Forum » Brooklyn led 55-45 at the break and Chicago

SAN FRANCISCO -- If Tim Lincecum wants to win without an overpowering fastball, he knows he will have to find his way through games when he is nowhere near his best. And he was nowhere near his best Friday night. And yet, he still won. Pablo Sandoval and Brandon Hicks homered to back a wildly effective Lincecum, and the San Francisco Giants beat the Minnesota Twins 6-2. "He was bobbing and weaving out there the whole game," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. Lincecum (4-3) struck out four and walked six in six innings. He allowed five hits and also had two wild pitches, escaping trouble in nearly every inning. Only 57 of Lincecums 112 pitches were strikes. "Youve got to battle when you dont have your best stuff, your best command. And today was just that," Lincecum said. "Its kind of an ugly win, but Ill take it. Joe Mauer and Chris Parmelee drove in Minnesotas only runs in the third. Sandoval hit a three-run shot in the first, Hicks hit his eighth homer off Kyle Gibson (4-4) in the fourth and drove in another run on a flyout in the seventh. Gibson gave up five runs and five hits in five innings, working quickly and in command for most of his 72-pitch outing. He struck out four and walked none. "I really got beat on three pitches, which is the frustrating part," Gibson said. San Francisco opened its six-game homestand with some pop at the plate and slick manoeuvring on the mound. Hunter Pence extended his hitting streak to 10 games with an infield single after Angel Pagan doubled leading off the first. Pence was originally ruled out, Bochy challenged the call and umpires overturned it after a 33-second video review. Pagan was thrown out at home on Buster Poseys grounder, but not before third baseman Trevor Plouffes throw pulled Brian Dozier off second on what wouldve been an inning-ending double play. Then, Sandoval sent the first pitch he saw over the brick wall in right to put the Giants ahead 3-0. It was Sandovals fifth home run this season. "I just focused and tried to calm myself down a little bit more," Sandoval said. Mauer hit an RBI triple and Parmelee drove in another run for Minnesota in the third to slice San Franciscos lead to 3-2. In the bottom of the inning, Pagan tripled and scored for San Francisco after shortstop Eduardo Escobar couldnt corral Pences grounder. Despite his lack of command, Lincecum kept the Giants in control. The two-time NL Cy Young Award winner, still searching for consistency as his fastball has faded in recent years, walked two and threw two wild pitches in the third without allowing a run. Sandoval fielded Gibsons grounder at third and threw out Escobar at the plate before Lincecum struck out Dozier to end the inning. In the fifth, Lincecum loaded the bases before getting Escobar to hit a weak groundout to first. Lincecums saved his smoothest inning for his final one, retiring the side in order before leaving to a standing ovation from the announced sellout crowd of 41,514. Left-hander Jeremy Affeldt tossed a scoreless seventh for the Giants. After Javier Lopez allowed two baserunners in the eighth, Jean Machi got pinch-hitter Josmil Pinto to ground into a double-play before pitching a perfect ninth for the save. "We were a little sloppy defensively and we missed plenty of opportunities to get some hits," Twins manager Ron Gardenhire said. "A rough start for us here, and that team over there knows how to take advantage of you." NOTES: The Giants will wait until at least Saturday to decide if RHP Matt Cain, who strained his right hamstring Wednesday at Colorado, will make his next start Monday against the Chicago Cubs. Bochy said Cain "was bouncing around pretty good" in the clubhouse. ... Mauer and Posey, who have each won an MVP at catcher, both started at first base. ... Twins RHP Samuel Deduno (1-2, 3.53 ERA), originally slated to start Sunday, will take the mound on Saturday. Ricky Nolasco will pitch Sunday. ... Ryan Vogelsong (2-2, 3.62) goes for the Giants on Saturday and lefty Madison Bumgarner starts Sunday. Womens Nike Air Max 2018 . The game got off to a less-than-ideal start for the Jets as Oliver Ekman-Larsson found a wide open net from the slot and opened the scoring for the Coyotes a lead in the first period, but Olli Jokinen answered back just over half a minute later. Cheap Nike Air Max 2018 . Barnard, 28, was 1-0 with a 0.53 ERA in three appearances, including two starts, with San Angel o this season. He struck out 19 batters and walked just one in 17 innings pitched. He has previous American Association experience with the Lincoln Saltdogs, El Paso Diablos and Amarillo Sox. http://www.cheapairmaxshoessale.com/. Hawkins severely sprained his left ankle while making a diving catch during training camp and went on injured reserve with a designation he could return midway through the season. He was back at practice Wednesday. Wholesale Nike Air Max 2018 . The Maple Leafs handed their embattled head coach a two-year contract extension on Thursday, while at the same time announcing that assistants Dave Farrish, Greg Cronin and Scott Gordon will not be back. Cheap Nike Air Max 2018 China .Y. -- When the New York Islanders lead was cut in half in the opening minute of the third period, the sense of impending doom began wafting through Nassau Coliseum.Chicago, IL (SportsNetwork.com) - The Brooklyn Nets shut down the NBAs hottest team on Tuesday night. Theyre not playing too bad themselves. Brook Lopez had 29 points and the Nets routed the Chicago Bulls 96-82 to snap their seven-game winning streak. Brooklyn outscored the Bulls 31-14 in the second quarter and never relinquished the advantage in the second half, leading by as many as 23 in the fourth. The Nets had dropped 12 of their last 14 games at the United Center coming in. Joe Johnson posted 20 points and 11 rebounds for Brooklyn, which has won five of its last six games on the heels of a three-game losing streak. Joakim Noah tallied 12 points and 12 boards, while Mike Dunleavy netted 23 points for the Bulls. Derrick Rose had just four points on 2-of-15 shooting in defeat. Brooklyn trailed 31-24 following a quarter of play, but began the second on an extended 200-4 run to seize control.dddddddddddd Johnson had nine points during the surge, which was capped on consecutive baskets by Lopez for a 44-35 Nets advantage with 4:15 to go in the second. Brooklyn led 55-45 at the break and Chicago never cut the deficit below four in the second half. After Noahs layup trimmed the gap to 65-60 midway through the third, a 10-2 Nets swing helped them re-establish control. Jarrett Jack knocked down a 3- pointer to conclude the burst and stake Brooklyn to a 75-62 cushion. The Nets took an 84-69 margin into the fourth. Game Notes Chicago was seeking its first eight-game winning streak since Feb. 20-March 7, 2012 ... The Bulls blew out the Nets 105-80 at the United Center on Dec. 10 ... Brooklyn was 6-of-14 from beyond the arc and made 18-of-21 free throws ... Chicago shot just 38.4 percent (33-of-86) from the floor. ' ' '