SEATTLE -- Not much went right for the Giants in the first half, but manager Tony Vitello felt the All-Star break was a chance for his club to reset and show it was capable of playing better baseball down the stretch.
“It's nice to kind of see the fresh-start attitude and vibe that's going around,” Vitello said. “One thing we've struggled with, I think, is you’ve got great expectations going into the season, and the past can weigh on you a little bit. The future is not here yet, and the past is over and done with. The best thing we can do is focus on today. It'd be nice to build a little momentum.”
The Giants certainly came out swinging in their second-half opener at T-Mobile Park on Friday night, with Bryce Eldridge and Willy Adames each going deep to power a 7-0 win over the Mariners.
The long balls backed a dominant performance from right-hander Landen Roupp, who allowed only two hits over seven scoreless innings in his first start since July 6. The 27-year-old has given up only one run in 15 innings over his last two outings, lowering his ERA to 3.98 over 19 starts this year.
The Giants (42-55) have now won three in a row and will have a chance to extend their winning streak to a season-high four games behind three-time All-Star Logan Webb on Saturday.
“I think the break was good for us,” Eldridge said. “Obviously, the first half was tough for all of us, and we haven’t been playing up to our expectations. But the big thing we’ve been talking about is really using that break to reset mentally, physically and get ready for the second half. That’s definitely a good way to start it.”
The 21-year-old Eldridge put the Giants on the board with a two-run blast to right-center field off Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller in the top of the fifth. Eldridge popped out with runners on the corners in his previous at-bat against Miller in the third, but he didn’t miss another chance to break the scoreless deadlock when he stepped back up to the plate two innings later.
“I felt like I’d put on a good swing on the splitter the at-bat before,” said Eldridge, who has nine homers over 55 games this year. “He threw me another one, and I was just out in front. When I don’t come through with guys in scoring position, that probably makes me more mad than anything. I think that definitely triggered something in me. Thankfully, I got that next pitch and got to hit it out.”
San Francisco extended its lead to 3-0 with the help of an error from Seattle second baseman Cole Young in the sixth before Adames broke the game open with a grand slam off reliever Nick Davila in the seventh.
Casey Schmitt and Heliot Ramos singled and Jung Hoo Lee reached on a hit-by-pitch to load the bases with one out for Adames, who proceeded to drive a hanging slider over the right-center-field fence for his 16th home run of the year.
It was the MLB-leading eighth grand slam for the 2026 Giants, the second most in a single season in franchise history behind the nine they hit in 2015.
Adames batted an underwhelming .230 with a .701 OPS over 91 games in the first half, but he could emerge as a key difference-maker for the Giants if he can continue to deliver the type of thump he provided on Friday.
“I think really he is one of our main leaders, and those guys follow him just as much as anybody,” Vitello said. “The challenge is on for the coaching staff, too, but for the players to bring the attitude they brought today for a 66-game season and make it a fresh start.”
Friday also represented the start of a new chapter for former Tigers closer Jason Foley, who was activated off the 60-day injured list last week after missing a year and a half while rehabbing from right shoulder surgery.
Foley made his Giants debut after coming in to replace Roupp in the bottom of the eighth and worked a 1-2-3 inning in his first Major League appearance since Sept. 27, 2024. The 30-year-old topped out at 97.4 mph while striking out Colt Emerson to end the inning, which should make him a welcome addition to a Giants bullpen that has been sorely lacking in back-end experience this year.
“The big league adrenaline will get to you a little bit," Foley said, "so I’m happy it was coming out pretty well."