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Giants get back to work versus Padres

Sep 5, 2011 - 2:59 PM (Sports Network) - The San Francisco Giants have a huge hole to dig themselves out of and maybe a change of scenery can do the trick.

The defending World Series champions will head down the coast to begin a three-game series with the NL West-rival San Diego Padres this afternoon and completed a 12-game homestand with a 5-7 mark. The Giants dropped two of three matchups with Arizona over the weekend to fall seven games back of the Diamondbacks for the division lead and suffered a 4-1 loss in Sunday's finale.

Ryan Vogelsong pitched well in defeat, as he yielded two runs and five hits in 7 1/3 innings with six strikeouts and one walk. Cody Ross got San Francisco on the board with a solo homer in the bottom of the first inning, but the ballclub managed just two more hits after that.

"It's not over till it's over, the old saying," said Ross. "We have to continue to go out there and keep fighting. We're not eliminated. Anything can happen. I saw the Phillies come back when they were down seven games with 17 to go so anything can happen."

After Giants ace Tim Lincecum and Vogelsong failed in their bid to shave some of the deficit in the division standings this weekend, Madison Bumgarner will take his turn in the rotation Monday in San Diego. Bumgarner has won two straight starts and three of his last four decisions, including a 4-0 win over the Cubs on Wednesday. He struck out 11 batters over eight shutout innings.

Bumgarner, who is 9-12 with a 3.43 ERA in 28 starts, is only 3-6 in 13 road starts this season and has never beaten the Padres in his career. The left- hander owns an 0-2 mark in seven games (6 starts) to go along with a 3.47 ERA in this series.

San Diego is last in the NL West and looks to ruin San Francisco's chances of making a postseason run. It ended a nine-game losing streak with Sunday's 7-2 win over the Colorado Rockies in the finale of a three-game series at Petco Park, as Mat Latos fired seven innings of two-run ball and struck out eight batters for the win. Chad Qualls and Joe Thatcher each tossed a scoreless inning of relief.

"My curveball was really good today and later on in the game my slider got a little sharper," Latos said. "I was throwing them both for strikes."

Will Venable and Jeremy Hermida each drove in three runs, while Jesus Guzman added three hits for the Padres.

Tim Stauffer will take the mound for the Friars today and he's 8-11 with a 3.76 ERA in 28 starts this season. He has lost three of his last four starts and didn't get out of the second innings of Tuesday's 8-5 setback at Los Angeles, as the righty gave up seven runs and seven walks in 1 2/3 frames.

"I just think he had a rough game," Padres manger Bud Black said. "He's been one of the best pitchers in the National League. Tonight was extremely uncharacteristic. I'm sure he?s extremely upset with his performance, but he's got a good head on his shoulders and he'll turn the page on this."

Stauffer has faced the Giants 10 times (8 starts) in his career and is 5-4 with a 3.14 ERA in that stretch. He lost to the Giants on Aug. 24 at AT&T Park, where he tossed six innings of two-run ball in a 2-1 defeat.

The Giants have won seven of 12 meetings with San Diego this season, including four of six encounters at Petco Park.