Crawford gets an extended breather

--SS Brandon Crawford played short just once in four games because manager Bruce Bochy went with Joaquin Arias at the position. In two of the games, opponents threw lefties (against whom Crawford traditionally has struggled), and the other day was a simple day off for Crawford, who played most every inning early in the season, having started each of the first 18 games.

--1B Brandon Belt, one day after his two-run double beat the Padres 2-1, was out of the lineup Sunday because the Padres threw a lefty, Clayton Richard. Explained manager Bruce Bochy: "Day game after a night game, facing a left-hander, we have our right-handed bats out there. This guy (Richard) has been tough on us. He's given up all of his home runs against right-handers. We're going to go with the hitters who give us our best chance to win." C Buster Posey played first base, and 1B Brett Pill played left, and the Giants won 4-2.

--LHP Madison Bumgarner won four straight starts -- and has 40 percent of the Giants' 10 wins. In those four starts, his ERA was 1.61. His latest gem was against the Padres. He gave up one run in 7 2/3 innings. It's a far cry from his first start, in which he surrendered four earned runs on seven hits against the Diamondbacks. He lasted just four innings.

--RHP Matt Cain is hot, and the Giants will have a positive frame of mind when he takes the mound Tuesday night in the opener of a series against the Marlins. Twice this season he's pitched nine scoreless innings. In those 18 innings, he struck out 15 batters, walked just one and allowed three hits. In his last start, he gave up three runs in 6 1/3 innings in a 9-2 loss to the Reds.

--C Buster Posey will play against the Marlins for the first time since getting knocked over at the plate by OF Scott Cousins last May 25, a collision that ended Posey's season because of ankle and leg damage. The Giants won't see Cousins in the series because he's with Class AAA New Orleans.

BY THE NUMBERS
25 -- Errors committed by the Giants in their first 22 games, the second-highest total in the major.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"Right now, I'm very happy to be in once place." -- CF Angel Pagan, who has batted only leadoff for the Giants after hitting everywhere between first and eighth last year with the Mets.

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