Mercury News
Edgar Renteria emerged from the trainer's room with his right elbow wrapped after receiving a cortisone injection Tuesday night.
That's not the Giants' only sore spot. They received their second consecutive paddling at Turner Field, with Ryan Sadowski's backside smarting the most after an 8-1 loss to the Atlanta Braves.
The Giants have lost four of five since the All-Star break to fall out of the National League wild-card lead. Their suddenly soft pitching staff has allowed 19 runs over a two-day bender, the most in consecutive games this season.
And there's still the matter of their subpar lineup, which was lacking some of its more productive names against the Braves' Derek Lowe. Aaron Rowand is day to day with a forearm contusion, and Renteria, who left in the fourth inning, said he could no longer play through soreness and inflammation that has hampered his swing for weeks.
With the Braves' nimble infield gobbling up potential hits, it was the kind of night when the Giants needed a dominant performance from a pitcher. Sadowski, who had a 1.00 ERA in his first three big league starts, couldn't provide it.
"I wasn't sharp today, and unfortunately, I knew that from the beginning," said Sadowski, who gave up all eight runs in 32/3 innings. "One of the negative things when you're on a roll like I've been on is when things don't go your way, you've got to be tough and not break down mentally. I definitely did. I started giving in. You can't throw guys like that in the middle of their lineup cookies and expect to get outs." The Braves had scored once in the fourth to take a 5-0 lead when Manager Bruce Bochy tried to coax Sadowski, who was due to hit second, through the inning. But Chipper Jones walked and Brian McCann pounded a three-run home run on a hanging curveball. "Or flat ball," Sadowski said. "Whatever you want to call it." Sadowski will remain in the rotation and pitch Sunday against Colorado at Coors Field, Bochy said. "The kid did have a pretty good layoff," Bochy said of Sadowski, whose previous start was July 8. "I thought early on, he was going to be fine. His stuff looked pretty good. But you could see he had trouble getting the ball where he wanted." Sadowski said he hasn't had his good curveball in any of his four starts; he called his slider "awful." "The only pitch I really had today was my cutter, and when you have to throw it too much, it loses its purpose," he said. "Even some of the groundballs that found holes were hit harder than I'd like." The Giants' hitters couldn't find a hole in a field of gophers. The Braves turned a highlight play in each of the first three innings. Lowe wasn't at his best, either. But the Giants are not a team of comeback kids. "Occasionally, we'll have to slug it with the other team," Bochy said. Renteria will be out at least two games, with Juan Uribe taking his place at shortstop. Rowand could return today. The Giants also played without cleanup hitter Bengie Molina because Bochy wanted Sadowski to work with catcher Eli Whiteside. Bochy plans to sit Molina when Barry Zito starts Thursday, too. Just as significant, Pablo Sandoval is no longer carrying the club. He is 5 for 22 with one extra-base hit and one RBI since the All-Star break. A Giants scout has followed the A's over the past two series and undoubtedly took note of Matt Holliday's two-homer game Monday. If the Giants could swing a deal for Holliday, he'd easily fit in the No. 4 spot — their sorest of all. "Any team will tell you," said Bochy, "it's the heart of the order that will get you on a streak."
From: MLB.com
 San Francisco (50-43) Lost 2 | Atlanta 8, San Francisco 1 |  Atlanta (48-46) Won 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Standings thru 7/21/09 | Recap: SF | ATL | Wrap | Gameday |
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