Joc Pederson’s Historic Night Highlights Giants’ Gritty Win Over Mets
May 25, 2022, 9:18 AM | Updated: 9:18 am
(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
(Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
Fans in attendance at Oracle Park collectively groaned once New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor slapped a go-ahead three-run triple in the top of the seventh inning on Tuesday night.
The San Francisco Giants were staring a sixth-straight loss in the face after blowing an 8-2 lead with just nine outs left to be played.
Palo Alto native Joc Pederson already had walloped two home runs–both two-run shots–over the first five innings of play, and the Giants outfielder would etch his name into the history books during his next at bat.
As San Francisco trailed 11-8 with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, Pederson drilled his third homer of the night off of Mets reliever Drew Smith to tie the game up and send Oracle Park into a frenzy.
Pederson’s night wouldn’t end there, either.
New York regained the lead in the top of the ninth to make things 12-11, backing the Giants into a corner late as Pederson would come to the plate with runners on first and second with two outs.
The game would once again enter a tie after Pederson collected his eighth RBI of the night on a single up the middle that sent Mike Yastrzemski scurrying home to tie the game at 12-12.
One batter later, Brandon Crawford capped off a game-of-the-year candidate with a walk-off single to left field as San Francisco snapped a five-game skid in an exhilarating fashion.
It was a historic night for Pederson, as the 30-year-old finished the night four-for-six with three home runs, eight runs batted in and three runs scored.
According to Baseball Reference, Pederson became the first Giant to record three home runs and eight RBI in a single game since baseball legend Willie Mays did so over 60 years ago.
Speaking of baseball legends, Pederson accredited his massive night to a pregame chat that he had with home run king and Giants legend Barry Bonds.
“Just getting knowledge from such a good hitter and the way he thinks about baseball and hitting, it just helped connect some dots to free my mind up at the plate,” Pederson said of his talk with Bonds. “I was able to put some good swings on pitches today.”
