Los Angeles (64-58) at San Francisco (59-63)

Just when the season appeared lost for the San Francisco Giants, they’ve righted themselves.

They’ll be looking for their sixth straight victory when they continue their three-game series with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday.

San Francisco won Friday’s series opener 7-3 to move to within five games of division-leading Los Angeles, who lost for just the third time in 20 games.

The Giants (59-63) lost 16 of 19 from July 23-Aug. 13, a stretch that culminated with a three-game sweep by the Dodgers (64-58). But they’ve since matched their longest winning streak of the season.

“We’re in the thick of this thing,” winning pitcher Jason Schmidt said. “If we keep doing that, we’re going to rack up a lot of wins the last month and a half.”

Omar Vizquel and Shea Hillenbrand each hit two-run homers and Steve Finley added a solo shot for San Francisco.

“With these five games I think we opened up some eyes,” said Hillenbrand, who has just three homers in 22 games since being acquired last month in trade with Toronto.

Barry Bonds went 0-for-4 after sitting out Thursday’s 8-3 win over San Diego.

The Dodgers lead the NL West by three games over Arizona and San Diego despite suffering consecutive losses for the first time since and eight-game slide from July 19-26.

To avoid losing three in a row, the Dodgers will turn to Greg Maddux (10-11, 4.20 ERA), who’s been nearly flawless in three starts since coming over from the Chicago Cubs and is looking for his fourth straight win overall.

The four-time Cy Young Award winner won his first start for the Dodgers, allowing no hits in six innings to beat Cincinnati on Aug. 3. He gave up two runs against Colorado on Aug. 8, then threw eight scoreless innings against the Giants on Sunday, allowing just two hits, but didn’t earn a decision as Los Angeles won 1-0 in 10 innings.

“The most impressive thing about him without a doubt is his command, knowing when he can add or subtract a little bit, and reading the hitters’ reactions,” Dodgers pitching coach Rick Honeycutt said.

“I think what Greg’s brought to baseball during a time where the game loves power pitchers, he brought another side of the game—command, control and finesse. And he had an ability to outthink the opposing batters. This guy just knows how to get people out.”

The 40-year-old Maddux has dominated San Francisco in his career, going 24-14 with a 2.91 ERA in 44 career starts. He hasn’t allowed more than four runs in any outing against the Giants since Sept. 12, 1999, a span of 12 starts.

After spending most of the season in the bullpen, Brad Hennessey (5-2, 2.71) made a successful transition back to San Francisco’s rotation and will look for his second win in a row.

Hennessey made five starts at the beginning of the year before shifting to the bullpen, where he’s appeared in 19 games. He had made one start since May 15 before beating San Diego 1-0 on Monday, allowing two hits in 5 2-3 scoreless innings.

Hennessey started and beat the Dodgers 2-0 on April 16, allowing three hits in 6 1-3 scoreless innings. He’s also made two relief appearances and is 2-1 with a 2.93 ERA in seven career games—five starts—against Los Angeles.