There was no waiting for a sign from Zach Neto. He didn’t require one. The Angels shortstop was off and there was no stopping him once Jo Adell hit a double down the left-field line.
After the game, Neto told Trent Rush, “I was scoring because I knew I was the winning run.” “I’m not sure if Eric Young, the third base coach, was holding me or not. I was scoring.
That bold move ended a crazy four-run ninth inning and ended Justin Verlander’s hopes of winning his first game in a Giants uniform, sealing an exciting 5-4 walk-off victory for the Los Angeles Angels over the San Francisco Giants on Sunday.
The Angels, who were up 4-1 going into the bottom of the ninth, pulled off an unlikely comeback behind closer Ryan Walker, who had given up just one run this season. Jorge Soler singled after Mike Trout walked to start the inning. Walker then hit Neto with a pitch to bring in a run after Logan O’Hoppe loaded the bases with a one-out hit.
Jo Adell delivered the decisive blow with a bases-clearing double on a 1-2 pitch that hugged the third-base line when the bases were still juiced. The climax was Neto’s all-gas-no-brakes strategy.
The Giants blow the lead as the Angels rally late
Giants catcher Sam Huff described the close play at the plate as follows: “I tried to put a tag on him but he got his hand in there at the last second.” “Bang-bang, good throw, good relay, just unlucky.”
Adell’s case as a possible breakout star for the Angels in 2025 is strengthened by the fact that he finished the game with three hits and has now amassed five RBIs in the last two games.
Verlander had a fantastic performance in his sixth start of the year, but the walk-off hit destroyed it. The 42-year-old right-hander struck out six batters, reached 97 mph on the radar gun, and fannied Trout twice in six innings while giving up only one run. Since signing a one-year, $15 million contract with San Francisco this offseason, it was undoubtedly his greatest start.
Verlander remarked, “It felt great to get out of that,” alluding to a jam in the fourth inning where he loaded the bases but managed to escape unharmed. “I think I’ve been going in the right way lately.”
Giants manager Bob Melvin and catcher Huff praised Verlander for his presence and authority on the mound despite the setback. However, the Giants’ failure to complete the task, which included leaving 11 runners stranded and only going 2-for-8 with men in scoring position, proved to be costly.
After the game, Walker declared, “Verlander deserved the win.” “Especially for a guy like him, it’s not fun to be the one who gives it up.”
But Neto was not going to let anybody else write the conclusion. The Angels (10-11) ended their homestand on a good note by defeating the Giants, ending their run of unbeaten road series. Now, they will host the Pirates, and San Francisco will play the Brewers at home in a four-game series.
And if the Angels’ never-say-die mentality was ever embodied, it was when Neto broke past the stop sign with the game on the line, heart racing and sights on home.
