Bumgarner gives up slam as Giants' skid hits 8

MILWAUKEE -- For a brief moment, it looked as if the Giants might be in a position to snap their longest losing streak of the season.
Grégor Blanco led off the game with his second home run of the season, then broke a 1-1 tie with a sac fly in the fifth. A 2-1 lead appeared to be just enough of a cushion for Madison Bumgarner, who'd retired 13 straight batters as he took the mound for the sixth inning and ran that streak to 15 batters with two quick outs.
Christian Yelich brought the streak to an end with a walk and Jesús Aguilar's single kept the inning alive. Ryan Braun was next and Bumgarner's first offering buzzed the veteran outfielder, just missing Braun's chin.

Braun looked at ball two before Bumgarner came inside again, this time drilling Braun in the shoulder. Braun made his displeasure with Bumgarner known while Milwaukee's dugout emptied briefly and Braun and Bumgarner traded words before Braun eventually made his way to first base.
"That's part of the game," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "[Braun] is swinging the bat well so [Bumgarner] is trying to make adjustments. That's what he's trying to do. The game's on the line. He's not trying to hit him, he's trying to get him out by being aggressive inside. That's baseball."

Bumgarner denied that he threw at Braun intentionally.
"I know what kind of hitter he is and he seems to see me pretty well, so I know if it leaks back out over the plate, he's going to have a chance to do some damage," Bumgarner said.
The Brewers' dugout emptied and warnings to both teams were issued by plate umpire Tom Hallion. Before play resumed, Hallion ejected Milwaukee manager Craig Counsell for arguing that warning, then tossed left-hander Wade Miley and emergency catcher Jacob Nottingham from the bench.  
"I mean, I don't know that he was trying to hit him," Counsell said. "The first pitch was at his face. There was a little conversation between Bumgarner and Braun, then the next pitch is inside and the next pitch he gets hit. If they're trying to pitch around him, just put him on." 
After play resumed, Schoop made Bumgarner pay for the miscue by belting a 2-1 cutter to left, giving the Brewers a three-run lead.

Bumgarner finished the inning, but gave way to the bullpen for the seventh after throwing 95 pitches. He allowed five runs, all earned, on four hits and a walk while striking out four and took his first career loss at Miller Park.
"I was in the same spot mentally I was the entire game," Bumgarner said. "It sucks, getting two outs there then giving up a four-spot in a big inning. The last two games, three big innings for me. It's hard to win a ballgame like that."
The Giants have lost nine of their last 10 games, including eight in a row for the first time since April 2015, and have lost 12 of their last 14 on the road and are 29-46 on the road for the season. They finish the season with a 1-6 record against Milwaukee, their worst record vs. the Crew since going 0-6 in 2008.
MOMENTS THAT MATTERED
Jones gets a start, then gets hurt:Ryder Jones got his second start of the season, but had to leave the game after dislocating his left patella during a fifth-inning at-bat against Milwaukee right-hander Zach Davies.
Jones fell to the ground clutching his knee after fouling off a 1-0 pitch. He was tended to by the Giants' medical staff and able to walk off the field while Brandon Belt, whose own sore knee opened a spot for Jones to get the start, came in to replace him.

"It's a freak accident and it's a shame," Bochy said. "The kid gets a chance to play up here, takes a swing and does that."
SOUND SMART
Bumgarner had never taken a loss at Miller Park before Sunday. In four previous starts in Milwaukee, he was 3-0 with a 2.36 ERA and had a 7-3 record and 2.25 ERA in 11 career starts against Brewers.

HE SAID IT
"That was probably the worst road trip anybody here has ever been a part of. It's hard to swallow." -- Bumgarner, on the Giants' 0-6 road trip through Colorado and Milwaukee
UP NEXT
Right-hander Dereck Rodríguez takes the mound Monday night when the Giants open a three-game series against the Braves at AT&T Park. The rookie right-hander has been impressive this season, leading the rotation with a 2.41 ERA, .211 opponents' batting average and 1.05 WHIP, but will be looking for his first victory since Aug. 12.