SAN FRANCISCO For the second time in 11 days, Giants pitcher Logan Webb had to pause during a start to compose himself after seeing significant news on the scoreboard.
Webb was pitching at Wrigley Field when the announcement of Willie Mays’ passing was made. On Friday, another Giants legend, Orlando Cepeda, passed away peacefully at his home. The Giants organization shared the news during a 5-3 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers, just as Webb was warming up to start an inning at Oracle Park.
“It was tough,” Webb said. “When I first saw it, I was like, man, the same sort of situation. It’s been a tough month for Giants baseball, losing guys like this and losing special people important to the Giants. It was tough.”
The organization has faced a difficult month, with plans already in place to celebrate Mays at Oracle Park on July 8. On Friday, the Giants wore “24” patches on their jerseys in May’s honor, and as they celebrated their win, Brad Grems, the team’s senior manager of the home clubhouse and equipment, was busy ironing “30” onto every jersey for Saturday night’s game.
“What another gut punch,” manager Bob Melvin said. “Another incredible personality. He is beloved here and has a statue upfront. The numbers he put up—there are a lot of legends here, and he was certainly right in the middle of that. To have it so close in proximity to Willie, it’s kind of staggering.”
After Mays’ death, the Giants struggled, losing every game on their road trip, including one at Rickwood Field, which Melvin managed as if it were a late-September playoff match. They finally broke the losing streak on Monday, wearing No. 24 jerseys, and on Friday, they managed to bring some joy after the sad news.
Brett Wisely hit a walk-off homer in the ninth inning, the third home run of the night for a lineup that appears deeper. Webb allowed only two runs over seven innings against the Dodgers, who had hammered him earlier in the season. In two starts against them since, he has given up just two runs in 13 innings.
Friday’s performance had an added bonus for Webb, who once again leads the National League in innings pitched, a potential tiebreaker in a tight MLB All-Star race. He had his best velocity of the 2024 season early on, hitting 95.5 mph in the first inning, his fastest pitch since 2021.
“I finally got my 95—a true 95,” Webb said, smiling. “I couldn’t tell you [where that came from], but I feel like lately I’ve been feeling better. The mechanics have been better. It’s been kind of a grind, and I feel like early on, my mechanics were off. You saw my spring training; it wasn’t very good. I think I’m finally kind of finding a groove, finding the right mechanics, and everything. Hopefully, it keeps going up.”
Despite a good night in the box score, it was still a tough one for Webb, one of the few Giants who had met Mays and Cepeda. However, it felt appropriate that he was in the spotlight when the announcement was made.
Cepeda played nine seasons for the Giants and remains among their San Francisco-era leaders in home runs, RBI, and hits. His 142 RBIs in 1961 are still the highest mark since the Giants moved west. Despite finishing his career elsewhere, he was so beloved that a statue of him stands outside the ballpark’s entrance on 2nd Street, near one celebrating Gaylord Perry.
In recent years, the Giants have seen a lot of turnover. Wisely was the result of shrewd moves by the front office, and Matt Chapman, who gave the Giants a short-lived lead, is in his first year with the team.
Webb, now in his sixth year, is the best bet on the roster to reach double-digit seasons with the Giants and possibly join the conversations with the organization’s greats. Long before they were ironed onto jerseys, Nos. 24 and 30 were retired by the organization. It’s possible that 62 will be retired one day, too.
Webb is on his way to becoming one of the Giants’ legends, like Cepeda, who often returned to watch the team play. The Giants cherish their legends, and for good reason. They have lost two this month, but like Mays, Cepeda left a lasting impact.
“He couldn’t be nicer to anybody who was here as a giant,” Melvin said. “I even met him when I was really young as a kid. He was just one of those guys who was so great with kids and had a smile on his face all the time. You feel like he’s your friend. Again, another one, so it’s really tough.”
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