• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers
• Game Tracker

Giants try to keep playoff hopes alive vs. Padres

Sep 14, 2011 - 3:11 PM (Sports Network) - The San Francisco Giants are not going down without a fight and have their sights set on a three-game sweep of the San Diego Padres when the two clubs collide this afternoon at AT&T Park.

The defending World Series champions are 8 1/2 games behind Arizona for the National League West lead with 14 to go and have won three in a row for the first time since July 17-19. In Tuesday's 3-2 win in 12 innings, Mark DeRosa singled home Cody Ross with two outs to send the Giants to their fifth win in the past eight tries.

Carlos Beltran and Pablo Sandoval each had three hits, while Ross scored twice and starter Matt Cain tossed 6 1/3 innings of one-run ball in the no-decision. Cain struck out six batters and Ramon Ramirez earned the win with two strikeouts in the top of the 12th inning.

"We're so pumped for DeRo," Cain said of DeRosa. "He's been such a great clubhouse guy for the past two years."

San Francisco hasn't won four in a row since July 9-15 and will begin a 10- game road trip tomorrow with the first of four straight games against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. The club also sits 6 1/2 games behind Atlanta in the NL Wild Card race.

Tim Lincecum will try to keep the Giants on the winning path when he takes the mound Wednesday. Lincecum has struggled lately, going 0-2 with a 4.74 ERA in his last three starts, and looks to push his record over the .500 mark. He is 12-12 with a 2.68 ERA in 30 starts and did not record a decision in Friday's 2-1 loss to Los Angeles, as he gave up only one run in eight innings.

The two-time Cy Young Award honoree defeated the Padres on Aug. 24 with eight innings of one-run ball in a 2-1 victory. Lincecum, a righty, is 8-4 with a 2.08 ERA in 17 starts lifetime against San Diego and 5-7 in 16 appearances at home this season.

San Diego has dropped two straight and five of six games, and will close out a seven-game road trip tonight.

Brad Brach was saddled with the loss for giving up the go-ahead run in the bottom of the 12th and starter Cory Luebke permitted a pair of runs and 10 hits in six innings. He also struck out eight batters.

"I didn't make it easy by any means. Anytime you get a lot of guys on base like that, you've got to obviously get out of a jam here or there," Luebke said. "I was glad I was able to do that. I just kind of battled through it a little bit."

Jason Bartlett accounted for the Padres' only runs with a two-run double and Nick Hundley added two hits in a losing cause. San Diego is currently playing 30 consecutive games against NL West foes and is 4-16 in that span.

Mat Latos draws the start for the Friars today and is 1-2 in his last six starts. He did not figure into the outcome of Friday's 3-2 loss at Arizona and delivered seven strong innings, allowing two runs and eight hits. The righty is 7-13 with a 3.72 ERA in 28 starts this season and 3-6 in 14 road assignments.

Latos has made eight career starts against the Giants and is 2-2 with a 2.47 ERA over that stretch.

San Francisco is 11-6 against San Diego this season and has won five of the past six meetings between the teams.