http://0rz.tw/cIvah Giants extend West lead in Panda's return By Barry M. Bloom / MLB.com | 6/15/2011 2:41 AM ET PHOENIX -- Pablo Sandoval was back in the Giants lineup Tuesday night after a lengthy stay on the disabled list and led an offensive surge for the San Francisco club in its 6-5 victory over the D-backs at Chase Field. In his first at-bat after missing 40 games due to surgery to remove a broken hamate bone in his right hand, Sandoval drove in the Giants' first run with a first-inning single. "That was great. That was tremendous," said Matt Cain, who pitched 6 2/3 innings to earn his sixth win of the season. "[Pablo] had a great game today. It was great for him to be able to get off running with that hit and get us going, for him to get that confidence back. He hadn't played in six weeks, so it was definitely very, very good and we're appreciative to have him back." The Giants built a 5-0 lead over Arizona in a game that had first-place ramifications in the National League West. They held on for dear life as Brain Wilson walked a pair in the ninth inning and then caught Stephen Drew looking on a back-door slider for the final out to record his 19th save. The defending World Series champs now lead the D-backs by 1 1/2 games with two to play in this three-game series on Wednesday and Thursday nights. Cain was humming along, holding that five-run lead, until the D-backs came back with a run in the fifth, three in the sixth and another single run in the seventh. Miguel Montero had the big blow with a three-run homer, his eighth of the season, off Cain in the sixth. The right-hander was lifted after surrendering Justin Upton's run-scoring double with two out in the seventh. "They're definitely a team that takes advantage of mistakes made over the plate," said Cain, who was an offensive force himself, knocking in his club's fourth-inning run with a safety squeeze bunt. "They did a great job of doing that in the last couple of innings. With our guys scoring five, six runs, you've got to stay locked in. I didn't do that the last couple of innings and they took advantage of it." Sandoval, hitting in the third spot in the order and back in his familiar defensive slot at third base, added a walk and a run to the RBI single. The walk was a rare 10-pitch affair in San Francisco's three-run fifth inning. After the game, Sandoval had his hand encased in ice, but said he was feeling great. "No pain. That's the important thing. That was a good sign," he said. "When you're out for a long time, you have to see more pitches. That's what I was working on when I was doing my rehab. I just came here today to be patient at the plate." Sandoval incurred the injury in late April and was the team's leading hitter when he went down on April 30. He's still in that slot, hitting .310 with five homers and 15 RBIs in only 25 games. The Giants had scored only nine runs in winning two out of three last weekend against the Reds in San Francisco. So it was obvious that having Sandoval back in the lineup made a major impact. For example, Cody Ross had a pair of doubles and knocked in two runs. Both doubles were smacked off rookie D-backs starter and loser Josh Collmenter, who lasted five innings. "I thought he looked good. He had some good swings," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said about the Panda. "I know he was excited about getting back. I don't think there's any question that he really brought some life. His presence really helped. To give us the lead that first time up, that's great stuff for a club that's had some trouble scoring runs." Cain, who has now won his last three starts after a pair of losses, was another beneficiary of the Giants' offensive production. Rarely has he looked up at the scoreboard and seen a five-run lead. It was almost as if he couldn't cope with the wealth. Cain allowed five runs on eight hits, the most runs he'd given up against the D-backs since he was pelted for seven runs on eight hits on Sept. 22, 2009, in a 10-8 loss. Cain was 4-0 with a 1.46 ERA in his previous five starts vs. the D-backs. But once again, he was good enough. "Like always, he mixed his fastball with breaking balls and he's always been the same guy," Montero said. "He's always competitive. He made a great bunt, too. It's just the little things. They've been doing it and that's why they're in first place right now." Barry M. Bloom is a national reporter for MLB.com and writes an MLBlog, Boomskie on Baseball. Follow @boomskie on Twitter. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. --

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