Atlanta Braves pitcher Mike Minor throws against the San Francisco Giants during the second inning of a baseball game in San Francisco on Tuesday, May 13, 2014.SAN FRANCISCO - Mike Minor pitched three-hit ball into the seventh inning and Evan Gattis drove in a run with his first career triple as the Atlanta Braves beat the San Francisco Giants for the first time in five tries this season, 5-0 on Tuesday night.
Freddie Freeman, B.J Upton and Andrelton Simmons added RBI singles in a three-run sixth against Ryan Vogelsong (1-2) to help the Braves win for the fourth time in five games.
That was more than enough support for Minor (1-2), winless in his previous eight starts dating to last season. He struck out six and walked two in 6 2-3 innings.
Minor, who missed the first month this season with a sore left shoulder, pitched around a one-out double to Hunter Pence in the first inning and didn't allow another baserunner until Angel Pagan's two-out walk in the sixth as he shut down a Giants lineup that hit eight homers in the first four meetings with the Braves.
Minor gave up two of those in a 2-1 loss at home on May 2, but yielded nothing in the rematch, retiring 16 batters in a row at one point.
That stretch ended when Pagan walked and went to third on Pence's second double of the night. But Minor struck out Buster Posey to end the threat.
Minor left with runners on first and second in the seventh. Ian Thomas struck out Brandon Crawford to escape the jam.
Vogelsong was nearly as stingy early for the Giants, matching a career high with eight strikeouts and limiting the Braves to three hits and one run on Gattis' triple in the first five innings.
Vogelsong then ran into trouble in the sixth when he was hurt by a botched tag play at home plate by Posey. The big inning started when Jason Heyward singled and aggressively advanced to second on a flyout. Freeman followed with a single to right and Pence's throw home easily beat Heyward - but he managed to elude the tag attempt by Posey, turning a sure out into a second run. That play loomed even larger when Upton and Simmons hit two-out RBI singles that made it 4-0.
The Braves added another run in the seventh after a replay review overturned a call of an inning-ending double play. Manager Fredi Gonzalez challenged the call and Freeman was ruled safe at first after replays showed reliever David Huff never touched first base, allowing Tyler Pastornicky to score.