D'Backs Win West Showdown

The Arizona Diamondbacks rolled a pair of 7's in the opener of their big three-game series against the San Francisco Giants.

Arizona scored seven runs in the third inning and seven more in the eighth Monday night in a 16-6 pounding of the Giants in a matchup of the NL West's top two teams.

Bernard Gilkey homered and Luis Gonzalez celebrated his new three-year, $12.5 million contract extension with an RBI triple in the first uprising.

Travis Lee ended an 0-for-30 slump with a two-run single in the second seven-run outburst.

"Yeah, it feels good," Lee said. "It feels good to win."

Jay Bell added an RBI double in the third-inning uprising against the Giants' Kirk Rueter (9-6).

Marvin Benard homered twice, his first career multihomer game, to give him 11 homers for San Francisco. Ellis Burks was 4-for-4 with a double.

Arizona starter Armando Reynoso (7-1) gave up two runs in the first, including Benard's leadoff homer, and a solo home run to J.T. Snow in the sixth.

Reynoso pitched six innings, giving up three runs on 10 hits.

Rueter allowed 7 runs 3 earned and 7 hits in five innings.

"It's just one of those games," Rueter said. "They had a couple of big innings. That's basically the story of the game."

The Diamondbacks, attempting to become the first team to reach the playoffs in its second year of existence, won for the sixth time in seven games and increased their lead over the Giants to 3½ games. With two left in a stretch of 12 games against NL West opponents, Arizona is 8-2.

The Giants walked nine batters, giving them 17 in the last two games.

"They beat us up kind of bad tonight," San Francisco manager Dusty Baker said. "We have to put it behind us. These guys are very good at forgetting yesterday. We have no choice. We either have to shake it off or keep shaking from it."

Benard's first-inning homer was the fourth leadoff home run of his career and second this season. Bill Mueller followed with a double down the right field line, and scored on Jeff Kent's two-out single to put the Giants up 2-0.

Four of Arizona's runs in the third were unearned, due to a throwing error by the third baseman Mueller. Steve Finley and Damian Miller singled to put runners at first and third. Reynoso put down a bunt, with Finley scoring on the throw to first.

But Mueller's throw flew wildly past first base, allowing Miller to score from first, with Reynoso winding up on second.

"Stevie would have scored anyway. He got a good break on it," manager Buck Showalter said. "That kind of got us off the snide there and got us doing some positive things."

Reynoso went to third on Tony Womack's sacrifice bunt and scored on Bell's double.

Gonzalez, who signed his new contract before the game, followed with an RBI triple to deep right-center. Matt Williams fouled out for what should have been the last out.

Greg Colbrunn's subsequent RBI single and the two runs on Gilkey's seventh homer were unearned. Gilkey was a last-minute addition to the lineup.

"It was a little late," Gilkey said, "but you know, I come to the park everyday to prepare to play in a major league baseball game. You never know when things can change."

Benard's second hoe run off reliever Greg Swindell cut the lead to 8-4 in the seventh.

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