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 The San Francisco right-hander was in shutdown mode again Sunday,
allowing just three hits in seven shutout innings as the Giants
blanked the St. Louis Cardinals 8-0 at Busch Stadium to finish an
impressive weekend series.
Hudson (6-2), who walked two and fanned six, lowered his earned run
average to 1.75. The 38-year old Hudson has issued just eight free
passes over 77 2/3 innings.
"He got better as he went," San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy said
of Hudson. "Early, he had trouble getting the ball where he wanted a
couple of times, but he adjusted and got in a good groove after
that."
A sinker-slider pitcher who gets his strikeouts but rarely tops 90
miles per hour, Hudson has allowed only 59 hits and four homers. He
only got eight groundouts, but rarely allowed hard-hit balls.
"They're able to put it in play, but I've been able to stay out of
the middle of the plate," Hudson said. "I've been able to miss
barrels. There comes some luck with it. They hit some balls hard,
but right at guys."
Hudson's only stressful situation came in the bottom of the third
with two outs, when he beaned first baseman Allen Craig with an
89-mile per hour fastball to load the bases for right fielder Oscar
Taveras.
Chagrined that his pitch got away, Hudson almost ran to the plate to
see if Craig was all right. His mind perhaps put at ease by Craig
staying in the game, Hudson retired Taveras on a first-pitch
grounder to second.
After the inning, Hudson walked over to Craig between first and
second to apologize for the errant pitch.
"He's a tough son of a gun," Hudson said of Craig. "I was just
trying to throw a fastball inside, the first one I threw inside to
him all day, and I don't know what happened. I'm just really glad he
is all right."
Craig was removed after six innings, although it was largely because
the Cardinals (30-27) were already out of contention.
The Giants pecked away at Lance Lynn (6-3) with a barrage of
singles, reaching him for eight hits and seven runs, four of which
were earned. Lynn, who walked four and struck out two, departed
after 3 1/3 innings, his shortest start of the year.
Getting an extra out in the first after second baseman Kolten Wong
bobbled a bouncer by left fielder Gregor Blanco, San Francisco
capitalized. First baseman Joaquin Arias broke out of a 4-for-40
skid with a two-run, two-out single to cap a four-run uprising.
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Arias later added another RBI hit in the third and singled again in
the seventh, capping a 3-for-4 afternoon.
"That's how we roll," said center fielder Angel Pagan of Arias'
effort. "When one guy goes down, someone else picks him up."
Lynn hyperextended his knee covering first on a run-scoring
fielder's choice by shortstop Brandon Crawford, two batters before
Arias' first hit since May 9. Lynn, who blanked the New York Yankees
Tuesday night on five hits, threw just 46 of his 88 pitches for
strikes.
"It's hard to pitch on one leg," Lynn said. "They had three or four
groundball hits, a broken-bat hit ... if an out is made on (Wong's
error), we're out of the inning with one run."
Catcher Buster Posey collected three hits and an RBI for the Giants,
while Pagan and Blanco bagged two hits each. San Francisco (37-20)
took three of four from St. Louis, scoring 23 runs in the process.
NOTES: San Francisco C Buster Posey (lower back) returned to the
lineup after missing the series' first three games. ... St. Louis C
Yadier Molina got the day off after catching the last six games.
Molina is just 2-for-19 over the last week and his average has
dropped to .309. ... Giants 1B Michael Morse was scratched from the
lineup after fouling a ball off his foot during batting practice.
Morse had an extra-base hit in the team's last six games.
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