ATLANTA -- In earlier generations, Matt Cain would have been a test pilot or bare-knuckled boxer. The Marlboro Man or even Dirty Harry might have suited him as a fictional character.
Any alter ego for Cain would have to be unyielding, unafraid and uncompromising. Needing Cain's special stubbornness Wednesday night, the Giants received every ounce of it in a 7-5 victory over the Atlanta Braves that plugged a few holes in San Francisco's leaky hull.
Cain would not be cowed by the Giants' 13 losses in the previous 18 games. The Braves' one-run, last-at-bat victories in the series' previous two games, as well as their 5-0 edge over San Francisco this season, never entered his mind. Facing an Atlanta lineup that featured power, speed and the ability to hit for average -- "You have to pay attention to those guys all the time," Cain said -- the right-hander took the mound with respect but without fear.
Cain allowed five hits and issued one walk to the first 13 Braves he faced. And that was it for Atlanta. Following Dan Uggla's third-inning leadoff double, Cain retired 18 consecutive batters until his eight-inning outing was complete. Displaying a fastball with lively movement, Cain struck out nine, and the lone run he surrendered was unearned.
"You definitely try to make quick innings and keep the guys moving, positive and in a good train of thought," said Cain, who ended a personal three-game losing streak. "If that [means] working fast or kind of being laid back in the dugout, you try to find ways to do that to keep guys energized."
Obviously, Cain was the man for the job as the Giants narrowed their National League West deficit to 2 1/2 games behind first-place Arizona. Asked if he was especially motivated to prop up his staggering teammates, Cain said, "I think all of the starters do that. The bullpen's the same way, but as starters, I think we put a lot of pride in keeping streaks alive and trying to put an end to streaks when things are going bad."
"He's so steady," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "He's got that calmness you like out there, both on the mound and in the clubhouse. He's a calming influence, I think, on everybody. He doesn't get rattled. He's competitive -- he has his moments like all of us -- but with men on base or a mistake out there defensively, he doesn't let it bother him."
Cain (10-9) responded to the Braves' early challenge by abandoning his windup and working from the stretch position, which enabled him to keep his body balanced and aligned toward home plate throughout his pitching motion. If this sounds familiar, it should. Tim Lincecum often employs this stratagem, which Cain has tried occasionally.
"I kind of did take it from him," Cain said. "You have to find different ways to get things going."
Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez noticed a definite difference after Cain's switch.
"We didn't get very good swings out of him the rest of the night," Gonzalez said.
By contrast, the Giants sustained rare offensive productivity. Their four sacrifice flies tied a franchise record previously reached four times, most recently last year. Cain himself launched one of them in a four-run fourth inning against Braves starter Jair Jurrjens (12-5) that snapped a 1-1 tie. Before Cain batted, five Giants in a row reached base safely. Aubrey Huff blooped a double, advanced on Nate Schierholtz's single and scored on Orlando Cabrera's single. Brandon Belt walked to load the bases and set up Eli Whiteside's RBI single. Then came back-to-back sacrifice flies from Cain and Cody Ross.
Pablo Sandoval, sore right foot and all, contributed a first-inning RBI double and a ninth-inning sacrifice fly to the Giants' largest scoring output since they whipped Arizona 8-1 on Aug. 3.
Ultimately, San Francisco needed each and every run. With Cain having thrown 114 pitches, Bochy inserted Dan Runzler in the ninth inning to get some work, and most of the Giants' 7-1 lead quickly evaporated. After the Giants barely missed turning a double play that would have ended the game, the Braves mounted a genuine threat. Jason Hayward lashed an RBI single, Cabrera dropped Michael Bourn's simple popup for an error that enabled another run to score and Martin Prado drilled a two-run double. Suddenly, Brian McCann was batting, representing the tying run.
Huff allowed himself to think the unthinkable -- a home run by the clutch-hitting McCann.
"That probably would have killed us," Huff said.
With sore-armed closer Brian Wilson unavailable, the Giants survived as Jeremy Affeldt fanned McCann on a 3-2 pitch.
"We'll take a win any way we can get it," Huff said.
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