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2B Daily News – Friday, September 2, 2011 Giants season on the line this weekend against Arizona SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — A series that for so long has been billed as an early September showdown between division rivals has suddenly turned into San Francis- co's last stand. If the reigning World Series champion Giants want to keep any hopes alive of defending their title, they had better show up — and score runs — in this weekend's cru- cial matchup with the first-place Arizona Diamondbacks. The D-backs (78-59) hold a six-game lead in the NL West race with 25 to go for each club and are riding a nine-game win- ning streak. Both teams had the day off Thursday to rest up for what most certainly will be an intense, entertaining three days at sold-out AT&T Park. Even the Giants acknowledge this very well could be make-or-break. ''I don't see how it couldn't be,'' outfield- er Pat Burrell said. ''I think this team responds better when all the chips are out on the table. There's no secret, these guys are coming in and they've proven they deserve to be where they're at. And we've slipped, no doubt about it. But it isn't over. We're going to fight this thing out.'' General manager Brian Sabean shook things up Wednesday when he designated for assignment veterans Aaron Rowand and Miguel Tejada. Promising shortstop Bran- don Crawford is among the reinforcements expected to arrive Friday as September callups for the reeling Giants. San Francisco swept a three-game home series against Arizona from May 10-12 with three one-run wins, then the D-backs took two of three here Aug. 1-3 by beating All- Star aces Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum. ''Playing there is always really exciting,'' Arizona 17-game winner Ian Kennedy said. ''Their pitching staff, you know they're going to throw well there. It's kind of like a playoff atmosphere. I think this time is going to be a little more interesting because it's flipped around. We were chasing them the last time there, now they're chasing us.'' As always, Arizona skipper Kirk Gibson insists his team is sticking to its mantra: han- dling business that's within the D-backs' control, not worrying about what the Giants might be doing to tweak their roster and make a last-ditch run. Even if that's been challenging to do late- ly. ''It's tough to not look at the Giants every day and what they're doing, but I'm sure they're doing the same thing, watching us,'' Arizona center fielder Chris Young said. ''We have a lot of tough games coming up and we have to prepare for those. And I feel like if we can do that, we'll be all right.'' Nobody expects this division to be won just yet. But Arizona has surprised the skeptics with its staying power and exceptional pitch- ing under first-year general manager Kevin Towers. The banged-up Giants haven't helped themselves by stumbling since the All-Star break, either. ''We're pushing a big rock uphill,'' Sabean said. ''We know that we're running out of games. But we've all been involved in seasons that have turned on the dime — 1998 was an example, last year was an example. You never know what's going to happen in the last month of the season. Strange things happen, so there's still hope.'' San Francisco clinched its first NL West crown and playoff berth since 2003 on the final day of the 2010 regular season against San Diego. Then, the club made an improb- NEW YORK (AP) — Neither her words nor her play indicated that Serena Williams was distracted one bit Thursday at the U.S. Open. She would have been for- given if they had, of course, given that sister Venus with- drew from the tournament 24 hours earlier and revealed a recently diagnosed immune system disease. Focused as ever, Serena absolutely overwhelmed Michaella Krajicek of the Netherlands 6-0, 6-1 to reach the third round, show- ing precisely why many consider her the favorite to win a fourth championship at Flushing Meadows and able run through the Braves and favored Phillies on the way to capturing its first World Series championship since moving West from New York in 1958. The Giants got a big boost from Madison Bumgarner in Wednesday's 4-0 win over the Cubs, which snapped a three-game losing streak and avoided a three-game sweep. Manager Bruce Bochy can only hope the strong day by his hitters will ''send some confidence throughout the lineup.'' Bumgarner did his part, and now San Francisco has its top three pitchers lined up to face the D-backs: Cain on Friday night, then Lincecum and Ryan Vogelsong. ''It's going to be close, maybe not make- or-break but it's the biggest series we've got so far,'' Bumgarner said. Arizona wrapped up a three-game sweep of the Rockies with a 4-2 win Wednesday night. Gibson surely will stick with what has been working. ''Whoever we put out there, whoever we put at a position, I think we have a belief that we expect to win,'' he said. ''Not that we will every day, but we understand that our com- petitors have to respect us. There's no over- confidence, but an expectation. The prepara- tion has been excellent. They've been on board with every different thing that we've tried in preparing, and it's worked out well.'' For the Giants, it has been a different story. Many of those ''castoffs and misfits'' — as Bochy so fondly called them — who won over the fans last September have faltered: Aubrey Huff, NLCS MVP Cody Ross, Mike Fontenot. Burrell just returned from a strained right foot that sidelined him for 43 games. This year, Carlos Beltran came aboard at the trading deadline from the Mets and he has been a disappointment. He spent time on the DL with a wrist and hand injury. San Francisco lost reigning NL Rookie of the Year catcher Buster Posey to a season- ending broken leg after a May 25 home- plate collision with Florida's Scott Cousins. Then, sure-handed second baseman Freddy Sanchez was done for the year after labrum surgery on his right shoulder last month. During the club's recent 4-6 road trip, San Francisco placed five players on the DL and six others missed time with injuries. That has made for a lot of mixing and matching by Bochy to piece his lineup together each day. ''The one trait that all these guys have that I really appreciate, especially this year even though it's been a haywire year, is they come in wanting to play,'' Sabean said. ''They try to get ready to play. They put their work in. It's not an easy situation. The jug- gling act has been very difficult, maybe because we've been moving pieces or maybe because nobody's been good enough to hold onto a job or stay consistent enough to be established in the lineup.'' On some days, they flat out can't score. There are missed chances with runners in scoring position, or else costly mistakes. The Giants managed only 78 runs in August, their lowest monthly total since scoring 77 in April 2009, and their 11-18 record marked the club's fewest wins in a month since getting 10 victories in April 2009. San Francisco plays at Arizona during the season's final week — but those games might not matter. ''I see it as the glass (half-full),'' Mark DeRosa said. ''Six games is not insurmount- able. We've played as poorly as we can play the last month. We've definitely got our work cut out for us, but we've been in this position before. We're going to fight.'' Dominant Serena Williams joined by other Americans 14th Grand Slam title over- all. While no one was sur- prised to see the 28th-seeded Serena move on — her ranking dropped after she missed nearly a year with her own series of health scares — she was joined by a larger-than-lately contin- gent of countrywomen. Two Americans ranked outside the top 100, 18-year-old Sloane Stephens and 21- year-old Vania King, knocked off seeded players to give the host country five women in the third round for the first time since 2004, when eight made it. ''We're ready to go to the top, baby,'' a smiling Stephens said, clapping three times for emphasis. The 106th-ranked Stephens, who lives in Cali- fornia, beat 23rd-seeded Shahar Peer of Israel 6-1, 7- 6 (4). Stephens, who hit one ace at 119 mph, never won a Grand Slam match until this week, is the youngest woman left in the draw, and already has plans for her prize money. ''Now I know for sure when I get home after the season's over, I'm getting a car. That's the only thing I'm really looking forward to now,'' she said. ''My mom wants me to get a truck. I want to get a small car. It's very confusing.'' 'Yard Sale Map' Updated Thursday afternoon – for weekend Yard Sales! Click on locations To see items for sale at each location, exact addresses and driving directions! ' ' can be easily accessed from our top menu at www.redbluffdailynews.com . Mouse over the red ' ' tab and scroll down to ' ' and click. A's end trip with 7-0 win CLEVELAND (AP) — The Athletics got slammed by the New York Yankees and rescheduled by Hurri- cane Irene. They were rattled by an earthquake and attacked by tiny bugs. Oakland's 10-game road trip East was unpredictable and often unbearable. But it ended with a sure thing — Gio Gon- zalez doing what he always does in Cleve- land. Gonzalez pitched seven shutout innings and baffled the Indians again, and the A's avoided a four-game sweep with a 7-0 win Thursday over Cleve- land, which began the season's final month with a lopsided loss and another addition to its crowded disabled list. Gonzalez (12-11) improved to 5-0 with a 0.72 ERA in six career starts against Cleve- land, and extended his scoreless innings streak to 27 against the Indi- ans. The left-hander allowed four singles, was never in trouble against a lineup missing several injured regulars, and is now 4-0 with a 0.67 ERA at Progres- sive Field. How does he do it? ''Honestly, I really don't,'' Gonzalez said. ''The defense does a great job. Our catchers do a great job studying video. All I try to do is pound the strike zone. That's it.'' Oakland's trip began on Aug. 23 in New York, the day a 5.8 magnitude earthquake shook the East Coast. Two days later, the Yan- kees hit a record three grand slams in a 22-9 win over the A's, whose adventure was only beginning. With Irene heading toward the Northeast, Oakland had to play a day-night dou- bleheader. And then the A's came to Cleveland, where they lost three in a row, including a 16- inning marathon on Wednesday, when the infamous midges swarmed the field. ''It's going to be really good to get home,'' said Cliff Pen- nington, who had four hits and three RBIs as the A's snapped a five- game losing streak to go 4-6 on the trip. Gonzalez was the difference. It helped that the Indians were missing several regulars, but it doesn't seem to matter who Cleveland puts out there against the 25- year-old. ''Gio was tough on us again,'' Indians man- ager Manny Acta said. ODDS NCAA Football Tonight's game TCU 4.5(56) Saturday's games at Boston College 3(45) Northwestern at Auburn 23 (57) at Ohio St. 34 (48) at Missouri 20.5 (48) Miami(Ohio) at Alabama 38 (46.5) at Houston 3 (61) at Michigan 14 (61) W. Michigan at Southern Cal 23.5(51.5) Minnesota at Notre Dame10.5 (47) SouthFlorida BYU Buffalo Kent St. UCLA 3 (57) at Mississippi at Stanford 30 (54) San Jose St. Colorado St. 6(51.5) at New Mexico at Pittsburgh 31 (54) South Carolina-b 20.5 (63) EastCarolina California-c 10 (48.5) Fresno St. at N. Illinois 10 (55) at Texas Indiana-d 24 (55.5) 6(55.5) at Oklahoma 25 (64.5) Ohio Boise St.-e 3.5(51) Oregon-f 4(54.5) at Southern Miss. 13(59) at Hawaii Army Rice Ball St. Tulsa 7 (52)at New Mexico St. Georgia LSU 7(55 1/2) LouisianaTech Colorado at Purdue 17 (49.5) Middle Tenn. at Illinois at Florida St. 29.5 (55.5) LA-Monroe at Clemson 16 (56) at Florida 35 (47) at West Virginia 23 (53) at Texas A&M 15.5(57) Monday's game at Maryland 3 (47) b-at Charlotte, N.C. c-at San Francisco d-at Indianapolis e-at Atlanta f-at Arlington, Texas Miami FAU at Oklahoma St.37 (64.5) La.-Lafayette Sunday's games Marshall SMU 21(57.5) Arkansas St. Troy Utah St. Akron at Baylor ''Even when we have a full deck of cards he is always tough on us. He's got an overpower- ing fastball and one of the best breaking balls in the league. He always cruises against us, and he did it again.'' After winning the 16- inning game that ended at 12:07 a.m., the Indi- ans took the field at 12:06 p.m. Their bats never awakened against Gon- zalez, who won his third start in a row after five consecutive losses. He worked out of three two-on jams, twice get- ting Asdrubal Cabrera to pop to right for the final out. After using eight pitchers on Wednesday, Oakland manager Bob Melvin was thankful Gonzalez kept the phone to the bullpen on the hook. ''That was big for us,'' Melvin said. ''It was hot out there. It looked like he was tir- ing a little at the end, but we really needed him to give us seven.'' Only hours into the season's final month, the Indians had to make yet another roster move because of an injury. Outfielder Shin-Soo Choo was placed on the 15-day disabled list, the latest tough break for the South Korean, whose 2011 season has been marred by injuries, an arrest on drunken- driving charges and sub-par stats. Choo strained a muscle in his side on a check-swing last week. Choo joined the Indi- ans' ample DL, which includes outfielders Michael Brantley and Grady Sizemore, DH Travis Hafner and starters Josh Tomlin and Carlos Carrasco. Acta has been forced to jug- gle his lineup for months, and Thursday he had to use two rook- ie relievers Nick Hagadone and Corey Kluber, who made their major league debuts shortly after arriving from Triple-A Colum- bus. ''We're hanging in there,'' Acta said. ''We're doing well. We've won five of the NFL PRESEASON Thursday's results San Francisco at San Diego, late Baltimore 21, Atlanta 7 Chicago 24, Cleveland 14 Detroit 16, Buffalo 6 Green Bay 20, Kansas City 19 Indianapolis 17, Cincinnati 13 Miami 17, Dallas 3 N.Y. Giants 18, New England 17 Philadelphia 24, N.Y. Jets 14 Pittsburgh 33, Carolina 17 St. Louis 24, Jacksonville 17 Minnesota 28, Houston 0 Tennessee 32, New Orleans 9 Washington 29, Tampa Bay 24 Denver at Arizona, late Today's game Oakland at Seattle, 7:30 p.m. END OF PRESEASON MLB West Division Texas American League WL Pct GB Angels 73 63 .537 4 A's 78 60 .565 — 61 76 .445 16.5 Seattle 58 77 .430 18.5 East Division WL Pct GB Boston 83 53 .610 — New York 82 53 .607 .5 Tampa Bay 74 62 .544 9 Toronto 69 68 .504 14.5 Baltimore 54 81 .400 28.5 Central Division WL Pct GB Detroit 75 62 .547 — Chicago 68 66 .507 5.5 Cleveland 68 66 .507 5.5 Minnesota 57 79 .419 17.5 Kansas City57 81 .413 18.5 —————————————————— Thursday's results Oakland 7, Cleveland 0 Toronto 8, Baltimore 6 Kansas City 11, Detroit 8 N.Y.Yankees 4, Boston 2 Texas 7, Tampa Bay 2 L.A. Angels at Seattle, late Today's games Seattle (Vargas 7-12) at Oakland (Moscoso 6-8), 7:05 p.m. Chicago White Sox (Danks 6-9) at Detroit (Verlander 20-5), 4:05 p.m. Toronto (Morrow 9-9) at N.Y.Yankees (Nova 14-4), 4:05 p.m. Baltimore (Britton 8-9) at Tampa Bay (Price 12-11), 4:10 p.m. Texas (D.Holland 12-5) at Boston (A.Miller 6-1), 4:10 p.m. Cleveland (Masterson 10-8) at Kansas City (Chen 10-5), 5:10 p.m. Minnesota (Pavano 6-11) at L.A. Angels (Weaver 15-7), 7:05 p.m. Saturday's games Seattle at Oakland, 1:05 p.m. Toronto at N.Y.Yankees, 10:05 a.m. Chicago White Sox at Detroit, 1:10 p.m. Texas at Boston, 1:10 p.m. Baltimore at Tampa Bay, 3:10 p.m. Cleveland at Kansas City, 4:10 p.m. Minnesota at L.A. Angels, 6:05 p.m. MLB West Division National League WL Pct GB Arizona 78 59 .569 — GIANTS 72 65 .526 6 Dodgers 66 70 .485 11.5 Colorado 64 73 .467 14 Padres 60 77 .438 18 East Division WL Pct GB Philadelphia 87 46 .654 — Atlanta 81 55 .596 7.5 New York 66 69 .489 22 Washington 63 72 .467 25 Florida 60 76 .441 28.5 Central Division WL Pct GB Milwaukee 81 57 .587 — St. Louis 73 64 .533 7.5 Cincinnati 67 70 .489 13.5 Pittsburgh 62 75 .453 18.5 Chicago 59 78 .431 21.5 Houston 47 90 .343 33.5 —————————————————— Thursday's results Atlanta 5, Washington 2 L.A. Dodgers 6, Pittsburgh 4 N.Y. Mets 7, Florida 5 Philadelphia 6, Cincinnati 4 St. Louis 8, Milwaukee 4 Today's games Arizona (J.Saunders 9-11) at San Francisco (Cain 10-9), 7:15 p.m. Pittsburgh (Burres 0-0) at Chicago (Dempster 10-10), 11:20 a.m. N.Y. Mets (Dickey 6-11) at Washington (Detwiler 2-4), 4:05 p.m. Philadelphia (Oswalt 6-8) at Florida (Hand 1-4), 4:10 p.m. L.A. Dodgers (Billingsley 10-10) at Atlanta (Beachy 7-2), 4:35 p.m. Milwaukee (Greinke 13-5) at Houston (Harrell 0-0), 5:05 p.m. Cincinnati (Cueto 9-5) at St. Louis (C.Carpenter 8-9), 5:15 p.m. Colorado (Millwood 1-1) at San Diego (Harang 12-4), 7:05 p.m. Saturday's games Arizona at San Francisco, 6:05 p.m. Pittsburgh at Chicago Cubs, 10:05 a.m. Cincinnati at St. Louis, 1:10 p.m. Milwaukee at Houston, 4:05 p.m. N.Y. Mets at Washington, 4:05 p.m. L.A. Dodgers at Atlanta, 4:10 p.m. Philadelphia at Florida, 4:10 p.m. Colorado at San Diego, 5:35 p.m. last seven games, and if you win five out of seven the rest of the way good things can happen. These guys are going to go out and bat- tle and if we get a cou- ple of the cards back in the next couple weeks, maybe it will give us a lift.'' Oakland strung together three straight two-out singles, and got aggressive on the basepaths to take a 2-0 lead in the fifth against Carmona. That was more than Gonzalez needed to keep the Indians — injured or not — in check. ''That team is fight- ing for first place,'' Gonzalez said. ''They can definitely hit a fast- ball up and any mistake pitches. I'm just trying to do my job. You can't do anything about it except stay away from the bats.'' Notes: Gonzalez hasn't given up a run in his last four starts against the Indians, the longest stretch by an A's pitcher against Cleveland since Bob Welch in 1990. ... The Indians said 18 dozen baseballs (216) were used in Wednesday's game, which featured 14 pitchers, 34 strikeouts and 509 pitches. ... RHP Jason Rice, acquired by Oakland just before the midnight waiver deadline in a deal from Boston, arrived at the ballpark just before game time. ... The A's open a three-game series at home against Seattle on Friday. Oakland's RHP Guillermo Moscoso (6- 8, 3.80) faces LHP Jason Vargas (7-12, 4.52). Moscoso is 4-2 with a 2.81 ERA in eight home starts. WNBA WESTERN CONFERENCE WL Pct GB z-Minnesota 24 6 .800 — Phoenix 17 13 .567 7 Seattle 17 13 .567 7 San Antonio 15 15 .500 9 Los Angeles 13 17 .433 11 Tulsa 3 26 .103 20.5 EASTERN CONFERENCE WL Pct GB x-Indiana 19 10 .655 — x-Connecticut18 12 .600 1.5 New York 17 13 .567 2.5 Atlanta 16 14 .533 3.5 Chicago 14 16 .467 5.5 Washington 6 24 .200 13.5 x-clinched playoff spot z-clinched conference —————————————————— Thursday's results Washington 85, Atlanta 81 San Antonio 86, Phoenix 68 Today's games Washington at Atlanta, 4:30 p.m. Indiana at Connecticut, 4:30 p.m. New York at Minnesota, 5 p.m. Seattle at Tulsa, 5 p.m. Saturday's games Seattle at San Antonio, 5 p.m. Los Angeles at Phoenix, 7 p.m. Check Out our online Ya Ya rd Sale Map Classified rd Sale Map