Giants' Snow, Santiago homer in ninth inning
SAN DIEGO (AP) -- Benito Santiago and J.T. Snow homered on
consecutive pitches in the ninth inning, and the defending NL
champion San Francisco Giants opened the season with a 5-2 win over
the San Diego Padres on Monday.
Until Santiago and Snow connected off rookie Clay Condrey, the
Giants had just four hits off two Padres pitchers. They got five
hits in the ninth to give Felipe Alou a victory in his first game as San Francisco's manager.
Santiago, a former Padres catcher, opened the ninth by hitting a
1-0 pitch to left-center, putting the Giants ahead 3-2. Snow hit
the next pitch from Condrey over the fence in right-center.
It was 80 degrees when Brian Lawrence threw the first pitch, and
a crowd of 61,707, a San Diego regular-season record, watched as
the Padres opened their 35th and final season at Qualcomm Stadium.
They'll move into Petco Park downtown next season.
Barry Bonds, who won a record fifth MVP last year, was 0-for-3
with two intentional walks and two strikeouts.
Ray Durham, one of several Giants newcomers, scored San
Francisco's first two runs, including a leadoff homer. Jose Cruz
Jr., another newcomer, hit an RBI single in the ninth.
Felix Rodriguez pitched a perfect eighth for the win. With Robb
Nen going on the disabled list before the game, Tim Worrell worked the ninth for the save.
Condrey, who allowed the first three batters to reach in the
ninth, allowed three runs on four hits and walked two in one inning for the loss.
Durham was on third after Cruz doubled with none out in the
eighth, but Condrey got out of that jam, aided by a double play.
The Padres tied it at 2 in the sixth on Ryan Klesko's RBI double
that chased starter Kirk Rueter. Reliever Joe Nathan came on with none out and runners on second and third and squashed the rally.
Mark Loretta reached third with two outs in the seventh but was
stranded when Snow, the first baseman, made a great play on Klesko's hard grounder.
Durham had the 22nd leadoff homer of his career, hitting a 1-2
pitch from Lawrence just inside the right-field foul pole.
It was the first National League at-bat for Durham, who signed
as a free agent in December after spending the last two months of
2002 with the Oakland A's, and the previous 7{ seasons with the
Chicago White Sox.
Durham scored on a wild pitch by Lawrence in the third to make
it 2-0.
San Diego pulled to 2-1 in the fourth on consecutive two-out
doubles by rookie Xavier Nady and Sean Burroughs.
Rueter and Lawrence were both making their first opening-day
starts, and neither got a decision.
Rueter allowed two runs, one earned, on five hits in five
innings. Lawrence went seven innings, allowing two runs and three
hits.
Game notes
San Diego's a Navy town, so two sailors sang the national
anthem and a giant American flag was unfurled in the outfield by
dozens of sailors. ... Nen was placed on the 15-day disabled list,
retroactive to Sunday, with a strained right shoulder. Nen, 33,
worked one inning Sunday against Oakland in his first action
against major league hitters since having surgery in November. He
is scheduled to be examined by Dr. Lewis Yocum of the Anaheim
Angels on Tuesday. ... To take Nen's roster spot, the Giants
recalled right-hander Jim Brower from Triple-A Fresno. ... Although
the game was declared a sellout, there were a few thousand empty
seats.
Regular Season Series
2021 National League West Standings
TEAM | W | L | PCT | GB | STRK |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Los Angeles | 8 | 2 | .800 | 0 | W3 |
San Diego | 8 | 3 | .727 | 0.5 | W4 |
San Francisco | 6 | 4 | .600 | 2 | L1 |
Arizona | 4 | 7 | .364 | 4.5 | L1 |
Colorado | 3 | 7 | .300 | 5 | L3 |
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