What we learned as Hicks, Flores fuel Giants' win over Astros

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HOUSTON -- Giants starter Jordan Hicks had to wait seven seasons, 242 appearances and 29 starts to finally appear in his hometown. He pitched in 29 other ballparks before taking the mound at what is now called Daikin Park. It was worth the wait.

In front of nearly 100 family members and friends, the Houston native had the most dominant start of his MLB career, allowing just one hit over six innings and showing eye-popping velocity as the Giants cruised to a 7-2 win over the Houston Astros on Monday. San Francisco is 3-1 and will try to clinch a winning trip on Tuesday behind ace Logan Webb. 

Straight GAS from Hicks to strike out the side 🔥 pic.twitter.com/qycrECBO0i

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) April 1, 2025

The only hit Hicks allowed was a single by Christian Walker in the first inning, but he followed that by retiring 14 straight. Hicks was sharp for about two months last season before running out of gas. He put on 15 pounds in the offseason, and the Giants believe a big season is ahead. The early returns couldn't have been more encouraging. 

Here are three things to know from the Giants' third win of the 2025 MLB season: 

Lighting It Up

It would be easy to attribute Hicks' velocity bump to the adrenaline that might have come with pitching in his hometown, but this was what the Giants would have expected Monday in any ballpark. Manager Bob Melvin said before the game that the plan for Hicks this year is to "go after it" instead of pacing himself in starts. The Giants don't mind if he runs into a wall a bit earlier if the results are there, but on Monday they got the best of both worlds.

Hicks was so economical that he needed just 58 pitches to get through five, and despite walking a batter in the sixth, he strolled off at 72 pitches, 73 percent of which were fastballs. He had some dominant starts last April, but this was easily his best velocity as a Giant. 

Hicks averaged 98 mph with his sinker, nearly a full tick up from last season's best of 97.1 mph, which also came in his first start of the year. He topped out at 100 mph and hit 99 mph on 13 pitches after doing it just 10 total times all of 2024. 

Small Ball

The Giants stole three bases without being caught, repeatedly taking advantage of the fact that Astros starter Ronel Blanco wasn't holding runners at first. They had just five three-steal games all of last season, but through four games they're definitely showing that they might finally be willing to force the issue a bit. They're a perfect 5-for-5 so far on the bases.

It wasn't just the steals that stood out. In the fifth, Mike Yastrzemski singled, stole second, went to third on Tyler Fitzgerald's perfect bunt down the third base line, and scored on a sacrifice fly by LaMonte Wade Jr. It was an aggressive send by Matt Williams, but Yastrzemski got in safely with an athletic slide. 

All The Way Back

Wilmer Flores had four homers all of last season, which was cut short by knee discomfort that hampered him all year. He's healthy once again, and he looks exactly like the player who led the lineup in 2023. 

Flores jumped on an elevated slider from Luis Contreras in the sixth and broke the game open with a soaring three-run shot into the Crawford Boxes in left. He's tied for the league lead with eight RBI and is tied for second in the NL with three homers.

WILMER FLORES HAS DONE IT AGAIN ‼ pic.twitter.com/JLPW4cCmTx

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) April 1, 2025

The San Francisco-era franchise record for homers over the first four games is five (by Barry Bonds, of course), and Willie Mays twice had four in his first four games. Flores joined Evan Longoria, Brandon Belt and Kevin Mitchell, all of whom had a season with three homers in their first four games. 

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