Cain Sputters in 5th Inning Again, Giants Drop 3rd Straight

The traditional definition of being "Cain'd" is to pitch beautifully, which would be about seven, eight, or even nine innings while only allowing one run, only to be handed the loss at the end of the night because the offense provided zero run support. This term, of course, was named after Matt Cain after these types of starts seemed to occur habitually when Cain toed the slab. From 2005 and on, there was a feeling going into a game that the offense was going to call in sick and be single-handedly-responsible for Cain getting handed the loss.

Now, some eleven years after Cain was a mere rookie in the show, the definition of being Cain'd has expanded. Now, instead of pitching seven, eight, or nine innings, only pitch four while allowing exactly zero runs. Then, in the fifth inning, which shall from now on be referred to only as the Fifth Inning From Hell, pitch horribly, be taken out, then eventually lose.

In Cain's past three starts, this phenomenon has occurred and turned a possible masterpiece into a start to forget.

What is it about the fifth inning that has haunted Cain in these past three starts? Through the first four innings, everything seems to be going good for the veteran, then that fifth inning comes around and out of nowhere the game gets away from him. Call it odd or coincidence or black magic, but every single run Cain has allowed this season has come in the fifth inning. Baseball is strange.

The offense didn't do any favors in bailing Cain out tonight, as the night after San Francisco put up seven runs, the team put up a zero spot. Robbie Ray may well have been the reincarnation of Sandy Koufax the way that he was shutting down the Giants. Ray went six innings while striking out eight, and the Arizona shut down the San Francisco offense for the rest of the night.

The bullpen, which has been shaky all throughout the early season, actually pitched well and contained the Arizona offense after Cain's shaky start, pitching a combined 4.1 innings and giving up no runs.

Steven Okert made his major league debut tonight and proved to be one of the few bright spots that the crowd could rally behind. In two innings of work, Okert struck out two and flashed the strike out stuff that gave him a name in the minors.

The Recap

Neither the Giants nor Diamondbacks could get anything going in the early frames, getting a couple of runners on base, but no real threats. The Giants got runners on 1st and 2nd with two outs in the bottom of the 1st, but Ray neutralized the damage by getting Brown to ground out to second.

Both Cain and Ray made short work of both offenses, but then that darned fifth inning happened for Cain.

Arizona got its offense going for the first time of the night when Chris Owings doubled, giving the Diamondbacks their first hit of the day. After Robbie Ray had bunted Owings over to third, Jean Segura singled Owings in to give Arizona a 1-0 lead. The Diamondbacks didn't waste any time expanding that lead as Jake Lamb tripled to knock in Segura, then Paul Goldschmidt brought in Lamb on a sacrifice fly to bring the Arizona lead to three.

Those three runs proved to be all the Diamondbacks would need to shut down the high-powered San Francisco offense and take the second game of a four-game series.

Notable Performances

Matt Duffy showed signs of finally breaking out of his slump, going 2 for 3 with a walk.

Javier Lopez also finally got a little momentum going for him after an especially rough start, setting down the only hitter he faced.

Okert, of course, pitched two scoreless innings in his major league debut.

What to Expect

Madison Bumgarner looks to get the Giants back on the right track as he faces off against Arizona ace Zach Greinke tomorrow night at 7:15 PST. Greinke struggled in his first two starts in a Diamondback uniform, but regained his Cy Young form against the Padres, allowing two runs over 7.1 innings while striking out five.

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