Ryan Vogelsong (L 10-7) turned in his second lackluster outing for the Black and Orange, lasting just three innings after allowing three early runs on eight hits, despite striking out seven batters on 96 pitches. The bullpen fared no better has Jose Mijares would give up another three runs and Eric Hacker another.
Clayton RIchard (W 10-12) was on point for San Diego, tossing eight innings strong of one run ball, coming in the unearned fashion from a Hunter Pence sacrifice fly. All in all Richard allowed just five hits while striking out one.
The Giants now head to Los Angeles to face the rival Dodgers for a three game set. L.A. currently holds a half game lead in the NL West. Clayton Richard will take on Madison Bumgarner, with first pitch set for 7:00 p.m. PT with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.
The San Francisco Giants have taken care of business in the first two games at Petco Park, and now look for a sweep on the road against their division rival San Diego Padres.
The Giants will send out Ryan Vogelsong (10-6, 2.72 ERA), who currently sits fourth in the NL in ERA, but he led the league with a 2.27 mark prior to Monday's 14-2 loss in which he gave up eight runs and nine hits in 2.2 innings -- the first start of 2012 in which he'd failed to go at least six innings . Vogelsong has not in San Diego since 2005.
The Padres will counter with Clayton Richard (9-12, 3.91). He struggled mightily the last time he faced San Francisco, giving up seven runs in five innings of a 7-1 loss, and has lost all three of his outings versus the Giants this year.
First pitch is set for 1:05 p.m. PT with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.
After leading by three runs heading into the bottom of the ninth, two-out RBI singles by Alexi Amarista and Chris Denorfia made it interesting before Clay Hensley was able to strike out pinch-hitter Mark Kotsay to finally escape with the win.
The Giants were led by Joaquin Arias' three hits and three RBIs along with Hunter Pence's two hits and two RBIs. Buster Posey pitched in three hits for the Giants, as well. They needed six relief pitchers to pull out the win.
The Giants have a half-game lead over the second-place Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League West. The Giants will look for the sweep of the Padres on Sunday before beginning their series with the Dodgers on Monday in Los Angeles.
The San Francisco Giants were hit with a huge blow this week as they learned of a 50-game suspension for outfielder Melky Cabrera. Despite having to fill the huge void left in the lineup and in the outfield, the Giants remain in the hunt for a playoff spot and have a deep enough roster to make up for the loss of Cabrera.
The club will begin a three-game series with the struggling San Diego Padres on Friday night. The Padres have lost three in a row, scoring one run in their last 31 innings.
After throwing his perfect game, San Francisco Giants pitcher Matt Cain seemed to fall off the wagon of dominance he'd been riding for quite some time, but is looking to keep the momentum going on Friday as he takes on the San Diego Padres at Petco Park.
Matt Cain (11-5, 2.99 ERA) got back in the win column after his last start, tossing 7.1 innings of two-run ball against the Colorado Rockies. He's had one start at at Petco Park this season, allowing three unearned runs while striking out nine in seven innings of an 8-3 win back on June 7. Cain is now 2-3 with a 2.40 ERA in his last seven games in San Diego.
San Diego will counter with Ross Ohlendorf (4-3, 6.41), who was roughed up for seven runs in three innings of work during Sunday's 11-5 loss in Pittsburgh. Ohlendorf signed with San Diego in June and has pitched well at home, owning a 2-0 record with a 1.93 ERA in three starts there.
With Melky gone other players are going to step up, and a lot more pressure will be put on Buster Posey than ever before. Luckily Posey had been light out in nine matchups with San Diego this year, batting .323 with three homers, three doubles and 10 RBIs. Buster also is hitting .343 with four home runs and 12 RBIs in his last eight games in San Diego.
The Giants have also won 17 of the last 23 meetings with the Padres.
First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. PT with coverage on CSN Bay Area and KNBR 680 AM.