Giants slam three home runs to knock off Phillies
PHILADELPHIA -- The Giants snapped a five-game losing streak Friday night with a 5-4 victory over the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.
Giants catcher Buster Posey hit a solo home run with two outs in the seventh inning to give San Francisco a one-run lead. Matt Duffy and Justin Maxwell also homered as Tim Lincecum got the win, allowing five hits and four runs in six innings.
Posey entered the game in a 4-for-28 skid. "Good for Buster," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "I know he has been fighting himself a little bit at the plate."
Video: SF@PHI: Casilla fans Herrera to secure the victory
Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard hit a two-run homer in the first inning to make it 2-0. He entered the game in a 2-for-33 slump. Maikel Franco hit a game-tying homer in the sixth, his third game-tying homer in four games.
"It's nice to see a little bit of power in the middle of our lineup with Howard and Franco," Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg said. "Franco continues to show pop in his bat."
Video: SF@PHI: Franco ties the game with a solo home run
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Homers go a long way: The Giants matched a season high with three homers, and each one was essential. Duffy's homer halved Philadelphia's 2-0 lead in the second inning, Maxwell's monstrous two-run clout tied the score in the fourth and, of course, Posey's team-high ninth homer of the season put San Francisco on top for good. More >
Video: SF@PHI: Maxwell cranks a two-run homer to left
Phillies' bullpen woes: It seems hard to believe the Phillies' bullpen entered the night with a 3.42 ERA, which ranked fifth in the National League. That is because its 1.47 WHIP and 46 inherited runners scored percentage ranked last in the league. Left-hander Elvis Araujo allowed an inherited runner to score in the fifth to hand the Giants a 4-3 lead. Right-hander Luis Garcia allowed the homer to Posey in the seventh to give the Giants a 5-4 lead. More >
Video: SF@PHI: Umpires ask Araujo to trim laces on glove
Revere's baserunning miscue: The Phillies had runners at the corners with one out in the seventh when Jeff Francoeur hit a fly ball to right field. Ben Revere, who was on first, broke for second base on the pitch, but had to return to first as Maxwell made the catch. One problem: Revere never retouched second base, so the Giants doubled up Revere for a costly inning-ending double play. More >
Video: SF@PHI: Giants turn DP on Revere's baserunning gaffe
Defying percentages again: Ostensibly, it made sense for Sandberg to summon Araujo in the fifth inning with two on, one out and lefty hitters Brandon Belt and Brandon Crawford due up. Except for the fact that Crawford mashes lefties. After Belt popped up, Crawford singled up the middle to score Joe Panik and break a 3-3 tie. Crawford thus hiked his season average against lefties to a preposterous .450 (18-for-40).
Video: SF@PHI: Crawford rips a go-ahead RBI single to center
QUOTABLE
"Starting pitching sets the tone for the game. We got early runs tonight and they weren't able to hold up." -- Sandberg, on the Phillies' rotation, which has struggled when Cole Hamels and Aaron Harang have not pitched. Phillies starters have thrown fewer than six innings 25 times this season (45 percent of their starts).
SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS
Phillies right-hander Jerome Williams' struggles continue. He allowed nine hits and four runs in just 4 2/3 innings. He has pitched more than five innings just once in his last eight starts, in which he has compiled a 6.81 ERA. His 63 1/3 innings among pitchers with 12 or more starts this season are the fewest in baseball.
"It's been happening a lot where I'm not locating the ball and I'm getting hit hard," Williams said. "It's about location with me. That's the main thing, I think."
Video: SF@PHI: Duffy cuts the deficit with a solo homer
DUFFY DIVE
Duffy, who started at third base despite veteran Casey McGehee's recall from Triple-A Sacramento, contributed a key play in the ninth inning when he reached into the stands to pluck Cesar Hernandez's popup for the second out.
"I thought it was in the stands, but playing so many games at AT&T Park, I kind of have a habit of going for every ball," Duffy said. More >
Video: SF@PHI: Duffy makes a fantastic catch in foul ground
WHAT'S NEXT
Giants: San Francisco is 10-7 in day games entering Saturday's 3:05 p.m. ET/12:05 p.m. PT matinee at Citizens Bank Park. That could bode well for starter Madison Bumgarner, who is 29-18 with a 3.12 ERA in 60 lifetime day games (59 starts).
Phillies: Severino Gonzalez pitches for the first time since May 25. The Phillies skipped him in the rotation because of a couple days off recently. After Williams lasted just 4 1/3 innings on Friday, they could use some length from Gonzalez, who hasn't pitched more than five innings in any of his first four starts.
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