Giants 5, A's 4
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Rookie right-hander Chris Heston snapped his five-game losing streak as the San Francisco Giants built a quick five-run lead then held on for a 5-4 victory against the Oakland A's on Sunday afternoon at the O.co Coliseum.
Heston (12-10) gave up four runs on six hits, lasting five-plus innings. He struck out three, walked two and threw 78 pitches. Heston won for the first time since Aug. 1 at Texas. He had gone 0-5 with a 4.60 ERA in his previous nine starts.
Five Giants relievers combined to blank Oakland over the final four innings: George Kontos, Cory Gearrin, Javier Lopez and Santiago Casilla, who pitched a scoreless ninth with one walk and three strikeouts for his 37th save.
The Giants, who open a four-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday at AT&T Park, won their second straight game and kept their slim playoff hopes alive.
Giants left fielder Jarrett Parker, who hit a franchise rookie record three homers Saturday, went 2-for-3 with a walk and scored a run. Rookie designated hitter Mac Williamson had two hits in three at-bats, drove in a run and scored once. Catcher Trevor, another rookie, drove in two runs, and rookie second baseman Kelby Tomlinson had a pair of hits and an RBI.
A's left-hander Sean Nolin lasted only 2 2/3 innings, his shortest outing in five starts since being recalled from Triple-A Nashville on Sept. 4. He gave up five runs, only three of them earned, on seven hits, struck out one and walked on.
Center fielder Billy Burns went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs for the A's.
The Giants grabbed a 3-0 lead in the top of the second inning. Shortstop Brandon Crawford led off with an infield single, Parker lined a single to center, and Williamson grounded a single to right, loading the bases with no outs.
Brown and center fielder Angel Pagan hit back-to-back sacrifice flies, making it 2-0, then Tomlinson hit an RBI single to right.
The Giants added two runs in the third. First baseman Buster Posey led off with a single to center, moved to second on right fielder Marlon Byrd's ground out and went to third when second baseman Brett Lawrie made a throwing error on Crawford's ground ball.
Parker walked, loading the bases and ending Nolin's day. Williamson brought Posey home with a sacrifice fly, and Brown hit a soft single to center, driving in Crawford.
The A's scored two runs in the fifth, cutting San Francisco's lead to 5-2. With runners on first and third and two outs, Burns hit a fly ball to shallow center that bounced off of Crawford's glove for a two-run double. Crawford tried to make an over-the shoulder, running catch. Pagan had an easier chance but held up.
Oakland scored two more runs in the sixth. Right fielder Josh Reddick grounded a leadoff single to right, and third baseman Max Muncy brought him home with an opposite-field triple off the wall in left.
Parker slammed hard into the wall while trying to catch Muncy's drive but stayed in the game. Muncy entered the game in the top of the fifth, replacing Danny Valencia, who was hit by a pitch on his left elbow in the fourth inning.
A's catcher Stephen Vogt blooped an RBI single to right off Kontos, cutting the Giants' lead to 5-4.
NOTES: A's manager Bob Melvin called RHP Sonny Gray's chances of making his next scheduled start Tuesday a "long shot" because of a sore left hip. Melvin will make that decision Monday. "He feels a little better today, but we're going to give him one more day and see how he feels tomorrow," Melvin said. ... Giants manager Bruce Bochy said he expects RHP Tim Hudson to make his scheduled start Thursday against the Dodgers at AT&T Park, but he also said there's a chance Hudson could have his start pushed back. ... A's LHP Barry Zito, Giants RHP Tim Hudson and former A's LHP Mark Mulder, who comprised Oakland's "Big Three," threw out the ceremonial first pitches and were honored during a pregame ceremony. ... One day after Giants rookie LF Jarrett Parker hit three homes runs, Bochy pulled a prank on bench coach Ron Wotus, handing him a lineup to post that didn't include the slugger. Wotus' reaction? "There's a lot of cameras, but, 'You're messing with me,' " Bochy said. "I'll put it that way." Parker moved up one spot in the order to seventh. ... A's RHP Edward Mujica (strained right hamstring) was available out of the bullpen for the first time since Sept. 13.