Pence's Three-Run Homer Lifts Giants To 8-3 Win Over Braves
ATLANTA (AP) A little heat and humidity was not going to discourage Jake Peavy and the San Francisco Giants.
Peavy threw six solid innings and Hunter Pence hit a tie-breaking three-run homer in the eighth inning as the Giants bounced back from a deflating loss with an 8-3 win over the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday night.
"I love the humidity," said Peavy, who is from Mobile
Peavy gave up one run and five hits in six innings as he continues to pitch at a high level since returning from the disabled list. Peavy struck out a season-high eight and walked one while throwing a season-high 106 pitches on a 94-degree night. Peavy has a 2.63 ERA in six starts since recovering from back and hip injuries.
"Certainly I expect to make a difference and expect to win on my day," said Peavy, who missed all of May and June. "We've done that the four times out of the (All-Star) break and I am extremely excited about that."
The Giants blew leads of 6-0, 7-5 in the ninth and 8-7 in the 12th against the Braves on Monday, but the late innings belonged to San Francisco on Tuesday. Pence's home run capped a four-run eighth after the Braves had built a 3-2 lead in the seventh. Gregor Blanco and Matt Duffy (four hits) led off with doubles, and after an intentional walk to Buster Posey, Pence homered off Dave Aardsma (0-1). Nori Aoki added a solo home run during a two-run ninth.
"(This was a) good bounce back," said Giants manager Bruce Boche. "Great night for us. A hard-fought win."
Jeremy Affeldt (1-2) picked up the win for the Giants, who have won 12 of 16 since the All-Star break. They are 1/2 game back of the Cubs for the second wild card spot in the National League.
"We've played extremely good ball since we came out of the (All-Star) break," Peavy said. "You saw the character of the San Francisco Giants show up tonight. We talked about it before the game. To come back again against late-inning relievers after giving up a lead in the seventh inning and respond the way we did is a real testament to who this team is."
For the Braves, the frustration continued for Shelby Miller, whose winless streak was extended to 14 starts despite giving up just two runs in seven innings and leaving with a 3-2 lead. Miller has a 3.14 ERA during the streak, which started after he lost a no-hitter with two outs in the ninth inning on May 17.
"He was dominant throughout the whole game," Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "We can't ask for anything more from him, we really can't."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Giants: Giants manager Bruce Boche said injured All-Star second baseman Joe Panik has yet to have an MRI on his injured back. He returned to San Francisco on Tuesday and is on the 15-day disabled list.
Braves: First baseman Freddie Freeman (strained oblique) and right-hander Jason Frasor (right shoulder strain) were placed on the 15-day DL. Freeman missed 30 games earlier this season with a wrist injury
UP NEXT
Giants: World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner (11-6, 3.39) will start for the Giants in their final matchup with the Braves of the 2015 regular season. Bumgarner is 4-0 with a 2.30 ERA in his last five starts against the Braves.
Braves: Rookie Williams Perez (4-1, 4.14) gets his second start against the Giants on Wednesday. He threw seven shutout innings, giving up four hits, in an 8-0 Braves win at San Francisco on May 30.
NOW YOU HAVE IT, NOW YOU DON'T
Braves leftfielder Eury Perez had an eventful fifth inning. One pitch after making a diving grab of Brandon Crawford's line drive, he tried to repeat the feat on Ehire Adrianza. When he came up from his second dive, he held his glove up for a moment thinking he had made the catch, but the ball had come out of his glove when he hit the ground and rolled into foul territory. Adrianza was given a double on the play.
STREAKING
Posey extended his road hitting streak to 16 games with a ninth-inning single. He also had a sacrifice fly, two walks and two runs scored. .. Peavy saw his modest three-game hitting streak end with two groundouts.
Updated August 4, 2015