Giants Hold NL West Lead, Top Rockies; Belt’s Hand Injured

DENVER (AP) — The San Francisco Giants moved person to a part rubric with a clutch win. Now they anticipation their location tally person tin assistance them seizure the crown.

Brandon Crawford homered to headdress a four-run ninth inning and the Giants held their pb successful the NL West, beating the Colorado Rockies 6-2 connected Sunday but mislaid archetypal baseman Brandon Belt to a manus injury.

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The Giants, who person won 15 of 19, person a two-game pb implicit the Los Angeles Dodgers, who bushed Arizona 3-0 connected Sunday. San Francisco present heads location to Oracle Park with a accidental to clinch their archetypal part rubric since 2012.

Belt near the crippled successful the seventh inning aft getting deed connected the near manus with a transportation portion squaring to bunt. Giants manager Gabe Kapler said a scan was inconclusive and Belt volition get X-rays backmost successful San Francisco.

“It’s not clip to bespeak connected america losing Brandon Belt,” Kapler said. “We’re conscionable not determination yet.”

Crawford was optimistic Belt wouldn’t beryllium retired long.

“It’s scary erstwhile it’s a fastball oregon a hard transportation either adjacent to his manus oregon connected his hands,” helium said. “There are truthful galore small bones that tin break. From talking to him, helium seems similar helium should beryllium each right, not miss excessively overmuch time.”

San Francisco had to enactment for its sixth consecutive triumph astatine Coors Field, and its 102nd triumph wide — its astir since winning 103 successful 1993.

It was 2-all erstwhile reliever Daniel Bard (7-8) walked Steven Duggar and Wilmer Flores, and pinch-hitter Tommy La Stella lined an RBI azygous with 1 out.

Rockies manager Bud Black turned to Tyler Kinley to support it adjacent alternatively of allowing Bard to look Crawford.

“Bardo’s been retired determination a small spot the past 5 days and you could archer helium wasn’t hitting his spots,” helium said. “The locomotion to Duggar and the basal deed to La Stella, I thought Kinley would springiness america a amended accidental against Crawford.”

Crawford spoiled the strategy with his 23rd of the season.

“Craw’s been bully successful those moments each play long. No surprise,” Kapler said. “He got a transportation helium could drive.”

Camilo Doval (5-1) pitched the eighth inning for the win.

San Francisco starter Kevin Gausman struck retired 11 successful six innings but was near with a no-decision erstwhile Colorado tied it successful the seventh.

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Gausman retired 13 consecutive aft Garrett Hampson’s azygous to pb disconnected the archetypal inning. C.J. Cron ended the streak with his 28th homer with 1 retired successful the 5th that chopped San Francisco’s pb to 2-1.

Gausman, who entered Sunday with a 5.33 ERA successful 5 September starts, said helium made a mechanical accommodation that helped him.

“For maine contiguous was a large measurement forward. I could conscionable archer from the get-go that I was my mean aforesaid and backmost to erstwhile I was going good,” helium said. “That assurance conscionable came backmost and I felt similar I could propulsion immoderate transportation erstwhile I needed to.”

Giants reliever Ryan Littell committed a balk successful the seventh to enactment runners connected 2nd and third. Cron, who led disconnected with a single, scored connected a grounder erstwhile helium bushed the propulsion location from 2nd baseman Donovan Solano that tied it astatine 2.

San Francisco scored its archetypal tally connected a groundout successful the 2nd inning and added different successful the fifth. Belt reached connected a bloop treble with 2 outs and scored connected Kris Bryant’s single.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Giants: INF Darin Ruf (right oblique strain) was readying connected taking swings Sunday and is hopeful to travel disconnected the 10-day injured database connected Thursday, the archetypal time helium is eligible.

PAINFUL PITCH

Belt was deed erstwhile helium squared to bunt against reliever Lucas Gilbreath. He stayed successful the crippled to tally but Flores took implicit astatine archetypal successful the bottommost of the inning.

“He knows erstwhile the champion mode for him to get connected basal is to enactment a bunt down, helium knows erstwhile the champion mode to get connected basal is to instrumentality pitches,” Kapler said. “Not surprised, thought it was a astute play against a pugnacious lefty precocious successful the game.”

Belt’s lack was magnified erstwhile Flores’ mistake successful the seventh contributed to the tying run.

UP NEXT

Giants: Kapler announced aft the crippled that Logan Web (10-3, 3.04) volition commencement Tuesday against Arizona to statesman six location games against the Diamondbacks and San Diego to adjacent the regular season.

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Rockies: RHP Germán Márquez (12-10, 4.32) volition marque his last location commencement of the play erstwhile Colorado opens a three-game bid against the Washington Nationals connected Monday.