MILWAUKEE -- After dropping a series to the last-place Rockies over the weekend, the Giants continued to shake up their underperforming roster on Monday, selecting right-hander Wilkin Ramos and infielder Buddy Kennedy from Triple-A Sacramento.
The Giants made room for the two newcomers by optioning versatile catcher Jesus Rodriguez and placing right-hander Joel Peguero on the 60-day injured list with a moderate left hamstring strain. Catcher Logan Porter was also designated for assignment to clear a second spot on the 40-man roster.
Ramos and Kennedy both saw action on Monday night, though their Giants debuts were mere footnotes in an embarrassing 16-2 series-opening loss to the Brewers at American Family Field.
Matt Chapman homered for the first time since March 31 to give the Giants a 2-0 lead in the top of the second, but the Brewers surged ahead for good by rallying for seven runs off starter Landen Roupp in the bottom half of the inning.
Manager Tony Vitello said Roupp’s back locked up on him, but the Giants didn’t learn about the issue until after the 27-year-old right-hander came out of the game.
“I just kind of felt a little discomfort,” said Roupp, who gave up a career-high eight runs over four innings. “But it’s no excuse. I feel like I didn’t compete well tonight.”
Ramos replaced Roupp in the fifth and gave up two runs on three hits and two walks over two innings in his Major League debut. Kennedy subbed in for Chapman at third in the bottom of the seventh and then moved to the mound in the eighth, which forced catcher Daniel Susac to make his first career appearance at the hot corner.
The Brewers continued to pour it on by scoring four runs on four hits and two walks off Kennedy, handing the Giants (23-37) their worst margin of defeat this year, one day after they scored 19 in a rout of the Rockies.
San Francisco became just the second team in the past 25 years to score and allow 16 or more runs in back-to-back games, joining Detroit (Sept. 4, 2013; Sept. 6, 2013). That was just the third time in Giants history they had done so -- joining a 19-2 win on July 3, 1947, and a 16-7 loss on July 4, 1947; as well as a 21-9 loss on Aug. 6, 1894, and a 16-8 win on Aug. 7, 1894.
Ramos, 25, joined the Giants on a Minor League deal over the offseason and earned his first big league callup after logging a 2.00 ERA with 27 strikeouts over 27 innings in 17 relief appearances for Sacramento this year. He found out about his long-awaited promotion after the River Cats traveled back home from Reno on Sunday.
Ramos said the rest of the team’s equipment was still in transit when they got back to Sutter Health Park, so he thought it was odd that his bags were the only ones that were placed on the bus back to Sacramento.
“They left all of the players’ bags in Reno,” Ramos said in Spanish. “The only two bags that came were mine. I was like, ‘What are these bags doing here?’ And the manager told me, ‘I don’t know, maybe it’s because you’re going to the big leagues.’
“It’s a unique feeling. I want to thank God and the Giants for giving me the opportunity to fulfill my dream.”
Ramos’ arrival should help make up for the loss of Peguero, who recorded a 2.38 ERA over 11 outings for the Giants before reinjuring the same hamstring that forced him to open the season on the IL.
“It’s reoccuring, and I think this is something he’s got to get past,” Vitello said. “As long as his lower half is right, everybody knows what he’s capable of doing with his arm or his upper half.”
Rodriguez was expected to be a big part of the Giants’ catching mix following the departure of two-time Gold Glove winner Patrick Bailey, who was traded to the Guardians last month, but he didn’t get a ton of playing time as the third catcher on the roster.
The Giants preferred to go with Susac and Eric Haase as their primary tandem behind the plate, which made it difficult to find consistent opportunities for the 24-year-old Rodriguez, who batted .231 with a .687 OPS and two home runs over 14 games.
“I think to play [the catcher] position, you’ve got to consistently do it,” Vitello said. “Haase has kind of forced the issue, where his experience really helps and he’s been able to do some things offensively. And then Susac has been a rock for us, as well.”
With Christian Koss on the Triple-A IL, the Giants decided to bring up Kennedy to serve as a backup infielder. Kennedy, who also joined San Francisco on a Minor League deal over the winter, was batting .321 with a .967 OPS and eight home runs over 48 games with Sacramento this year.
Giants close to hiring Pettis
The Giants are in talks to hire former Astros coach Gary Pettis as their new third-base coach, though no deal is official yet.
Pettis, 68, coached third base under Giants infield coach Ron Washington in Texas and held the same role on former Giants manager Dusty Baker’s coaching staff in Houston. Pettis was a member of the Astros’ coaching staff for 10 seasons, though he parted ways with the organization at the end of the 2024 campaign.
Ron Wotus is currently serving as the Giants’ interim third-base coach, but the organization wanted to find a permanent replacement for Hector Borg, who was reassigned to a player development role last week following a series of questionable calls on the field.