Denver, CO (SportsNetwork.com) – The San Francisco Giants went to the squeeze
in the top of the 11th inning, and it paid off.
Joe Panik plated Nori Aoki with his bunt toward first base and the Giants beat
the Colorado Rockies 5-4 in extras on Saturday.
Brooks Brown (0-1) started the decisive half-inning by walking Aoki, who drew
four walks in six plate appearances for the game. Aoki moved to second on Matt
Duffy’s sacrifice bunt, and Angel Pagan put runners on the corners with his
single back up the middle, setting up the key play.
Jean Machi (1-0) finished the 10th inning and retired the side in order in the
11th.
Tim Hudson gave up three runs on eight hits over seven innings but was denied
his first win of the season after Santiago Casilla coughed up the lead in the
ninth.
Sergio Romo got through the eighth and Jeremy Affeldt retired Carlos Gonzalez
to start the ninth before giving way to the closer Casilla. Nick Hundley and
DJ LeMahieu slapped singles and Drew Stubbs grounded into a fielder’s choice,
plating the tying run.
Rockies starter Jorge De La Rosa made out better than he did in his abysmal
season debut, allowing two runs over five innings while striking out seven. De
La Rosa, who has 30 wins over his last two seasons with Colorado, was roughed
up for seven runs in two innings in his first start against the Padres on
April 20.
Pagan singled with two outs in the first inning, setting up Buster Posey’s
double that opened the scoring.
Colorado got the run back in the home second on Charlie Blackmon’s RBI single,
and it took the lead when Troy Tulowitzki took Hudson out to left field in the
third.
Andrew Susac knotted it at 2-2 with a solo homer in the fourth inning, and
Justin Maxwell crushed a two-run blast to right in the sixth off Scott Oberg
to put the Giants in front.
Gonzalez made it a one-run game with his solo homer in the bottom of the
sixth.
Game Notes
Pagan went 4-for-6 for the Giants, while Justin Morneau had three hits for
Colorado … The Rockies’ three-game win streak was snapped … Both teams had
12 hits … The Giants went 1-for-16 with runners in scoring position.
