This is the second time the Giants have seen the Phillies this season, their first meeting in Philadelphia. The Giants took 3 out of 4 from the Phillies near the end of July, making this series a must win, especially since this would help the Giants cap off a winning homestand.
Friday night started off pretty well after Madison Bumgarner pitched dominantly through 7 innings, probably his most dominant start at home recently. Michael Morse tacked on some run support via a 3-run home run in the 4th inning. Both Cole Hamels and Bumgarner seemed to cruise through the rest of the game, although Bumgarner gave up a solo homerun to Marlon Byrd in the 5th inning. Jeremy Affeldt came in to relieve Bumgarner, and he gave up a 2-run home run to Asche tying the game up. Santiago Casilla gave up a couple of runs in extras and the Giants could not fight back, and would drop the first game, 5-3.
Tim Hudson did not experience the same dominance, as he was pulled during the 5th inning giving up 5 earned runs. The bullpen came in and shutout the Phillies, unfortunately the offense had remained dormant after Hunter Pence's homerun in the 1st. Then in the 6th inning, the Giants had an offensive explosion, tying the game back up after loading the bases with no outs. Rookie Joe Panik tacked on another run with an RBI Double in the 8th, and Romo would shut the door in the 9th to lead the Giants to a 6-5 victory.
The same dominant bullpen performance would be required in today's game, as Tim Lincecum was only able to go 5 innings. While he only gave up 2 earned runs, he had struggled with his command nearly most of the game. The offense helped out in a big way, as Morse, Panik, and rookie Andrew Susac combined for 7 of the 11 Giant hits. The bullpen did shut the Phillies down once again after a rough outing on Friday, and helped the Giants get a series win.
Morse has now had back-to-back 3-hit games, helping the Giants to really put a stamp on this series win. It hasn't been since July 7th that the Giants have won back-to-back home games, and it hasn't been since July 13th that the Giants have won a home series. Even more daunting, the Giants haven't won a home stand since late May. The Giants now carry this momentum onto the road, where they stop in Chicago first after an off-day. The Giants gain two games on the Dodgers, who have run into a bit of a snag against the Brewers.
The Giants will have to do it without their rookie second baseman Joe Panik, who dislocated his left pinky finger after sliding into 2nd base during the 8th inning. Brandon Belt and Hector Sanchez have also experienced setbacks in their concussion recoveries.