LA              88-67      ...                  Wrigley wind magnifies pitching woes.
GIANTS     84-70    3 1/2  GB       Once again the bats are MIA until too late.

Pittsburgh   83-71      1      GB       Status quo for leaders in both races.
Milwaukee  80-75    3 1/2  GB      Shutout win keeps them alive.

Yesterday
Giants lost at San Diego, again, 3-2.
LA lost at Chicago, 8-7.
Milwaukee defeated Pittsburgh, 1-0.

Today
Giants finish up in San Diego; 1:10 PDT (4:10 EDT). Ryan Vogelsong, who pitched well his last time out, faces Ian Kennedy, the Padres' workhorse whose only start against the Giants this year was Tim Lincecum's no-hitter.
LA concludes the Chicago series with Jamey Wright, the well-traveled one-time Giant, making only his second start since leaving SF back in 2007. And we thought we were desperate...
Pittsburgh and Milwaukee finish up at PNC Park.

Last Night's Game
Once again the innings mounted and the hits didn't as the Giants snoozed their way through eight innings, making Andrew Cashner look like Cy Young. The big righty allowed only two hits while himself going 2-for-2 with a walk. For his part, Yusmeiro Petit did not pitch badly, allowing one unearned run until the sixth, when Rene Rivera's two-run double ended his night early. And once again the bullpen made a game of it-- fruitlessly, it seemed, until Hunter Pence opened the ninth with a booming home run, his 20th. Joe Panik then singled, chasing Cashner, and the tension rose as closer Kevin Quackenbush came in. Pablo Sandoval and Gregor Blanco singled around two outs, making it a one-run game. With men on first and third, Brandon Crawford got a 3-1 fastball and lined it directly at left fielder Seth Smith, and that's all she wrote.

Notes
The St Louis Cardinals won yesterday, extending their lead over Pittsburgh to three and a half. The Central and West division races are now in lockstep, with LA-SF one game better than the Cards-Pirates duo... No more off-days for the Giants until Monday the 29th, the day after the regular season ends. LA has a day of rest next Thursday, before their season-ending home series against Colorado... Both Angel Pagan and Michael Morse may miss the entire LA series. While the club has hung in there without Morse, losing Pagan is a killer blow. Hunter Pence does well in the leadoff spot, but no one is replacing Pagan's bat in the lineup. Bruce Bochy must consider starting Andrew Susac at catcher, Buster Posey at first, and Brandon Belt, though he's yet to hit a lick since returning, in  left. There is no way this team is going to win with both Gregor Blanco and Juan Perez in the starting lineup. No Way.