Walker earned the save in Sunday's 5-4 win over the Yankees, striking out one in a perfect ninth inning.
Walker was called upon to protect a 5-4 lead in the ninth inning and delivered a clean inning to record his fourth save in as many chances. The 29-year-old has been rock-solid to open the season, posting a 1.29 ERA, 0.57 WHIP and 6:1 K:BB across seven innings.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Works clean ninth inning for save
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Walker earned the save after throwing a clean ninth inning during Tuesday's 3-1 win over the Astros.
Walker made quick work of Houston's lineup to secure his second save of the season, tossing nine of his 13 pitches for strikes to retire the big bats of Isaac Paredes, Yordan Alvarez and Christian Walker in order. The 29-year-old right-hander seized San Francisco's closing gig in the middle of last season due Camilo Doval's struggles in 2024, and Walker has converted each of his first two save opportunities to open 2025.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Works ninth in Monday's win
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Walker walked one and struck out two in a scoreless ninth inning during Monday's 7-2 win over the Astros.
It wasn't a save situation, but it was still reassuring to see Walker on the mound after back tightness had him shut down over the weekend. Camilo Doval picked up a save Sunday in his absence, but Walker should get the bulk of the ninth-inning work for the Giants after a breakout 2024 campaign that saw him post a 1.91 ERA, 0.85 WHIP and 99:18 K:BB over 80 innings.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Battling back tightness
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Walker has been unavailable the past couple days due to back tightness but could be ready to pitch Monday against the Reds, Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area reports.
The right-hander picked up the save Opening Day, but it was Camilo Doval that was called upon for Sunday's save chance. Walker appears to still have a firm grip on the closer role, and he should be back soon after contending with the back issue.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Earns Opening Day save
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Walker earned the save in Thursday's 6-4 win over the Reds, allowing a run on one hit in the ninth inning.
Walker recorded the first two outs in the ninth before hitting Jacob Hurtubise with a pitch, who then came around to score on a TJ Friedl single. However, Walker would rebound and record the final out to close out the Giants' Opening Day victory. The 29-year-old Walker is coming off an impressive 2024 campaign, during which he posted a 1.91 ERA and 0.85 WHIP across 80 innings. He logged 10 saves after taking over the closer job late in the year and should have pretty good job security to begin 2025.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Named closer
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Manager Bob Melvin said Wednesday that Walker will open the season as the Giants' closer, Justice delos Santos of The San Jose Mercury News reports.
After Camilo Doval endured a string of poor performances following the All-Star break and was removed from the closer's role in early August, Walker took over as the Giants' primary closer to finish out the 2024 campaign. In addition to providing sterling ratios (1.91 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 99:18 K:BB over 80 innings) in his high-leverage relief role, Walker collected 10 wins, 10 saves and 21 holds. With the Giants opting not to make any major additions to the bullpen over the offseason, Walker looks like he'll get the chance to close on a full-time basis for the first time in his career. He'll be in position for fewer wins in the ninth-inning role, but if health prevails and he continues to perform at the level he did in 2024, Walker could finish among the league leaders in saves.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Earns 10th save
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Walker pitched a perfect inning and earned the save in Monday's 6-3 win over the Diamondbacks.
Walker has rebounded with a pair of saves since he took a walk-off loss versus the Orioles last Thursday. The right-hander is up to 10 saves this year, which is impressive considering he took over the closing job in mid-August and the Giants haven't exactly been a dominant team. He's added 22 holds with a 1.94 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 99:17 K:BB across 79 innings in his second major-league campaign.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Falters in non-save situation
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Walker (9-4) allowed two runs on two hits and struck out two over two-thirds of an inning to take the loss Thursday versus the Orioles.
Walker allowed multiple runs for the first time since July 9 as he gave up a walk-off, two-run home run to Anthony Santander in the ninth inning. The Giants' closer had not given up an earned run over his previous 20.2 innings, and he entered Thursday on a 12-inning scoreless streak. He avoided a blown save since this misstep came in a tie game. Walker has eight saves, four blown saves and 22 holds with a 1.99 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and a 98:17 K:BB through 77 innings this season.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Perfect for eighth save
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Walker picked up the save Wednesday against Baltimore, striking out one batter during a perfect ninth inning.
Walker has converted on eight consecutive saves and hasn't allowed an earned run in 20.2 innings. During that stretch, he's allowed eight hits and has fanned 31 batters. On the year, Walker boasts a 1.77 ERA.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Secures another save Sunday
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Walker got the save over the Padres again Sunday, completing five outs while not allowing any baserunners.
Walker entered in the eighth with one out after Camilo Doval coughed up a two-run homer to make it a 7-6 game and then walked a batter to bring the leading run up to the plate for the Padres. Walker was able to get out of the inning and then pitched a perfect ninth to lock up the win for the Giants. Walker's now converted seven consecutive save chances and owns a sparkling 1.82 ERA, 0.85 WHIP and 95:16 K:BB in 74.1 innings this season.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Picks up sixth save
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Walker picked up the save over the Padres on Saturday, allowing one hit over a scoreless ninth inning.
Walker took the mound with a three-run lead in the bottom of the ninth and surrendered a leadoff double to Fernando Tatis on the first pitch before retiring the next three batters in order to end the game and secure his sixth save of the campaign. The right-handed reliever has converted each of his six save opportunities this season and still hasn't allowed an earned run since July 27 against Colorado. Since the start of August, he's gone 2-0 with six saves while posting a 29:3 K:BB over 16 innings.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Locks down fifth save
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Walker struck out two in a perfect inning to earn the save in Friday's 3-1 win over the Marlins.
Walker has allowed just one unearned run on seven hits and two walks over his last 14.2 innings, striking out 27 in that span. He's picked up all five of his saves this year over his last eight appearances, and it doesn't look like Walker will be letting go of the closer role any time soon. He's now at a 1.92 ERA, 0.87 WHIP and 92:15 K:BB through 70.1 innings this season. Walker's 67 appearances have him tied for second in the majors with Houston's Bryan Abreu and trailing only his Giants teammate Tyler Rogers (68), who earned the win Friday.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Secures fourth save
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Walker allowed a hit and struck out one over a scoreless inning to earn the save in Tuesday's 5-4 win over the Brewers.
Walker gave up just a two-out single while protecting a one-run lead. He's continued his dominance in August, allowing one unearned run while posting a 24:2 K:BB over 12.2 innings this month. He's also earned all four of his saves in that span. Walker still looks to be the Giants' closer even with Camilo Doval back from a brief stint at Triple-A Sacramento. Walker has easily been the Giants' best reliever this year with a 1.95 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 90:15 K:BB over 69.1 innings.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Picks up win Sunday
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Walker (8-3) got the win over the Athletics on Sunday, allowing an unearned run on two hits and a walk while striking out five over two innings.
Walker entered in the bottom of the ninth looking to send the game to extras with the score tied 1-1. He successfully did so and then came back out for the bottom of the 10th with a 4-1 lead after the Giants tacked on three. Walker found himself in a jam with the bases loaded and nobody out and struck out three batters in a row to seal the deal. He's now put together eight straight outings without giving up an earned run and has piled up three holds, a win and a save while posting a 14:2 K:BB over that span. For the year, Walker owns an impressive 2.10 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 79:15 K:BB in 64.1 innings.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Picks up fourth win
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Walker (4-2) pitched a perfect ninth inning and struck out one, earning the extra-inning win over the Pirates on Wednesday.
Walker kept the game tied in the ninth inning, and the Giants' offense exploded in the 10th to make him the pitcher of record. The right-hander has stumbled a little recently, allowing two runs over his last five innings, but he also has a 7:0 K:BB and three holds in that span. Walker is getting the job done with a 2.42 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 36:4 K:BB over 26 innings this season. He's added seven holds and one blown save while not seeing a lot of late-inning work, but his elite strikeout numbers make him an interesting option in all NL-only formats and some deeper mixed leagues as well.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Returns Friday
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Walker (back) struck out one in a perfect inning to earn a hold in Friday's 10-5 win over the Rockies.
Walker was dealing with back tightness earlier in the week, but he was able to move past it with the help of Thursday's off day. The right-hander is up to five holds on the year, and he's added a 2.35 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 31:4 K:BB over 23 innings. He continues to be one of the Giants' most versatile relievers, though that doesn't often lead to him pitching in late-inning situations.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Collects third win
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Walker (3-2) allowed a hit and struck out one without walking a batter in a scoreless inning to earn the win Thursday over the Red Sox.
Walker is on a seven-inning scoreless streak, and he's racked up an 11:3 K:BB with two wins and two holds in that span. The right-hander is putting together a solid season in a versatile role, pitching to a 2.65 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 21:4 K:BB across 17 innings. He's added three holds, and while he doesn't see steady high-leverage usage, he's displayed the ability to limit baserunners and protect leads.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Handed loss Tuesday
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Walker (1-2) allowed three runs on two hits and two walks over two-thirds of an inning to take the loss versus the Marlins on Tuesday.
Walker got into trouble in the sixth inning and was unable to complete the frame. Taylor Rogers got the last out, but the Giants didn't recover from the damage. Walker had allowed just two runs over his first 9.1 innings of the season before Tuesday's sloppy outing. He's at a 4.50 ERA, 1.20 WHIP and 10:3 K:BB through 10 innings while adding one hold over 10 appearances. Walker is a bit buried on the leverage ladder, so it's unlikely he'll be able to consistently rack up saves or holds.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Steady in spring
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Walker has allowed a hit and hit one batsman over two scoreless innings in Cactus League play.
Walker has not walked or struck out a batter. He was a bit of a fireman in 2023, serving as an opener 13 times in 49 appearances while pitching to a 3.23 ERA, 1.39 WHIP and 78:24 K:BB over 61.1 innings. That gives him strikeout upside, but the change in managers from Gabe Kapler to Bob Melvin could mean a more steady low-leverage relief role for Walker. The Giants look set in the late innings, headlined by closer Camilo Doval, so Walker shouldn't be counted on for many saves or holds in 2024.
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Giants' Ryan Walker: Another opener start Sunday
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Walker will be the opening pitcher Sunday against the Dodgers, Susan Slusser of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
This will be the 13th opener assignment of the year for Walker, who has posted a 3.20 ERA and 71:22 K:BB across 56.1 total innings for San Francisco. Alex Wood looks poised to follow him Sunday as the Giants' bulk pitcher.
