By Sam Bush
Jeff Samardzija pitched eight innings of two-hit ball, Evan Longoria and Kevin Pillar each homered, and the San Francisco Giants beat the Phillies 3-1.
Samardzija (9-9) gave up one run, struck out five and walked none. He retired 20 straight after giving up a solo homer to Corey Dickerson with two outs in the top of the first inning. Samardzija’s streak ended with Cesar Hernandez’s one-out single in the eighth.
Samardzija was facing the Phillies for the second time in less than two weeks. He pitched six shutout innings of three-hit ball in a 5-1 win at Citizens Bank Park on July 31.
The 34-year-old right-hander is 5-2 with a 1.95 ERA in eight starts since July 1. He’s 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA and 19 strikeouts over his last four starts.
Vince Velasquez (4-7) gave up three runs in five innings of three-hit ball. He struck out three and walked one.
Pillar homered leading off the fifth off Velasquez to give San Francisco a 3-1 lead. Pillar golfed an 0-2 slider below his knees for his 15th homer and career-high 60th RBI.
The Giants took a 2-1 lead on Longoria’s two run homer to left off Velasquez in the second. His 14th homer came on a hanging slider.
Dickerson’s seventh home run was Samardzija’s only mistake on the day – a 90-mph fastball he left over the middle of the plate. It was his third homer since coming over from the Pirates in a July 31 trade.
”He has a fastball-cutter combination,” Phillies manager Gabe Kapler said of Samardzija. ”It’s difficult to pick up which is which, and he does a really good job of changing eye levels.”
Will Smith worked around a hit and walk in the ninth to notch his 28th save in 30 tries. The Giants closer struck out Dickerson swinging with the tying runs on base.
The Phils lost for the fourth time in five games.
