PHOENIX -- Giants manager Bruce Bochy tweaked the top of his lineup Friday night, slotting rookie Mike Yastrzemski into the leadoff spot and batting Brandon Belt seventh. Bochy explained that he liked Yastrzemski’s patience and speed at the top of the order. He’ll take the power, too.
Yastrzemski launched three home runs, including a go-ahead shot off Yoan Lopez in the 11th inning, to help the Giants survive a pair of bullpen stumbles in a wild 10-9 win over the D-backs at Chase Field.
The Giants and D-backs combined to hit 12 home runs Friday, setting a Chase Field record and falling one short of the Major League record set by the D-backs and Phillies earlier this year. Kevin Pillar homered twice and Belt added a solo shot to give the Giants six homers, their highest single-game total since April 23, 2014.
“I’ve been a part of some roller coasters, but nothing like that,” Yastrzemski said.
Yastrzemski became the first Giants player to produce a three-homer game since Jarrett Parker on Sept. 26, 2015 at Oakland. The 28-year-old outfielder has 16 home runs this year, the most by a Giants rookie since Buster Posey hit 18 in 2010. Yastrzemski never hit more than 15 in any of his six Minor League seasons.
“I just made a few small adjustments this offseason to try to be a little more impactful with the bat,” Yastrzemski said. “I knew that was something that would help me. I’ve always been known as a defensive player and always tried to show that I had the ability to hit. To be able to have a little bit of success here so far has felt really good.”
The Giants lost a five-run lead when the D-backs hammered three home runs off relievers Tony Watson and Sam Coonrod to tie the game in the eighth and force extra innings. Pillar briefly restored their lead with his second home run of the night, a two-run shot off Yoshihisa Hirano in the top of the 10th.
The D-backs once again rallied to erase the deficit, as Wilmer Flores and Nick Ahmed homered off closer Will Smith to tie the game at 9. Yastrzemski came back to deliver the decisive blow the following inning, sending a first-pitch fastball from Lopez out to center field to put the Giants ahead, 10-9. Yastrzemski’s home runs came against three different pitchers, as he also launched a solo shot off Mike Leake in the third and a two-run homer off T.J. McFarland in the seventh.
“When you’ve got a last name like that you’re going to do something special every once in a while, right?” D-backs manager Torey Lovullo said. “He hit three home runs. It’s going to be a day he’ll remember for the rest of his life.”
With his three-homer game, Yastrzemski matched his Hall of Fame grandfather. Carl Yastrzemski’s only three-homer game was May 19, 1976 at Detroit.
Smith returned to the mound in the bottom of the 11th and gave up a leadoff single to Ketel Marte before striking out David Peralta and inducing a flyout from Eduardo Escobar. With Smith’s pitch count at 35, Bochy opted to bring in Trevor Gott to face Christian Walker, who grounded out to end the game.
The Giants (62-61) have now won six of their last eight games to pull within 2 1/2 games of the second National League Wild Card spot.
“It’s was one of those games,” Bochy said. “No question, it was entertaining. We had a little home run derby going on tonight.”