News » Giants: Following their first off

Paul Goldschmidt struck out his first two at-bats against Jack Flaherty Youth Pavel Zacha Jersey , once on a slider. With two on in the fifth inning, Goldschmidt fell behind against the St. Louis right-hander and laid off two sliders like the one he chased earlier.

Another slider found too much of the plate and the reigning NL player of the month sent it over the wall in right.

Goldschmidt hit a three-run homer, Zack Greinke pitched effectively into the seventh inning and the Arizona Diamondbacks ended a four-game losing streak with a 4-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday night.

”Paul’s gifted,” Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said. ”You can’t make mistakes like that. He’s going to make you pay.”

Greinke (9-5) gave up two runs in the second inning to end his 13-inning scoreless streak but was otherwise sharp in winning his fourth straight game. Yoshihisa Hirano needed one pitch to get a groundout with the bases loaded in the seventh and extend his team record with a 26th straight scoreless appearance.

Brad Boxberger worked around a walk in the ninth for his 20th save in 24 chances.

Goldschmidt had the big blow, following a four-hit night Monday with a three-run homer off Flaherty (3-4) in the fifth inning. The NL player of the month for June, Goldschmidt is hitting .413 with 11 homers and 28 RBIs his past 26 games.

”It wasn’t the best slider I had thrown all night and you get a guy like that, who is red hot like that, he put a good swing on it,” Flaherty said.

Greinke entered Tuesday’s game with the 13-inning scoreless streak after tossing seven scoreless innings against Miami his last start. His streak lasted one more inning; the Cardinals scored two runs in the second inning on Yairo Munoz’s single and Kolten Wong’s sacrifice fly.

Greinke shook off the shaky second by mixing his pitches well, keeping the Cardinals off-balance with low-90s fastballs and looping curves that dipped to 63 mph. He was lifted with two outs in the seventh inning after giving up consecutive hits, allowing two runs on seven hits and four strikeouts.

”I felt good, there was good defense behind me and we scored some runs,” Greinke said.

Flaherty allowed four runs on six hits in six innings in a loss to Cleveland his last start. He was sharp after giving up David Peralta’s run-scoring single in the first inning, retiring 10 straight batters.

Flaherty ran into trouble in the fifth inning, giving up a double and hitting a batter before Goldschmidt lifted a three-run homer just over the wall in right to put Arizona up 4-2.

Flaherty allowed four runs on four hits and struck out seven in six innings.

”He threw the ball well,” Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said. ”(He) got into a tough situation with a good hitter, got to two strikes, the guy got the best of that matchup, but overall his stuff was very good today.”

TRANLATOR BOOTED

Lovullo brought Hirano’s translator, Kelvin Kondo Authentic Taylor Hall Jersey , with him to the mound after making a pitching change in the seventh inning, just to make sure the Japanese right-hander was clear on what he wanted. The mound meeting turned a bit chaotic when Lovullo left the mound and Kondo was still talking to Hirano.

Under big-league rules, a translator has to stay next to the manager while on the mound, so when Lovullo started to walk away, plate umpire Bill Welke started shouting and told Kondo to leave the field.

”I didn’t even know what was going on up there. It was crazy, chaotic,” Lovullo said. ”There’s a clear rule and it’s so new to us having the interpreter and exchanging information. I just left the mound too soon, the dirt area too soon and that was my responsibility to stay there until all the instructions were made.”

TRAINER’S TABLE

Cardinals: SS Paul DeJong (broken left hand) went 0 for 4 for Triple-A Memphis on Monday night, his third rehab game with the Redbirds.

Diamondbacks: RHP Randall Delgado (strained left oblique) allowed a run on three hits in an inning for Triple-A Reno Monday night in a rehab appearance. … OF Steven Souza Jr. went 1 for 4 with a solo homer for the Aces as he works back from a strained right pectoral.

UP NEXT

Diamondbacks LHP Patrick Corbin has allowed a run in 13 innings his past two starts heading into Wednesday’s game against the Cardinals. St. Louis sends out RHP Miles Mikolas, who lost his last start despite allowing a run in 6 2/3 innings against Atlanta.

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Hunter Pence retooled his swing under the guidance of a hitting guru while rehabbing in the minors from a right thumb sprain.

A few days ago, he went back to a few things from the old approach and adjusted his stance.

”A smorgasbord weird Hunter Pence swing,” San Francisco’s spirited outfielder said, poking fun at himself.

Pence certainly liked the result Sunday, when he hit a two-run double down the first-base line with the bases loaded and one out in the 11th inning to send the Giants past the San Diego Padres 3-2.

”Still always a work in progress, you never completely figure it out and every day is different. That’s the fun of it,” said Pence, who has primarily been a backup since returning earlier this month from a 40-game absence.

One of his teammates pulled open his uniform shirt in celebration, leaving only the top button intact. Pence said he might require a new jersey.

”Ecstatic,” manager Bruce Bochy said. ”It’s been a tough road for him.”

Brad Hand (1-4) got in trouble fast. He allowed Andrew McCutchen’s one-out double, then intentionally walked Buster Posey and hit Brandon Crawford with his first offering. Pence followed with his 11th career walk-off hit and first since another against Hand two years ago. Pence raised his arms once the ball got past first baseman Eric Hosmer.

Cory Spangenberg had put San Diego ahead in the top of the 11th with a single.

Manuel Margot led off the game with a home run Womens Will Butcher Jersey , and drew a leadoff walk in the 11th from San Francisco reliever Reyes Moronta. After Ty Blach (5-5) relieved, Spangenberg singled off first baseman Brandon Belt’s glove.

A solo homer by each team was it until the 11th.

Belt hit a two-out double in the eighth against Kirby Yates. Padres right fielder Hunter Renfroe made a magnificent catch in foul territory on McCutchen’s flyball, rolling into the first row of fans after the grab.

Posey doubled and singled for the Giants, who concluded a stretch of 17 straight games without a break.

Margot began the game with a 3-2 drive into the left-field bleachers for his second homer of the year. It was his fifth career leadoff home run after hitting four last season. The Giants tied it on a leadoff homer by Gorkys Hernandez in the sixth, his ninth after none in 2017.

McCutchen’s one-out single in the fourth was the Giants’ first hit off Padres starter Eric Lauer.

Giants rookie Dereck Rodriguez stuck out six and walked one over seven innings, allowing one run on four hits in his fifth major league start and third at home – where he remains unbeaten.

STOCK’S DEBUT

The Giants’ rally spoiled a chance for victory by journeyman reliever Robert Stock in his long-awaited major league debut at age 28. He worked out of a tough spot in the 10th after a call-up earlier in the day from Triple-A El Paso.

Joe Panik doubled leading off the 10th before Stock retired the side with a pair of strikeouts.

Stock’s parents were in the stands at AT&T Park in case he got the call.

”I think that knowing the trials and tribulations that some people go through over an entire minor league career as opposed to some people get there like that, maybe makes you appreciate it more,” Stock said.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Padres: Travis Jankowski was a late scratch with left quadriceps soreness and Matt Szczur replaced him in left field. … C Austin Hedges went hitless in his return from the disabled list. He was activated and started, batting seventh, after being sidelined since May 1 with tendinitis in his right elbow. … RHP Jordan Lyles, scratched in the bottom of the first Saturday just before his scheduled start, was placed on the DL retroactive to Thursday with inflammation in his pitching elbow. He will go home to San Diego and be examined Monday but the injury isn’t considered serious – there is believed to be no structural damage – and as of now the training staff didn’t plan to do any additional exams, though manager Andy Green acknowledged that could change.

Giants: Bochy is encouraged by RHP Johnny Cueto’s first rehab outing as he works back from a sprained pitching elbow. Cueto went 3 2-3 scoreless innings throwing 38 pitches with no walks for Triple-A Sacramento on Saturday and rejoined the Giants on Sunday for a bullpen session. The plan is for another off the mound in five days and likely two more rehab starts, and the next could be with Class A San Jose. ”Right now he feels great,” Bochy said.

UP NEXT

Padres: LHP Joey Lucchesi (3-3, 3.86 ERA) takes the mound for the series opener at Texas, making his second start since returning from the DL for a right hip strain.

Giants: Following their first off day since June 7 on Monday, LHP Derek Holland (5-7, 4.48) will pitch Tuesday night against Colorado looking to win back-to-back outings for the first time in 2018.

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