[新聞] Giants muster little in snapping home streak
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Giants muster little in snapping home streak
By Adam Berry / MLB.com | 5/25/2011 2:51 AM ET
SAN FRANCISCO -- For the first time in exactly a month, an unusual postgame
silence hung over the home clubhouse at AT&T Park on Tuesday night.
The songs on the team's standard post-win playlist didn't blare from the
speakers, and there was no talk of the dramatic walk-off hits and clutch
plays that came to define the Giants' nine-game home winning streak, with
their last loss in China Basin coming vs. the Braves on April 24. Instead, a
few players spoke quietly of how Florida right-hander Ricky Nolasco kept them
off balance for nearly nine innings and how the offense couldn't overcome an
early deficit as the Marlins (27-19) beat the Giants (27-20), 5-1.
"It's definitely a different feeling when you come in here," outfielder Cody
Ross said. "It's kind of a weird feeling walking around with no energy.
That's different when you're used to playing at home and after the games kind
of celebrating. But hey, it's a long season. We knew we weren't going to win
every single game the rest of the way at home. Not to say we're not going to
go out there and try again tomorrow."
Giants manager Bruce Bochy said Nolasco was simply on his game. The
right-hander left after 8 1/3 innings, scattering seven hits and walking two
while allowing only one run and striking out five with all four of his
pitches working to perfection.
"With the way their guy was throwing, we knew we had to keep it close," Bochy
said. "He pitched great. He's been throwing the ball well. ... He was hitting
his spots, and it's going to be a tough night when he's on. He knows what
he's doing out there."
"They know I like to pitch ahead, and they didn't want to get behind. They
were swinging, and I tried to take advantage of it and make better pitches
early," Nolasco said. "I was able to make some pitches. That's a really
underrated lineup over there. They battled and put some good at-bats
together. They made me work almost the whole game. There was no stretch where
I was just cruising."
Right-hander Matt Cain said he thought he pitched well Tuesday night, giving
up four runs on six hits and three walks in six innings of work, but the
Marlins capitalized on his early mistakes to build a lead the Giants lineup
never came close to cracking.
After a single and two fielder's choices that left Chris Coghlan on first
with two outs, Cain issued consecutive walks to Hanley Ramirez and Logan
Morrison to load the bases. The righty was up 0-2 on Ramirez and ended up
walking him, and Cain thought he had Morrison out on a few two-strike
pitches, saying after the game, "They were where I wanted them." Marlins
first baseman Gaby Sanchez then bounced a double to the wall in right-center
to put Florida ahead, 3-0.
"I felt good. I really did. I got myself a great opportunity to get out of
the inning in the third, two outs to Ramirez, and I ended up walking him and
the next guy," Cain said. "That's my fault. That can't happen. That can't
happen at all, and that's the reason we lost tonight. I didn't make the
pitches to get him out and finish the inning."
Cain gave up another run in the fourth as Marlins right fielder Mike Stanton
slammed a home run to center field, increasing the deficit to four runs. He
calmed down after that, but that was plenty of support for Nolasco, who
carved up the Giants' lineup all night. After winning five straight games
against top-notch starters, mostly due to timely late-game hits, San
Francisco's lineup often looked helpless against Nolasco, until the Giants
loaded the bases with one out in the ninth to knock Nolasco out of the game.
Miguel Tejada's sacrifice fly was all they mustered from the threat.
"He had all of his stuff working. He was pounding the strike zone, which is
the most important thing for a starter, getting first-pitch strikes over to
get ahead and getting guys to chase his slider and put bad swings on balls,"
Ross said. "He was just really good. He's kind of going off his last few
starts. I know that he's been pitching well. You've just got to tip your cap
sometimes. He did a good job tonight."
The Marlins, meanwhile, kept on hitting, though Nate Schierholtz managed to
help stop the bleeding. Left-hander Dan Runzler threw a scoreless seventh but
ran into trouble in the eighth, giving up a leadoff single to Sanchez and
another base hit by Greg Dobbs. Runzler walked Stanton, loading the bases
before getting replaced by Guillermo Mota.
John Buck, Mota's first batter, flied out to Schierholtz, and the right
fielder threw the ball on a line to Buster Posey at the plate that held
Sanchez at third. It did not hold Dobbs at second, however, as he was caught
in a rundown and tagged out by shortstop Emmanuel Burriss to complete the
double play. Perhaps fittingly, Schierholtz caught Nolasco's flyout to end
the inning with the score still 4-0.
While the Giants weren't able to extend their winning streak or their
dominance on their home field, Posey managed to keep one streak alive Tuesday
night. With a seventh-inning single and another base hit in the ninth that
started the Giants' rally, the second-year catcher has now hit safely in 12
straight games.
"We tried there at the end," Bochy said. "The boys were fighting, but we just
ran into a well-pitched game."
Adam Berry is an associate reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject
to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
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