Hernandez homers in 12th as Giants top Padres
Gorkys Hernandez led off the top of the 12th inning with his 13th homer of the season Monday night, leading the San Francisco Giants a 5-3 victory over the Padres in San Diego.
Hernandez connected on a 1-2 pitch from left-handed reliever Matt Strahm (2-3) on his 398-foot drive into the left field stands.
The Giants added a second run in the 12th on singles by Kelby Tomlinson and Andrew McCutchen and a Buster Posey blooper that landed in left but resulted in a force of McCutchen at second.
Left-hander Wil Smith, who entered in the bottom of the 11th with runners at the corners and two out, struck out all four Padres he faced to even his record at 1-1.
The Giants took a 3-0 lead in the second inning on a three-run homer by reserve second baseman Chase d'Arnaud. The Padres rallied to tie as the Giants went 10 innings without a run before Hernandez connected.
San Francisco earned a second straight victory to climb back to .500 at 54-54.
The Padres lost their sixth straight, their second six-game losing streak in a span of 15 contests (2-13). They are 1-17 in their 18 series openers at Petco Park this season. If they lose to the Giants on Tuesday afternoon in the finale of the two-game series, they will complete their worst July (5-18) in the franchise's 50-year history.
Left-hander Derek Holland started for the Giants and allowed two runs on four hits and two walks with five strikeouts over five-plus innings.
Lauer pitched five innings of three-run ball.
The Giants held a three-run lead before Padres left-handed rookie starter Eric Lauer recorded an out in the second inning.
Brandon Crawford and Austin Slater opened the inning with back-to-back singles. D'Arnaud then pulled a full-count fastball from Lauer into the seats in the left field corner for his third homer of the season.
The Padres got on the board in the fourth when Hunter Renfroe drove a one-strike offering from Holland 418 feet for a homer to center. San Diego pulled within a run an inning later when Austin Hedges opened the fifth with a double, advanced to third on a bunt and scored on Manuel Margot's liner to left, which was dropped by Hernandez for a two-base error.
San Diego tied the game in the eighth. Eric Hosmer hit an opposite-field single to left on one out and scored on Christian Villanueva's double to the gap in left-center.
--Field Level Media
