SCOTTSDALE, Ariz.–At 1:05 p.m. Mountain Standard Time, Ty Blach reached back and threw a fastball over the plate.

Strike one.

With that pitch, a long offseason filled with twists and turns, trades and signings and talk of a Giancarlo Stanton acquisition finally came to an end. No, the games don’t matter (unless you’re betting on Cactus League over/unders), but the individual performances do. For complete Giants coverage follow us on Flipboard.

Here’s what the Giants showed us in their 6-5 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.

Competition is in the air

Whether the Giants want to acknowledge it or not, and neither Ty Blach or Andrew Suarez wanted to, the battle for 25-man roster spots is already starting to heat up. Blach and Suarez, a pair of southpaws, are competing to win jobs in the Giants’ starting rotation this spring, and both flummoxed Milwaukee Brewers hitters on Friday afternoon in Scottsdale.

Blach started the game and delivered seven first-pitch strikes to the seven hitters he faced, recording two strikeouts and allowing just a lone single to Lorenzo Cain. Suarez came on in relief and promptly struck out the side in the third inning before rolling a 4-6-3 double play in the fourth.

“Really was a good day, really for the pitching,” Bochy said. “Blach and Suarez, they threw great. Blach, when he missed, he just missed, but he was right on with all of his pitches. An impressive outing for Ty and Suarez, both solid two innings. Really the pitching was good. We just got sloppy there in the middle of the game.”

Giants’ outfielders also used Friday’s contest as an opportunity to impress the coaching staff, as Jarrett Parker, Austin Slater and Steven Duggar all recorded second-inning base hits that helped push the Giants ahead 4-0.

With Andrew McCutchen, Hunter Pence and Austin Jackson assured of roster spots, the Giants will likely keep two more outfielders. At least six others with serious chances of making the team will receive extended playing time in the coming weeks.

Defense is in the…works?

The Giants committed six errors on Friday, which means the pitching staff managed to keep its ERA at 0.00 after a 6-5 loss.

The errors were all committed by reserve players who won’t be in the Giants’ Opening Day lineup. Nevertheless, the Giants’ defense was spotty throughout the afternoon, including when the first hitter of the game put the ball in play.

Blach induced a popup off the bat of Jonathan Villar into short right field, and McCutchen battled with the sun and second baseman Miguel Gomez before completing a running catch. The uncertainty on a rather routine play was reminiscent of the defensive mistakes the club consistently made in the outfield last season, but fortunately for the Giants, McCutchen made the snag.

“It’s a tough play, especially when the outfielder is running forward and the second baseman is running backward and the wind, so you never know,” first baseman Pablo Sandoval said. “But they’ve got great communication and McCutchen made the play.”

In the fourth inning, Duggar and Slater allowed a Lorenzo Cain fly ball to drop in between them in left center field on a play that likely should have been made by Duggar. The Giants’ lack of outfield range cost them last season, but Suarez rolled a double play ball off the bat of Travis Shaw to negate the mistake.

Sandoval shows off

After the Giants traded for Evan Longoria in December, Sandoval said he immediately understood the ramifications it would have for his role with the club.

Sandoval was the starting third baseman during the Giants’ golden era, but he realized if he wanted to make the team out of spring training, Longoria’s presence would force him to do so as a utility infielder. On Friday, Sandoval’s campaign began with a soaring home run to deep right center field that traveled beyond the lawn at Scottsdale Stadium.

“All the workouts that I did in the offseason, that paid off,” Sandoval said. “I waited for this moment to start the game and I felt ready when I was facing live pitching. So the first couple of at-bats I was too excited so the third at-bat I felt a little bit more comfortable.”

Sandoval was initially scheduled to start at third on Friday, but Ryder Jones suffered a hamstring injury on Thursday so Bochy swapped Orlando Calixte into the lineup for Jones and moved Sandoval over to first. In the first inning, a Calixte throw from across the diamond forced Sandoval to stretch out to save an out and he did so, proving he still has a bit of flexibility.

“I feel good. I’ve played that position before so it’s nothing different,” Sandoval said. “It’s the hot corner too, so I do the work that I’ve been putting in during the offseason right now in the spring. You just don’t try to do too much out there on the field and you just make your plays, that’s the most important thing.

Blach’s slider a potential difference-maker

In the past, Blach was the pitcher hunting down a rotation spot. This year, his role is being hunted, by Suarez, left-hander Derek Holland and prospect Tyler Beede.

Blach entered spring training as the front-runner for a starting job, and admitted this year’s camp feels a bit different. After making 24 starts last season for a Giants team that lost Madison Bumgarner for almost half of the year, Blach said he’s more mentally and physically prepared for what the coaching staff throws at him. Related Articles Brandon Crawford blasts grand slam, Giants back at .500 after blowout win over A’s

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The left-hander didn’t think conditioning was an issue for him toward the end of last season when his numbers dipped, but he did say he has built up his lower body strength and focused on re-tooling his slider to induce more swing-throughs.

“I’m kind of fine-tuning some things, trying to tighten up the slider a little bit to where it’s a little more consistent and a little more of a swing-and-miss pitch or at least open some more opportunities for some different locations,” Blach said.

Blach had the highest contact rate of any pitcher in the Major Leagues last season and averaged just 4.0 strikeouts per nine innings.

On Friday against Milwaukee, Blach caught designated hitter Keston Hiura looking before he struck out Brett Phillips swinging to end the second inning.