Major League Baseball

Pence, Sandoval help Giants beat Rockies 5-3

Published Aug. 28, 2013 6:11 a.m. ET

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Hunter Pence sidestepped questions about his home run, the one that cleared the top row of seats in left field.

No, he didn't hear anything special when the ball made contact with his bat in the first inning.

And no, he didn't realize it was going to travel an extra-long way.

Pence wanted to avoid that topic all together after the San Francisco Giants beat the Colorado Rockies 5-3 on Tuesday night.

Instead, the outfielder hinted, why not focus on the performance of pitcher Yusmeiro Petit, who won his first game in four years?

Nice try, but that homer was hit too far to simply dismiss.

Officially, Pence's shot went 457 feet. But teammate Brandon Belt thinks it wasn't measured properly.

''That's 500 feet at least,'' said Belt, who kept up his torrid hitting with four singles. ''I'm marking that down - 500 feet.''

As for Chad Bettis, the one who delivered the fastball to Pence, well, he had a little postgame regret.

''Probably should've thrown him a different pitch there,'' Bettis said. ''You've got to tip your hat to him.''

Pence's two-run homer was followed by Pablo Sandoval's solo shot, marking the first time all season the Giants have hit back-to-back homers.

''It feels good to get some runs on the board,'' Pence said. ''But Petit really set the tone for us.''

Indeed.

Petit (1-0) was recently called up from Triple-A Fresno to fill in for Matt Cain, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list last week with a bruised right forearm. Petit lasted six innings, allowed six hits and two runs. He also struck out six.

Bettis (0-3) settled down after a rough start, allowing four runs and nine hits over six innings.

''He kept the Giants in check after that and he did his job,'' manager Walt Weiss said. ''His makeup is pretty good. He handles himself really well.''

Troy Tulowitzki returned to the lineup for the Rockies after sitting out the past two games with a sore oblique. He finished 1 for 3 with a run scored. The Rockies were without Dexter Fowler, who sat out with a bruised knee.

Given his roots as a reliever, Petit pitched out of the stretch even with no one on base.

He also pitched his way out of trouble on several occasions as he earned his first major league win since beating the Giants on Aug. 27, 2009, as a member of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

In the fourth, Petit loaded the bases with two outs, only to wiggle out of the jam by fanning Bettis with a low slider.

An inning earlier, Petit struck out Corey Dickerson and enticed DJ LeMahieu to fly out to strand a runner at third.

Just that kind of night for the Rockies, who finished 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position.

Pence put the Giants on the board early when he hit a two-run homer that appeared to land on the concourse beyond the left-field bleachers. Three pitches later, Sandoval lined a slider over the fence in center.

Getting Pence to talk about his homer, though, just wasn't going to happen.

Feel extra sweet when he made contact?

''I don't know,'' Pence said.

Watch it sail out of the park?

''No,'' he responded.

Catch a replay of it yet?

''No,'' Pence said.

So Belt did the bragging for Pence.

''That's one of the hardest balls I've ever seen hit in my life,'' Belt said. ''I don't know how they measure that sometimes. But I'm pretty sure they go further.''

He suddenly chuckled.

''All of my hits combined probably weren't hit as hard as his,'' Belt said.

Before the game, Carlos Gonzalez provided some fireworks of his own as he launched several pitches into the upper deck during batting practice. This with an injured middle right finger, too.

Gonzalez said his dinged-up digit is feeling better and hopes to soon leave for a rehab assignment. The All-Star has been on the disabled list since early August.

''It's something I can play through right now,'' Gonzalez said.

NOTES: Giants OF Andres Torres (bone spurs) is scheduled for season-ending surgery on Wednesday. ... OF Angel Pagan (left hamstring surgery) could be reinstated on Sept. 1. ... The Rockies activated C Yorvit Torrealba (concussion) from the seven-day disabled list. To make room, the team optioned utility player Ryan Wheeler to Triple-A Colorado Springs. ... The Rockies will send Jhoulys Chacin (12-7) to the mound on Wednesday, while the Giants counter with Madison Bumgarner (11-8). ... OF Michael Cuddyer's 10-game hitting streak was snapped.

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