive onslaught, earning the win despite pitching just five innings of one-hit ball with six strikeouts. That’s the kind of line that would normally demand explanation in most games, but here it’s almost footnote material because Zac Thornton‘s outing for the Mets was even more pitiful. In five innings, Thornton surrendered seven hits and six earned runs. The Mets sent their ace to get shelled, and by the time he left the game, it was already decided.

Rafael Devers' two-homer game

Koss Arrives as Real Threat

If you’ve been sleeping on Christian Koss as just another prospect, Saturday’s two-homer game should wake you up. Two home runs in a single game isn’t a fluke statistic. It’s a statement. It tells you that the kid has legitimate power potential and the confidence to use it when the moment matters. Grant McCray added another solo blast to keep the Giants’ factory humming. Even Osleivis Basabe got in the act with a two-run shot in the eighth. This wasn’t one player carrying the load. This was a lineup asserting its dominance.

Christian Koss' first career multihomer game

Mets Can’t Keep Pace

The Mets weren’t completely helpless. A.J. Ewing‘s two-run homer in the second inning briefly suggested New York might stay competitive. Brett Baty added three RBIs across his at-bats to keep the Mets within shouting distance late, and his two-run double in the ninth after video review felt like a last grasp at respectability. But that’s all it was. A consolation prize in a game already decided by the Giants’ relentless power display.

Brett Baty's two-run double

This is what happens when you face a team with multiple power threats who arrive at the ballpark ready to swing and connected bats. The Mets’ pitching staff couldn’t establish any rhythm, couldn’t pitch to contact without getting burned, and couldn’t survive the onslaught. For the Giants, this kind of Saturday performance is exactly what they need heading into September’s final stretch. Power wins playoff games, and on this Saturday in Queens, San Francisco left no doubt about their offensive potential.

Jason Foley seals the Giants' 9-5 win

Box Score

San Francisco Giants Batting

Player AB R H RBI BB SO AVG
Jonah Cox CF 5 1 1 0 0 1 .291
Rafael Devers 1B 4 2 2 3 0 0 .258
Bryce Eldridge DH 3 1 1 0 1 1 .262
Osleivis Basabe 2B 4 1 1 2 0 2 .216
Turner Hill LF 4 0 0 0 0 2 .308
Andrew Knizner C 3 0 0 0 1 2 .176
Shay Whitcomb 3B 4 0 1 0 0 0 .131
Grant McCray RF 4 2 2 1 0 0 .143
Christian Koss SS 4 2 2 3 0 0 .211

San Francisco Giants Pitching

Pitcher IP H R ER BB SO ERA
Anthony Molina (W) 5.0 1 2 0 1 6 2.79
Reiver Sanmartin 1.1 1 1 1 0 1 4.66
Joel Kuhnel 0.1 1 0 0 1 1 4.79
Carson Seymour 0.1 0 0 0 1 0 4.43
Trent Harris 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 3.21
Jason Foley 1.0 2 2 2 1 0 4.67

New York Mets Batting

Player AB R H RBI BB SO AVG
Francisco Lindor SS 5 0 0 0 0 1 .230
Juan Soto LF 4 0 0 0 0 0 .274
Bo Bichette DH 4 0 0 0 0 2 .264
Carson Benge RF 4 0 0 0 0 2 .276
Jared Young 1B 4 2 2 0 0 1 .267
Marcus Semien 2B 3 1 1 0 1 0 .217
A.J. Ewing CF 2 2 1 2 2 0 .238
Francisco Alvarez C 4 0 0 0 0 3 .231
Brett Baty 3B 3 0 1 3 1 0 .223

New York Mets Pitching

Pitcher IP H R ER BB SO ERA
Zac Thornton (L) 5.0 7 6 6 1 6 3.53
Chris Devenski 2.0 1 0 0 0 0 7.11
Jefry Yan 1.0 1 2 2 1 2 5.68
Justin Hagenman 1.0 1 1 1 0 0 4.50