PHOENIX -- If things are to come together for the 2026 Giants, it almost certainly will begin during the stretch that got underway Monday. They’ll play 22 consecutive games against clubs that entered the day under .500, allowing them to parlay a past week of strong pitching and timely hitting into a second half they hope to be markedly different from the first.
But for Tyler Mahle, the starter in a 5-4 loss to the D-backs at Chase Field, it began with Ketel Marte and ended with Ketel Marte.
Entering the night, the Giants' right-hander had battled the All-Star second baseman in 15 regular-season at-bats: eight resulting in hits and five of those for extra bases. It took just two pitches for Marte to put the D-backs ahead, socking a skyscraping leadoff home run. Seventy-eight pitches later, the two met again with runners at the corners in the fifth before Mahle lost him with a walk, ending his night.
All told, Mahle’s final line read four runs on four hits and three walks across 4 1/3 frames.
But in between the two crucial plate appearances vs. Marte, Mahle looked like the pitcher the Giants envisioned landing when they inked him to a deal this offseason. In his second start back off the injured list with a left hamstring strain, he enjoyed a stretch of retiring nine of 10 batters and ramped up his four-seam fastball as high as 95.5 mph, his fastest pitch of the year. His heater averaged 93.5 mph, his highest in a single outing since April 3, 2023.
“I’m feeling good,” said Mahle, who landed exactly on his target of 85 pitches. “When the stuff’s harder, it makes the stuff better, and it plays more. But you still got to locate it.”
His velocity was up almost across the board. The 31-year-old threw his splitter more than 2 mph harder on average, and it led to Arizona hitters whiffing on six of their 15 swings against the offering, as it accounted for two of his three punchouts. Last season, the pitch had a +5 run value for Mahle, eighth-best in the Majors among all splitters (minimum 300 thrown). Dating back to his last start, batters are 0-for-14 in at-bats that ended on the offering.
With the loss Monday, the Giants fell to 9 1/2 games behind the Cardinals for the third and final National League Wild Card spot. Mahle -- who is slated to become a free agent at season’s end -- figures to either be a big piece in a second-half resurgence or a valuable trade chip that could garner attention ahead of the Aug. 3 Trade Deadline.
The Mets dealt southpaw David Peterson -- also a soon-to-be-free-agent who posted a 6.09 ERA across 16 appearances (eight starts) -- to the Cubs last week in exchange for Minor League infielder Cole Mathis, who immediately slotted in as New York's No. 14 prospect. Starting pitching depth is always in vogue around the Deadline, and with the Giants' prospect arms like Blade Tidwell (No. 9), Carson Whisenhunt (No. 11) and Joe Whitman (No. 23) knocking on the door at Triple-A Sacramento, finding a way to further replenish the farm system could prove enticing.
The Giants have scored four or fewer runs in six of their seven games against the D-backs this season, but Monday’s output particularly featured a run of rotten luck, especially early. Through the first four frames against southpaw Eduardo Rodriguez, they reeled off six hard-hit balls (excess of 95 mph) and came up with zero runs.
The club had five balls on the night with an xBA above .500 go for an out, a spate of balls finding the glove that ultimately cost them after a late offensive flurry -- which featured Heliot Ramos’ first homer since May 10 -- helped bring the go-ahead run to the plate on a pair of occasions.
“When we pitch it pretty good and just have competitive at-bats -- which I realize we weren't stringing a whole lot together against E-Rod, but guys seemed to be taking good swings -- we end up in a position like we were tonight with an opportunity to win the game, and that's all you can ask, is to be in those situations,” said manager Tony Vitello. “We were a tick away tonight, so here's to that tick being carried over to tomorrow.”