Phillies Slay Giants

The Philadelphia Phillies felt they were overdue for a runaway victory – and not even Barry Bonds could slow them down.

Bonds` major league-leading 47th homer wasn`t nearly enough to prevent the Phillies from snapping the San Francisco Giants` nine-game winning streak with a 12-2 victory on Saturday.

Pat Burrell homered, Todd Pratt hit three doubles and Jimmy Rollins reached base five times as Philadelphia got 17 hits and stole five bases while rolling to its first victory in 13 games in San Francisco, dating to Aug. 30, 1998.

Weeks of frustration were eased on a day when everything went the Phillies` way except one pitch to Bonds, who stayed on the fastest home run pace in baseball history.

"We`ve been expecting a big, big win, because we`ve lost a lot of heartbreakers," Rollins said. "We expect to win a lot of games like this, but we haven`t done it lately."

The Phillies have remained in postseason contention despite playing sub-.500 ball since the All-Star break. Philadelphia also lost four games in the past week when the bullpen allowed ninth-inning, game-winning homers – including Andres Galarraga`s blast on Friday night.

"Those walkoff homers take a lot out of you, but these guys just keep bouncing up off the canvas," manager Larry Bowa said. "Every time we win, no matter what the score, our young guys get more experience."

The Giants` longest winning streak in more than three years was snapped emphatically, but the Giants all took the long view.

"We`ve got to be happy to go 9-1," said Galarraga, who hadn`t lost since joining the Giants last week. "Today was just a bad day. You`ve got to forget about it. Everything we did was wrong. It was a very ugly game for us."

Bonds` two-run blast landed in the waters of McCovey Cove in the sixth inning. His 47th homer came in the Giants` 111th game; Babe Ruth had 47 in 114 games for the Yankees in 1921.

Bonds` homer was the only blemish on a stellar performance by Nelson Figueroa (3-2), who matched his career high with six strikeouts and limited the Giants to five baserunners in six innings of four-hit ball.

"You know going into it that the Giants are hot with all the trades they made, and then they`ve got Barry Bonds," Figueroa said. "You know every time he goes to the plate, he`s looking at history. I just tried to have fun, and the guys got me plenty of runs."

Bowa said that Figueroa would have pitched longer if the Phillies` extended rallies in the fifth and seventh innings hadn`t cooled him down.

Philadelphia sent 24 men to the plate from the fifth to the seventh innings. Every starter except Bobby Abreu got a hit during the game, with three apiece by Rollins and Pratt. Five Phillies drove in two runs apiece.

"We used a lot of guys out of the bullpen, so at least we got them sharp," San Francisco manager Dusty Baker said. "You`d rather not do it that way, though. We didn`t play too well. It seemed that every ball they hit fell in."

Philadelphia had a four-run fifth, capped by Pratt`s RBI double. Scott Rolen had a run-scoring single, and Doug Glanville scored on a wild pitch by erratic Giants starter Shawn Estes (8-6).

The Giants built their winning streak on strong performances by their starting pitchers, who got victories in seven of the nine games. Estes, who has won just one of eight starts, struggled with his control and didn`t survive the fifth.

"I didn`t feel my best out there," Estes said. "Those guys at the top of the order, when they get on base, they can really hurt you. Speed can do a lot, especially when you mix it with power."

Estes, who was hit on the left hip by Rolen`s line drive in the first inning, allowed five runs, six hits and four walks in 4 1-3 innings.

Philadelphia added five more runs in the seventh on a collection of bloop singles, San Francisco fielding blunders and another double by Pratt.

Notes:
The Phillies, who lead the NL in stolen bases, executed a double steal in the first inning with Glanville and Rolen. They did it again in the fifth with Rollins and Glanville. ... Calvin Murray stole second base in the third inning even though Philadelphia pitched out on the play. ... Philadelphia went 0-6 at Pac Bell Park last season. ... Rolen had a heated argument with home plate umpire Larry Young after a called strikeout in the sixth, but he wasn`t ejected.

(Copyright 2001 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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Author: 6 ABC - Action News