SAN DIEGO — Roughly a week ago, Kai-Wei Teng and Nick Pivetta faced off at Oracle Park in what ended up being a 10-run loss for the Giants. There would be no blowout on Tuesday night at Petco Park, but the result was the same.
Teng had a promising beginning but faded in the fourth. Pivetta struck out 10 batters over six innings. Jung Hoo Lee’s leadoff homer was San Francisco’s only offense. The defense committed two errors. Those pieces added up to a 5-1 loss to San Diego, dropping San Francisco to 61-65 on the season.
“It looked like his stuff was better,” Melvin said. “He was getting ahead. He was getting different swings. Obviously, goes out for the fourth, hit a couple of guys and it kind of got away from him.”
Teng has given away his share of free bases during his four appearances with the Giants this season. Over 13 1/3 innings, Teng has totaled three hit batters and nine walks. Those issues cropped up in the bottom of the fourth, shortening what had been a promising start.
The right-hander began the inning by allowing a single to Ryan O’Hearn then plunking Xander Bogaerts in the hand with an errant changeup. After getting Ramon Laureano to hit into a force out, Teng loaded the bases by hitting Gavin Sheets in the shin with a curveball. Jose Iglesias gave the Padres a 2-1 lead with an RBI single, and Teng’s evening was done.
“The first three innings, I thought it was pretty good,” Teng said through team interpreter Andy Lin. “In the fourth inning, it was unfortunate I had two hit-by-pitches. That was the only part that I’m frustrated with myself.”
Pivetta, by contrast, had a couple more innings left in the tank. After allowing one run over 6 2/3 innings last Wednesday in San Francisco, Pivetta only allowed one run over six innings in San Diego. Melvin attributed Pivetta’s four-seam fastball, which generated four whiffs and five called strikes, as one of the main reasons for the right-hander’s effectiveness.
“(His fastball) looks good at certain levels,” Melvin said. “When you have that kind of vertical (movement), it’s easier said than done to stay on top of it.”
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Teng’s overall poor performance (8.78 ERA) could give the team an opportunity to call up right-hander Blade Tidwell from Triple-A Sacramento. Tidwell has impressed during his brief time in the Giants’ system after being acquired in the deal that sent Tyler Rogers to the New York Mets. Over three starts, Tidwell has a 1.69 ERA with 23 strikeouts over 16 innings.
Melvin said following the loss that he was unsure if Teng would receive another start.
Lee, who also doubled, generated the Giants’ only run of the night against Pivetta with a leadoff homer that gave the Giants an instant 1-0 lead. The center fielder has heated up in August, posting a .345/.417/.632 slash line over 17 games with one homer, two triples and seven doubles.
“Whatever the pitcher gives me, I’m trying to swing at the pitch at the perfect timing,” Lee said through team interpreter Justin Han. “Sometimes, you get that perfect timing. With the pull power, it just comes through naturally.”
