Phillies 6, Giants 4
PHILADELPHIA -- Jeff Francoeur's two-out, two-run double in the seventh inning helped the Philadelphia Phillies salvage the finale of a three-game series in a 6-4 win over the San Francisco Giants on Sunday afternoon.
It was the first at-bat of the game for the journeyman outfielder, who entered the game as a pinch-hitter for Odubel Herrera. That was a response move by Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg after Giants skipper Bruce Bochy pulled starting pitcher Ryan Vogelsong in favor of left-handed reliever Javier Lopez to face the lefty Herrera, who had homered earlier in the afternoon.
Francoeur certainly made Bochy pay for that decision, lining a 1-1 pitch down the left-field line to score Freddy Galvis from third and Ben Revere all the way from first, breaking a 3-3 tie that had lasted since the third inning.
Rookie sensation Maikel Franco added a solo home run -- his sixth since being called up May 15, and fourth in the last six games -- for Philadelphia in the bottom of the eighth.
Phillies reliever Ken Giles (2-1) earned the win by throwing 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, and closer Jonathan Papelbon picked up his 12th save of the season despite allowing a run for the first time in seven appearances.
The win helped the Phillies (22-36) avoid being swept for the third time in their last four series, though the Giants had already secured their fifth consecutive series win at Citizens Bank Park by taking the first two matchups of the weekend.
Just like the day, which started off warm and sunny and cooled a bit throughout the game as clouds moved in, both teams' bats started off hot and then trailed off.
The Giants (32-26) got on the board with one run in the top of the second, but the Phillies quickly got back on top in their half of the inning thanks to a two-run single by left fielder Cody Asche.
That lead was also short-lived, however, as San Francisco took advantage of a mental fielding blunder by Phillies shortstop Galvis to take a 3-2 lead in the top of the third inning.
The Phillies managed to tie it back up in the bottom of the third on Herrera's second home run of the year, but neither team was able to plate another runner until Francoeur's game-changing hit.
NOTES: The Giants entered the game with the best road record in the National League (16-11) and had won 10 of their last 12 games in unfriendly arenas. Sunday's loss dropped their road record to 16-12. ...Since April 21, San Francisco had gone 28-15 (.643), the best record in the majors in that span, entering play on Sunday. On the other hand, the Phillies' 21-36 record was their worst start to a season through 56 games since 1997 (20-37). ...San Francisco 2B Joe Panik extended his hitting streak to a career-high 12 games with a double in the third inning.