SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A bit of indecision by Buster Posey cost the San Francisco Giants and led to a big inning for Atlanta.
Posey’s missed tag on Jason Heyward’s mad dash home helped fuel a three-run sixth for the Braves, who beat the Giants for the first time in five tries this season, 5-0 on Tuesday night.
“I thought I was in the right position,” Posey said. “I didn’t think there was a way for him to get around me. I missed him and that would have been a big out. It flipped-flopped the momentum a little bit.”
The big inning never would have happened without some aggressive baserunning by Heyward, who advanced to second on a deep flyout before scoring with an athletic play on Freddie Freeman’s single to right.
Hunter Pence’s throw home easily beat Heyward, who ducked under Posey’s tag attempt and dove across the plate for a key run.
“It was a reaction,” Heyward said. “It’s not the way you draw it up. I by no means would like to try it again as far as me running home and see the ball flying in from right field that far ahead of me. Just a hustle play and it worked out.”
Posey knew immediately that he missed the tag and didn’t even try to argue. Giants manager Bruce Bochy challenged the play anyway, but umpire Ed Hickox’s call was confirmed on replay.
“You don’t have time to think, it’s happening so fast,” Posey said. “I caught the ball and saw him in front of me and I went and made a tag. I should have jabbed a little bit more. It does seem more guys are getting creative with their slides, more so than in the past. You don’t expect a big guy like that to move like he did.”
That play loomed even larger when B.J. Upton and Andrelton Simmons hit two-out RBI singles off Ryan Vogelsong (1-2) that made it 4-0, giving Mike Minor (1-2) more than enough support to end an eight-start winless streak dating to last season. He allowed three hits and two walks in 6 2-3 innings, striking out six.
Evan Gattis also drove in a run with his first career triple to help the Braves win for the fourth time in five games.
Minor, who missed the first month this season with a sore left shoulder, pitched around a one-out double by Pence in the first inning and didn’t allow another baserunner until Angel Pagan’s two-out walk in the sixth as he shut down a Giants lineup that hit eight homers in the first four meetings with the Braves.
Minor gave up two of those in a 2-1 loss at home on May 2, but yielded nothing in the rematch, retiring 16 batters in a row at one point.
That stretch ended when Pagan walked and went to third on Pence’s second double of the night. Minor struck out Posey to end the threat.
“Their guy pitched well,” Bochy said. “We didn’t do hardly anything offensively. Minor was hitting both sides of the plate and hitting his spots.”
Minor left with runners on first and second in the seventh. Ian Thomas struck out Brandon Crawford to escape the jam.
Vogelsong matched his career high with eight strikeouts but was done in by the big sixth inning.
“I wasn’t distracted,” Vogelsong said. “I just didn’t make very good pitches after that. He was safe and it’s my job to throw pitches after that to get us out of there. I didn’t do it.”
The Braves added another run in the seventh after a replay review overturned a call of an inning-ending double play. Atlanta manager Fredi Gonzalez challenged the call and Freeman was ruled safe at first after replays showed reliever David Huff never touched first base, allowing Tyler Pastornicky to score.
NOTES: Pagan left the game with a sore knee and will get a day off Wednesday. … Atlanta is 14-0 when scoring first. … Hector Sanchez started at first base for San Francisco for the first time in his career. … Madison Bumgarner (4-3) will start the series finale for San Francisco against Julio Teheran (2-2) on Wednesday.
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