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Lee's second homer sends Astros to dramatic win

May 16, 2007 - 6:20 AM HOUSTON (Ticker) -- This is the kind of production the Houston Astros expected when they signed slugger Carlos Lee in the offseason.

Lee blasted a walk-off home run as the Astros rallied from two runs down in the eighth inning to down the San Francisco Giants, 6-5, in 10 innings.

Rookie Hunter Pence hit a two-run shot in the eighth off Giants closer Armando Benitez to tie the game up at 5-5, setting the stage for Lee's heroics two innings later.

"It was like a foul ball but it came back," Benitez said. "It was a sinker away and I didn't think it was going out."

Lee, who signed a six-year contract worth $100 million in the offseason, blasted his second homer of the contest - off Giants reliever Jonathan Sanchez (1-1) - to give the Astros their first extra-inning victory of the season. The walk-off shot was the third of Lee's career and the second multiple-homer game for the slugger this season.

"We never quit," Lee said. "We know what we've got in this clubhouse. We've come from behind several times. We haven't always won them all, but we don't quit."

"I just went after him," Sanchez said. "I know he's a good hitter. But I was still going to go after him. It was a fastball, a little off. (Catcher Bengie Molina) called for a changeup, but I said, 'No, fastball.'"

Lee finished with four hits and Pence had three hits and three RBI as the Astros posted their eighth come-from-behind victory. Chad Qualls (4-1) pitched a perfect 10th frame to get the decision.

Pence, who was called up on April 27, is rapidly becoming a fan favorite, especially for his productive bat. He has posted seven hits, two homers and six RBI in his last three games.

"I wanted to tie the game and I went up there looking for a good pitch to hit," Pence said. "I didn't know much about him. Lance (Berkman) said to battle him with your eyes, not your emotions. This is a huge win and those build momentum."

The Astros began the scoring in the second - the first of three straight one-run innings for Houston - as rookie Pence's RBI double plated Lee.

Houston starting pitcher Woody Williams led off the third with a solo shot - the fourth home run of his career and his first since 2003 - to give the Astros a 2-0 advantage.

"If I wouldn't have given up four runs, it (hitting the home run) would have been a lot better," Williams said of his blast. "In the grand scheme of things, it didn't matter a lot.

"I felt pretty comfortable on the mound (but) the two-out runs are killing me. The two (home run) balls I threw were right there where they like them. Other than those, I felt pretty good."

Lee added a solo blast of his own to lead off the fourth to push Houston's lead to 3-0. The Giants' offense remained quiet until the sixth frame against Williams, when Randy Winn started the sixth with his own bases-empty blast.

With a runner on, Ray Durham sent a two-run shot over the fence in deep right four batters later to tie the game at 3-3. Winn pushed across another run in the seventh with an RBI single to plate Pedro Feliz, allowing the Giants to take their first lead at 4-3.

Molina added an insurance run in the eighth with a single to center to plate Daniel Ortmeier and increase the Giants' advantage to 5-3. However, Benitez was unable to hold the lead for the first time in eight save opportunities.

Giants manager Bruce Bochy was not a big fan of Pence's homer and, apparently, is not fond of Minute Maid Park.

"He one-armed it," Bochy said. "It's great for them, but a bad break for us. This is a tough one to let get away.

"He didn't hit it good, but you don't have to hit it good in this park."

Houston manager Phil Garner is noticing a contagious energy in his team that's producing positive results.

"You don't get tired when you have these kinds of games," Garner said. "We're starting to hit the ball a little better and I thought Woody threw a lot of good curveballs tonight.

"We better build on this. May's a good test for us. I think we have two off-days. It's great to get a win like this."