Final
Renteria's slam lifts Giants, wild-card race even
Aug 31, 2009 - 12:37 AM By JANIE McCAULEY AP Sports WriterSAN FRANCISCO(AP) -- Edgar Renteria spoke up in a team meeting Tuesday and told his San Francisco teammates to forget a heartbreaking 14-inning loss at Colorado the night before that ended on a grand slam.
"I told them, 'Play ball,"' Renteria recalled.
He's sure doing so, and is a key reason the Giants are right back in the thick of things alongside the Rockies.
Renteria hit a go-ahead grand slam in the seventh inning and the Giants pulled even in the NL wild-card race with Colorado, beating the Rockies 9-5 Sunday for a three-game sweep.
The Giants moved into a tie in the NL West with Colorado, six games behind first-place Los Angeles. The Rockies lost their season-high fifth in a row.
San Francisco swept the Rockies at home for the first time since April 8-10, 2005. Last week, the Giants lost three of four at Coors Field despite leading every game.
"It was big," Renteria said. "The Rockies played great in Colorado and beat us three times. I tell everybody, 'You have to forget everything. If we want to go to the playoffs, we have to separate everything and play as a team."'
Renteria homered with two outs to overcome a 5-2 deficit, connecting two pitches after Rafael Betancourt (0-1) relieved Franklin Morales. Renteria hit his eighth career grand slam and second in two years against Betancourt.
"That couldn't have come at a better time," starter Matt Cain said.
Renteria came out for a curtain call from the sellout crowd of 42,571, the second time in two days it happened for the Giants - pitcher Barry Zito emerged to tip his cap during Saturday night's 5-3 win.
Renteria also doubled in a run and matched his career high with five RBIs. He was intentionally walked in the eighth with two runners on.
Todd Helton and Troy Tulowitzki hit back-to-back solo homers in the fifth inning to put the Rockies ahead, but Colorado's bullpen couldn't hold a 4-1 lead.
"They kept fighting," San Francisco skipper Bruce Bochy said. "That's what it's about. Edgar, what a day he had."
Brandon Medders (3-1) recorded two outs in the seventh for the victory. Jeremy Affeldt struck out Garrett Atkins and Carlos Gonzalez with the tying run on third in the eighth, and the pitcher pumped his fist three times leaving the mound.
Closer Brian Wilson pitched the ninth after saving the first two games of the series, with fans chanting "Sweep! Sweep!"
Pinch-hitter Ryan Rohlinger added a two-run single in the eighth and Eugenio Velez an RBI double as the Giants wrapped up a 5-1 homestand.
Tulowitzki hit his 24th homer to go with an RBI double and run-scoring single.
San Francisco, which has been struggling with runners in scoring position, started its rally in the seventh on Juan Uribe's leadoff walk against Morales. Aaron Rowand singled and Fred Lewis was hit in the back by a pitch one out later to load the bases. After Eugenio Velez struck out, Renteria stepped in and produced his biggest hit since joining the Giants this year.
The series was a total swing from the teams' previous meetings. The Rockies rallied for a 6-4, 14-inning win last Monday in which Ryan Spilborghs hit a game-winning grand slam after the Giants had scored three in the top half.
"It's a very, very difficult game to lose," manager Jim Tracy said. "But I think we have to put everything in perspective and not just what took place in this ballgame. And that is the fact that obviously we punched at them over in Denver and they punched back. ...
"If you have ambitions of playing baseball in October, when you get knocked down you've got to stand back up. We got knocked down this weekend. Are we going to get back up?"
Cain saw his winless stretch reach seven starts since he beat the Rockies in Denver on July 24.
Gonzalez returned to the Rockies lineup for the first time this series. He hurt his left thumb Thursday diving for a ball and already had stitches in his palm from a separate injury.
NOTES: San Francisco has four grand slams this season. ... The Rockies homered in consecutive at-bats for the seventh time in 2009. ... Giants C Bengie Molina pinch hit but missed his sixth straight start with tightness in his right quadriceps. Molina tested his legs with some running and manager Bruce Bochy expects him to play during the club's upcoming series at Philadelphia. ... Rockies C Yorvit Torrealba singled in the eighth for a career-best 10-game hitting streak.
- ** CONFIRMED **
NL
COLORADO 5
SAN FRANCISCO 9 FINAL
Aug 30 7:32 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
DOUBLE BY EUGENIO VELEZ SCORED ELI WHITESIDE
SITUATION: 3 RUNS IN, E VELEZ ON SECOND, R ROHLINGER ON THIRD, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 5
SAN FRANCISCO 9 BOTTOM,8TH
DUE UP FOR SAN FRANCISCO: E RENTERIA (.264, 3-FOR-4, HR, 5 RBI)
Rockies 5, Giants 9 Bot 8, 0 OutsAug 30 7:06 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY RYAN ROHLINGER SCORED AARON ROWAND AND JUAN URIBE
SITUATION: 2 RUNS IN, R ROHLINGER ON FIRST, E WHITESIDE ON THIRD, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 5
SAN FRANCISCO 8 BOTTOM,8TH
DUE UP FOR SAN FRANCISCO: E VELEZ (.276, 1-FOR-3, BB)
Rockies 5, Giants 8 Bot 8, 0 OutsAug 30 7:03 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
GRAND SLAM BY EDGAR RENTERIA (4) TO LEFT WITH 2 OUT IN THE
7TH OFF RAFAEL BETANCOURT SCORED FRED LEWIS, AARON ROWAND
AND JUAN URIBE.
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 5, SAN FRANCISCO 6
DUE UP FOR SAN FRANCISCO: B MEDDERS (.000, 0 HR, 0 RBI)
Rockies 5, Giants 6 Bot 7, 0 OutsAug 30 6:30 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
SINGLE BY TROY TULOWITZKI SCORED RYAN SPILBORGHS
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, T TULOWITZKI ON FIRST, T HELTON ON SECOND, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 5
SAN FRANCISCO 2 TOP,7TH
DUE UP FOR COLORADO: B HAWPE (.299, 1-FOR-3)
Rockies 5, Giants 2 Top 7, 0 OutsAug 30 6:08 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
DOUBLE BY EDGAR RENTERIA SCORED FRED LEWIS
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, E RENTERIA ON SECOND, E VELEZ ON THIRD, 0 OUTS
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 4
SAN FRANCISCO 2 BOTTOM,6TH
DUE UP FOR SAN FRANCISCO: N SCHIERHOLTZ (.278, 0-FOR-1, SF, RBI)
Rockies 4, Giants 2 Bot 6, 0 OutsAug 30 5:45 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
SACRIFICE FLY BY CLINT BARMES SCORED IAN STEWART
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, NONE ON, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 4
SAN FRANCISCO 1 TOP,6TH
DUE UP FOR COLORADO: Y TORREALBA (.274, 0-FOR-1, BB)
Rockies 4, Giants 1 Top 6, 0 OutsAug 30 5:32 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
SOLO HOME RUN BY TROY TULOWITZKI (24) TO CENTER WITH 2 OUT
IN THE 5TH OFF MATT CAIN.
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 3, SAN FRANCISCO 1
DUE UP FOR COLORADO: B HAWPE (.300, 1-FOR-2)
Rockies 3, Giants 1 Top 5, 0 OutsAug 30 5:19 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
SOLO HOME RUN BY TODD HELTON (13) TO RIGHT WITH 2 OUT IN THE
5TH OFF MATT CAIN.
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 2, SAN FRANCISCO 1
DUE UP FOR COLORADO: T TULOWITZKI (.279, 1-FOR-2, RBI)
Rockies 2, Giants 1 Top 5, 0 OutsAug 30 5:17 PM - NL
AT SAN FRANCISCO - SCORING UPDATE
SACRIFICE FLY BY NATE SCHIERHOLTZ SCORED EUGENIO VELEZ
SITUATION: 1 RUN IN, E RENTERIA ON FIRST, 1 OUT
CURRENT SCORE: COLORADO 1
SAN FRANCISCO 1 BOTTOM,4TH
DUE UP FOR SAN FRANCISCO: P SANDOVAL (.335, 0-FOR-1)
Rockies 1, Giants 1 Bot 4, 0 OutsAug 30 5:08 PM - NL
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
- - - - - - - - - - - -
COLORADO 1 1 1 0
SAN FRANCISCO 0 0 0 (BOT 1)
CURRENT PITCHERS: COL - JASON HAMMEL
SFO - MATT CAIN
DUE UP FOR SAN FRANCISCO: E VELEZ (.275, 3 HR, 17 RBI)
E RENTERIA (.259, 3 HR, 42 RBI)
N SCHIERHOLTZ (.279, 5 HR, 27 RB
Rockies 1, Giants 0 Bot 1, 0 OutsAug 30 4:18 PM
Related News
- Tuesday Rockpile: What did the Rockies get in trading for Cal Quantrill? Dec 26
- Monday BP: Merry Christmas Dec 25
- Monday Rockpile: What’s under the tree for Rockies’ fans this Christmas? Dec 25
- The ‘help, everything is awful the Dodgers have ruined everything we love but hey I guess it’s the holidays maybe that will make us feel better probably not though’ mailbag Dec 23
- This Week in Purple: Happy Holidays! Dec 23
- 2024 Willie McCovey Memorial Community Prospect List No. 4 Dec 22
- Holiday Weekend BP: Heavy sigh Dec 22
- Friday Rockpile: Rockies rookies Jones and Tovar earn well-deserved bonuses Dec 22
- Yoshinobu Yamamoto rejects the Giants, signs with the Dodgers Dec 21
- Thursday Rockpile: Should the Rockies consider a reunion with Mike Moustakas? Dec 21
- Player Review: Austin Slater Dec 20
- Patrick Bailey out-bonuses Camilo Doval in the pre-arbitration bonus pool payouts Dec 20