Posey’s hit eases his, Giants’ pain
Buster Posey would prefer not to discuss his inflamed right hip, and notes that if it wasn’t the reason he has to skip the All-Star Game it might still be a secret that he needs an injection once the first half wraps up this weekend.
It has affected him hitting and behind the plate.
That’s what made Posey’s game-ending hit all the more impressive.
Posey singled off the right-field wall with two outs in the 13th inning for his fifth career game-ending hit, sending the San Francisco Giants past the Chicago Cubs 5-4 Wednesday.
“Catchers are a whole different breed,” said rookie Dereck Rodriguez, son of Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez. “They get banged up back there and go like it’s nothing.”
Rodriguez (4-1) pitched three scoreless innings for the win. He also had three of San Francisco’s 16 strikeouts.
Brandon Belt drew a two-out walk from James Norwood (0-1). Andrew McCutchen then singled to bring up Posey, who ended the 4-hour, 30-minute game with San Francisco’s first run since scoring four in the first.
“With two strikes, you’re just kind of in battle mode,” Posey said.
Norwood worked the 12th and 13th in his major league debut. He immediately struck out Brandon Crawford on a 99 mph fastball.
Cubs slugger Kris Bryant hit a two-run homer in his return from the disabled list, and All-Star Javier Baez tied the game with a solo homer in the seventh.
Tony Watson’s scoreless streak at home ended at 20 2/3 innings with Baez’s 18th homer – and Watson hadn’t allowed a run in 18 innings overall, which had been the longest active streak in baseball.
San Francisco’s Johnny Cueto struck out seven in five innings in his second start back from a lengthy trip to the disabled list with a sprained elbow. The right-hander hasn’t won since April 28.
Minnesota 8, Kansas City 5: Brian Dozier hit a two-run home run, going deep for the second straight game to give the Minnesota Twins a boost on their way to an 8-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals. Twins starter Lance Lynn recovered from a three-run homer by Salvador Perez in the first inning to win his second straight start.