MIAMI -- Giancarlo Stanton
paused in his pursuit of a hallowed home run number, acknowledged he's
shooting for 61 and said he finds baseball's statistical history both
alluring and tainted.
Stanton's six-game homer streak ended Wednesday, but he singled, stole a base and scored in a four-run first inning to help the Miami Marlins beat the San Francisco Giants 8-1.
While Stanton didn't come close to hitting his 45th homer of the year, he's on pace to finish with 61 and said that number is a goal.
"When you grow up watching all the old films of Babe Ruth and (Mickey) Mantle and those guys, 61 has always been that printed number," Stanton said.
Ruth hit a record 60 homers in 1927, and Stanton said he gives that achievement an asterisk because the sport wasn't integrated then. Mantle's teammate Roger Maris broke the record with 61 in 1961.
Barry Bonds set the current record of 73 in 2001 during the steroids era, and Stanton said he also considers that total tainted.
"I do, but at the same time it doesn't matter," he said. "The record is the record."
Lately Stanton has been on a pace that would allow him to challenge Bonds. Facing three Giants pitchers, he failed to homer for only the third time in the past 13 games, and fell two games short of tying the major league record for the longest home run streak at eight games.
That record is shared by Dale Long (1956), Ken Griffey Jr. (1993) and Stanton's manager, Don Mattingly (1987)
"I wasn't really a home run guy like Giancarlo," Mattingly said. "I'm hitting singles and doubles mostly, and he's hitting balls 500 feet."
After his single in the first, Stanton was hit under his left arm by a 91-mph pitch in the second, tapped out to the pitcher in the fourth, grounded out to short with the bases loaded to end the fifth and singled in the eighth. His average rose to .287.
"If I have good at-bats, it's a good day for me," he said. "I ain't going to hit a homer 45 games straight."
Cain (3-10) fell to 0-9 in his past 13 starts. He allowed five runs, two earned, in four innings.
His biggest achievement: He retired Stanton twice.
"I tried to mix it up, change speeds," Cain said. "He has been pretty comfortable, so I tried to keep him off balance, and I did a pretty good job of that."
Catcher's interference on Nick Hundley and an error by shortstop Brandon Crawford helped the Marlins score three unearned in the first.
"Matt just had some horrible luck in that inning," manager Bruce Bochy said.
Tomas Telis hit a two-out, two-run double, and added an RBI single in the third.
Jose Urena (11-5) limited the Giants to an unearned run in five innings. Urena said the Marlins were waiting for a homer every time Stanton batted, and predicted the slugger's long-ball binge will resume soon.
"He's going to hit 60," Urena said in Spanish. "I hope he hits 61 and 62."
HARDBALL
Marlins right-hander Brian Ellington struck out four in two scoreless innings. His final three pitches reached 100 mph as he fanned Hunter Pence.
ODD PLAY
Marlins 2B Dee Gordon made a heads-up unassisted putout at first base to retire Hundley in the third. As Gordon fielded Hundley's one-hopper, first baseman Telis also tried for the ball, which left no one to cover first. The speedy Gordon sprinted to the bag and barely beat Hundley while both avoided a collision.
Telis turned a comical double play when he caught Carlos Moncrief's line drive at first base and doubled Pablo Sandoval off the bag in the eighth. Telis dove for the base and came up short, which left him sprawled the dirt but blocking Sandoval's path.
"The guys told me, `That was a Panda fight," Telis said.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Giants: 2B Joe Panik was placed on the seven-day concussion disabled list retroactive to Monday after he was hit in the head during a home-plate collision Sunday against the Washington Nationals. ... INF Miguel Gomez (right knee) will go on a rehab assignment with Single-A San Jose and is expected to play Thursday and Friday before being activated with the Giants on Saturday. ... RHP Johnny Cueto (blisters) is scheduled to throw another bullpen session Friday.
UP NEXT
Marlins: LHP Justin Nicolino (1-1, 4.56) is scheduled to start Friday at the New York Mets when the Marlins begin a six-game trip.
Giants: RHP Jeff Samardzija (7-12, 4.74) is scheduled to start Thursday against the Philadelphia Phillies when the Giants start a seven-game homestand. Samardzija is 1-4 with an 8.67 ERA against the Phils.
---
More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
Stanton's six-game homer streak ended Wednesday, but he singled, stole a base and scored in a four-run first inning to help the Miami Marlins beat the San Francisco Giants 8-1.
While Stanton didn't come close to hitting his 45th homer of the year, he's on pace to finish with 61 and said that number is a goal.
"When you grow up watching all the old films of Babe Ruth and (Mickey) Mantle and those guys, 61 has always been that printed number," Stanton said.
Ruth hit a record 60 homers in 1927, and Stanton said he gives that achievement an asterisk because the sport wasn't integrated then. Mantle's teammate Roger Maris broke the record with 61 in 1961.
Barry Bonds set the current record of 73 in 2001 during the steroids era, and Stanton said he also considers that total tainted.
"I do, but at the same time it doesn't matter," he said. "The record is the record."
Lately Stanton has been on a pace that would allow him to challenge Bonds. Facing three Giants pitchers, he failed to homer for only the third time in the past 13 games, and fell two games short of tying the major league record for the longest home run streak at eight games.
That record is shared by Dale Long (1956), Ken Griffey Jr. (1993) and Stanton's manager, Don Mattingly (1987)
"I wasn't really a home run guy like Giancarlo," Mattingly said. "I'm hitting singles and doubles mostly, and he's hitting balls 500 feet."
After his single in the first, Stanton was hit under his left arm by a 91-mph pitch in the second, tapped out to the pitcher in the fourth, grounded out to short with the bases loaded to end the fifth and singled in the eighth. His average rose to .287.
"If I have good at-bats, it's a good day for me," he said. "I ain't going to hit a homer 45 games straight."
Cain (3-10) fell to 0-9 in his past 13 starts. He allowed five runs, two earned, in four innings.
His biggest achievement: He retired Stanton twice.
"I tried to mix it up, change speeds," Cain said. "He has been pretty comfortable, so I tried to keep him off balance, and I did a pretty good job of that."
Catcher's interference on Nick Hundley and an error by shortstop Brandon Crawford helped the Marlins score three unearned in the first.
"Matt just had some horrible luck in that inning," manager Bruce Bochy said.
Tomas Telis hit a two-out, two-run double, and added an RBI single in the third.
Jose Urena (11-5) limited the Giants to an unearned run in five innings. Urena said the Marlins were waiting for a homer every time Stanton batted, and predicted the slugger's long-ball binge will resume soon.
"He's going to hit 60," Urena said in Spanish. "I hope he hits 61 and 62."
HARDBALL
Marlins right-hander Brian Ellington struck out four in two scoreless innings. His final three pitches reached 100 mph as he fanned Hunter Pence.
ODD PLAY
Marlins 2B Dee Gordon made a heads-up unassisted putout at first base to retire Hundley in the third. As Gordon fielded Hundley's one-hopper, first baseman Telis also tried for the ball, which left no one to cover first. The speedy Gordon sprinted to the bag and barely beat Hundley while both avoided a collision.
Telis turned a comical double play when he caught Carlos Moncrief's line drive at first base and doubled Pablo Sandoval off the bag in the eighth. Telis dove for the base and came up short, which left him sprawled the dirt but blocking Sandoval's path.
"The guys told me, `That was a Panda fight," Telis said.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Giants: 2B Joe Panik was placed on the seven-day concussion disabled list retroactive to Monday after he was hit in the head during a home-plate collision Sunday against the Washington Nationals. ... INF Miguel Gomez (right knee) will go on a rehab assignment with Single-A San Jose and is expected to play Thursday and Friday before being activated with the Giants on Saturday. ... RHP Johnny Cueto (blisters) is scheduled to throw another bullpen session Friday.
UP NEXT
Marlins: LHP Justin Nicolino (1-1, 4.56) is scheduled to start Friday at the New York Mets when the Marlins begin a six-game trip.
Giants: RHP Jeff Samardzija (7-12, 4.74) is scheduled to start Thursday against the Philadelphia Phillies when the Giants start a seven-game homestand. Samardzija is 1-4 with an 8.67 ERA against the Phils.
---
More AP baseball: https://apnews.com/tag/MLBbaseball
| View: Play-By-Play | Pitch-By-Pitch | Inning: All | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| San Francisco - Top of 1st | SCORE | |
|---|---|---|
| Jose Urena pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Span grounded out to second. | 0 | 0 |
| Pence reached on infield single to shortstop. | 0 | 0 |
| Parker flied out to center. | 0 | 0 |
| Sandoval grounded out to second. | 0 | 0 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 1st | SCORE | |
| Matt Cain pitching for San Francisco | SF | MIA |
| Gordon reached first base on catcher's interference. | 0 | 0 |
| Stanton singled to right, Gordon to third. | 0 | 0 |
| Yelich struck out swinging, Stanton stole second. | 0 | 0 |
| Ozuna reached on infield single to shortstop, Gordon scored, Stanton to third. | 0 | 1 |
| Realmuto grounded into fielder's choice to third, Stanton scored, Ozuna out at second. | 0 | 2 |
| Dietrich safe at first on error by shortstop Crawford, Realmuto to second. | 0 | 2 |
| Telis doubled to left, Realmuto and Dietrich scored. | 0 | 4 |
| Aviles intentionally walked. | 0 | 4 |
| Ureña struck out looking. | 0 | 4 |
| 4 Runs, 3 Hits, 2 Errors | ||
| San Francisco - Top of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Jose Urena pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Crawford singled to center. | 0 | 4 |
| Hundley lined out to shortstop. | 0 | 4 |
| Jones walked, Crawford to second. | 0 | 4 |
| Tomlinson grounded into fielder's choice to second, Jones out at second, Crawford to third. | 0 | 4 |
| Cain struck out looking. | 0 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 2nd | SCORE | |
| Matt Cain pitching for San Francisco | SF | MIA |
| Gordon flied out to center. | 0 | 4 |
| Stanton hit by pitch. | 0 | 4 |
| Yelich struck out looking. | 0 | 4 |
| Ozuna struck out looking. | 0 | 4 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| San Francisco - Top of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Jose Urena pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Span flied out to center. | 0 | 4 |
| Pence struck out looking. | 0 | 4 |
| Parker singled to right. | 0 | 4 |
| Sandoval singled to shallow left center, Parker to third. | 0 | 4 |
| Crawford safe at first on error by first baseman Telis, Parker scored, Sandoval to second. | 1 | 4 |
| Hundley grounded out to second. | 1 | 4 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 1 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 3rd | SCORE | |
| Matt Cain pitching for San Francisco | SF | MIA |
| Realmuto struck out swinging. | 1 | 4 |
| Dietrich tripled to deep right center. | 1 | 4 |
| Telis singled to right, Dietrich scored. | 1 | 5 |
| Aviles struck out swinging. | 1 | 5 |
| Ureña struck out looking. | 1 | 5 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| San Francisco - Top of 4th | SCORE | |
| Jose Urena pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Jones reached on infield single to second. | 1 | 5 |
| Tomlinson grounded out to first, Jones to second. | 1 | 5 |
| Cain grounded out to catcher, Jones to third. | 1 | 5 |
| Span flied out to center. | 1 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 4th | SCORE | |
| Matt Cain pitching for San Francisco | SF | MIA |
| Gordon grounded out to first. | 1 | 5 |
| Stanton grounded out to pitcher. | 1 | 5 |
| Yelich flied out to left. | 1 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| San Francisco - Top of 5th | SCORE | |
| Jose Urena pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Pence reached on infield single to shortstop. | 1 | 5 |
| Parker reached on infield single to second, Pence to second. | 1 | 5 |
| Sandoval grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, Parker out at second, Pence to third. | 1 | 5 |
| Crawford flied out to right. | 1 | 5 |
| 0 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 5th | SCORE | |
| Albert Suarez pitching for San Francisco | SF | MIA |
| Calixte at shortstop. | 1 | 5 |
| Suárez relieved Cain. | 1 | 5 |
| Ozuna walked. | 1 | 5 |
| Realmuto grounded into fielder's choice to third, Ozuna out at second. | 1 | 5 |
| Realmuto stole second. | 1 | 5 |
| Dietrich walked. | 1 | 5 |
| Telis grounded into fielder's choice to first, Dietrich out at second, Realmuto to third. | 1 | 5 |
| Aviles singled to right, Realmuto scored, Telis to second. | 1 | 6 |
| Suzuki hit for Ureña. | 1 | 6 |
| Suzuki singled to left center, Telis scored, Aviles to second. | 1 | 7 |
| Gordon walked, Aviles to third, Suzuki to second. | 1 | 7 |
| Stanton grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 7 |
| 2 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| San Francisco - Top of 6th | SCORE | |
| Brian Ellington pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Ellington relieved Ureña. | 1 | 7 |
| Hundley struck out swinging. | 1 | 7 |
| Jones grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 7 |
| Tomlinson struck out looking. | 1 | 7 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 6th | SCORE | |
| Albert Suarez pitching for San Francisco | SF | MIA |
| Yelich struck out swinging. | 1 | 7 |
| Ozuna grounded out to catcher. | 1 | 7 |
| Realmuto flied out to center. | 1 | 7 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| San Francisco - Top of 7th | SCORE | |
| Brian Ellington pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Calixte struck out swinging. | 1 | 7 |
| Span grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 7 |
| Pence struck out swinging. | 1 | 7 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 7th | SCORE | |
| Albert Suarez pitching for San Francisco | SF | MIA |
| Dietrich lined out to right. | 1 | 7 |
| Telis flied out to center. | 1 | 7 |
| Aviles doubled to center. | 1 | 7 |
| Rojas hit for Ellington. | 1 | 7 |
| Rojas singled to center, Aviles scored. | 1 | 8 |
| Gordon grounded out to pitcher. | 1 | 8 |
| 1 Runs, 2 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| San Francisco - Top of 8th | SCORE | |
| Javy Guerra pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Rojas at shortstop. | 1 | 8 |
| Guerra relieved Ellington. | 1 | 8 |
| Parker grounded out to first. | 1 | 8 |
| Sandoval walked. | 1 | 8 |
| Moncrief hit for Suárez. | 1 | 8 |
| Moncrief lined into double play, to first, Sandoval doubled off first. | 1 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 0 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| Miami - Bottom of 8th | SCORE | |
| Josh Osich pitching for San Francisco | SF | MIA |
| Moncrief in right field. | 1 | 8 |
| Osich relieved Suárez. | 1 | 8 |
| Stanton singled to right. | 1 | 8 |
| Yelich grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, Stanton out at second. | 1 | 8 |
| Ozuna grounded into fielder's choice to second, Yelich out at second. | 1 | 8 |
| Realmuto struck out swinging. | 1 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| San Francisco - Top of 9th | SCORE | |
| Brad Ziegler pitching for Miami | SF | MIA |
| Ziegler relieved Guerra. | 1 | 8 |
| Hundley grounded out to shortstop. | 1 | 8 |
| Jones grounded out to first. | 1 | 8 |
| Tomlinson reached on infield single to catcher. | 1 | 8 |
| Calixte flied out to right. | 1 | 8 |
| 0 Runs, 1 Hits, 0 Errors | ||
| San Francisco Giants | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hitters | AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | #P | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| Span CF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | .270 | .321 | .423 |
| Pence RF | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 18 | .256 | .303 | .377 |
Osich P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
| Parker LF | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | .250 | .282 | .397 |
| Sandoval 3B | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 16 | .222 | .243 | .361 |
| Crawford SS | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | .225 | .274 | .356 |
Suárez P
| 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .000 | .000 | .000 |
a-Moncrief PH-RF
| 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | .294 | .368 | .353 |
| Hundley C | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 16 | .269 | .296 | .446 |
| Jones 1B | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 16 | .197 | .246 | .328 |
| Tomlinson 2B | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 | .248 | .321 | .289 |
| Cain P | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | .172 | .172 | .241 |
Calixte SS
| 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | .161 | .229 | .194 |
| Totals | 34 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 135 | |||
| a-lined out to first for A Suarez in the 8th | ||||||||||
| BATTING GIDP: Sandoval Giants RISP: 0-8 (Cain 0-2, Hundley 0-1, Span 0-1, Sandoval 0-1, Tomlinson 0-1, Crawford 0-2) Team LOB: 8 | ||||||||||
| FIELDING E: Hundley (5, catchers interference); Crawford (6, line drive) | ||||||||||
Game Information
| Stadium | Marlins Park, Miami, FL |
| Attendance | 17,102 (45.7% full) - % is based on regular season capacity |
| Game Time | 2:49 |
| Weather | indoors |
| Umpires | Home Plate - Nick Mahrley, First Base - Lance Barrett, Second Base - Jim Reynolds, Third Base - Brian Knight |
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