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PHOENIX (AP) -
Tim Lincecum
shut down the
Arizona Diamondbacks
for the second time in less than a week. This time, he got enough support to finally earn his first win of the season.
The reigning NL Cy Young Award winner struck out 12 in eight innings and the
San Francisco Giants
beat the Diamondbacks 5-1 on Friday night for their fourth straight win.
''I just try to be as aggressive as I can with most teams,'' Lincecum said, ''and I really get more aggressive with these
guys for some reason.''
Lincecum (1-1) got a no-decision last Saturday in San Francisco, striking out 13 over eight shutout innings in a 2-0 loss
to Arizona. That's one run, 25 strikeouts and one walk in 16 consecutive innings against the Diamondbacks.
''I don't think it matters if you've just seen him,'' Giants manager
Bruce Bochy
said. ''With all good pitchers, if they're on, you've got your work cut out.''
Lincecum's performance marked the sixth consecutive outstanding performance by San Francisco's starters. In that span, they've
allowed three earned runs in 42 2-3 innings.
''No one wants to be that guy who's struggling,'' Lincecum said. ''Everybody wants to keep this streak alive. Everybody wants
to keep the roll that we've got going. The pitchers have been pitching really well. I think everyone's just kind of feeding
off of it and we're just kind of going off that momentum.''
Bengie Molina
went 3-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs in San Francisco's first road victory of the season in seven tries.
Edgar Renteria
also homered.
Doug Davis
(1-3), the winner in last Saturday's duel, gave up five runs and nine hits in six-plus innings.
''He's got the stuff,'' Davis said of Lincecum. ''He's got above-average everything. He outpitched me, bottom line. ... I
know I have to go out there and put zeros up when I face a guy like Tim.''
The Diamondbacks, coming off their first series win of the year, have not won consecutive games this season. The worst-hitting
team in the majors (.224), Arizona only managed an RBI single from Davis.
Renteria connected in the first and Molina went deep leading off the third to give San Francisco a 2-0 lead.
Davis' two-out RBI single, after
Justin Upton
's double, cut it to 2-1 in the fifth. But consecutive two-out singles by
Aaron Rowand
,
Pablo Sandoval
and
Rich Aurilia
restored the Giants' two-run lead in the sixth.
San Francisco scored twice more in the fifth when Molina's bases-loaded drive to deep right-center bounced off the tip of
Chris Young
's glove for a two-run double.
The Diamondbacks had runners at second and third with one out in the first but Lincecum fanned
Mark Reynolds
- ''the key at bat of the game,'' Arizona manager
Bob Melvin
said - and
Chad Tracy
grounded out to second to end the threat.
Eric Byrnes
doubled off the top of the left-field wall with two outs in the third. Melvin argued it was a home run, so umpires reviewed
the play. The double call was upheld, and moments later the inning ended when Byrnes easily was thrown out trying to steal
third.
''I thought it hit that pad and hit that pole behind it and came back,'' Melvin said. ''We've seen that in batting practice
some. I wasn't 100 percent sure, but you've got to do the best you can to potentially get that. That's what the replay is
for.''
Notes: Arizona LF
Conor Jackson
was scratched due to illness. ... Giants LHP
Randy Johnson
makes his first appearance in Arizona with a visiting team on Saturday. ''He should get a tremendous reception, for all he's
done for that organization,'' Bochy said. ''They've got a World Series ring, and that doesn't happen without
Randy Johnson
.'' ... Arizona began a stretch of 40 games in 41 days.
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