Coors Field presented nearly no problems for Kyle Harrison on Tuesday in the Giants’ 5-0 win against the Colorado Rockies.
The win snapped a Giants four-game losing streak.
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Harrison, 22, made seven starts in the major leagues last season and had started seven games thus far this season. He had yet to pitch at Coors Field, a hitter’s heaven to many and a pitcher’s nightmare to most. Not to Harrison.
The young left-hander owned the Rockies’ offense, pitching a career-high seven shutout innings. Tuesday marked Harrison’s second start without giving up an earned run in 2024, and the second time in his career.
Ryan Walker struck out the side in his one inning of relief, and Camilo Doval flirted with torture but ultimately escaped a scoreless ninth inning.
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Harrison wasn’t the only Giant to play at Coors Field for the first time. Jung Hoo Lee made the most of his experience, going 3-for-5 at the plate. Defensively, Lee tracked down a 398-foot shot to center field, jumping at the wall and snagging a fly ball that had a .720 expected batting average.
The Giants’ five runs were their most in a game since April 23, a two-week span that lasted 12 games.
Here are three takeaways from the Giants improving to 2-6 on their current 10-game road trip.
Coors Field Kyle
Plenty of pitchers would rather use a sick day and stay at home instead of toe the rubber at Coors Field. Harrison is different. The Giants’ 22-year-old left-hander is built for success in Colorado.
Harrison isn’t someone who relies on the movement of his off-speed pitches, but instead is a fastball-first pitcher, meaning the altitude shouldn’t be as much of an issue for him. Coming into Tuesday, Harrison threw his four-seam fastball over 65 percent of the time.
On Tuesday, Harrison threw his fastball 48 times – 56 percent of his 86 total pitches. Though the Rockies only swung and missed on three fastballs, Harrison worked quick and efficiently all night long. Harrison faced 27 batters, striking out two while forcing 11 groundouts and six flyouts.
Plus, he was in full control of the game. Harrison walked five batters in his last start and walked just two Tuesday.
Giants Make Hudson Work
While Harrison needed only eight pitches to record three outs in the third inning, Rockies starter Dakota Hudson needed 30. The Giants worked Hudson for 18 pitches in the first inning, including a six-pitch walk from LaMonte Wade Jr. They made Hudson start sweating even more in the second inning, one where he threw 22 pitches.
Between the second and third innings, Hudson threw 52 pitches, but the Giants still were without a run on the board. That finally changed in the fourth inning, when the Giants knocked Hudson out of the game for good.
The first three batters of the inning saw 13 pitches before Nick Ahmed came to the plate and brought in the Giants’ first run on a ball that traveled two feet. Ahmed’s RBI single was the sixth pitch of his at-bat.
Lee followed Ahmed’s infield single with one of his own, traveling four feet. The next batter, Thairo Estrada, was Hudson’s last. Estrada’s fielder’s choice was Hudson’s 21st pitch of the fourth inning and his 95th on the day. Hudson tied a season-high of five walks, allowing five hits and four earned runs in 3 2/3 innings.
Old Friend Alert
Ty Blach isn’t the flashiest. The lefty doesn’t throw the hardest. He isn’t always going to pass the eye test. And still, coaches and teammates always have relied on him.
Rockies manager Bud Black turned to Blach to replace Hudson in the fourth inning against the team Blach spent his first three-plus years in the big leagues with.
Wade introduced Blach to the game by hitting a rope of a single to center field, driving in Ahmed and Lee.
Blach then enjoyed two straight 1-2-3 innings before the heart of the order got to him in the seventh. The Giants tagged him for two singles, walked once and scored one run off him in the inning before Black replaced Blach with two outs and the bases loaded.
Blach allowed one earned run on four hits, one walk and two strikeouts in three innings out of the bullpen. He now has allowed nine earned runs in five games, 14 2/3 innings, against the Giants in his career.
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