SAN DIEGO — It was a throwback lineup for Hunter Pence. With Chris Shaw getting the start in left, Pence moved back to right field, his position for so many consecutive nights as a Giant. It was a throwback night, too.
Pence drove in the first three runs and Shaw the next two and the Giants beat the Padres 5-4. They have started their final trip of the year with two solid wins.
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A flare from a rookie and one of the smartest baserunning moves of the season gave the Giants the lead. With the bases loaded and one out in the eighth, Shaw hit a fly ball to shallow left. Hunter Renfroe came up inches short on a diving attempt, but Brandon Crawford seemed to know that would happen the whole time. He was running up Nick Hundley’s back and scored from second, putting the Giants ahead by a run.
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—- Pence wiped out an early deficit with an absolute moonshot. He crushed a Joey Lucchesi pitch to the top of the second deck in left. The blast went an estimated 437 feet and gave the Giants a 2-1 lead. Pence has two of the five longest homers of the year for the Giants despite having just three total.
—- He hit a Hunter Pence Special in his next at-bat, bouncing a ball that caught first baseman Eric Hosmer by surprise and went down the line for a double. This was Pence’s first game with multiple extra-base hits since August 18 of last season. It was his first three-RBI game since last September 19.
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—- The Padres took the lead on a controversial call in the fifth. With a runner on, Franmil Reyes hit a towering fly ball to left. Chris Shaw appeared to have an excellent shot at robbing Reyes of a two-run homer, but his glove collided with a fan’s outstretched hands as he reached over the short fence. The Giants challenged the play but lost.
—- The homer ruined Derek Holland’s line a bit. He gave up four earned in five innings. This was the first time since August 10 that he allowed four runs in a game.