Belt comes off bench, homers to snap skid

PHILADELPHIA -- Giants manager Bruce Bochy held Brandon Belt out of the starting lineup for the second consecutive game Tuesday, wishing to give his veteran first baseman a bit of a mental break after a rough couple of weeks at the plate.

Belt responded by coming off the bench and snapping his 0-for-17 skid with a pinch-hit home run in the Giants’ 4-2 loss to the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. Belt’s eighth-inning shot off Nick Pivetta put San Francisco on the board and gave late life to an offense that was shut down for most of the night by left-handed starter Drew Smyly.

“I just took this time to kind of clear my head a little bit and figure out what I was trying to work on and what direction I wanted to go,” Belt said. “I guess I found something.”

From June 30-July 17, Belt helped set the table for an offense that slashed .309/.366/.552 and averaged 8.2 runs per game during that span. But as Belt has cooled off, the rest of the offense has followed. The Giants entered Tuesday hitting .228/.300/.352 and averaging only 3.2 runs per game since July 18.

Belt, 31, entered Tuesday batting just .170 (9-for-53) over his previous 12 games.

“I didn’t change my approach,” Belt said. “I tried to stay the same. It might just be different because of where you are in the lineup. But it was different. I know it was, for sure. It was something I needed to adjust to. And I feel like I did OK for awhile. For some reason, whether it was just facing some good pitching over the homestand, it just kind of got away from me a little bit. I just took this time to kind of refocus and get it back.”

Bochy said he doesn’t feel Belt has put added pressure on himself since moving into the leadoff spot, adding that the Giants still like having his on-base skills at the top of the order. Belt is scheduled to start Wednesday against Phillies right-hander Vince Velasquez.

“He’s been playing the game a long time,” Bochy said. “I don’t see where he’s changed his thinking or philosophy on hitting. If it was a young kid, maybe, but not with Brandon.”

If the Giants opt to acquire veteran players ahead of Wednesday’s 1 p.m. PT Trade Deadline, they could look to add a leadoff hitter to help bolster their offense. They were linked to Rangers outfielder Shin-Soo Choo over the offseason, while they also could pursue someone like the Orioles’ Jonathan Villar, a switch-hitting second baseman.

Worth noting
The Giants have not yet announced a starter for Thursday, as they plan to “push back” rookie Shaun Anderson, according to Bochy. Dereck Rodriguez and Conner Menez are likely candidates to be called up from Triple-A Sacramento to pitch against the Phillies.