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 After all, he had just given his starting pitcher, right-hander
Kyle Gibson, instructions to pitch around the Giants' hottest hitter
no matter the circumstances.
One mistake later, the Twins were in a hole from which they never
recovered.
The scorching-hot Sandoval belted his third homer in five games, a
three-run shot in the first inning that gave the Giants a lead they
never relinquished in a 6-2 victory over the Twins in the opener of
a three-game interleague series.
Second baseman Brandon Hicks drove in two runs with a homer and a
sacrifice fly, and center fielder Angel Pagan had a double and a
triple as the Giants (30-18) became the third team in baseball to
reach 30 wins.
"We've got a lot of guys on the team that can drive it out of the
ballpark," Hicks said of a Giants team that has 55 home runs in 48
games, the third most in baseball. "I don't think the ballpark is
any different."
There might have been physical change had Gardenhire gone ahead and
kicked a hole in the dugout wall as he was tempted after watching
Gibson groove his first pitch to Sandoval with one out and runners
on second and third in the first inning.
 "Big mistake," the manager said. "He's a swinger. You know that. You
can't throw him a fastball right over the middle of the plate.
"We knew the lefty was up there and he (Gibson) knew what to do. He
missed his spot. He threw one right down the middle like he wasn't
supposed to."
Right-hander Tim Lincecum (4-3) continued his pattern of alternating
wins and losses in May. He survived five hits and a season-high six
walks in six innings to retain the lead Sandoval provided.
"I was ready for anything," the free-swinging Sandoval said of the
possibility the Twins might walk him intentionally. "It was a
mistake. I'll take it."
Coming off a two-game interleague sweep in San Diego, the Twins
stranded eight baserunners in Lincecum's six innings, going 0-for-7
with runners in scoring position.
Lincecum threw 112 pitches, the first 110 of which were split
equally among balls and strikes. He totaled four strikeouts.
"We had plenty of people out there (on the bases), plenty of
chances," Gardenhire assured. "We just didn't get the hits when we
needed them."
Twins second baseman Brian Dozier and first baseman Joe Mauer
combined for four of the five hits against Lincecum and each scored
a run. Dozier had a double and Mauer a triple.
The Twins stranded 10 baserunners in the game, the Giants just one.
Minnesota outhit San Francisco 7-6.
Left-handers Jeremy Affeldt and Javier Lopez and right-hander Jean
Machi held the Twins scoreless in three innings of relief. Machi
picked uphis second save after facing four batters and getting five
outs.
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"Pablo had a huge hit early," said Hicks, whose homer came in the
fourth inning and re-established a three-run lead after the Twins
had gotten as close as 3-2. "He got the momentum going our way."
Gibson (4-4) took the loss for the Twins. Four of the five hits he
allowed in five innings went for extra bases, including the home
runs by Sandoval and Hicks.
Mauer's RBI triple in Minnesota's two-run third inning came after
Dozier's second hit of the game, a single. Mauer scored on an
infield out by right fielder Chris Parmalee to close the gap to 3-2.
But the Giants got those runs back with single runs in the third and
fourth. Pagan made it 4-2 in the third when he tripled and scored on
an error. Hicks' homer, his eighth of the season, came with two outs
and nobody on in the fourth.
Gibson was pulled after five innings, having given up five runs and
five hits. He struck out four and did not walk a batter.
The game got off to an unusual start when each team's leadoff hitter
got tagged out in a rundown shortly after doubling to open the first
inning.
Dozier was tagged out between second and third base after getting
picked off by Lincecum. Pagan was put out between third and home
after trying to score on a ground ball by catcher Buster Posey
during the Giants' three-run first inning.
NOTES: The Giants are tied for the major-league lead in wins with
the Oakland Athletics and Milwaukee Brewers. ... San Francisco is
now 4-0 in interleague play. ... Twins 1B Joe Mauer extended his
interleague hitting streak to 16 games, the longest active run in
the majors. ... Twins RHP Kyle Gibson gave up two home runs after
having allowed only one in his first 45 innings this season. ... The
Twins announced a change in their pitching rotation during the game,
flip-flopping RHP Samuel Deduno, who was supposed to start Sunday,
and RHP Ricky Nolasco, who had been scheduled to pitch Saturday. ...
Twins LF Josh Willingham, out since early April with a broken left
wrist, had a double and a two-run homer in an injury-rehab start for
Triple-A Rochester on Friday, triggering discussion that he might be
ready for reinstatement from the disabled list next week. ... Giants
RHP Matt Cain took batting practice on Friday, two days after having
to leave his start at Colorado with a strained right hamstring. The
veteran remains a question mark for his next scheduled start on
Monday against the Chicago Cubs.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
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