In a game in which a pair of players made their MLB debuts, both had important base hits, but it was Jae-Gyun Hwang who was the hero. The longtime Korea Baseball Championship league star hit a go-ahead home run in his first game for the San Francisco Giants in the bottom of the sixth inning Wednesday to help complete a three-game sweep of the Colorado Rockies, 5-3. The loss was Colorado’s eighth in a row, all to National League West opponents.
Hwang joined Rockies outfielder Mike Tauchman playing in their first MLB games together. Tauchman hit a game-tying RBI single in the top of the sixth inning for his first major league hit. Hwang’s home run in the bottom half, also his first MLB hit, proved to be the game-winner. Colorado had a solid start from Kyle Freeland (8-6, 3.84 ERA), but a two-run home run in the fourth inning by former Rockies catcher Nick Hundley erased an early Rockies lead.
Colorado jumped out early on Colorado native Ty Blach (5-5, 4.60), scoring two runs in the first inning thanks in part to a throwing error by Blach. Two of Colorado’s runs were unearned via Blach throwing errors. In the first, Charlie Blackmon reached base when Blach hit him in the back with a ball. He would come around to score on a Nolan Arenado base hit. In the sixth inning, Tauchman drove in Pat Valaika, who was standing at third base after Blach air-mailed a throw to first base.
The Giants tacked on another run (unearned) in the eighth inning against Adam Ottavino and Jake McGee for the final margin.
The series sweep in San Francisco is the second of Colorado’s road trip, after suffering a three-game sweep to the Dodgers last weekend. The Rockies have an off day Thursday before they face the Arizona Diamondbacks for three games in Phoenix starting Friday. Colorado’s now eight-game losing streak began with a pair of blowout losses to Arizona.
