Posey’s grand slam lifts Giants to 107 win over Brewers.
Blown save ends Smith’s streak, but he pivots to win game in 10th
MILWAUKEE — Deep down, Giants closer Will Smith probably knew that a perfect season would be elusive. Twentythree times in the first half, the Giants asked him to preserve a lead. Twentythree times he did. That made him an AllStar.
The streak ended Friday night in the secondhalf opener at Miller Park when fellow AllStar Christian Yelich tripled and scored in the ninth to tie the game.
So Smith had to settle for a win on a night the Giants hit five home runs for the first time since their 2014 title season and Buster Posey became
Buster Posey again. Posey hit his first grand slam since 2015, off Matt Albers in the 10th inning, to give the Giants a 107 victory at Miller Park.
All 10 runs scored on ho
mers by Posey, Austin Slater, Evan Longoria, Tyler Austin and Brandon Crawford. Austin and Crawford homered against AllStar lefty Josh Hader, Austin to tie the game in the eighth and Crawford to give the Giants the 65 lead in the ninth that Smith lost.
Yelich ripped his triple off Smith into the rightfield corner. Smith struck out Yasmani Grandal before Mike Moustakas hit a ball to Joe Panik’s right. Panik, who was playing in, could not field it cleanly. His momentary bobble ensured Yelich would score to tie the game.
The Giants took the lead in the 10th without making an out. Panik singled, Mike Yastrzemski walked after falling behind 02 and Brandon Belt singled to load the bases for Posey, who had just three homers this season when he crushed Albers’ first pitch over the wall just left of center for his fifth career slam.
Mark Melancon, the sixth Giants pitcher, got the final three outs in the Giants’ eighth win in their past 10 games. But he did allow a solo homer by rookie Keston Hiura. He struck out Lorenzo Cain looking to end the game with Yelich on deck as the potential tying run.
On an Andersonian night at Miller Park, Giants rookie Shaun Anderson and Brewers starter Chase Anderson each allowed four runs and got nodecisions.
Shaun Anderson still had something to brag about. The Giants rookie struck out a careerhigh eight in fiveplus innings. Three of those strikeouts were Yelich, generally regarded as No. 2 in the National League MVP race to the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger.
Yelich had just one threestrikeout game this year, but two pitchers were involved. No individual had gotten Yelich three times in a game since Cleveland’s Carlos Carrasco in September 2016.
But Anderson’s night ended in disappointment after he helped blow a 42 lead he had just been handed in the sixth on Longoria’s tiebreaking tworun homer.
Anderson walked Grandal to start the sixth and Moustakas ripped a double into the rightfield corner to put two runners in scoring position.
Manager Bruce Bochy needed strikeouts and called on Reyes Moronta. Instead, Ryan Braun doubled off Longoria’s glove to score both of the inherited runners. After a wild pitch, Eric Thames gave the Brewers a 54 lead with a single.
Thames, a Santa Clara native, also hurt the Giants with a walk that led to a run and an RBI double.
Slater hit the night’s first homer, with a man aboard, in the fifth. Longoria continued his surge with his goahead homer off the leftfield foul pole an inning later against reliever Corbin Burnes.
Longoria’s 13th of the year was his sixth in six July starts. He had just seven through June 30.
Shaun Anderson helped the Brewers score their first two runs, by walking Thames to set up one and making an errant pickoff throw to aid another. Thames scored from first base on what amounted to a fly to right by Hiura in the second inning.
The ball fell as Panik tried to catch it sprinting. The three steps Slater needed to retrieve the ball was enough for Thames to get the “go” sign at third base.
Slater’s throw home was a shade up the line and Thames slid around Posey’s tag.
Left fielder Alex Dickerson left in the ninth inning with back spasms and will not play Saturday.