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Devers hits 2 HRs to power Giants to big win (1:03)
Rafael Devers crushes two home runs as the Giants take down the Braves. (1:03)
ESPN News Services
Jul 23, 2025, 03:51 PM ET
ATLANTA -- Justin Verlander ended the longest streak of starts in a season without a win in Giants history at 16, allowing one hit in five scoreless innings of a 9-3 victory against the Braves on Wednesday.
The 16 starts without a win by the 42-year-old Verlander (1-8), who overcame five walks, is the longest stretch by a Giants pitcher in a single season in franchise history. The three-time Cy Young winner finalized a $15 million, one-year deal with San Francisco in January.
Verlander threw 40 pitches in the first inning, loading the bases without giving up a hit or allowing a run. It tied for his third-most pitching in an opening inning in his career, and the most since 2014. He didn't allow a hit until the fifth inning.
It was Verlander's first win since Sept. 28, when he was with the Houston Astros, and career win No. 263.
Rafael Devers, who served as the Giants' designated hitter one day after making his debut as the starting first baseman, drove in four runs with three hits, including two home runs.
Devers went deep off Spencer Strider (4-8) in the fifth for the game's first run. Strider then hit Willy Adames with a pitch before Matt Chapman's two-run homer gave San Francisco a 3-0 lead. Devers added a three-run shot off Dylan Dodd, who was recalled earlier in the day, in the sixth.
Eli White's blooper landed fair near the right-field line to open the fifth for Atlanta's first hit off Verlander. White stole second base and moved to third on a wild pitch before Verlander struck out Drake Baldwin to end the inning.
The win was the Giants' second in a row after ending a six-game slide on Tuesday. San Francisco outscored the Braves 18-3 to win the final two games of the series after Atlanta won the opener 9-7.
The Associated Press and ESPN Research contributed to this report.
