|
 When it came time to display his form as a cricket pitcher,
though, he failed miserably.
Bumgarner lost a perfect game in the eighth inning when he
unsuccessfully tried to bounce a pitch to Colorado Rockies first
baseman Justin Morneau, but the left-hander recovered from the
leadoff double to complete a one-hit, 13-strikeout shutout in the
San Francisco Giants' 3-0 victory.
Catcher Buster Posey belted two home runs, including a two-run shot
that broke a scoreless tie in the sixth inning, giving Bumgarner all
the offensive support he would need to record his second shutout and
15th win of the season.
"When he's throwing the ball like that," Posey said of Bumgarner,
"he makes my job pretty easy."
Left-hander Jorge De La Rosa (13-9) was the hard-luck loser, falling
victim to Posey's first home run and a thumb injury.
The Rockies' four-game winning streak over the playoff-contending
Giants ended. San Francisco remains five games behind the Los
Angeles Dodgers in the National League West. The Giants hold a 1
1/2-game lead on the Atlanta Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates for the
second NL wild-card spot.
"The goal wasn't to keep them off the bases," Bumgarner said, "it
was to win the game."
Bumgarner, who pitched a two-hit shutout against the New York Mets
earlier this month, struck out nine among the first 21 Rockies he
retired in order.
He then had Morneau in a 1-2 hole leading off the eighth before the
left-handed hitter reached out and hooked a low curve ball deep into
the right field corner for a double.
"I was going to try to bounce the curveball. I think it was going to
bounce if he hadn't hit it," Bumgarner said. "He's a good hitter. He
hit it pretty good."
The double allowed the Rockies to avoid the distinction of being the
first team to be no-hit twice this season. Colorado was held hitless
June 18 by Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw.
"He's always tough," Rockies manager Walt Weiss said of Bumgarner.
"He was locked in tonight."
Bumgarner (15-9) struck out the side in the eighth after losing the
perfect game, stranding Morneau at second, then added a 13th whiff
in the ninth to wrap up his fourth complete game of the season.
"That shows you the poise he had," Posey said.
The 13 strikeouts matched a career best and were one more than
Bumgarner's previous high this season, which came last week in a 5-3
win over the Chicago Cubs. He didn't walk a batter for the third
time this month and the seventh time this season.
De La Rosa, who was the losing pitcher on the night Kershaw no-hit
the Rockies, matched Bumgarner nearly pitch for pitch for five
innings. Then he jammed his left thumb while batting in the top of
the sixth, and he lost his control as soon as he returned to the
mound.
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Right fielder Hunter Pence worked De La Rosa for a leadoff walk
in the sixth, just the lefty's second of the game, and Posey got
ahead in the count 3-1 before teeing off on a curveball and sending
it over the 382-foot mark. "At that point, you could sense that he
had a shot (at a perfect game)," Posey said of Bumgarner. "It was
going to get pretty stressful if we didn't have any runs going into
the ninth."
The home run was the 18th given up by De La Rosa this year.
The Colorado ace was pulled immediately after the blast because of
the injury. Not only had De La Rosa lost his shutout, but also his
streak of 11 consecutive starts of six or more innings.
"He was cruising along. Certainly it did affect him," Weiss said of
De La Rosa's thumb injury. "We've seen him hurt that thumb before,
and we've seen him pitch with it before. But it really hurt this
time."
In taking his first loss since Aug. 9, De La Rosa surrendered two
runs, four hits and two walks in five-plus innings. He struck out
five.
Posey's second homer, a solo shot, came off the Rockies' third
pitcher, right-hander Brooks Brown, with two outs in the eighth.
Posey's 17th long ball of the year gave him the second multi-homer
game of his career. He previously accomplished the feat July 7,
2010, against the Milwaukee Brewers.
NOTES: Giants LHP Madison Bumgarner threw the second complete-game
one-hitter of his career. He had one June 28, 2012, against the
Cincinnati Reds. ... Bumgarner also had 13 strikeouts on Sept. 5,
2011, against the San Diego Padres. ... Giants RF Hunter Pence went
1-for-2 with two walks, improving his batting average against the
Rockies this season to .429. ... The Rockies lost for the 24th time
in their past 28 road games, while the Giants earned just their 11th
win in their past 35 home games. ... The Rockies have an 8-5 record
against the Giants and a losing mark against every other National
League West opponent: Arizona (5-7), Los Angeles Dodgers (4-9), San
Diego (6-7).
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