SAN DIEGO — Stop us if you’ve read this version of the Instant Replay before: The Giants lost another key player during their baseball game.
This time it was third baseman Casey McGehee who joined the walking wounded with a left knee strain. The planned Posey Protection Trio of Hunter Pence, Brandon Belt and McGehee fully gave way to Joaquin Arias, Gregor Blanco and Matt Duffy by the bottom of the first inning of a 10-2 loss to the Padres at Petco Park.
[RELATED: McGehee hurts knee in first inning against Padres]
While McGehee’s injury could be a lasting issue, the immediate problem Saturday was Madison Bumgarner’s inability to get in any sort of rhythm. The ace lasted just three innings, giving up five earned runs and losing to James Shields, a man he dominated in the World Series. Medium Game James was a bulldozer for seven innings, giving up just three hits and one run while striking out seven. He added a hard single at the plate, which likely only further steamed a ticked-off Bumgarner.
Starting pitching report: Bumgarner gave up one run over 16 innings in his two starts against Shields in the World Series, but the bullpen was warming up after just seven Padres outs on Saturday. Bumgarner’s three-inning start was his shortest since June 21, 2011. He gave up more than four earned runs for the first time since last July 28. This was the seventh time in Bumgarner’s career that he allowed at least 10 hits. It was, in every respect, a night to forget.
Bullpen report: This probably was not what Ryan Vogelsong had in mind when he re-upped with the Giants. The long reliever had to wear it after Bumgarner was pulled and was charged with four earned runs on nine hits in 3 2/3 innings. Vogelsong threw 68 pitches, 11 fewer than the starting pitcher he followed.
At the plate: Joaquin Arias hit his first home run since August 21, 2013.
In the field: The Giants were all over the map in the three-run sixth inning. Matt Duffy, who started at first base, made a throwing error at shortstop to start a Padres rally. Four batters later, Arias whiffed on a grounder that then bounced off Duffy’s glove. Nori Aoki slightly redeemed the defense with a diving catch of a sharp liner to left.
Attendance: The Padres announced a crowd of 42,823, 7,000 of whom were youth softball players who marched past the CSN cameras before the pre-game show and frantically waved at a camera that wasn’t on.
Up next: Jake Peavy finally makes his 2015 debut after days of dealing with a tight back. Peavy, the Padres ace for eight seasons, will be making his first start here as a visitor. He’ll face off against the East Bay’s Tyson Ross, who was 2-0 with a 2.70 ERA against the Giants last season.
