A pair of relievers turned starters will take the mound when the San Francisco Giants host the Miami Marlins in the finale of their three-game series on Thursday afternoon.
Janson Junk is set to make his second straight start following five relief appearances for the Marlins, while Hayden Birdsong will take the ball for the Giants in an effort to prevent a sweep by Miami.
The Marlins won the series opener 4-2 on Tuesday night and then squandered a two-run lead in the ninth on Wednesday before scoring four runs in the 10th in an 8-5 victory. Miami has won a season high-tying three games in a row.
Junk (2-0, 2.60 ERA) was impressive in his first start of the season last Friday — just the eighth start of his five-year MLB career.
He held the Atlanta Braves to one run and five hits in five innings of the 6-2 victory. He struck out five and didn’t walk a batter.
“The biggest thing is I kind of just understand what I’m good at,” Junk said. “Before, it was a lot of searching, and I think over even the end of last year, I saw hints of it like, ‘Oh, this is what I should be doing,’ even though the results weren’t the best in some cases.”
That performance came six days after Junk threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings of relief in a 4-3 win against the Washington Nationals.
“Every time I go out there, starting, relieving, doing what I did before, it’s all the same,” Junk said. “I’m just trying to go and execute how I was doing before.”
“He’s got a lot of command,” Marlins catcher Agustin Ramirez said. “The slider, big [sweeper]. He’s really good.”
Junk has made one relief appearance against the Giants in his career, throwing four shutout innings without getting a decision in a 2-0 loss on May 30.
Birdsong (3-1, 3.25) has made six consecutive starts with mixed results after coming out of the bullpen in his first 11 appearances this season
He was unable to protect an early 3-0 lead in his most recent start last Friday and did not receive a decision after allowing five runs (four earned) and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings of his team’s 7-5 loss to the Boston Red Sox.
“Whenever I give up hits, it’s because I got behind,” Birdsong said. “When I’m ahead, it’s a lot better. I throw a lot better and I have a lot more confidence in the pitches I throw, so it’s something I’ve got to work on.”
Birdsong beat the Marlins in his only career start against them on June 1, allowing just one run and five hits over 5 1/3 innings in the 4-2 victory.
Giants first baseman Casey Schmitt was hit on the hand by a pitch in the bottom of the ninth inning on Wednesday. He stayed in the game, but Brett Wisely was on deck to hit for him when the final out was made.
Giants manager Bob Melvin said after the game that Schmitt was undergoing an X-ray.
–Field Level Media
