ATLANTA -- Robbie Ray took the mound under unusual circumstances on Wednesday afternoon.
After rain suspended Tuesday night’s series opener at Truist Park, Ray was tasked with picking up the game in the bottom of the second inning with the Giants leading by one run. It was only the fifth career regular-season relief appearance for Ray, but the 34-year-old veteran took the assignment in stride.
Ray struck out a season-high eight over 6 1/3 scoreless innings to lead the Giants to a 7-2 win in the resumption of the series opener against the Braves.
“It was kind of a unique game, where I essentially was starting,” Ray said. “It felt like a home game, almost. … It was a fresh inning, so it didn’t really bother me all that much. I still was able to go through my pregame routine like I normally would. There wasn’t anything -- other than being the away team and going out there first -- that was different.”
Rafael Devers and Jung Hoo Lee launched back-to-back solo shots off Atlanta left-hander Dylan Dodd in the top of the fifth, and Willy Adames added a Statcast-projected 424-foot blast to straightaway center field in the eighth to back Ray, who managed to get through at least six innings for the first time since May 8.
“He was awesome,” manager Tony Vitello said. “The offense certainly did a good job of swinging the bat, but in my opinion, I felt like they were feeding off the vibe of how [Ray] was throwing a little bit. Regardless of whatever’s true, he kind of led the way.”
Ray entered Wednesday with a 7.16 ERA over his previous six starts, but he looked sharp against the Braves, permitting only two hits and two walks in the 94-pitch outing.
Atlanta had stacked its lineup with left-handed hitters against right-hander Adrian Houser, who started Tuesday's game and gave up two runs on three hits over one inning before play was suspended. That created plenty of advantageous matchups for Ray, who didn’t allow a hit through his first five innings before surrendering a leadoff double to Austin Riley in the bottom of the seventh.
Ray entered the game with the Giants already leading, 3-2, so he knew he wouldn’t get credit for a no-hitter regardless of how well he threw the ball on Wednesday.
“It was funny because we were talking about [it] before the game,” Ray said. “Going no-hit through eight innings and you don’t get a no-hitter. We just kind of laughed about it.”
Ray typically relies on his four-seam fastball, but he incorporated more of his sinker on Wednesday, throwing the pitch 29% of the time, up from his season average of 4.5%. Ray said he hopes upping his sinker usage will allow him to get more early outs and pitch deeper into games more consistently.
“The two-seam has been a good pitch for me lately,” Ray said. “The game’s kind of changed a little bit. The top of the zone’s kind of been brought down. You used to be able to exploit that top of the zone. And there are still times when you can, especially when you’re ahead. But I feel like the two-seam is kind of a pitch that allows you to get some early outs. I think that’s what I’ve been able to use it for. Get some early outs with it and be able to today pitch over six innings.”
Ray has a 4.07 ERA over 15 outings this season and is an impending free agent, so he could be an obvious trade candidate for the Giants (30-43), who are reportedly open to offers for several of their veteran players now that they’re 13 games under .500.
Ray has been dealt four times over his career, so he understands that speculation will be par for the course this time of year. Still, he said trade rumors aren’t at the forefront of his mind right now.
“I’m just trying to go out and give my team a chance to win every time,” Ray said. “I’m not on social media. I’ve got four kids, so I’m very rarely ever on my phone. I don’t really pay attention to that. I’m just trying to go out there every time and give my team a chance to win. Whatever happens, happens. It’s happened before, so it’s not going to surprise me if something does happen. But it’s not like I’m sitting here thinking about, ‘Man, where am I going to go?’”
Left-hander Carson Whisenhunt, the Giants’ No. 11 prospect per MLB Pipeline, is expected to start Game 2 and make his 2026 debut for San Francisco.