Wilmer Flores broke a sixth-inning tie with his seventh home run, Robbie Ray pitched five effective innings and the San Francisco Giants opened a weeklong homestand with a 5-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Monday night.
Hayden Birdsong (1-0) pitched out of an eighth-inning jam to cap his three-inning relief effort. Camilo Doval threw a 1-2-3 ninth for his third save of the season, helping the Giants erase the memories of a walk-off nightmare in a 5-4 defeat against the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday.
After Caleb Durbin’s first career homer, a two-run shot, gave the Brewers a 2-0 lead in the second inning, the Giants rallied for single tallies in the bottom of the second and in the fifth to set the stage for Flores’ go-ahead blast to left-center field.
An RBI single by Patrick Bailey and a throwing error by Milwaukee second baseman Brice Turang had plated the Giants’ first two runs.
Jung Hoo Lee added an RBI triple in the seventh, and the Giants tacked on a run on a double-play grounder in the eighth to complete the scoring.
Ray allowed both Brewers runs and five hits. He walked three and struck out four.
Birdsong permitted one hit and two walks while fanning four as San Francisco won for just the second time in five games.
Down 4-2, the Brewers threatened in the top of the eighth when Birdsong walked Christian Yelich with one out and Rhys Hoskins with two down. But the right-hander struck out Sal Frelick with the potential tying runs on the bases, protecting the lead.
Flores and Tyler Fitzgerald had two hits apiece for the Giants, while Bailey drove in a pair of runs.
Durbin’s homer, which came in his 13th big-league plate appearance, was the only extra-base hit for the Brewers, who were opening a 10-game trip having won four of their last five.
Grant Anderson (1-1), Milwaukee’s third pitcher, took the loss after surrendering Flores’ homer. Brewers starter Quinn Priester was pulled after four-plus innings. He wound up charged with two runs on four hits and four walks with three strikeouts.
–Field Level Media
