San Francisco Giants fall in bottom of ninth to Chicago Cubs

Andrew Baggarly
MercuryNews

CHICAGO -- Just like last year, the Giants arrived at the midpoint of their season with a resounding thud.

Their 2-1 loss at Wrigley Field ended painfully in the ninth inning, with a baserunning mistake by Emmanuel Burriss that muted their tying rally and a location mistake from Sergio Romo to Aramis Ramirez that resulted in a walk-off single for the Northsiders to cheer.

It was a stinging defeat, but not as deflating as No. 81 a year ago, when the Giants lost a 15-inning marathon to the Colorado Rockies in what ranks as the longest game in Coors Field history.

The upshot this time: The Giants are not in fourth place in the N.L. West. They are not 71/2 games off the pace. Nor are they bobbing along at one game over .500.

Despite major injuries to Buster Posey and Freddy Sanchez, the Giants stand atop the division with a 46-35 record. They have been lifted by another half-season of outstanding pitching. Maybe by something else, too.

The defending champs are confident. They are infused with belief. And in the case of Tim Lincecum, maybe they're a little bit ornery, too.

"I don't have a lot to say to people who are going to doubt us," said Lincecum, asked about critics who say the Giants' success is unsustainable. "That's what people said last year, and we won the World Series. This team has that kind of experience and know-how. That's a given. We'll use that negative as a motivation for us to show they're

---

wrong."

After a three-start swoon in early June, Lincecum has his mojo back. He pitched brilliantly while holding the Cubs to a run in seven innings, but he was on the hook to fall to 6-7 before the Giants rallied in the ninth.

Ryan Dempster entered the ninth having retired 20 consecutive hitters and thrown just 78 pitches. Pinch hitter Pat Burrell broke the spell, greeting him with a double to knock him from the game.

Facing nasty Cubs closer Carlos Marmol, Burriss stayed up the middle with a 3-2 pitch to single home pinch runner Bill Hall. Burriss took second base on the throw home, too.

But Burriss went from hero to billy goat in the time it takes a bleacher bum to chug a beer. He went back to tag up on Aubrey Huff's line drive, which landed for a single despite center fielder Tony Campana's diving attempt. Burriss had to hold at third base, and Cody Ross followed by grounding into a double play.

"With one out, he doesn't need to tag," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "I think Manny thought the ball was caught. Ideally, you want to be halfway. He didn't see it bounce away.

"We missed a golden opportunity to steal one."

Burriss said he wouldn't have scored anyway, although right fielder Kosuke Fukudome's desperation throw to the plate clearly was offline.

The Cubs won it in the bottom of the inning when Campana beat out an infield chopper and Romo made a rare mistake against a right-handed hitter. Entering the game, Romo had held right-handers to a .123 average (8 for 65) with 33 strikeouts and just three walks.

But he threw a flat 0-2 slider to Ramirez, who lined it into left field.

"I'm just trying to do my job," Romo said. "Today it came down to execution, and good hitters hit mistakes."

Lincecum made far fewer mistakes. He only regretted consecutive pitches in the seventh -- a changeup that Carlos

Peña hit for a double and a fastball that Blake DeWitt lined to break the scoreless tie.

Other than that sequence, Lincecum was brilliant as he struck out nine and issued just one unintentional walk. He impressively turned it up in the fifth, striking out three after DeWitt reached third base on a double and a wild pitch.

Lincecum, who has a 3.04 ERA, said he can be much more consistent in the second half. The Giants believe their league-worst offense can perform better, too. Still, their 22 comeback wins and 22-11 record in one-run games suggest a team that is living too far on the edge.

"We believe in ourselves," Burrell said. "I think that's a big part of it, even though offensively, other than (Tuesday's doubleheader), it's been pretty poor."

After losing Posey and Sanchez to devastating injuries, the Giants have a built-in excuse. They would prefer not to take it.

"I'm proud of how the guys have battled," Bochy said. "If you're comparing us to last year, sure, we're better off. Still, there's so much baseball left. We've got to keep pushing and grinding, and I know these guys are going to do that."

Box Score

Sharp Zito helps Giants sweep doubleheader

Chris Haft
MLB.com

CHICAGO -- As a music enthusiast, Barry Zito knows all about the importance of recognizing the proper beat. Tuesday night, he picked up the Giants' rhythm without a hitch.

Contributing handsomely to the effort that lengthened the Giants' winning streak to a season-high seven games, Zito thrived in his first Major League outing since April 15 by working seven solid innings in San Francisco's 6-3 triumph over the Chicago Cubs.

The decision gave the Giants a sweep of their day-night doubleheader, combined with a 13-7 triumph in the first game. It was an unusually fruitful day for the Giants, who accumulated 30 hits while soaring 12 games above .500 (46-34) for the first time this season.

Zito, who accented his recovery from a sprained right foot by allowing two runs and only four hits, improved to 111-6 lifetime when receiving at least four runs of support. The Giants generated that magic minimum in a five-run fifth inning that erased Chicago's 2-1 advantage. Nate Schierholtz, who went 3-for-4, contributed one of his two RBI singles to the go-ahead rally.

Most athletes would have exuded triumphant satisfaction after delivering the type of performance Zito sustained. But the left-hander sounded exceedingly reserved as he addressed reporters.

Asked why he seemed so devoid of emotion, Zito replied, "For me, there's a lot of focus required in doing that stuff out there."

What he did was silence the team that ranked second in the National League with a .266 batting average entering Tuesday. Aside from the third inning, when he surrendered Lou Montanez's two-run homer, Zito (1-1) did not permit a runner to reach scoring position.

"He looked like he's confident throwing strikes," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said of Zito, who issued two walks. "Sometimes when things go awry is when he puts guys on base and walks guys. He threw more quality strikes. ... That's a good-hitting ballclub over there, so no lead is safe."

Zito faltered only in the third inning, when he gave up Montanez's homer. Starlin Castro's two-out triple prolonged that inning, but Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford made the play of the night by diving to snare Aramis Ramirez's sharp grounder, straightening and firing a perfect throw to first base.

Crawford, a lifelong Giants fan who watched Zito pitch for Oakland while growing up in the East Bay town of Pleasanton, Calif., said that he thought he had a "pretty good chance" to turn what looked like an RBI single for Ramirez into the inning-ending out.

"He makes it look easy on the throw," Bochy said. "He has great carry on the ball."

The Giants' next highlight was their big fifth, which began with Andres Torres' bloop single off Cubs starter Rodrigo Lopez (0-2). Torres stole second base and reached third on Emmanuel Burriss' groundout.

Then the fun really started for the Giants. Torres dashed home on Pablo Sandoval's fly to center field and was called out by umpire Tim McClelland, who reversed his ruling when Cubs catcher Geovany Soto dropped the ball. Initially scored as a sacrifice fly for Sandoval, the play was changed to an error on Soto after the game.

"I think that changed the whole game," Lopez said. "We couldn't finish the fifth inning with the lead. I saw the replay and of course, I think he was out. The umpires see it different and the Giants see it different, too."

That left two outs, but Aubrey Huff and Cody Ross singled to prolong the inning and chase Lopez. Schierholtz singled to score Huff and scored with Ross on Crawford's opposite-field double to left. Eli Whiteside's bloop single sent home Crawford with the inning's final run.

Crawford savored his hit, which short-hopped the ivy-covered wall. It represented the fruits of his labor with hitting coach Hensley "Bam Bam" Meulens, who's trying to cure Crawford of rolling over pitches and tapping harmless grounders.

"That's what I've been working on with Bam Bam, driving the ball the other way," said Crawford, who went 2-for-4 to lift his average from .185 to .198.

Guillermo Mota surrendered Ramirez's leadoff homer in the ninth before Brian Wilson retired all three batters he faced to record his Major League-leading 24th save.

Box Score(s)

• Game 1

• Game 2

Madison Bumgarner bounces back as San Francisco Giants beat Cleveland Indians

Alex Pavlovic
Mercury News

Madison Bumgarner's teammates and coaches have rallied around him all week, saying his nightmarish last start would be just a bump in the road.

They were right.

Bumgarner was brilliant in the Giants' 3-1 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Sunday night at AT&T Park, striking out a career-high 11 and giving up one run in seven innings.

The gem came five days after Bumgarner allowed eight earned runs and nine hits in just one-third of an inning in a loss to Minnesota.

"I knew this kid would bounce back," manager Bruce Bochy said. "There was no doubt in my mind."

The same feeling permeated the Giants' clubhouse, even as Bumgarner dealt with some self-doubt in the aftermath of one of the worst starts in big league history.

"I'm not going to say there wasn't any doubt -- there was a little," Bumgarner said. "It's tough to forget about a start like that. "... I was ready to get back out there."

If Bumgarner felt any doubt during a nationally televised appearance, he didn't show it. He threw 78 of his 112 pitches for strikes and struck out five of the last six hitters he faced.

"We didn't expect anything less," catcher Chris Stewart said. "That was a fluke last time. He came in today ready to dominate, and he did."

Indians manager Manny Acta said: "We were flat-out overmatched at the plate."

Bumgarner (4-9) has overmatched plenty of opponents in his young career but rarely ends up in the win column, often for reasons out of his control. Entering Sunday night, the left-hander had received two or fewer runs of support in 15 straight home starts.

But the Giants equaled that mark in the second inning on Stewart's two-out double to right. Cody Ross and Bill Hall hustled home, giving Stewart his first major league RBIs since May 8, 2007.

"That's the type of hit we've been missing," Bochy said. "He got us going there."

Stewart was a spark plug throughout the three-game sweep of the Indians, helping the Giants' vaunted starting staff hold Cleveland to just four runs. On Sunday, he again showed off his strong arm when he threw Grady Sizemore out at third in the second inning.

Since being promoted after Buster Posey's season-ending injury, Stewart has thrown out seven of 11 attempted base stealers. He also is quickly developing a rapport with the staff; Jeremy Affeldt shook Stewart off just once in two innings of relief, and Bumgarner praised Stewart's work behind the plate.

"He was really good back there," Bumgarner said. "He studies, and he works hard. He's always on his game."

Bumgarner was on his game throughout, giving up just six hits and walking one. He got a rare third run of support when Aubrey Huff hit an RBI single in the third inning.

Whether it's a fluke or just the result of the club's recent struggles at the plate, the three runs of support were tied for the most that Bumgarner has received in a home start since being called up to the majors.

With Brian Wilson unavailable after pitching four straight games, Affeldt was the one who made sure Bumgarner's efforts didn't go to waste. He struck out five in two hitless innings, picking up his second save and stretching the Giants' winning streak to five games.

The streak follows a five-game losing streak, and gives the Giants a 1 1/2-game lead over Arizona in the National League West.

"We pitched well, and we had timely hitting this whole homestand," Stewart said. "We had really big wins, and hopefully we can keep it up."

Box Score

Cain's work rewarded by balk in Giants' duel

Right-hander earns hard-fought 'W' with help from Tribe's 'pen

Adam Berry
MLB.com

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants have found a way to win all season, posting the fourth-highest winning percentage in the National League despite scoring the fewest runs in the Majors. Saturday, however, it seemed like a way to win found the Giants.

With 63 of their 77 games having been decided by three runs or fewer and a Major League-high 17 one-run wins at home, The Giants are perfectly comfortable playing close games, knowing every at-bat could be a potential difference-maker. And they have won a few games in truly bizarre fashion. But even by their standards, Saturday's 1-0 win over Cleveland was a little odd.

They scored their lone run during a seventh inning in which Nate Schierholtz tripped on a sure standup triple, two errors were committed by Indians second baseman Cord Phelps and a run came home on a balk. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the last time the only run of a game was scored on a balk was May 10, 2006, when the then-Devil Rays beat the Mariners, 1-0, on a balk by Jamie Moyer.

With Matt Cain dealing on the mound and another strong outing by the bullpen, that unusual run was good enough to secure the Giants' victory over the Indians before a sold-out crowd of 42,130 fans in AT&T Park.

"It was definitely an interesting inning, but that's just kind of the way it goes sometimes," said Cain (7-4), who at one point retired 14 straight batters. "Those are the ones that are tough when you lose, and they're great when you win. You're just trying to keep the momentum going, keep the game going so we can find a way to scratch one across or whatever, and that's what ended up happening."

A rare scoring opportunity seemed to pass by the Giants when Schierholtz bombed a ball from Tribe starter Justin Masterson to left-center field, only to trip on his way to third and get tagged out in a rundown by Cleveland first baseman Jack Hannahan. But much like Carlos Santana's errors at first on Friday gave San Francisco a chance to overcome its lack of offense, a pair of fielding errors by Phelps kept the Giants alive Saturday.

After Schierholtz's miscue, Miguel Tejada chopped an easy out to Phelps, but the throw went just wide enough to draw Hannahan off the bag and allow Tejada to slide safely into first. After Chris Stewart flied out, Cain knocked a ball that went in and out of Phelps' glove, putting two runners on for Andres Torres. The hero of Friday night's 4-3 win, Torres drew a walk off lefty Tony Sipp, who relieved Masterson, to extend the rally.

Sipp flinched with the bases loaded and Emmanuel Burriss in the batter's box, leading home-plate umpire Bob Davidson to call a balk that scored Tejada, putting the Giants ahead, 1-0.

The balk was so quick and such a minuscule movement that San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy admitted he didn't even see it, because he had his head down. But Sipp said after the game that Davidson did get the call right.

"I didn't move much, but I felt it," Sipp said. "I guess they're all good at their job. I felt it. I knew I balked."

"We'll certainly take it," Bochy added. "In a game like that, sometimes it takes a break to win."

Things got dicey for the Giants in the eighth, when Cain walked pinch-hitter Travis Hafner to lead off the inning, prompting the Indians to send in pinch-runner Adam Everett. Javier Lopez came on in relief, giving up a single to Michael Brantley and a sac bunt by Phelps that put two runners in scoring position with only one out.

Pablo Sandoval then fielded Asdrubal Cabrera's chopper, making the throw to Stewart at home in time for the catcher to run down Everett. But Lopez wasn't done pitching his way out of trouble, as a passed ball bounced by Stewart with Santana at the plate and once again put runners on second and third.

Lopez, who has been lights-out against lefties all year, induced an inning-ending groundout from Grady Sizemore.

"That's a momentum shift, when the other team's got a scorer in position and one out, then we get that play -- that pitch, groundball, Sandoval -- to get the guy out," said closer Brian Wilson, who sealed the win and earned his 23rd save in a 1-2-3 ninth inning. "Momentum goes in our favor, and we keep rolling as a bullpen."

While that bizarre stretch wound up deciding the game, it was Cain who shut down the Indians most of the way. The right-hander gave up consecutive singles to lead off the first inning, but that was about as bad as it got for him all afternoon.

Cain allowed only six baserunners and at one point retired 14 straight batters, finishing after seven-plus innings with six strikeouts, four hits and a walk. And given how little run support Cain has received throughout his career, winning by one run -- even if it came on two errors, a walk and a balk -- was good enough.

"That's the way it goes sometimes. You've really just got to find ways to get guys across and do whatever you can," Cain said. "As a staff, we're just trying to pick those guys up and keep the lead on our side when we get that chance."

Box Score

Andres Torres sparks SF Giants past Indians

Henry Schulman
SFGate/San Francisco Chronicle

Jonathan Sanchez and Andres Torres come from the same land, but not the same mold. Sanchez ekes his brief sentences in whispers, unable or unwilling to betray what he is thinking. Torres' words and thoughts flow like a swollen river overflowing its banks.

Manager Bruce Bochy believes both players from Puerto Rico have been fighting their thoughts. In Friday night's 4-3 comeback victory against Cleveland, the Giants' third win in a row, Torres seemed to be winning his fight. Sanchez clearly was losing.

After Sanchez needed 94 pitches to finish 4 2/3 innings, placed the Giants in a 3-0 hole, walked six and broke Shin-Soo Choo's left thumb with a fastball, Bochy said he and his staff will think about moving Sanchez to the bullpen when Barry Zito rejoins the rotation next week.

"What we'll end up doing, I don't know," Bochy said. "We may keep throwing him out there. We may hold him back a bit. Getting Zito back will give us that option."

Sanchez, asked if the pressure of keeping his job might be affecting him, said softly and with no hint of defiance, "There's no pressure. I'm the second starter in the rotation."

Torres, in contrast, felt the pressure of a mind so full of thought that he could not sleep. Hitless in 14 at-bats, and 3-for-31 over a longer haul, he told Bochy he needed to relax but had no idea how.

Bochy sat Torres for two games. The leadoff hitter who takes medication for attention deficit disorder turned to sleeping pills as well, and he rejoined the lineup a different man.

He bunted for a single in the first inning, which allowed him to exhale. He then homered in the fourth inning against hot Indians starter Carlos Carrasco for the Giants' first run and singled to load the bases in the decisive three-run sixth inning. Two errors by first baseman Carlos Santana made the sixth-inning runs unearned.

"Sometimes my head never stops thinking," Torres said in his mile-a-minute patter. "I tried to relax, go home and play with my kids. I was able to get some rest. Thank God I'm making adjustments.

"I'm just trying to calm my mind. Sometimes there's a lot of stuff going on. I don't try to make excuses. I was just being honest. If there's a problem, you've got to say what's happening."

Torres' sixth-inning single followed Chris Stewart's leadoff single and Santana's throwing error on a force attempt with Nate Schierholtz batting. With the bases loaded, Emmanuel Burriss hit a dribbler that Santana bobbled for another error, with Stewart scoring.

Pablo Sandoval tied the game with a traditional sacrifice fly before Torres scored the decisive run with his legs. He tagged from third on Aubrey Huff's foul pop near the Giants' bullpen and scored easily as third baseman Jack Hannahan stumbled backward after catching the ball.

Santiago Casilla got a much-deserved win. He kept the game close by striking out Austin Kearns to end the fifth inning after Sanchez walked the bases full.

Sanchez offered no easy answers for his struggles, the way Torres did. The lefty simply said, "I'm fine. I'm healthy. I'm just having a hard time."

Bochy sees a lack of confidence in Sanchez's pitches, his rhythm, even his slow gait back to the dugout.

"It's fair to say Jonny's searching right now," Bochy said.

Box Score

San Francisco Giants' Tim Lincecum strikes out 12 in 2-1 win over Minnesota Twins

Alex Pavlovic
Mercury News

With a new opponent in the opposite dugout and a fresh mindset on the mound, Tim Lincecum emphatically shook off his June swoon on Thursday.

Facing the Minnesota Twins for the first time, Lincecum had one of his best outings of the season, leading the Giants to a 2-1 victory in front of a sellout crowd at AT&T Park.

Lincecum entered the day with a 7.59 ERA in June but gave up just three hits and struck out 12 in seven scoreless innings. He got better as the game went on, striking out nine of the final 12 hitters he faced.

"His stuff was dynamite," catcher Chris Stewart said. "He was getting ahead and putting guys away from there, mostly with his slider. I'm glad I was catching him and not trying to hit him."

Lincecum struck out the side in the fifth and seventh innings and reached double-digit strikeouts for the fourth time this season and 30th time in his career while ending a four-start winless streak.

He went through a similarly bad stretch of starts last August but said the fix this time around was mental rather than physical.

"I feel like I've taken steps out of that hole that I was in mentally," said Lincecum, who evened his record at 6-6. "The biggest thing for me was keeping my confidence up.

"Early in the game when I was commanding the zone with my pitches, it just opened up my mind."

The Giants are hoping their ace continues to take the mound with the same approach, especially as they struggle to kick start their sputtering lineup.

"That's our strength -- we need our pitchers to go out there and give us a chance," manager Bruce Bochy said. "It's good to have him back."

Lincecum gave the Giants' hitters a chance, and they took it -- barely.

The Giants scored just one run with Lincecum in the game, in large part because of some curious decision making by the Twins after Pablo Sandoval's single and Pat Burrell's double put two runners in scoring position with one out in the second.

Even with the Giants in the midst of a 4-for-46 slump with runners in scoring position, Twins manager Ron Gardenhire elected to play the infield at normal depth, allowing Sandoval to score easily on Miguel Tejada's grounder to short.

The Giants put runners on the corners with no outs in the seventh, but Emmanuel Burriss was called out at home when he tried to score on Stewart's bunt. (Replays appeared to show Burriss was safe.)

"With his speed, any kind of decent bunt he's going to score on it," Bochy said. "(Stewart) knew what he was trying to do, and he knew he didn't execute there."

The Giants loaded the bases after the failed play, but Bill Hall flied out to end the threat.

Aubrey Huff provided some insurance in the eighth, hitting a leadoff double and scoring on Cody Ross' single. The run turned out to be crucial when Brian Wilson gave up a walk and run-scoring double to open the ninth; it was his first run allowed since May 18.

As he's done so often, Wilson buckled down for the save -- but not without some more of the Giants' patented ninth-inning madness. With two outs, Wilson got Luke Hughes to hit a grounder to third, but Sandoval chose to chase Michael Cuddyer to second rather than throw to first.

Sandoval nicked Cuddyer with a diving effort and afterward sheepishly admitted that he barely escaped "being in trouble."

"That was a new play -- we didn't work on that this spring," Bochy said, smiling. "I didn't know what (Pablo) was doing, either. I guess he wanted to show off his speed."

Box Score

Ryan Vogelsong's gem lifts SF Giants over Twins

Henry Schulman SFGate/San Francisco Chronicle The stats can quantify Ryan Vogelsong's microscopic ERA, which dropped to 1.86. They can show he held a Twins lineup that can score prolifically to three hits, or that the Giants are 8-3 in his starts.

Vogelsong's biggest accomplishment in a 5-1 victory Wednesday night, which snapped the Giants' five-game losing streak, requires words to appreciate.

One night after the bullpen threw 8 2/3 innings following Madison Bumgarner's epic first-inning collapse, Vogelsong gave the relievers most of the night off.

"We had the right guy out there," manager Bruce Bochy said. "He's really done a great job pounding the strike zone. He had all his pitches working. There was no reason to think he wouldn't give us the innings we needed."

Vogelsong held Minnesota to one run, which scored in his seventh and final inning. That made him the first Giant since Jason Schmidt in 2006 to allow two or fewer runs in each of nine consecutive starts.

If Vogelsong does it again in Chicago next week, he will tie Juan Marichal's San Francisco record.

Vogelsong also is approaching the innings required to qualify for the pitching leaderboards. If he had them now, his ERA would match Josh Beckett's for lowest in the majors.

If only Vogelsong could showcase his talents to the manager who will make the final picks for the National League All-Star team (wink, wink).

"He's going to get real strong consideration," Bochy said. "He deserves that. We've still got a couple of weeks to go, but that's how well he's thrown, to have his name mentioned. I will say one thing: He's done everything he needs to do to go there."

Vogelsong is trying to dodge the issue, but when asked what it would mean to be an All-Star, he answered honestly.

"That would be amazing," he said, "especially with the path I've been on. An All-Star team at the major-league level has never been close to a chance for me. I don't think I've ever made an All-Star game in pro ball."

In reaching 40 wins, the Giants got a huge lift with Eli Whiteside's three RBIs. With a two-run triple and a scoring single, Whiteside single-handedly drove in enough runs to end the offense's streak of five games of scoring two or fewer runs.

Aubrey Huff added an RBI single in the seventh, and Pat Burrell's pinch double in the ninth led to a run. Javier Lopez and Sergio Romo struck out Joe Mauer and Michael Cuddyer, respectively, in the eighth. Brian Wilson finished the contest and Minnesota's eight-game win streak.

Romo hyperextended his left knee on his final pitch, but he is used to that.

"That's like No. 8 or something," he said before declaring he could pitch today.

Whiteside has taken a lot of grief for his hitting and defense since he became the primary catcher following Buster Posey's injury. Both seem to be better now, especially the hitting.

His second-inning triple against Nick Blackburn was his second extra-base hit of the series (he homered Tuesday night).

Whiteside claims not to read the papers, listen to talk radio or surf for baseball news on the Internet. He insisted he has not heard the clamor for the Giants to get a catcher who can hit.

"I come out here and the fans keep telling me I'm doing a great job," he said. "I don't worry about it. I just go out and do all I can do."

Box Score

Minnesota Twins rout San Francisco Giants

Andrew Baggarly
Mercury News

The Giants organized early batting practice Tuesday afternoon, hoping to address the many issues with their limp offense. The Minnesota Twins opted for some early hitting, too.

But they waited until Madison Bumgarner threw the first pitch.

The Twins didn't just take Bumgarner to the showers. A woodshed would be more appropriate. Bumgarner faced 10 batters and retired only pitcher Carl Pavano, becoming the first player in baseball's modern era to allow as many as nine hits while recording fewer than two outs in a 9-2 loss to the Twins at AT&T Park.

The Twins' stunning, eight-run first inning went like so: Single, double, single, double, single, double, single, double, strikeout, double. It sounded like Arthur Murray dance instructions. It ended with Bumgarner trodden underfoot.

As a result, the Giants have lost five consecutive games for the first time since last July. And Bumgarner's ERA soared from 3.21 to 4.06.

"I'll be honest, that's a first for me," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "To see it go like that -- that's hard to do. I don't care if you're throwing batting practice out there. It was single, double, it kept going, and we couldn't stop it."

From the department of odd timing, Barry Zito approached 120 pitches while throwing a two-hit shutout for Triple-A Fresno against Salt Lake. Zito walked two and struck out seven in what was expected to be his final minor league rehab start.

Bochy said he would meet with Zito on Wednesday. But the manager firmly stated he will not alter Bumgarner's place in the rotation, which calls for the left-hander to start Sunday against the Cleveland Indians in front of a national ESPN audience.

"There's no way I'd give him a rest after today," said Bochy, pointing out that Bumgarner entered with a streak of 10 quality starts. "Come on. This kid's thrown too well. It's an off day. That's what it is. To rest him, that's the worst thing you can do.

"It's good Z is throwing so well. He's coming in tomorrow and we'll talk."

The resurgent Twins gave Bumgarner plenty of feedback. They hadn't seen him before but held a long meeting before the game and perhaps picked up a few of his tells.

For a pitcher who got blasted for eight runs, Bumgarner was astoundingly efficient. He threw 22 of his 25 pitches for strikes, and it was clear the Twins were ready to swing.

"Pretty pathetic, and no excuse," Bumgarner said. "Everything was middle of the plate and up. They did what they had to do. It was terrible pitch execution."

Bumgarner said he didn't think he was tipping his pitches. Bochy wasn't so certain.

"Well, sure, you think about that," Bochy said. "Still, I don't care if you know what pitch is coming. It's hard to have that many balls hit hard."

It didn't help that Miguel Tejada, making a rare start at shortstop against a right-handed pitcher, botched the first play of the game to allow Ben Revere to reach with a single. Eight batters later, the crowd cheered as Pavano struck out. But Revere followed with a two-run double to usher Bumgarner from the game.

It took a line-out double play for right-hander Guillermo Mota -- who threw a career-high 42/3 innings -- to end the carnage. It was the first time the Giants allowed as many as eight runs in the first inning since June 4, 1992, at Houston.

The Twins' eight consecutive hits leading off the game tied the major league record, last done by the Chicago Cubs against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sept. 8, 2009.

Bumgarner went back to look at video, then returned to the dugout in the third inning to watch the remainder of the game. Bochy and several Giants teammates took that as an encouraging sign.

"This was a tough lesson, but he'll be better because of this," Bochy said.

"I think it'll help me focus and execute pitches for the rest of my career," Bumgarner said. "You know what happens if you don't."

As for the Giants' early work? It didn't make much difference. But at least their shameful, 5-game-old hitless streak with runners in scoring position ended after 31 at-bats. Emmanuel Burriss, who replaced cleanup man Aubrey Huff at first base after four innings, came through with a single that knocked in Tejada from second base in the eighth.

Box Score

Giants' hitting woes continue in sweep

Chris Haft
MLB.com

OAKLAND -- Currently, the most intriguing activity involving the Giants is occurring behind the scenes. That compensates for and reflects the lack of drama on the field, where the Giants endured a 2-1 loss Sunday to the Oakland A's.

The reigning World Series champions remained in first place in the National League West, a half-game ahead of Arizona. But that status surely doesn't fool Giants general manager Brian Sabean. He sees a team that owns a four-game losing streak, matching its season high, mainly because it can't hit.

Officially, the Giants lost on Father's Day as Jeremy Affeldt yielded Landon Powell's eighth-inning homer that snapped a 1-1 tie and wasted Matt Cain's superb effort. But limp hitting continued to be San Francisco's true downfall. The Giants scored five runs while batting .184 (18-for-98) in the series, which ended with Cody Ross taking a third strike and launching a futile argument with plate umpire Scott Barry. The Giants rank 15th in the league in scoring, a level at which they've hovered virtually all season.

No saviors will be arriving from the Minor Leagues or off the disabled list. They don't exist. Manager Bruce Bochy no longer can juggle his batting order. He already has tried everything.

The Giants still can solve their own problems. They did so at a similar juncture last year, when Andres Torres, Buster Posey and Aubrey Huff went on hitting binges that propelled the team to a 21-5 record from July 5 to Aug. 3.

Or Sabean will try to bolster the offense by engineering a deal for a proven hitter. Exactly who is anybody's guess at this juncture, with the July 31 Trade Deadline still more than a month away. But as long as the existence of the Wild Card inflates the number of teams that consider themselves contenders, competition for available players could force proactive GMs like Sabean to move sooner than later.

Bochy indicated that Sabean isn't sitting idly.

"Believe me, there are things he's working on that could make sense," Bochy said. "It's frustrating for us because -- and this isn't a knock on our guys -- we're not quite having the years that some guys should be having. We've still got to believe that they're going to come around. Sure, we're getting to the point now where decisions have to be made. You can go with a younger guy or go with the veterans. You need production. You need results. Now is that time, I think, where I'm sure Brian's looking for that, too. If not, I'm sure he's looking to see what could help this club."

So the onus is on Huff to lift his .387 slugging percentage. It's on Miguel Tejada to improve his NL-worst .539 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage). It's on Andres Torres to emerge from the .178 skid (8-for-45) that has dogged him for 15 games.

"We're going to have to get this offense going. It's been going like this for a while," Bochy said. "Part of it, sure, we're banged up with injuries, but we're still better than this. I think these guys are still going to come around. I believe in them. They showed last year how resilient they can be. They'll figure it out."

Meanwhile, dwelling on what Sabean might or might not do would be counterproductive.

"We can't worry about the outside," Ross said. "We have to do our job and keep grinding. But [Bochy's] right. We're definitely not swinging the bat well. It's kind of an ongoing deal. ... Sooner or later, it's got to pick up. We have too many good hitters on this team."

Said Huff, "It's going to be no easy fix. We've just got to start working counts better and getting on and putting some pressure [on opponents]."

During the losing streak, Giants hitters occasionally have applied pressure. But never have they maintained it. They're 0-for-26 with runners in scoring position in the last four games, including 0-for-19 in this series.

A's starter Trevor Cahill (7-5), who was 0-4 with a 7.43 ERA in his previous five outings, hastened the Giants' sixth loss in a row at the Coliseum by yielding five hits in eight innings. They mustered a second-inning run as Nate Schierholtz drew a two-out walk and scored on Aaron Rowand's double past third base.

Cain held that lead, retiring 14 consecutive batters from the end of the first inning to the beginning of the sixth. But Jemile Weeks' one-out double to left field ended Cain's dominance. Weeks moved to third on Cliff Pennington's groundout and scored the tying run as Coco Crisp singled to right field on a 3-2 delivery.

"It wasn't a good pitch," Cain said. "It came back over the plate -- definitely too much plate for him. I was trying to throw a backdoor slider. It ended up being more of a middle slider."

Then Powell, who hadn't homered all season in 56 at-bats, planted Affeldt's 2-1 pitch into the left-field seats with one out in the eighth. Having blanked opponents in his previous eight outings, a span of 10 1/3 innings, Affeldt (1-1) didn't second-guess his decision to throw Powell a sinker. Location was another matter.

"I look at it and say maybe I could have thrown it a little farther away from him," Affeldt said. "But the ball's sinking down; he got barrel on it and lifted it."

Are the Giants sinking? Or will they receive a lift, either from within or from another club -- which might force them to part with a valuable pitcher?

Cain, who has been a Giant longer than any other player, sounded unruffled. He insisted that the Giants anticipated a low-scoring series, based on the mere 15 runs the teams generated when San Francisco swept Oakland from May 20-22 at AT&T Park. Thus, he concluded, the Giants aren't worried.

"Guys are going to battle through things," Cain said. "We've done it before. That's what a good team does, and that's what we feel like we are."

Box Score

San Francisco Giants fall quietly to Washington Nationals

Andrew Baggarly
Mercury News

What is more maddening? Jonathan Sanchez issuing more free passes than a comedy club or a Giants lineup as quiet as crickets?

For all the late-inning showmanship at 24 Willie Mays Plaza this season, you couldn't blame another sellout crowd from crackling with anticipation. But there was nothing to cheer or celebrate at the conclusion of affairs Tuesday night. The Giants didn't get a runner into scoring position after the second inning and had no heroes to spare in a 2-1 loss to the Washington Nationals at AT&T Park.

Sanchez, who issued five walks in five innings, fell to 4-4 this season. He did strand the bases loaded twice to keep the Giants in the game, and a stalwart bullpen held up the bargain with four scoreless innings.

But the Giants had few answers for Jordan Zimmermann, a right-hander with a deceptive changeup who might be emerging as one of the game's better young pitchers. Relievers Tyler Clippard and Drew Storen also proved to be too tough.

"You're not going to do it every night," said Freddy Sanchez, who stroked Monday night's walk-off single. "Of course we have the confidence. But they were able to close the door on us."

After blowing through six of their seven relievers in Monday's 13-inning victory, the Giants needed length out of Jonathan Sanchez. But asking the mercurial left-hander to pound the strike zone requires a large measure of hope.left-handed pitchers, Sanchez is stuck in a rut, and the walks continue to come in troubling bunches.

In his past three outings, Sanchez has walked 15 over 171/3 innings.

"It's just getting my fastball over the plate," the pitcher said. "That's it."

A year after leading the National League in walks, Sanchez is topping the charts again -- and it's only getting worse. He has walked 45 in 13 starts; a year ago, he walked 34 in his first 13 outings.

The walks have come back to roost, too. He issued a pass to Laynce Nix leading off the third inning and hit Roger Bernadina with a pitch, and Ian Desmond followed with a single to center that caromed off Andres Torres' shins to score the tying run.

The Nationals pushed ahead in the fourth after Rick Ankiel started a rally with a leadoff double. He tagged up and took third base on a deep fly out, then scored on Zimmermann's safety squeeze toward first base.

Sanchez loaded the bases again in the fifth but struck out Nix to keep the Nationals off the board. His pitch count was at 97, though, and so it turned out to be another five-and-dive start -- the seventh time Sanchez has failed to complete at least six innings.

"I worked my (butt) off out there," Sanchez said. "I gave up two runs in five innings. I got out of innings twice. I fought out there. I battle every night."

The Giants had every opportunity to work more late-inning magic. Ramon Ramirez, the only reliever not used a night earlier, tossed two scoreless innings to preserve the one-run deficit. Javier Lopez and Santiago Casilla each contributed a scoreless inning, too.

But the Giants had a hard time getting anything started against Zimmermann. Their best chance came in the second inning, when Aubrey Huff split the gap in left-center and heaved his lungs as he legged out a leadoff triple. Nate Schierholtz followed with a line double, signaling a big inning.

Aaron Rowand's fly out to right field advanced Schierholtz to third, but Brandon Crawford grounded out with the infield in, and Chris Stewart hit a loud out to left field.

The Giants looked to have something cooking in the eighth when Cody Ross drew a pinch walk from Clippard. Giants manager Bruce Bochy didn't try to manufacture a run, though. He had Torres swing away, which resulted in a strikeout. Conor Gillaspie and Freddy Sanchez hit lazy fly balls to end the inning.

Bochy said he never considered having Torres bunt, saying he was more comfortable taking a shot with Torres than with Gillaspie, who was making his first start of the season.

Another sellout crowd -- the 26th consecutive this season -- stayed to the end, perhaps anticipating another comeback and walk-off victory. But Nationals closer Drew Storen retired Huff, Schierholtz and Rowand on three ground balls to end it.

The Nats managed to win without Jayson Werth, who was limited to a pinch-hitting appearance after turning his ankle while tripping on the bullpen mound a night earlier.

Instead of continuing to emerge as one of the game's better

Box Score

Giants rally for win after Lincecum's milestone

Rick Eymer MLB.com

SAN FRANCISCO -- Freddy Sanchez savored the moment. He thrives in pressure situations. Yet he still took the time to acknowledge the bullpen.

Sanchez, who had two hits, singled in the bottom of the 13th inning to lift the San Francisco Giants to yet another improbable comeback, beating the Washington Nationals, 5-4, Monday night after trailing by four runs entering the seventh.

"The bullpen was remarkable, like always," Sanchez said. "They came in and did their job. That's not easy when the game is that tight. They gave us the chance to pull it out."

Sanchez hit a 1-1 offering from Craig Stammen (0-1) into right field for the game-winning run. Javier Lopez (3-1) got the win. Had the game gone any longer, Miguel Tejada might have taken the mound.

"I just work here," said Tejada, who beat out a possible double-play ball to keep the winning rally alive. "What can I do? I can't say no to the manager. He's the boss."

Chris Stewart, a late-inning replacement, walked to open the inning. After one out, Andres Torres singled ahead of Tejada's grounder, setting up Sanchez's heroics.

"He's such a good hitter and he uses the whole field," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "He's a tough out and he puts the ball in play. We had the right guy up there."

The Giants had a chance to win in the ninth, as they had runners on first and third with one out. Torres raced home on a contact play when Cody Ross grounded sharply to shortstop Ian Desmond, who made a perfect throw home. The Giants also left two runners on in the 10th.

It didn't matter as six relief pitchers -- Guillermo Mota, Santiago Casilla, Brian Wilson, Jeremy Affeldt, who celebrated his 32nd birthday, Sergio Romo and Lopez -- combined for eight scoreless innings.

"Timmy [Lincecum] was not quite on top of his game, but those guys stepped up and picked each other up," Bochy said. "What a great job they did."

"The reason we have these kind of games is because of the bullpen we have," Tejada said. "We've had so many moments like this."

Sanchez's heroics would not have been possible without the bullpen, or if Nate Schierholtz had not driven in the tying run in a three-run eighth inning. Aubrey Huff singled home two runs in the eighth to set up Schieholtz's big hit.

Aaron Rowand got the Giants on the board with a solo homer in the seventh.

Lincecum knows a thing or two about strikeouts but he's still trying to figure out how to beat the Nationals.

"That's great baseball, to bounce back from the hole I left them in," Lincecum said.

Lincecum recorded his 1,000th career strikeout in the second inning, getting Jerry Hairston Jr. to become the eighth pitcher to record as many strikeouts in their first five years in the big leagues.

"I'm one of his victims," Tejada said. "He's struck me out more than a few times. That's pretty impressive to achieve a number like that in so little time."

Lincecum said he was aware of the standing ovation he received as he walked off the field following the second inning.

"That part of it was great," he said. "It was awesome and incredibly loud. I had my head down because I was thinking about the home run."

Because the night belonged to the Giants, Lincecum's manager was able to enjoy his achievement.

"It's a milestone," Bochy said. "It's hard to believe he's got 1,000 strikeouts already. He's still too young."

Lincecum lasted five innings in the contest and remains winless in his last four starts against Washington. He last beat the Nationals exactly three years ago (June 6, 2008), and has never beaten them in three starts at AT&T Park.

Rowand's home run, his second of the season, ended John Lannan's 19-inning scoreless streak.

Lincecum has allowed nine runs on 15 hits over his last 11 1/3 innings. He walked three and struck out five.

Box Score

Ryan Vogelsong, Andres Torres lead San Francisco Giants by Colorado Rockies 2-1

Andrew Baggarly
Mercury News

Ryan Vogelsong was a long shot to be a Giant this season. Now he's looking like a potential National League All-Star.

Vogelsong's remarkable comeback story just keeps getting better, and the appreciation from the stands keeps getting louder. He received a pair of thunderous ovations in the Giants' 2-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Sunday afternoon.

First, Vogelsong limited the Rockies to just one run -- a Chris Iannetta home run -- in eight sparkling innings. Then, after it looked like he was out of the game for a pinch hitter, Vogelsong emerged from the dugout to put down a sacrifice bunt that aided in the tiebreaking run as the Giants found another way to win close and late at home.

After taking two of three from the Rockies, the Giants are 10-2 at home against NL West opponents.

The Giants won with help from their bench and a clutch single by Andres Torres. After pinch hitter Pat Burrell drew a leadoff walk from right-hander Matt Lindstrom, Giants manager Bruce Bochy pulled back rookie Conor Gillaspie from the on-deck circle and had Vogelsong step to the plate.

Vogelsong earned a standing ovation after his bunt dribbled down the first base line, advancing pinch runner Manny Burriss. Torres appeared to go around on a 2-2 pitch that bounced to the screen, moving Burriss to third, but he received another life. He took advantage by lining the next pitch into left-center field.

It came just in time for Vogelsong (4-1) to earn a victory. The Giants are 6-2 in his eight starts since he took over for disabled left-hander Barry Zito in the rotation. Zito is starting a minor league rehab assignment Monday for Single-A San Jose, but there's no hurry. Vogelsong has allowed just three earned runs over his last six starts, good for an 0.69 ERA over that span.

Vogelsong is succeeding with movement and command. He even overmatched Carlos Gonzalez, last year's NL batting champ, while striking him out three times.

The Giants needed to break through against Rockies right-hander Jason Hammel, who had a no-hitter into the sixth inning. Miguel Tejada broke it up with a line single to right field, and with runners at the corners, Freddy Sanchez followed with a tying single up the middle.

Brian Wilson pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning, throwing just 10 pitches.

Box Score

SF Giants fall to Rockies; Brandon Belt to DL

John Shea
SFGate/San Francisco Chronicle
The first week of the season, batting coach Hensley Meulens raved about the Giants' three young homegrown hitters, calling them "possibly the cornerstone for the organization for a long time to come."

Pablo Sandoval, Buster Posey and Brandon Belt were healthy then.

Today, all are shelved, having taken a detour from their road to collective stardom. After the Giants fell 2-1 to Colorado on Saturday, Belt joined Sandoval, who has missed five weeks, and Posey, who's done for the season, on a disabled list that has been used by 11 players.

All last year, 13 players went on the DL.

"The bone will take a month to heal fully, but I don't plan on being out that long," Belt said after MRI and CAT scans showed he has a hairline fracture in his left wrist, a result of getting plunked by St. Louis' Trever Miller on Tuesday.

Initial X-rays were negative, and Belt said he felt improvement in recent days. But now it's time to rest, not exactly what Belt or the Giants envisioned when he broke from spring training as the starting first baseman.

Belt lasted only 17 games before his .192 average earned him a ticket to Triple-A Fresno, where he played mostly in the outfield to further his versatility. He returned last week and went 2-for-5 in two games before getting hurt.

"It's really frustrating, especially when you just get up here, and I was feeling pretty good at the plate and in the field before the injury," Belt said. "The team was starting to get on a little roll, and I was pretty excited. Then all of a sudden, this happens. It's a little bit of a setback, but nothing we can't overcome."

Madison Bumgarner surrendered one earned run in seven innings, and Cody Ross hit a home run on Cody Ross Bobblehead Day. Not many other positives for the Giants on Saturday.

Shortstop Brandon Crawford's throwing error on a double-play attempt handed the Rockies an unearned run in the fifth, and Andres Torres was picked off in the bottom of the inning after he hit a one-out double (one of four Giants hits), a play that troubled manager Bruce Bochy.

"He wasn't going anywhere," Bochy said. "He just kind of got in no-man's-land there, and we're getting to the heart of our order with (Jhoulys Chacin's) pitch count getting up there. That was not a good play for us."

The Rockies' second run came on Troy Tulowitzki's two-out single in the sixth. With first base open, Bumgarner threw a curve he targeted for the inside, but it spun into Tulowitzki's happy zone.

The Giants are promoting infielder Conor Gillaspie to replace Belt.

Box Score

Matt Cain back in form as Giants beat Rockies

Steve Kroner
SFGate/San Francisco Chronicle
From Little League days, batters hear the phrase, "A walk's as good as a hit."

Pitchers don't often hear, "A walk's as good as an out," but in Friday night's 3-1 Giants win over Colorado, a base on balls issued by Matt Cain proved mighty beneficial to San Francisco.

The situation: Two on and two outs in the fifth inning. The Giants leading 3-1, with Cain facing Troy Tulowitzki, who had doubled in the previous inning, making him 18-for-53 (.340) lifetime against Cain.

On deck was Todd Helton, who at that moment was 11-for-52 (.212) lifetime against Cain.

After running the count full, Cain threw ball four to Tulowitzki.

"It's one of those spots where I know that he sees the ball well off me," Cain said. "I either wanted to make him chase or maybe get him to freeze or something like that."

Said Giants manager Bruce Bochy: "That's a case where a pitcher does not have to give in. He can keep trying to make his pitches and Matt did."

Cain said his previous success against Helton played into the walk to Tulowitzki "a little bit, but not really because Helton's one of those guys that always comes up big when you've got guys in scoring position."

Helton didn't deliver Friday night. Cain speared Helton's comebacker, and the Rockies had left the bases loaded.

Cain would allow a run on four hits in seven innings. He struck out seven and retired the final seven batters he faced.

After giving up a combined nine earned runs over 12 innings in losses to Florida (on May 24) and Milwaukee (on Sunday), Cain improved to 4-4.

In their 12-7 win at St. Louis on Thursday, the Giants faced starter Lance Lynn, a right-hander making his major-league debut.

In China Basin on Friday night, the Giants faced starter Juan Nicasio, a right-hander making his second big-league appearance.

The Giants scored all their runs in the fourth. Freddy Sanchez dunked a one-out single to right. After Nicasio got Aubrey Huff on a flyball to center, Nate Schierholtz singled to center, setting the stage for Cody Ross.

Ross jolted a Nicasio pitch into the gap in left-center. Sanchez and Schierholtz rolled home on Ross' double to give the Giants a 2-1 edge. It became 3-1 when the next hitter, Brandon Crawford, hooked a double into the right-field corner.

Nicasio, who doubled twice, left after six innings. He allowed three runs on nine hits. In his debut last Saturday, Nicasio limited the Cardinals to an unearned run on six hits in seven innings as Colorado cruised 15-4.

Cain got help from his bullpen Friday night. Javier Lopez worked a one-two-three eighth.

Brian Wilson allowed the Rockies to put two men aboard with one out in the ninth, but he escaped the jam - striking out Seth Smith to end the game - to pick up his 16th save.

The NL West-leading Giants remained a half-game ahead of second-place Arizona, which handled the Nationals 4-0. Third-place Colorado fell 5 1/2 games off the pace.

Box Score

Aubrey Huff hits three home runs as San Francisco Giants win 12-7

Andrew Baggarly

Mercury News

ST. LOUIS -- J.T. Snow walked up to Aubrey Huff, fresh off the first three-home run game of his career, and offered him a fist bump.

"Way to take over the torch, dude," Snow said.

"You had a three-homer game?" Huff replied, smirking. "Really?"

Not since Snow tickled the Philadelphia flower beds in 2004 had a Giant gone deep three times in a game. Huff pulled it off Thursday at Busch Stadium, completing the task with a two-run blast in the ninth inning as the Giants leapt back into the N.L. West lead after a 12-7 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.

The timing couldn't have been better -- for the team, for Huff and for his better half, too.

"My wife, Baubi, it's her birthday today," Huff said. "She wanted me to hit her a home run. I hit three. That's Brownie points."

It was Mrs. Huff who first convinced him to purchase the Rally Thong last year, and everyone knows how that played out. But it took more than magic underwear for Huff to break out of a two-month slump that dragged down the lowest scoring lineup in the National League.

It took hitting the mental reset button.

"I woke up June 1, and it was opening day for me," Huff said. "Just breathe, relax and have some fun again. It's hard to have fun when you're crappy for two months."

Huff began to emerge from his doldrums a day earlier, when his solo shot broke a streak of 73 at-bats without a homer. He also drew a walk that led to the tying run in the ninth in Wednesday's comeback victory.

The Giants were forced to rally again Thursday after Jonathan Sanchez's wildness contributed to an early 3-0 deficit. Huff hit a two-run shot in the fourth. He singled in a run as the Giants pulled ahead in the sixth. He hit a solo homer in the seventh.

And after Colby Rasmus launched a grand slam off Guillermo Mota to tighten up a 10-3 game, Huff went deep one more time. His two-run shot in the ninth off left-hander Brian Tallet bounced into the bullpen.

It was the third three-homer game in the history of new Busch Stadium. Albert Pujols owns the other two.

Huff had 12 multihomer games in his career, but that third one always proved elusive.

"It's on your mind, but you don't expect it," said Huff, who also matched his career high with six RBIs. "I got a pretty good pitch, a slider, and I barreled it. I thought man, that's got a chance."

For all their catastrophic losses, Buster Posey chief among them, the Giants are realizing they got a pretty good chance, too. After taking three of four from the N.L. Central-leading Cardinals and clinching a winning road trip, they return home and finally can unpack for a spell. They'll play 19 of their next 22 games in the Bay Area, a stretch that includes three games at Oakland.

They not only survived playing 35 of their first 56 games on the road, but they also return home in first place.

Before the game, Giants manager Bruce Bochy said he was looking forward to some home cooking. And afterward?

"We're going to make sure Huff gets on the plane," Bochy said. "Hopefully he'll relax and get back to who he is."

Huff hit .218 through the end of May, and his .612 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentages) ranked as the sixth lowest among N.L. everyday players. He hit four home runs in his first 53 games.

He has four home runs in two games in June.

"With our pitching, if we can hit at all, we'll be right there," Huff said. "It all revolved around me having a good start, and I haven't. So hopefully this gets me going."

Freddy Sanchez keeps on going with no signs of slowing down. His three-run shot in the seventh preceded Huff's blast, and Bochy said there's a good chance Sanchez will remain in the No. 3 spot even after Pablo Sandoval returns.

"When Huffy gets going, he can carry a team," Freddy Sanchez said. "He did it last year. It looks like he's getting that confidence back and his swing back. I don't think it's any coincidence that we're getting it going as a team, too."

Box Score

SF Giants' Nate Schierholtz sparks win in 11

Henry Schulman
SFGate/San Francisco Chronicle

Wins do not get more routine than the Giants' 7-5, 11-inning triumph at Busch Stadium on Wednesday night.

There are only so many ways you can write the standard come-from-behind-twice, once-with-two-outs-in-the-ninth, stick-Emmanuel-Burriss-at-first-base, have-a-bank-of-lights-go-out victory story, right?

"I've had some pretty interesting innings before," closer Brian Wilson said. "This has to be on top of the charts."

After the Giants scored twice in the 11th to take a 7-5 lead, Wilson was an out away from his 15th save when half a bank of lights went out on the right side, causing a 16-minute delay. Wilson retook the field, warmed up again and needed one pitch to end it.

The Giants won after trailing 3-0 in the sixth and 5-4 with two outs in the ninth to go 3-3 on their trip. They can capture the series against the Central-leading Cardinals by winning tonight against Lance Lynn in his big-league debut.

Tim Lincecum did not have a great night. He allowed five runs, including a two-run Allen Craig homer in the seventh that gave St. Louis a 5-4 lead after Aubrey Huff's homer in the top half broke a 3-3 tie.

Nate Schierholtz did have a great night with three big hits.

He singled against Jake Westbrook to start the three-run tying rally in the sixth, a mere trifle compared with what he did later.

Cardinals closer Fernando Salas, who had been 10-for-10 in saves, retired the first two Giants in the ninth on three pitches before he walked Huff on four. With Schierholtz batting, Burriss, a pinch-runner, stole second. With his team down to its last strike, Schierholtz shot a single through the middle to get Burriss home for a 5-5 tie.

With Brandon Belt's bruised wrist still healing, manager Bruce Bochy had Burriss play first base for the first time as a pro.

In the 11th, also with two outs, Schierholtz broke the tie with a single against Ryan Franklin after Freddy Sanchez hit his second double. Schierholtz scored an insurance run on a Brandon Crawford single.

"It was a great battle," Wilson said. "I had a fan scream down to me in the bullpen, 'It looks like we're not going to need you tonight.' He told me to sit down. Then we scored a run.

"We got heem!"

Though reporters wanted to discuss the bank of lights that went out, and the odds that Cardinals manager Tony La Russa had something to do with it, Giants players wanted to talk about Schierholtz's emergence.

"He's really turning into a major-leaguer this year," Huff said. "He's coming up in big situations and getting big-time hits. When he does that once, and comes up later in the game, you pretty much know he's going to do it again."

Wilson played with Schierholtz at Class A Hagerstown, Md., in 2004, and swears the outfielder hit eight walk-off home runs. Maybe that number is high, but still, Schierholtz showed the proper mettle.

"It definitely helps being in those situations," Schierholtz said. "Every time you follow the first time, you feel less pressure and relax a little more. I wasn't pressing to get a big hit. I didn't try to do too much."

Box Score

San Francisco Giants blow lead, lose to St. Louis Cardinals

Andrew Baggarly
Mercury News

This is no way to feel about a winning month.

Despite blowing a two-run lead in the eighth inning and losing 4-3 to the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday night, the Giants were a technical success in May. They finished it with a 16-12 record.

But those gains came at a cost. Pablo Sandoval had hand surgery May 3. Mark DeRosa's wrist ruptured again. Most dear and dire, Buster Posey is out for the season because of a shredded ankle.

Rookie Brandon Belt received the latest scare, when a pitch struck his left wrist and sent him to the X-ray machine. Results were negative, but he probably will miss the remaining two games on this trip.

No wonder the Giants are running away from May like it's a burning fuselage.

"Nobody else is going to feel sorry for us," right-hander Ryan Vogelsong said.

Nobody ever does for the defending World Series champs, although the Cardinals were thoughtful house guests when they visited AT&T Park in April. Their closer, Ryan Franklin, blew two save chances in the ninth inning and allowed the Giants to celebrate consecutive victories when they raised the World Series banner and received their rings in gold-threaded jerseys.

This time, the Giants brought the fruit basket and bottle of Cabernet, as Sergio Romo and Javier Lopez allowed a two-run lead to unravel in the eighth.

Jon Jay led off with a grounder on an 0-2 pitch that hugged the first-base line. Giants catcher Eli Whiteside

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said it would have gone foul if it hadn't hit something in the dirt and kicked fair.

Romo could only kick himself for the next pitch he threw, a hanger that Albert Pujols lashed for a double. Allen Craig doubled off Lopez to tie it.

Then Skip Schumaker's two-out grounder found a seam along the right side. Second baseman Freddy Sanchez made a diving stop, but his hurried throw was off-line as Belt and Lopez double-covered the bag.

"I thought we were out of the inning," Bochy said. "When Lopez didn't react to the call, I knew he couldn't find the bag."

Lopez said it was "not a routine play. I don't think we've had that since spring training."

Baseball has a way of evening out. Franklin, who was stripped of his closer role in April, struck out the side in the top of the eighth to get credit for the victory.

Until the Cardinals' rally, the win belonged to Vogelsong. He labored while throwing 92 pitches over five innings but allowed just one run -- and that came in the third when Pat Burrell whiffed on a ball in left field.

Cardinals pitcher Chris Carpenter had gotten a running start off second base on Jay's single; Burrell would have had a shot at the plate, but in a brutal lapse, he allowed the ball to get past him and roll to the wall.

It was the only run allowed by Vogelsong and just the second earned run against him over his past five starts, spanning 311/3 innings.

"I could never get comfortable. I just couldn't adjust to the slope of the mound," said Vogelsong, who nonetheless held down one of the league's most productive lineups. "It was luck, and I made some pitches when I had to."

If the Giants received any other luck, it was Belt's X-ray results. He stayed in the game after left-hander Trever Miller struck him on the outside of his left wrist in the seventh inning. Trainers checked him again after his diving attempt on Schumaker's grounder in the eighth.

Belt said he couldn't make throws toward the end of the game. But the Giants already had used Aubrey Huff as a pinch hitter and had no other first basemen on the roster.

"There's probably going to be some swelling," said Belt, examining his bright red arm after he finished icing it. "We'll be on it tonight and all day tomorrow and hope to get back out there."

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