[新聞] Huff's first three-homer game lifts …
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Huff's first three-homer game lifts Giants
Sanchez claims fourth win as San Fran retakes top spot in NL West
By Chris Haft / MLB.com | 6/3/2011 2:18 AM ET
ST. LOUIS -- Aubrey Huff buoyed his team, brightened his attitude and
celebrated his wife's birthday all at once.
In triplicate.
Huff recorded his first career three-homer game and drove in six runs
Thursday to lead the Giants to a 12-7 rout of the Cardinals. Winning three of
four games at Busch Stadium gave the Giants a 4-3 record on this two-city
trip and hoisted them back atop the National League West standings, a
half-game in front of Arizona.
Of course, first place means nothing at this juncture of the season. But if
Huff can sustain his batting stroke, which deserted him until this week, the
Giants will have a much better chance of leading the division when it counts
the most.
"We all know that when Huffy gets going, he can carry a team," said second
baseman Freddy Sanchez, whose four-RBI effort was upstaged. "He looks like
he's getting that confidence back and his swing back. I don't think it's any
coincidence that he's getting going and we're getting going as a team."
Combined with the long ball he hit Wednesday, Huff doubled his season total
in two days. Before that, his performance had been dreadful by his own
admission -- a .218 batting average, garnished by a .276 on-base percentage
and a .335 slugging percentage. That was nothing like last year, when Huff
accelerated the Giants' march to the postseason by hitting .290 with 26
homers, 86 RBIs and a .385 on-base percentage, while slugging .506.
Huff sought mechanical solutions by tinkering with his swing. But the
psychological peace he suddenly found may have proven more effective.
"I woke up on June 1 and said, 'Hey, this is your Opening Day.' It's a new
month," Huff said.
Giants manager Bruce Bochy agreed that Huff needed to refresh his outlook.
"I know he's been frustrated," Bochy said. "Hopefully he'll get back to who
he is and stop trying to do too much."
Wednesday may have been Opening Day for Huff, but Thursday was more
important.
"My wife Baubi's birthday is today," Huff said. "She wanted me to hit her a
homer. I hit her three. Brownie points."
Huff fulfilled Baubi's wish in the fourth inning. With two outs, Sanchez on
first base and the Giants trailing by three, Huff cleared the center-field
barrier by hammering a 2-0 pitch from Cardinals starter Lance Lynn, who made
his Major League debut and was pitching on three days' rest.
"Sinker away," Lynn said. "Got behind him, and he's the wrong guy to get
behind ... especially tonight."
Huff's next victim was another right-hander making his first Major League
appearance, Maikel Cleto, who inflamed the radar guns with his 99-mph
fastball but yielded five seventh-inning runs. Cleto walked the first two
batters he faced before Andres Torres bounced an RBI double past first base
and Sanchez yanked a three-run homer. Huff followed with a 394-foot line
drive into the Cardinals' bullpen in right.
St. Louis' Colby Rasmus drove in six runs, highlighting his output with a
seventh-inning grand slam that trimmed the Giants' lead to 10-7. So Huff
wasn't merely padding his stats when he collected his final homer, another
line drive to right off Brian Tallet with two outs and Torres aboard in the
ninth.
Huff had homered twice in a game 12 previous times. He pondered that
precedent, along with the possibility of hitting a third homer, during his
final at-bat.
"It's certainly on your mind, but you don't expect it," he said. "I got a
pretty good pitch, slider-wise. When I hit it, I went, 'Man!'"
Among Huff's many well-wishers was special assistant J.T. Snow, the last
Giants player to homer three times in a game (Aug. 13, 2004, at
Philadelphia).
"Way to take over the torch, dude," Snow said.
Comforted by their season-high run total, the Giants returned home, where
they'll finally be able to stay awhile. They'll play 19 of their next 22
games in the Bay Area, including the June 17-19 Interleague series at Oakland.
"We'd like to be more consistent," Bochy said. "Hopefully, home cooking will
do that for us."
That's assuming Huff didn't establish residency in Busch Stadium's batter's
box.
"We're going to make sure Huff gets on the plane," Bochy said.
Chris Haft is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the
approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
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