Keeping with what will hopefully become a trend, the Giants started off fast in the first inning. Freddy Sanchez put in an extra effort to turn his double into a triple, and he was brought home by an Aubrey Huff double, which itself was followed by a Buster Posey home run, a rarity at PETCO Park. It gave the Giants a lead they'd never relinquish, as they beat the San Diego Padres 8-4 in the final game of a two-game set to split the series. That's a 2-4 start for the defending World Champion Giants, and we're not much closer to understanding anything about them so far.
That first inning was supplemented with a monster sixth inning, which began with a single for the rookie Brandon Belt, who made it to second after a Miguel Tejada walk. A Tim Lincecum sacrifice bunt later (he had two successful throughout the course of the game) later had both advancing. Freddy Sanchez was intentionally walked, and Aubrey Huff made them pay for it with an infield single to score Belt. Posey added to his two-run homerun by hitting a single that scored both Tejada and Sanchez. The bleeding was stopped after Huff scored on a Pablo Sandoval single and Nate Schierholtz flew out.
Did you get all that? It's a lot to take in, and I'm sure the Padres echoed those sentiments. Lincecum had a monster day, pitching seven innings, giving up three hits and no walks with a whopping thirteen strikeouts. He struck out the first three batters he faced, and almost all of them were swinging strikeouts that were almost unhittable, he was that on today. He was essentially flawless, save for a Nick Hundley homerun to left field in the third inning. Lincecum gave way to Sergio Romo, who eventually gave way to Brian Wilson ... and that's where things got sticky.
Wilson came in for the ninth inning, giving up two hits and a walk. Maybe he's rusty, maybe he's still hurt a little, but either way, it's something that needs to be addressed going forward. Maybe he just had an off day, too. Stay tuned for a series recap a bit later.