San Francisco Giants vs Philadelphia Phillies | Andy Kuno/San Francisco Giants/GettyImages
The SF Giants dropped the final game of a three-game series on Sunday in excruciating fashion, with Ryan Walker blowing a three-run cushion. While the lack of action on Bob Melvin’s part frustrated fans, it was the correct call to make.
Prior to blowing the game on Sunday, Walker had been 15 – 15 in save opportunities since moving into the closer role last August. Not only that, but he has arguably been one of the best relievers since the start of 2024.
The young reliever came into the game with a three-run lead, looking to close out the game and secure another series win on the road. More often than not, this has been an easy spot for Walker, but that was not the case on Sunday.
Walker’s control was uncharacteristically poor, as he walked Mike Trout to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning. He also hit Zach Neto in a 1-2 count.
Jo Adell stepped to the plate and lined a two-run double to left field to walk it off and complete the comeback. It was Walker’s first blown save since July 19 of last season, when he was still used as a high-leverage arm rather than the closer.
Given how effectively the 29-year-old closer has pitched, there were only three outcomes that were going to happen in that inning:
- Walker closes out the game, and the Giants win.
- Walker allows the Angels to tie it up, and they go into extra innings.
- Walker blows the lead, and the Giants lose.
Barring an injury, Walker was going to finish that inning one way or another. Bob Melvin could have gotten somebody up in the bullpen, but it would have been meaningless. It was Walker’s to win or lose, and he has earned that.
Walker allowed four runs to cross home plate while only recording one out. That was mildly concerning, but with the bases loaded and one out, Walker was also one ground ball away from getting out of the jam.
I view this in the context of not just how Melvin functioned, but also how every manager in baseball would approach that same spot. As mentioned above, Walker had been perfect in save opportunities since becoming the closer and has been one of the best relievers in baseball. This is an easy call for every manager to sit back and watch his closer get out of the jam.
Now, if the right-handed reliever had put together a string of bad outings, then you would want to see Melvin be more proactive. Walker entered yesterday’s game with a 1.38 ERA, 2.28 FIP, and 3.72 xFIP through eight outings. Regardless of the metric you use, he has been just fine, and it was his inning. I just do not see a scenario where another manager would have acted differently and pulled Walker. Sometimes, relievers have bad outings, and the Giants’ closer has had very few during his brief career.
