First-place Giants end grueling gauntlet with familiar fireworks

First-place Giants end grueling gauntlet with familiar fireworks originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — Perhaps the most fitting ending the Giants could have asked for.

With no outs, nobody on and the score tied 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth, Heliot Ramos dribbled a ball between third base and the pitcher’s mound, and thanks to a pair of throwing errors on the play, circled the bases to deliver a thrilling walk-off little-league-style home run that capped a 3-2 win on Sunday at Oracle Park.

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“Honestly, I remember when I got to second, and then after that I blacked out and kept running,” Ramos told reporters postgame. “I saw [third base coach Matt Williams] waving me and I saw the ball and I turned and just kept running.”

Ramos initially stopped as he pulled into second base before he realized where the ball was. Giants manager Bob Melvin pointed out after the game, that had Ramos kept running instead of hesitating, he likely would have eased into third without a throw and the ensuing second throwing error that allowed him to score.

“For whatever reason, it all worked out about as good as you could … sometimes things happen for a reason, and the theatrics were pretty cool there at the end,” Melvin told reporters.

It wasn’t pretty. And boy, was it exhausting. But it got the job done. The same could be said for a lot of the Giants’ wins on their 17-game stretch without a day off.

The two-and-a-half-week marathon was a gauntlet. First, a three-game series against the reigning American League champion New York Yankees (17-11). Then four against the perennially-championship-contending Philadelphia Phillies, followed by three against (at the time) a hot Los Angeles Angels squad before consecutive home series against the Milwaukee Brewers and Texas Rangers, two teams off to slow starts, but more than capable of winning their respective divisions at the end of the season.

What do the Giants (19-10) have to show for it? A 10-7 record in those 17 games and first place in the National League West.

Not too shabby.

“I think it was great, and we had a lot of guys playing every day, too,” Melvin said of his team’s performance on the stretch. “So to be able to post up, day games, night games, travel, East Coast, West Coast. It was pretty significant, and these guys just continue to go out there and fight and our best work is usually done at the end. So I think they handled 17 in a row really well.”

“I think it was pretty good,” Ramos added. “I think New York was the toughest for us, it was pretty cold and rainy. I think this stretch, all the wins that we got, playing as a team, it’s going to help us throughout the season with this momentum.”

Again, it wasn’t perfect. The Giants feel as if they should have notched another win or two. But all things considered, they not only kept their heads above water, but proved they have what it takes to contend with the game’s best.

“We don’t have many of those stretches, so it’s important that whenever we have the tougher ones that we come out on top with a winning record,” Giants starting pitcher Jordan Hicks said. “I think we handed it really well. There were some that we probably would have liked back, but at the same time, 10-7 is pretty good.”

What’s their reward? A day off in San Diego before two big games against the Padres (17-11), one of their division foes, along with the vaunted Los Angeles Dodgers (18-10), who trail them in the standings.

“I can’t wait,” Ramos, with a big grin on his face, said about the day off. “It’s going to be great. A great off day, for sure.”

“Last year was always fun battling those guys, you know what you’re going up against,” Hicks said of the Padres. “Pretty elite lineup and solid pitching as well. It should be fun. It’s always a good environment and one of my favorite stadiums. I get to watch the games, watch [Logan Webb] dominate and hopefully come out with two [wins].”

After their quick stop in Southern California, the Giants then have three games against the MLB-worst Colorado Rockies (4-23) before another tough series against the NL Central-leading Chicago Cubs (17-11).

Then, a much-more favorable month of May that the Giants could use to position themselves quite well for a playoff push.

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