Surprise hero in Giants' win

Rusty Simmons - San Francisco Chronicle

It wouldn't be out of the ordinary to read this morning that the Giants' cleanup-hitting catcher smacked a game-winning homer at China Basin on Sunday, but reading that it wasn't Bengie Molina might catch your attention.

Steve Holm, who started the season under the radar of most San Francisco fans, came off the bench to hit his first career homer in the seventh inning and give the Giants a 4-3 lead. It came off Philadelphia left-hander J.C. Romero, who had allowed only one run this season and yielded only one homer in his last 61 relief appearances.

That's merely a taste of the weirdness from a box score that illustrates how the Giants wasted two leads before coming back for a 4-3 victory. With the win in front of a 35,999-person Mother's Day crowd, San Francisco posted back-to-back victories for the first time since April 25 and won the series after dropping their previous two.

The Giants are 9-9 in one-run games and have had seven of their last 11 games decided by a run. They lost two of three one-run games at Philadelphia the previous weekend.

"It could have gone either way, even close to getting a sweep (in Philadelphia)," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "To get a series here from a very good ballclub is huge."

The game had its share of statistical oddities. The Giants' Nos. 4-6 six hitters reached safely in their first 11 plate appearances, third baseman Jose Castillo hit into three double plays a day after going 4-for-4 and shortstop Omar Vizquel was intentionally walked three times for the first time in his 20-year career.

"I was kidding with (Vizquel) that he must have had No. 25 on his back," Bochy said, referring to Barry Bonds' old number.

Bochy wasn't laughing when the Giants left nine runners on base and squandered leads of 1-0 and 2-1.

Castillo, in his first three at-bats - all of which ended in double plays - came to the plate with a total of eight runners on base and only one out.

"This was one of those games that would have been really frustrating if we didn't come away with the win with all of the chances we had," Bochy said.

Holm, who entered as a defensive replacement in the top of the seventh inning after Molina needed a pinch-runner in the sixth, made sure the Giants weren't haunted by missed opportunities. He drilled a first-pitch fastball into the left-center-field bleachers.

"When you make a move early like that with Bengie, you take a bat out of the lineup," Bochy said. "Holm stepped up and hits a big one to bail us out."

Holm wasn't always a regular starter in the minors and had not played higher than Double-A ball before making the major-league roster out of spring training. His reaction to his first major-league homer was fitting.

"It's kind of a deeper part of the park, so I wasn't sure it was out until I hit second base," Holm said. "After that you, just cruise in and make sure you don't fall down or do anything stupid."

Holm's home run ball was retrieved in exchange for a bat and a helmet. He said he plans to give it to his mother, Bobbie, who was in attendance from Sacramento. Holm was greeted in the clubhouse with the typical shaving-cream pie in the face, but it took two tries.

Reliever Jack Taschner missed with the first attempt, but reliever Vinnie Chulk connected with the back and side of Holm's head.

The bullpen performed much better during the game.

After starter Jonathan Sanchez was chased in the fifth inning, four relievers combined to throw 42/3 scoreless innings. Billy Sadler threw nine pitches - all strikes - and recorded five outs, Taschner picked up the win with a scoreless seventh, Tyler Walker threw a perfect eighth and Brian Wilson closed the door on his 11th save.

"The bullpen saved us," Bochy said. "What a job they did. They are the reason we won that game."

Sanchez lost a 1-0 lead, provided by John Bowker's second-inning RBI single, and a 2-1 lead on a fourth-inning groundout by giving up a bases-loaded walk to pitcher Adam Eaton in the fourth and an RBI triple to Ryan Howard, who later scored, in the fifth.

Molina was 2-for-2 with two runs, Aaron Rowand went 1-for-1 with three walks and Bowker went 2-for-3 with an RBI. Castillo hit a leadoff triple in the eighth but was stranded.