SAN FRANCISCO — Before Tuesday’s game, manager Bruce Bochy shrugged when asked if he was concerned about a two-week slump by his lineup. The Giants were winning with pitching and defense, Bochy said, and that was just fine with a manager who figured the hitting would come around eventually.
Well, the lineup finally broke through — and once again the Giants got strong pitching and defense. It all added up to an 8-2 win over the Padres that was the 12th in 13 games for the Giants. The eight-run performance was the first for the lineup since a 9-6 win in Cincinnati on May 2.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Jeff Samardzija didn’t have any clean innings, but he didn’t really have any particularly tough ones, either. He put a runner on in each of the first five innings but didn’t allow a run until the sixth, when Jon Jay ambushed the first pitch of the frame and dropped a homer into the arcade section in right field.
The Giants led 1-0 at the time on Denard Span’s RBI single, and they would tack on a pair in the sixth. Joe Panik drew a leadoff walk and scored two batters later when Buster Posey smacked a double into the left field corner. Posey scored on Brandon Crawford’s single to right.
Samardzija wouldn’t make it out of the seventh, getting lifted after a single and walk with two outs. Josh Osich entered and made an error that loaded the bases. He went 3-2 on Alexi Amarista, but got an inning-ending grounder to second.
The Giants broke open a two-run game in the bottom of the eighth. Brandon Crawford hit a bases-clearing triple after a double and two walks, and Jarrett Parker followed that up with a two-run blast to dead center.
San Francisco Giants
Starting pitching report: Samardzija gave up six hits and one run in 6 2/3 innings, walking three and striking out seven. He has pitched 71 innings this season, more than any National League starters but teammate Johnny Cueto and a robot named Clayton Kershaw.
Bullpen report: After Amarista’s groundout, opposing hitters are just 2-for-19 off Osich this season with runners in scoring position.
At the plate: Blanco always picks his game up when Angel Pagan hits the DL, so it was no surprise when he singled and scored on a great slide in the third and then beat out an infield single in the seventh.
In the field: Parker is known for his powerful bat, but he showed off a strong arm to get Samardzija out of the first. Matt Kemp hit a screamer off the wall in left, missing a homer by inches, and Parker made a perfect throw to second to nail Kemp. The former Dodgers star led off the eighth with a ball off the wall in Triples Alley, but Panik made a perfect relay throw to cut down Kemp as he slid into third.
Attendance: The Giants announced a crowd of 41,772 human beings, including Marlins Man, who apparently has lost a considerable amount of juice.
Up next: Jake Peavy will try to get on track against the punchless Padres. James Shields starts for the other side.