Giants beat Cardinals to snap skid
A’s roughed up in blowout loss to Indians
SAN FRANCISCO (TNS) – Hunter Pence emphatically clenched both fists as he crossed home plate, letting out a guttural scream as the Giants took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh.
Andrew Mccutchen had just scorched a single threw the left side past a diving Paul Dejong, easily scoring the pinch-running Pence from second with one out.
An offense-starved Giants team didn’t exactly emerge from their slump just yet, but another efficient outing from Dereck Rodriguez on the hill, if anything, gave the bats a chance. The home lineup took a while to take advantage with the Cardinals only scoring one run through six frames, but a Pablo Sandoval sixthinning solo shot and Mccutchen RBI knock in the next inning were enough to put the Giants ahead.
Mccutchen’s go-ahead single did so for good, and the Giants ended a fourgame losing skid with a 3-2 win over the Cardinals on Friday night at AT&T Park.
Rodriguez, with his Hall of Fame father Ivan watching from the first row beside the home dugout, threw 62/3 innings of tworun, five-hit, two-walk ball. The 26-year-old righty has now gone five starts without a loss – he didn’t factor in Friday’s decision – and lowered his ERA to 3.09 while seemingly solidifying his spot in the rotation.
Bay Area News Group/tns San Francisco Giants starter Dereck Rodriguez delivers a pitch during the Giants’ 3-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday night at AT&T Park in San Francisco.
A night after the Giants first reached base in the sixth inning, Mccutchen drew a walk in the first frame on Friday night. Given the hosts’ recent offensive woes – they managed only five runs in the last four games, all losses – they’ll take anything. Like a second-inning wild pitch from Cardinals pitcher John Gant that scored Brandon Crawford, tying the game at one even with the Giants still hitless.
After allowing a run in the second when Alen Hanson misplayed a fly ball in left field, Rodriguez tossed four scoreless frames and allowed one run in the seventh. Johnny Cueto and Co. couldn’t save San Francisco’s stagnant bats against scorching hot St. Louis ones in the series opener, but Rodriguez’s impressive night did enough to bide time for the Giants on Friday.
Sandoval’s homer narrowly cleared the left-field wall to give the hosts a onerun
edge. The lead didn’t last long, though, as the Cardinals tied the game in the next frame following a Dejong single to center and Kolten Wong triple to right. Rodriguez left the game to a standing ovation with two outs, and Reyes Moronta struck out Harrison Bader to end the seventh with Wong still on third, preventing Rodriguez from being charged with a third run and potentially the loss.
After Mccutchen’s goahead single and a scoreless eighth from Tony Watson, Will Smith earned the save with a seamless ninth.
Indians 10, A’s 4 CLEVELAND – The A’s have become notorious for late-inning comebacks over the past two weeks, but this deficit was much too large.
After keeping it close for most of the night, one bad inning by Emilio Pagan allowed things to get out of hand as the A’s fell in a blowout to the Indians.
On what was fireworks night at Progressive Field, the A’s were the ones who started things off with a bang as Dustin Fowler led the game off with a solo home run well up the right field bleachers off Carlos Carrasco. The home run traveled a projected 467 feet, tied for seventh-longest in baseball in baseball this season. It was Fowler’s sixth homer of the season and first of his career to lead off a game.
With Matt Olson leading off the second by blasting a home run to center, the A’s jumped out to an early 2-0 lead. But the Indians offense, which entered the night fourth in the league in runs scored, showed why it’s one of the best in baseball.
Paul Blackburn, who has been up and down since returning from the disabled list last month, was down Friday night. Though he was the victim of some bad defense behind him, Blackburn did himself no favors as he fell behind in the count often. The righthander failed to record an out in the fifth, allowing six runs, five earned, on seven hits and one walk with three strikeouts over just four innings of work.
It’s been a struggle to find consistency for Blackburn, who has couple one good start with a bad one through his first six back from the forearm injury that kept him out since the end of spring training.
Pagan was tagged for four runs in the eighth, giving the Indians a comfortable six-run cushion as they eventually snapped the A’s two-game win streak.