Giants Vs. Cubs Game Recap: San Francisco Defeats Chicago, 7-5

The San Francisco Giants defeated the Chicago Cubs on Sunday, winning by a final score of 7-5.

The Giants scored three runs in the third inning, thanks to RBI singles from center fielder Angel Pagan, third baseman Pablo Sandoval and catcher Buster Posey. The Cubs responded with a run of their own the same inning, and took the lead with four runs in the fourth.

San Francisco tied things up after a triple by pinch hitter Brandon Belt, who later scored on a wild pitch. In the ninth inning, the Giants put up two more runs, enough to secure the victory.

Starting pitcher Matt Cain was given a no decision after allowing five runs in five innings.

The win improves the Giants to 76-58 on the season while the Cubs fell to 51-82. San Francisco will next take on the Arizona Diamondbacks beginning on Monday.

For more on the Giants, head over to McCovey Chronicles. For the Cubs side of the story, check out Bleed Cubbie Blue. For more on the league in general, please make your way toBaseball Nation.

Giants Vs. Cubs, Starting Lineups: Xavier Nady, Brett Pill Earn Starts

The San Francisco Giants are looking to close out their series with te Chicago Cubs on a high note on Sunday, using a pair of recent call-ups in their lineup at Wrigley Field.

Xavier Nady earned himself another start in left field after his three RBI day on Saturday, while Brett Pill will get the start at first base over Brandon Belt. Nady and Pill will bat seventh and eighth respectfully.

Buster Posey will be catching Matt Cain, Joaquin Arias will give Brandon Crawford a day off at shortstop, while Marco Scutaro will play second.

Your San Francisco Giants:

1. Angel Pagan CF
2. Marco Scutaro 2B
3. Pablo Sandoval 3B
4. Buster Posey C
5. Hunter Pence RF
6. Joaquin Arias SS
7. Xavier Nady LF
8. Brett Pill 1B
9. Matt Cain P

First pitch is set for 11:20 a.m. PT with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.

For more on the Giants, head over to McCovey Chronicles. For the Cubs side of the story, check out Bleed Cubbie Blue. For more on the league in general, please make your way to Baseball Nation.

Giants Vs. Cubs: Matt Cain Goes For Fourth Straight Win

The San Francisco Giants look to close out their final non-divisional road trip of the season with a bang against the Chicago Cubs, as Matt Cain takes the bump with a series victory in his sights.

Cain (13-5, 2.82 ERA) is 3-0 with a 1.82 ERA over his past four starts, allowing two runs on six hits over 7.1 innings in his last outing against Houston. He's also had great success against Chicago, posting a 4-0 record with a 0.79 ERA in his past eight starts against them.

The Cubs will counter with Travis Wood (4-11, 4.71), who has been unable to get out of the cellar as of late, going 0-8 with a 6.66 ERA in nine starts since the All-Star break. He's allowed just three runs or fewer in five of his last six, though, including a 4-1 loss to the Brewers on Tuesday.

Buster Posey continues to stay hot for San Francisco, currently batting 5-for-7 in this series while bumping his average to .440 at Wrigley Field. As for recent call-up Xavier Nady, he is 4-for-8 with a pair of doubles against Wood, and Hunter Pence is 5-for-12 with a home run and a triple.

First pitch is set for 11:20 p.m. PT with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.

For more on the Giants, head over to McCovey Chronicles.

Giants vs. Cubs Game Recap: Tim Lincecum Leads San Francisco To 5-2 Victory Over Chicago

Even the casual baseball fan will tell you that Tim Lincecum hasn't been himself this season. The two-time Cy Young award winner has left Giants fans this season to wonder which version is going to show up that game. Tonight, the Lincecum of old began to show himself. The starter went 6.1 innings giving up two runs on four hits with seven strikeouts against the Chicago Cubs. Both runs were given up in the third inning, and from there the Giants pitching staff was able to keep the Cubs off the scoreboard.

San Francisco opened the game with a four-run first inning. With the bases loaded, Chicago starter Justin Germano hit Hector Sanchez with a pitch, bringing Pablo Sandoval home. Following Sanchez, Xavier Nady hit a three-run double to make the score 4-0. The Giants would get one more run in the second inning on a Marco Scuttaro sac fly putting the Giants at 5-0. The Cubs would make it 5-2 after the third inning and that's where it stayed for the rest of the game.

The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 2-1, keeping San Francisco's lead over LA at 4.5 games in the NL West. The Giants close out the series against Chicago on Sunday with the 13-5 Matt Cain taking the mound.

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Giants Vs. Cubs: Tim Lincecum Looks To Even Series

After the Chicago Cubs snapped the San Francisco Giants' three-game win streak on Friday, they'll turn to Tim Lincecum to get another one started on Saturday at Wrigley Field.

Lincecum (7-14, 5.30 ERA) is trying to build on his successes away from home as he is 3-0 with a 1.93 ERA in his three road starts since the All-Star break, though has already met his career-high in losses after his three-run, five inning outing on Sunday en route to a 7-1 loss to the Braves.

The two-time Cy Young winner has lost his last three outings against Chicago, though all of those came at AT&T Park. He's 2-0 with a 1.59 ERA in four career starts at Wrigley Field.

As for the Cubs, they'll send Justin Germano (2-4, 5.91) to the mound, who has had some success against the Black and Orange. He currently owns a 1.83 ERA in four starts against the Giants, his lowest of any team he has faced as a starter. He took the loss in his last start after giving up five runs in five innings against the Brewers.

Rosters expand to 40 players on Saturday, with the Giants looking to activate a number of players, including first baseman Aubrey Huff. One player they will certainly need down the stretch is Buster Posey, who was simply on fire in August, batting .371 with six home runs and 21 RBIs. Hopefully that continues in September and beyond.

First pitch is set for 10:05 a.m. PT with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.

For more on the Giants, head over to McCovey Chronicles.

Giants Activate Aubrey Huff, Promote Xavier Nady For September Roster Expansion

As the San Francisco Giants roster is set to expand to 40 players on Saturday, CSN Bay Area is reporting that they will promote/activate six players including first baseman Aubrey Huff and outfielder Xavier Nady.

Along with Huff and Nady will come relievers Brad Penny and Shane Loux, as well as right handed Jean Mchi and Brett Pill. That leaves the Giants a few extra spots to fill their roster all the way to 40, with players like Conor Gillaspie, Dan Runzler and Steve Edlefsen possibly heading to San Francisco as well this month.

Though as CSN's Andrew Baggarly puts it, "the Giants seldom bring up players just for the sake of occupying a locker."

Nady will prove to be a big help in the outfield as Gregor Blanco continues to struggle, batting just .214/.298/.300 over the past two months. In 25 games with the Fresno Grizzlies this year Nady has posted a .270/.343/.528 slash line.

For more on the Giants, head over to McCovey Chronicles.

Giants Vs. Cubs, Final Score: Cubbies Blast Past G-Men 6-4

The Chicago Cubs played host to the San Francisco Giants on Friday, but had no feelings of hospitality after Alfonso Soriano and Anthony Rizzo each hit home runs, blasting the Cubs to a 6-4 victory at Wrigley Field.

Madison Bumgarner (L 14-9) couldn't seem to get batters out after lasting just four innings on the day, giving up five runs on six hits along with two walks and three strikeouts. George Kontos would give up another in his two innings of relief as well.

All of the Giants production came from the heart of the lineup as Pablo Sandoval and Hunter Pence each plated and RBI, while Buster Posey plated two after his 3-3 day at the plate.

Chicago's Chris Volstad (W 2-9) won his second start in a row after a 24 game streak that he went without a W. He lasted 5.2 innings on the day giving up two runs on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts.

The Giants had little time to prepare for this afternoon's matchup against the Chicago Cubs after landing in the Windy City around 3 a.m. local time, hopefully they will be better rested for tomorrow's matchup, which will include Tim Lincecum taking on Justin Germano.

First pitch is set for 10:05 a.m. PT with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.

For more on the Giants, head to McCovey Chronicles.

Giants Vs. Cubs: Madison Bumgarner, Chris Volstad Square Off

The San Francisco Giants are looking to keep their winning streak intact on Friday as they send Madison Bumgarner to the bump to keep the good times rolling.

Bumgarner (14-8, 2.93 ERA) is 3-1 with a 1.55 ERA in his last four starts against the Cubs. He gave up four runs on seven hits in 6.1 innings of work on Saturday as part of a 7-3 loss to Atlanta. He still has an impressive 1.93 ERA in his last eight starts.

The Cubs will counter with Chris Volstad (1-9, 6.28) who broke a 24-start winless streak after allowing three hits and three walks in 6.2 innings of Sunday's 5-0 win over the Rockies. It was his first win since on July 10, 2011. Volstad is 1-2 with a 2.67 ERA in four career starts against San Francisco.

Angel Pagan will look to lock up his terrific August on a high note after posting a .393 average in his last 13 games. As for Hunter Pence, he's batted .467 with five RBIs in his last four games and is 7-18 against Volstad all-time.

First pitch is set for 11:20 a.m. PT with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.

For more on the Giants, head over to McCovey Chronicles.

Giants Vs. Cubs, Series Preview: G-Men Head To Wrigley For Last Non-Divisional Matchup Of Season

For more on the Giants head over to McCovey Chronicles.