SF Giants shutout in first game with new City Connect jerseys

SAN FRANCISCO — Despite the mixed opinions, the Giants’ original City Connect jerseys became something of a good luck charm. That status was well-warranted given San Francisco went 30-16 with those bright orange and white threads. As for the remixed uniforms? They don’t have that status quite yet.

Landen Roupp allowed one earned run over a career-high six innings and Hayden Birdsong followed with three scoreless innings of relief, but San Francisco (8-3) was shut out for a second consecutive night and lost to the Cincinnati Reds, 1-0, dropping its first series of the year.

“Both our guys pitched great. It’s tough to waste two really good pitching performances in the last couple nights, but just back out there tomorrow and hopefully the offense is better,” said manager Bob Melvin.

To Melvin’s point, San Francisco has gotten some its best pitching of the young season over the last two nights. Logan Webb went toe-to-toe with Hunter Greene on Monday, tossing seven shutout innings with 10 strikeouts and no walks. Roupp turned in the first quality start of his career, then Birdsong pitched his fifth, sixth and seventh scoreless innings of relief. For all that excellent pitching, San Francisco’s offense has been nonexistent against Cincinnati.

Roughly a week after allowing two runs over six innings in Cincinnati, the Reds’ (5-7) Nick Lodolo followed up by tossing six shutout innings against the Giants before handing the ball off to the bullpen. Following Lodolo’s departure, Braxton Ashcraft pitched a pair of scoreless innings in the seventh and eighth, then Emilio Pagán shut the door in the ninth. San Francisco finished the night 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position, though those lack of runs weren’t completely due to a lack of hard-hit baseballs.

The Giants were close to plating a run when Heliot Ramos hit a line drive to the right-field warning track in the bottom of the fifth inning that would’ve easily scored Casey Schmitt, but Cincinnati’s Jake Fraley made a diving, over-the-shoulder catch to keep San Francisco scoreless. Sam Huff led off the bottom of the eighth with a single and was pinch-ran for by Christian Koss, but the miniature rally evaporated when Ramos hit into a double play. In the ninth, Matt Chapman smashed a 105.0 mph line drive right at an awaiting Fraley.

“We had a tough night last night, then the first few innings don’t go well and they make some pretty good plays in the field,” Melvin said. “I don’t want to say you start pressing, but probably tried to do a little too much and end up getting shut out two nights in a row. Ramos’ ball looks like it’s going over (Fraley’s) head. He makes a great play in right field and we just couldn’t do enough.”

For Willy Adames, Tuesday night was an especially frustrating affair. After going hitless in four at-bats with three strikeouts, Adames has now struck out at least twice in six of his first 11 games with the Giants after signing a franchise-record $182 million dollar deal. Even with the dramatic walk-off hit to cap the home opener, Adames is currently hitting .200 with a .489 OPS. Melvin, though, isn’t concerned with the early slump.