Polanco homers, Vogelsong wins SF return; Bucs beat Giants
Gregory Polanco had a homer and four RBIs, and Vogelsong and the Pirates beat the Giants 8-5 on Monday night. As the free-falling Giants know better than anyone, Vogelsong has never lost a postseason start.
The post The tailspin continues, but Vogelsong’s emotional return made it a night removed from the angst appeared first on Giants Extra. They have dropped 19 of 28 since the All-Star break.
This will be Taillon’s first career game against the Giants. Vogelsong got out of that jam and avoided another run in the second when Starling Marte threw Trevor Brown out at the plate.
The Giants scored single runs in the first and third innings, and Vogelsong had to consider himself lucky to be down just 2-0 at that point. Hunter Pence was screaming toward home on Eduardo Nuñez’s single and Roberto Kelly put up a late stop sign; Pence was thrown out retreating to third.
It didn’t seem to faze the AT&T crowd, which raucously cheered Vogelsong again as he walked toward the Pirates’ dugout. The Pirates, meanwhile, have won six of Taillon’s last seven starts and are a flawless 4-0 in his last four outings after allowing five runs or more in their previous game. Brandon Belt singled him to third and Brandon Crawford walked to load the bases. Three batters later, Denard Span drilled one over the wall in right for his sixth homer. Following the homestand, San Francisco heads to Los Angeles for a three-game showdown for the top spot in the division.TV: 10:15 p.m. ET, ROOT (Pittsburgh), CSN Bay Area (San Francisco) PITCHING MATCHUP: Pirates RH Jameson Taillon (3-2, 2.85 ERA) vs. Giants RH Jeff Samardzija (10-8, 4.23) Taillon was brilliant against San Diego on Thursday, scattering three hits over eight scoreless innings while walking two en route to victory.
The Giants chipped away in an unfamiliar way.
Vogelsong was still cooling down when the Pirates tacked on two more runs with three singles and a double, pushing the lead back to three.
Moore was the first Giants lefthander besides Madison Bumgarner to make a start at AT&T Park since Barry Zito almost three years ago on September 25, 2013.
McCutchen’s catch helped the bullpen’s cause when he raced to his right and made a diving catch on a Nunez liner with two outs and runners on second and third in the seventh, with the Giants trailing 7-4. The right-hander has allowed one earned run over his previous 14 innings.
Angel Pagan, in extending his hitting streak to 13 games, doubled down the right field line with one out. He can make catches most other guys can t. Then Nuñez threw a runner out from his butt and another one from his knees.
Vogelsong received a long, loud standing ovation when he took the mound in the bottom of the first inning and a scoreboard salute that read “Forever Giant”. With Jameson Taillon set to face Jeff Samardzija in the pitching matchup, the over/under now sits at 7 runs, down from the opening number of 7.5.