SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco Giants stopped two streaks Wednesday afternoon in their 6-3 loss, and neither was very satisfying.

While falling to the Washington Nationals for the first time in two years, they halted the 30-game hitting streak of third baseman Ryan Zimmerman, who was 0 for 3 with an intentional walk.
After he grounded into a fielder’s choice in the ninth inning, Zimmerman was taken aback to receive a sustained ovation from the crowd of 30,120 at AT&T Park.
“You don’t usually see people on the road say, ’Hope you get a hit today,’ but I did,” Zimmerman said. “They’re very knowledgeable fans. They know baseball. They love baseball. It was special. Anytime you can get people telling you good luck, people cheering you on the road, it means something.”
The home fans didn’t have many other reasons to cheer. The Giants lost to Washington for the first time since 2007; they had won nine consecutive games against the District’s sad-sack franchise, and were aiming to complete a three-game sweep.
The Giants’ chronically challenged offense didn’t plate a run for Barry Zito, who left trailing 2-0 in the seventh inning. And while the impulse might strike to give away the farm for a cleanup hitter, the Giants received a reminder on that score, too.
They were shut down by Shairon Martis, a former Giants prospect dealt to Washington in July 2006, for what amounted to a two-month helping of left-hander Mike Stanton. Martis held the Giants to two hits and a run in seven innings; he is 5-0 for a team with an 11-21 record.
“It was fun for me,” Martis said. “It was my old team, so I kind of gave everything I’ve got to beat them.”
Martis beat the Giants with his bat, too. He doubled in the fifth inning and scored the game’s first run when Nick Johnson doubled down the right-field line.
Pablo Sandoval was one of few Giants who played with Martis — they were teammates at Class A Augusta in ’06 — but that experience hardly brought an advantage.
“He’s got some pounds on him now,” Sandoval said. “He is bigger and stronger.”
Zito (1-3) could use some more strength behind him. He has received just nine runs in his seven starts. But the word is getting around baseball that Zito is reestablishing himself as a quality pitcher once more — and stopping Zimmerman’s streak will only enhance his reputation.
With Zito’s change-up working, Zimmerman grounded into a double play, drew a walk, grounded out to shortstop and was walked intentionally.
The Giants had prepared to pitch around Zimmerman in the seventh when he batted with runners at first and second and one out. After a wild pitch advanced both runners, the Giants dropped the pretense and put him on base.
“Once the wild pitch happened, we had no choice,” Giants Manager Bruce Bochy said. “You’re behind in the count with the hottest hitter in baseball up there. You’re trying to limit the damage.”
Said Washington Manager Manny Acta: “I would’ve done it myself.”
Zimmerman had one last chance against Pat Misch in the ninth, but he grounded into a forceout. His streak ended one short of matching Vladimir Guerrero’s Montreal/Washington franchise record.
Zimmerman was the 26th major leaguer to hit in 30 consecutive games since Joe DiMaggio established the major league record with his 56-game streak in 1941. And anytime a player moves the needle, they emerge with a new appreciation for DiMaggio, the son of a San Francisco fisherman.
“There’s got to be a little bit of luck involved, obviously,” Zimmerman said. “But it’s not wasting at-bats. It’s not swinging at bad pitches. It’s hard every game to put four good at-bats together, especially facing the talent you’ve got on the mound. For him to do that 56 games in a row is pretty unbelievable.”