The Giant bullpen lost another lead handed to them by Tim Lincecum, but a late homerun by Aaron Rowand, coupled with ace closing, allowed San Francisco to salvage the final game in New York, against the Mets, by a score of 6-5.
Lincecum tossed six innings, scattering seven hits and two runs while striking out eight Mets. The Giants staked the ace to a 4-0 lead following a wild outing by Oliver Perez, who walked seven batters in 3 1/3 innings, putting together two run second and fourth innings. The Mets rallied in the sixth, cutting the Giant lead in half with a run scoring single by Jason Bay and a sacrifice fly by David Wright. Dan Runzler relieved in the seventh and the Mets erupted for three runs off two hits and three walks from the rookie and Sergio Romo (1-3). However, Aaron Rowand returned the lead to the Giants with a two run blast (4) off Jenrry Mejia (0-2) in the top of the eighth inning. Brian Wilson came on with one out in the bottom of the inning and proceeded to strike out five of the next six hitters, picking up his seventh save of the season.
In the opener, the Mets used the long ball to get to Jonathan Sanchez early, with Ike Davis (2,3) and Rod Barajas (8,9) each homering twice, Barajas’s second being a walkoff, as New York beat the Giants 6-4. The Mets took a 4-3 lead into the ninth where John Bowker tied the game by stroking a pinch homerun (2) off closer Francisco Rodriguez (2-0). In the bottom of the inning, Davis coaxed a one out walk off Sergio Romo (0-3) before Barajas followed with his second homerun of the game to seal the victory for the home team.
In the second game, Henry Blanco hit a solo shot (1) in the bottom of the eleventh inning off reliever Guillermo Mota (0-1), breaking a 4 all tie and giving the Mets a 5-4 win. Hisanori Takahashi (3-1) pitched a perfect top of the eleventh for the victory.
Okay. A lost series, but a winning road trip. All in all, it’s alright. Two games lost in the final at bat. That hurts. I am impressed that the team is fighting every inning. Seems like they are taking these games personal. Todd Wellemeyer was blasted again. With the off day, let’s see if they can skip him for a turn. Hopefully so. A big series coming up tomorrow night. The rest should do the bullpen well. Hopefully also for a badly slumping Pablo Sandoval. However, I have a feeling he is due for a tear. Mark me down for this one. What better time than against the NL West leading San Diego Padres.
The Giants will next host the San Diego Padres on Tuesday night. The Mets will host the Nationals Monday evening.
