SAN FRANCISCO — Brandon Crawford hit a three-run home run and Anthony DeSclafani got back on track Thursday night as the San Francisco Giants beat the Chicago Cubs 7-2 in a battle of surprise division leaders at Oracle Park.
Crawford’s 12th home run of the season in the fifth inning against relief pitcher Rex Brothers put the Giants ahead to stay, while DeSclafani rebounded after back back-to-back games against the Los Angeles Dodgers where he gave up 14 hits and 12 earned runs in 7 1/3 innings.
DeSclafani (5-2) gave up four hits and two runs — on Joc Pederson’s two-run home run in the third inning — with no walks and four strikeouts as the N.L. West leaders improved to 35-21. He departed after striking out the the top three hitters in the Chicago lineup in the sixth inning — Pederson, Kris Bryant and Javier Baez.
That wasn’t all for DeSclafani. With the Giants trailing 2-1, he doubled to right to drive in the tying run in the botttom of the fourth inning.
Jarlin Garcia pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth for the Giants in relief of DeSclafani, with Zack Littell finishing it off in the ninth.
Chicago, which came having won nine of its last 10 in taking the lead in the N.L. Central, fell to 33-24 with three more games to play against the Giants in the series.
Besides the three-run home run, Crawford also delivered a run-scoring single for the Giants first run off losing pitcher Zach Davies (2-3) in the second inning.
The Giants chased Davies in the fifth inning, with Crawford greeting Brothers with the blow that put the Giants in front for good.
Buster Posey and Alex Dickerson opened against Davies with consecutive singles, with catcher Willson Contreras catching Dickerson on a pickoff throw to first base.
Wilmer Flores walked, and that was it for Davies after 93 pitches in 4 1/3 innings.
Manager Gabe Kapler kept the left-handed hitting Crawford to face the left-handed Brothers, with the Giants shortstop having a 5-for-13 career mark against him with two doubles and a home run.
Crawford watched three breaking balls miss the strike zone in succession, then jumped all over a fastball down the middle, driving the 3-0 pitch over the right centerfield fence.
It was the eighth time a Crawford home run has either tied the game or put the Giants ahead this season.
DeSclafini’s unlikely double to right brought home Mike Tauchman to tie the score 2-2 in the fourth inning. It broke an 0-for-40 spell dating back to last season and was 0-for-20 as a Giant. He came in to the game with seven hits in seven seasons, three of them doubles.
Tauchman reached on a two-out ground ball that Baez couldn’t come up with at shortstop that was ruled a single.
Pederson’s leadoff at-bat on the first pitch of the game went to deep center and looked headed for a home run until it was blown back by the wind where it could be caught by center fielder Steven Duggar.
In the third, Pederson left no doubt. His blast to deep right hit water among kayakers well in to McCovey Cove. It drove in Eric Sogard, who led off with a single, and Chicago lead 2-1.
Pederson came in to the game 5-for-11 against DeSclafani with a double and three home runs.
The Giants scored in the second inning against Davies when Flores opened with a triple and Crawford followed with a first pitch liner through the box for an RBI single.
Davies held the Giants scoreless the rest of the inning, but not until he had thrown 28 pitches (after an 11-pitch first inning) as hitters laid off his assortment of change-ups and sinkers.
The Giants added another two runs in the seventh inning on Donovan Solano’s sacrifce fly against Dillon Maples, scoring Mauricio Dubon, and a run-scoring single by Duggar, which brought home Crawford.
