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Robbie Ray is proving that patience pays off. The veteran left-hander has been nothing short of electric in his first full season back from Tommy John surgery, and on Wednesday afternoon, he joined elite company in San Francisco Giants history. Ray delivered six strong innings in a 3-1 win over the Cubs at Wrigley Field, improving to 5-0 and becoming the first Giants pitcher since Tim Lincecum in 2010 to begin a season with his team winning each of his first eight starts.
“It is nice when the team wins when you start, regardless of personal wins,” Ray said postgame. “I’m just trying to go out there and give my team a chance every single time and put up as many zeros as I can.”
Ray allowed only one run on three hits and two walks while striking out five. That lone blemish came in the fourth inning when a routine fly ball by Pete Crow-Armstrong dropped in left field—blown around by the swirling Wrigley wind. The ball had an expected batting average of .000 according to Statcast, but sometimes the elements don’t play fair.
Manager Bob Melvin wasn’t pointing fingers. “That ball looked like a wedge in 30 mph winds,” he said. “You can’t really blame Ramos for that one. That would’ve been a tough play for anybody.”
Robbie Ray continues to shine for the Giants
Ray adjusted his approach against one of MLB’s top offenses, leaning more on his knuckle-curve and changeup to keep hitters off balance. Only four of the 23 batters he faced saw a first-pitch fastball, and 8 of the 11 balls put in play were grounders—an encouraging trend for the flyball-prone hurler.
The Giants’ offense didn’t replicate Tuesday night’s nine-run explosion in extra innings, but they gave Ray enough early support. Wilmer Flores opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first and stayed hot at the plate, finishing 3-for-4 and raising his RBI total to 33—fourth-most in the majors.
LaMonte Wade Jr. and Christian Koss each added run-scoring hits in the fourth, and while Wade was thrown out at the plate to end the inning, the damage was done. The Giants led 3-1 and never looked back.
Ray's win pushed San Francisco to a season-high 10 games over .500 at 24-14, briefly tying the Dodgers for the most wins in baseball before Los Angeles picked up its 25th later in the day.
Camilo Doval pitched a clean seventh, extending his scoreless streak to 13 straight outings. Ryan Walker, one night removed from a blown save, was given another shot in the ninth. After a leadoff single, he settled in, inducing a double play from Justin Turner and a groundout from Nico Hoerner to lock up his seventh save of the year. Ray’s resurgence and the bullpen’s bounce back have the Giants riding high—and chasing history with every win he starts.
