Giants win game 1 of World Series, 11-7

World Series game 1, Giants vs. Rangers

Final                    1  2  3    4  5  6    7  8  9      R  H  E

Texas                  1  1  0    0  0  2    0  0  3       7 11  4

San Fran            0  0  2    0  6  0    0  3  x      11 14  2

The San Francisco Giants handily won the first game of the World Series, 11-7, chasing vaunted Texas Rangers pitcher Cliff Lee from the game during a six-run fifth inning.

Second baseman Freddy Sanchez led the Giants with four hits and three runs batted in, becoming the first player in major league baseball history to double in his first three World Series at-bats.

The game was expected to be a pitchers duel between Tim Lincecum and Cliff Lee, two of the most dominating starting pitchers in baseball. But the staff aces allowed a combined 10 earned runs. Their defenses were less impressive, committing a combined six errors, including four by the Rangers.

Texas struck first, scoring a run on a Vladimir Guerrero RBI single in the first inning and an Elvis Andrus RBI sacrifice fly in the second inning.

The Giants tied the game in the bottom of the third inning on back-to-back hits by Sanchez and Buster Posey. The Giants scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the fifth inning when Andres Torres scored on an RBI double by Sanchez—his record-setting hit. Cody Ross and Aubrey Huff followed with RBI singles.

After Lee was taken out of the game, Giants third baseman Juan Uribe hit a three-run home run off relief pitcher Darren O’Day to blow the game wide open, putting the Giants up, 8-2.

Texas cut into the lead with two runs in the top of the sixth inning, but the game was put out of reach when the Giants rallied for three more runs in the top of the eigth to take an 11-4 lead. The Rangers responded with three runs in the top of the ninth, but Giants closer Brian Wilson ended the game by getting Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler to pop out to shallow right field.

Game 2 of the series is 4:57 p.m Thursday.