Giants and Cardinals Will Play Game 7 In NLCS
Ryan Vogelsong had a career high nine strikeouts and the San Francisco Giants took a 5-1 lead over the St. Louis Cardinals through seven innings in Game 6 of the NL championship series Sunday night. Jeremy Affeldt, Santiago Casilla combined to pitch the 8th inning. Sergio Romo got the save in the 9th to force a Game 7 with a 6-1 victory. St. Louis had lead the best-of-seven series 3-1 after 4 games.
Marco Scutaro hit a two-out, two-run double off Chris Carpenter to highlight San Francisco’s four-run second. Buster Posey‘s groundout in the first scored Scutaro and gave the NL batting champion his first RBI of the series. Ryan Theriot singled home an insurance run in the ninth with a base hit to left-field.
Fans gave Vogelsong a standing ovation and serenaded the 35-year-old journeyman with chants of “Vog-ey! Vog-ey!” after allowing one earned run and 4 hits.
Allen Craig‘s two-out single in the sixth drove home Carlos Beltran for the Cardinals’ only run. St. Louis had gone 15 innings without scoring after lefty Barry Zito held them scoreless in Game 5.
Carpenter was replaced after allowing six hits and five runs – three unearned – in four innings. He walked two and struck out six. Matt Holliday was scratched from the Cardinals’ lineup with a sore back.
Scutaro, Brandon Belt and Pablo Sandoval had two hits each for the Giants.
The Giants will send Matt Cain to the mound against the Cardinals Kyle Lohse with trip to the 2012 World Series on the line Monday night.
