SF Giants CF struggles on triple by Klay’s brother – SFGATE

Austin Slater couldn't track down Trayce Thompson's fly ball Thursday night.

The Giants were only charged with two errors in their rollicking loss to the Dodgers on Thursday night, but it was two defensive miscues where their gloves didn't even touch the ball that arguably cost them the game.

The most poorly timed came with two outs in the bottom of the eighth and the Giants clinging to a 6-5 lead. Austin Slater, who had entered the game to pinch hit for Mike Yastrzemski, is usually the least of the Giants' defensive problems. Unfortunately for him, he ran into the wall on a deep fly ball, losing his glove over the wall and givingTrayce Thompson (Klay's younger brother) an easy triple. The inning stayed alive long enough for Mookie Betts to hit what ended up being the game-winning three-run homer.

Luis Gonzalez's third-inning adventure was slightly more forgivable, but still cost the Giants two runs. With two outs, Justin Turner lofted an easy fly ball to deep right ... and Gonzalez lost it in the lights, doubling the lead to 4-0.

It was a familiar scene for the Giants, who sit a game outside of the second wild card spot. Team president Farhan Zaidi admitted to the San Francisco Chronicle on Tuesday that defense was the main reason they weren't in playoff position. (SFGATE and the San Francisco Chronicle are both owned by Hearst but operate independently of one another.)

Earlier this month, longtime Giants writer Grant Brisbee called the team "a bunch of clankmitts" and said it "might be the worst defensive team I remember watching." (He also pointed out that by at least one metric, these Giants are among the worst defensive teamsever.) Retooling a struggling defense on the fly is not easy, but it might be Zaidi's only hope at coming anywhere close to recapturing last year's magic.

Dennis Young is the SFGATE sports editor. He can be reached at dennis.young@sfgate.com

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SF Giants CF struggles on triple by Klay's brother - SFGATE