SAN FRANCISCO — Justin Verlander has used Eminem’s “Till I Collapse” as his walk-out song for roughly his entire career. The track has always resonated with Verlander, less of an anthem and more of a mantra.
‘Til I collapse, I’m spillin’ these raps long as you feel ’em,
‘Til the day that I drop, you’ll never say that I’m not killin’ ’em
As Verlander departed following five scoreless innings, the Giants on their way to a 13-2 win over the Baltimore Orioles, “Till I Collapse” once again boomed through Oracle Park’s sound system. The Sunday afternoon crowd did their best to drown out the instrumental with a raucous ovation. Verlander’s season-high 10 strikeouts were impressive enough, but at 42-years-young, Verlander ended a game with a pitch count of 121 — a relic of a bygone era.
Unlike previous starts this season, Verlander wouldn’t be straddled with a no decision due to a lack of offense. The Giants, with the help of three errors from the Orioles, scored at least 10 runs for the the third time in their last five games.
Rafael Devers led the Giants (68-69) on offense as he fell a triple shy of the cycle, collecting a single, double and his 28th home run of the year. Devers finishes August with nine home runs and a slash line of .291/.397/.592, his first truly elite month since joining San Francisco. Along with Devers, Heliot Ramos and Drew Gilbert each had three-hit games.
Whisenhunt hits injured list, Teng to start on Monday
Rookie left-hander Carson Whisenhunt was placed on the 15-day injured list prior to Sunday’s game (retroactive to Aug. 28) with a back strain.
Right-hander Kai-Wei Teng has been recalled from Triple-A Sacramento and will start in Whisenhunt’s place on Monday against the Colorado Rockies.