Crawford Hits 2 Hrs To Help Giants Breeze Past Orioles 8-1
BALTIMORE (AP) — The San Francisco Giants and Evan Longoria came to Camden Yards looking to break out of extended slumps.
Having accomplished that objective at the expense of the horrid Baltimore Orioles, both the team and its veteran third baseman headed out of town seeking to extend this good fortune deep into June.
Swipe below for images of the game.
Longoria homered and drove in three runs, Brandon Crawford went deep twice and the Giants got a solid pitching performance from Jeff Samardzija in an 8-1 rout on Sunday.
It was the 999th victory for Bruce Bochy with San Francisco, leaving him one short of joining John McGraw as the only managers in Giants history to win at least 1,000.
Longoria snapped a career-high 0-for-21 skid with a fourth-inning drive — his first homer in 50 at-bats — and had a two-run run double in the fifth. The 33-year-old ended up with his second three-hit game of the season.
"It was good to see Longo come through for us," Bochy said.
It was the second straight day in which the Giants scored eight runs in a game after doing it only once in the previous 19.
"When they have a day like that, you hope that's something that gets them going," Bochy said. "Something to be encouraged about."
Crawford hit solo home runs in the sixth and eighth innings . It was his first multihomer game since August 2015 and No. 3 overall.
The last-place Giants took two of three from the Orioles, who haven't won a series since April 24 against the White Sox. Baltimore owns the worst record in the majors (18-41) and at home (8-23).
Longoria wasn't the only San Francisco player to break out of skid. After losing his three previous starts, Samardzija (3-4) gave up a first-inning run before retiring 16 of his final 17 batters. The right-hander allowed three hits and struck out six over six innings.
When someone pointed out to Samardzija that his finish was more impressive than the beginning, he replied, "This just in: I get better and throw harder later in the game. I've been that way my whole career. It's always going to be that way."
On the heels of a seven-inning outing by Shaun Anderson on Saturday, Samardzija gave the Giants a solid six innings before leaving with a sizable lead.
"It's encouraging to see we're getting quality starts," Bochy said. "Hopefully it will be contagious."
Trey Mancini homered for Baltimore, which managed only four hits.
"After that (home run) he threw a great game," Mancini said of Samardzija. "He just made that one mistake there, and after that he was pretty lights out."
Orioles starter Gabriel Ynoa (0-2) pitched five innings, giving up five hits and four runs, two earned.
SLIGHTLY DISTRACTED
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde returned from Illinois on Sunday morning after missing Saturday's game to attend his daughter's graduation. He was delighted to join family and friends for the event, but admitted to watching the game during the ceremony. "Except when they announced her name," he said. "Besides that, my face was in my phone."
ROSTER MOVES
Giants: Recalled catcher Aramis Garcia from Triple-A Sacramento and optioned right-hander Sam Coonrod to the same minor league club. Garcia was summoned because catcher Buster Posey had a sore right hamstring, an injury that occurred Saturday.
Orioles: After the game, the Orioles optioned INF-OF Stevie Wilkerson and catcher Austin Wynns to Triple-A Norfolk.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Giants: Posey could go on the injured list before the Giants take on the Mets on Tuesday. "After the day off in New York, we'll see if he's available to go," Bochy said.
Orioles: 1B Chris Davis (left hip inflammation) should be activated from the IL in Texas this week, Hyde said. ... 1B-LF Mark Trumbo (knee surgery) will ramp us his rehab work with Triple-A Norfolk this week. He hopes to play a string of two or three consecutive games before being re-evaluated. Asked Sunday how his knee feels after strenuous activity, Trumbo replied, "It's the new normal."
UP NEXT
Giants: After taking Monday off, the Giants call upon Madison Bumgarner (3-5, 4.01 ERA) to open a three-game series against the Mets.
Orioles: A day off Monday will be followed by a three-game series in Texas, where Dylan Bundy (2-6, 4.58 ERA) faces the Rangers on Tuesday night.
