Holland makes home debut vs. Diamondbacks (Apr 09, 2018)
SAN FRANCISCO -- Left-hander Derek Holland is scheduled to make his rain-delayed first home start for his new team Monday night when the San Francisco Giants open a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The Diamondbacks, seeking a fourth straight series win to open the season, will counter with right-hander Zack Godley.
Signed as a free agent in the offseason, Holland got no offensive support in a 5-0 road loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in his National League debut. He allowed only three hits and three walks in five innings, but they combined for five runs, two of which were unearned.
The veteran was slated to get a rematch against the Dodgers in San Francisco on Friday but got pushed back when the game was rained out. He was slotted on Monday in part because the Giants have opened the season with a four-man rotation, and the move further delayed having to go to the minors for a fifth starter.
The smaller starting staff has allowed Giants manager Bruce Bochy to have an extra reliever at his disposal, and he needed every last arm he had in the bullpen during two extra-inning contests against the Dodgers over the weekend.
The Giants' eighth reliever of the game, right-hander Roberto Gomez, was the winner in Saturday's dramatic 7-5 victory in 14 innings.
After making upgrades in the bullpen an offseason priority, the Giants already have summoned three unfamiliar faces out of the bullpen in the season's first week and a half. Another of them, right-hander Pierce Johnson, was the losing pitcher in Sunday's 2-1, 10-inning loss to the Dodgers.
The new Giants relievers, who also include righty Reyes Moronta, all got a taste of the Giants-Dodgers rivalry on Saturday night in a game in which San Francisco fell behind 5-4 in the 14th before another newcomer, Andrew McCutchen, belted a three-run, walk-off home run in the bottom of the inning.
"There's a lot of feelings," said Gomez, who was the last reliever available when summoned to pitch the top of the 14th. "It was my first win and it was against the Dodgers."
Even with the rainout, which will be made up later this month, the Giants have opened with six of their nine games against the Dodgers. They split those games 3-3.
In between, the Dodgers took a trip to Arizona and came up on the short end of three straight contests.
Godley pitched the middle of the three, outdueling Clayton Kershaw in a 6-1 win in which he handcuffed the Dodgers on four hits and one walk in seven innings.
The 27-year-old has faced the Giants four times in his career, but never in San Francisco. He's gone 1-1 with a 7.84 ERA in those games, starting and relieving twice each.
Interestingly, Godley's goal in his season debut -- similar to Holland's task Monday -- was to aid a bullpen that had been exhausted the night before in a 15-inning win over the Dodgers.
"My goal each and every time out is to do everything I can to help the team win," Godley proudly boasted after his seven-inning effort. "This was one of those times where it called for me to try to go a little bit longer, and I was glad I was able to do it."
Holland has never faced the Diamondbacks in his 10-year career.
