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 "I was geared up for a 1-0 game," he said.
The San Francisco left-hander held up his end of the deal. St. Louis
ace Adam Wainwright did not.
Bumgarner worked a three-hit shutout for seven innings and
Wainwright departed before the fifth inning ended as the Giants
routed the Cardinals 9-4.
Shelled for eight hits and seven runs in 4 1/3 innings, Wainwright
(8-3) saw his earned run average rise from 1.67 to 2.32. It was his
shortest outing since Aug. 28, 2013, when he worked two innings and
allowed nine runs in a 10-0 loss to Cincinnati.
"You can't be on every time," San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy said
of Wainwright. "You don't expect to score a whole lot of runs like
that against him unless he's off. The boys did well today."
It was apparent quickly that Wainwright's normal pinpoint control
wasn't there. After giving up a first-inning run on a two-out,
broken-bat RBI single to first baseman Michael Morse, Wainwright ran
into major trouble after obtaining two quick outs in the second.
He walked .188-hitting second baseman Brandon Hicks at the end of a
10-pitch at-bat, then gave up a single to Bumgarner. Center fielder
Angel Pagan slapped a run-scoring single, followed by a 447-foot,
three-run homer into the third deck in left field by right fielder
Hunter Pence for a stunning 5-0 lead that quieted the crowd of
43,107.
Bumgarner (7-3) kept them at library silence with six strikeouts in
the first three innings and finishing with 10 before leaving after
103 pitches. It was his second straight 10-strikeout effort.
"I've been honing my delivery a little bit," Bumgarner said. "I'm
not spinning off it. That make me able to pitch to both corners of
the plate."
Not that Bumgarner had to throw a stressful pitch in this one. With
the top six batters in the Giants' lineup combining for a whopping
11 hits, they steadily expanded their lead.
Left fielder Gregor Blanco's two-run single off reliever Seth Maness
in the fifth made it 7-0. Catcher Hector Sanchez tacked on a two-run
single in the seventh, chasing Maness and finishing the San
Francisco onslaught.
Everyone but shortstop Brandon Crawford got a hit, scored a run or
drove one in. Pagan, Pence and third baseman Pablo Sandoval each
collected two hits and two runs, although Sandoval's nine-game
streak of driving in a run ended.
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While the Giants improved their MLB-best record to 36-19, St. Louis
(29-26) lost its third in a row and fell to 1-4 on its nine-game
homestand.
The Cardinals avoided being blanked with four runs in the eighth
against reliever David Huff. Left fielder Jon Jay spanked a
three-run double to right center and first baseman Allen Craig added
an RBI double.
St. Louis made news after the game, disabling first baseman Matt
Adams (left calf) and calling up heralded prospect Oscar Taveras
from Triple-A Memphis. The 21-year old outfielder, who some baseball
experts called the top player in the minors, is expected to make his
MLB debut Saturday.
"I wish I was answering this question tomorrow, because I feel sick
about the way we got beat tonight," Cardinals general manager John
Mozeliak said. "But there is a high level of anticipation for his
debut. A, you're proud of what he's done, and B, you're excited to
see what he can do."
NOTES: San Francisco C Buster Posey (lower back) didn't start for a
second straight game and was replaced by Hector Sanchez. Posey is
off to a slow start on offense, hitting just .254 with seven homers
and 25 RBIs. ... St. Louis recalled OF Randal Grichuk from Triple-A
Memphis on Friday and sent OF Shane Robinson down to Memphis.
Grichuk got the start in right field, batting second. He hit .143 in
21 at-bats earlier this season for the Cardinals. ... The Giants
placed RHP Matt Cain (hamstring) on the disabled list Friday and
will start RHP Yusmeiro Petit on Saturday opposite Michael Wacha.
San Francisco recalled OF Juan Perez from Triple-A Fresno to replace
Cain.
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reserved.]
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