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Vogelsong outduels Kershaw as Giants edge Dodgers

May 9, 2012 - 5:43 AM Los Angeles, CA (Sports Network) - Ryan Vogelsong tossed 7 1/3 innings of one- run ball and the San Francisco Giants slipped past the Los Angeles Dodgers, 2-1, in the middle test of a three-game series at Dodger Stadium.

Vogelsong (1-2) scattered eight hits and issued three free passes while striking out one hitter. Javier Lopez took over for Vogelsong in the eighth and got Andre Ethier to ground into a crucial inning-ending double play, and Santiago Casilla got the final out in the ninth to notch his sixth save of the season.

"Defense has hurt us at times this year, but tonight it saved us," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "Vogelsong did a terrific job and gave us what we needed and the bullpen really stepped up."

Brett Pill provided the offense for San Francisco with a two-run home run while five other Giants had singles. San Francisco has won three of its last four contests.

On the other end of this superb pitcher duel was Clayton Kershaw (2-1), who gave up two runs on five hits and a walk while striking out seven over eight innings. Kershaw had won his previous 12 decisions at Dodger Stadium entering play on Tuesday.

James Loney knocked in the only run for the Dodgers with an RBI double, while Dee Gordon added two hits in the loss. Los Angeles has dropped two of its last three.

The Giants opened the scoring in the second inning when Buster Posey led off the frame by lacing a single into left field and Pill followed by roping the first pitch he saw from Kershaw -- a 93 mile-per-hour fastball -- over the wall in left field to give San Francisco the early lead.

"He did what he was supposed to do," Kershaw said of Pill's homer. "He put a pretty good swing on it. They made me pay for the two mistakes I made."

But Los Angeles got a run right back in the home half of the inning. Ethier led off the frame by crushing a double down the line in right and, after Juan Rivera flied out, Loney picked up his teammate by driving a double into center to bring home Ethier for a 2-1 ballgame.

Neither team put up a serious offensive threat until the home half of the eighth.

In that inning, Bobby Abreu coxed a walk from Vogelsong to start the frame and Gordon followed with a single and both runners moved up on a sacrifice bunt by Mark Ellis. Vogelsong then intentionally walked Matt Kemp to load the bases. Lopez came in and got Ethier to ground into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning.

Lopez induced groundouts from Tony Gwynn Jr. and Loney before Casilla came on and closed it out by getting Juan Uribe to roll one softly to second.

Game Notes

Pill's homer was just the first for the Giants as a team in their last six games, and just their third in their last 10 games...San Francisco went 0- for-1 with runners in scoring position and is hitting just .205 this season in those situations...Kershaw's last home loss came on April 16, 2011 against the St. Louis Cardinals.