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Giants take WS opener behind Bumgarner's gem

Oct 22, 2014 - 4:55 AM Kansas City, MO (SportsNetwork.com) - Madison Bumgarner added to his already extensive postseason resume with another masterful performance in Game 1 of the World Series on Tuesday.

The ace left-hander threw seven innings of one-run ball and got plenty of run support as the San Francisco Giants cooled off the streaking Kansas City Royals, 7-1, to take an early series lead in the Fall Classic.

The only blemish in another otherwise flawless performance by Bumgarner (1-0) came on Salvador Perez's two-out homer in the seventh, which ended his postseason road scoreless streak at 32 2/3 innings.

The 25-year-old was nevertheless impressive, allowing just three hits and one walk against a club that averaged 5.25 runs during an unprecedented 8-0 start to these playoffs.

"He was on top of his game," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said of Bumgarner. "He has great poise and he should that tonight."

Hunter Pence reached base four times and hit a two-run homer while Pablo Sandoval drove in a pair for San Francisco, which knocked James Shields (0-1) around for seven hits and five runs over the first three-plus innings.

The Royals lost for the first time since Sept. 27 and will look to bounce back Wednesday when rookie Yordano Ventura toes the rubber opposite Jake Peavy.

Kansas City had won 11 straight postseason games dating back to the club's only World Series title in 1985, but what would have been a record-tying 12th quickly slipped through the AL champions' fingers.

"We knew this series was going to be a battle," Royals manager Ned Yost said. "We didn't expect to come in here and sweep."

Shields, who passed a kidney stone during a 10-day layover since his previous outing, had no answer for a tested Giants team seeking its third title in five years.

Gregor Blanco led off the 110th edition of the World Series with a blooper in front of Lorenzo Cain in center, and Buster Posey followed with a base hit two batters later.

Sandoval, the 2012 World Series MVP, lined a two-hopper off the wall in right to plate the game's first run, though Posey was thrown out trying to score from first.

Fans at Kauffman Stadium thought Shields caught the corner on a 2-2 pitch to Pence, but home plate umpire Jerry Meals called it outside. After a foul ball, Shields threw one right down the middle and Pence crushed it to straightaway center for a 3-0 cushion.

Pence had been 0-for-11 in his career against Shields.

Bumgarner escaped the only jam he faced with a pair of strikeouts and a weak groundout in the third. The Royals had runners on second and third with no outs before Alcides Escobar and Norichika Aoki both went down swinging. Cain, the ALCS MVP, worked a walk to load the bases, but Bumgarner handcuffed Eric Hosmer into a harmless groundout to second.

"(Bumgarner) didn't make many mistakes today, and the balls we did hit they made great plays on," Royals third baseman Mike Moustakas said.

Pence began the fourth with a double and came around on Michael Morse's base hit, which signaled the end of Shields' night.

Danny Duffy came out of the bullpen and walked Brandon Crawford and Blanco in succession to force in another run, but the starter-turned-reliever retired the next eight hitters to keep the Royals within striking distance.

Yost left Duffy on the mound a little too long, however, as he walked Blanco to lead off the seventh and gave up a triple to Joe Panik. The usually sure- handed Aoki slipped going after Panik's gapper in right, and Blanco easily scored.

Sandoval added an RBI single off Tim Collins, and Javier Lopez and Hunter Strickland each threw an inning of relief behind Bumgarner to finish off the rout.

Game Notes

Bumgarner's six postseason wins are the most in franchise history, and his six straight postseason starts of seven-plus innings with seven or fewer baserunners is an MLB record ... Sandoval has reached base in 24 consecutive playoff games ... Shields' ERA rose to 7.10 over four starts this postseason ... The Giants have won their last eight postseason road openers ... This is just the second time wild card teams are meeting in the World Series and is the first Fall Classic sporting teams that failed to notch 90 victories in a 162-game regular season ... Fifteen of the past 17 winners of Game 1 have gone on to take the series.