The San Francisco Giants started off the 2025 season like they were shot out of a cannon, absolutely tearing up whoever they faced and putting together multiple game-winning plays in the late part of matchups.
They have remained relatively good compared to competition, but have plateaued a bit compared to that hot start, now sitting at 51-43.
Currently, only five games separate them and the Los Angeles Dodgers, which is not a huge margin given how exceptional those Dodgers are. But it is unfortunate given how well the Giants kicked the year off.
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Hitting has been streaky, which is one of the major concerns with the team, as sometimes they rip the cover off the ball all game long, and in some other games, they just cannot get anything done.
One example of the latter came during Justin Verlander's start on Wednesday against the Philadelphia Phillies, where he would go six innings and only allow two earned runs, while his team scored none.
Then, when he got pulled, things all fell apart rapidly, as San Francisco wound up losing 13-0 when all was said and done.
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With Verlander having no wins to his name still this season, manager Bob Melvin had quite a bit to say about how the team performs during his starts, and why this is the case (via media appearance with KNBR):
"I thought it was his best stuff of the year, maybe by a pretty good margin," he said. "You know, we just didn't play well behind him, we didn't score many runs, and that's kind of been a theme when he's pitched. But I thought his breaking ball was really good, his heater was good, it's too bad. I mean, he only ends up getting what, only two earned runs, but we just don't do enough for him, today, on either side of the ball. Like I said, he pitched well."
Then when asked to expand on his point regarding the team not doing enough during his starts and why that may be, he said the following:
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"You know, I come in here saying the same thing it feels like every time. We don't score runs for him, and I don't know, it's...at this point in time, he should certainly have a couple of wins, and he doesn't, unfortunately, and I think we all kind of feel it."
It is intriguing to hear how Melvin sees this from his perspective, as it is definitely unfortunate for Verlander just since he has pitched so well, but a pitcher's record is something that does not carry a ton of weight. It is more just about being able to rely on the team when making good starts, and unfortunately, that has not happened as of yet for this roster.
For more Giants news, head over to Giants On SI.
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