ARRIETA LOSES NO-HITTER, GAME IN 8TH

Hudson Earns 7th 'W'

SAN FRANCISCO, May 27 (AP) - Jake Arrieta took a no-hitter into the 8th inning but lost it when Michael Morse singled to lead-off the frame and then lost the game as well when Brandon Crawford's double brought home Morse with the game's only run as the San Francisco Giants defeated the Chicago Cubs 1-0 at AT&T Park.  Giants starter Tim Hudson was the recipient of the offensive "explosion," winning his seventh game of the season, putting him one behind teammate Madison Bumgarner for the major league lead in that category.

Arrieta has suffered from a lack of run support throughout the season thus far.  In his five starts, the Cubs have supplied him with a grand total of nine runs (1.8 per game).  Seven of those runs came in Arrieta's previous start, a 7-2 victory over the Padres in San Diego.  In the other four starts, the Cubs have been shut out twice and scored one run in each of the remaining two games.

In many respects, this game echoed most of Arrieta's prior outings as Chicago had multiple good scoring opportunities in the late innings that went to waste.  Hudson stymied the Cubs in the early innings, allowing just two singles and preventing a baserunner from advancing past first.  But in the top of the seventh, Jason Ruggiano led off with a base hit and advanced to second when Hudson walked Anthony Rizzo.  It was the first time in the game that two runners reached base in the same inning, and in this instance it happened with no one out.  But Starlin Castro flied to center for the first out with the runners holding.  Luis Valbuena rolled into a fielder's choice, forcing Rizzo at second and leaving runners on first and third with two outs.  Wellington Castillo then ended the inning with a little dribbler in front of the plate that San Francisco catcher Buster Posey handled easily.

The Cubs had an even better scoring opportunity in the top of the eighth.  Nate Schierholtz drew a lead-off free pass from Hudson and took second on Mike Olt's single to center.  Arrieta then sacrificed the runners to second and third.  The Giants brought the infield in with Emilio Bonifacio at the plate and Hudson worked ahead of the Chicago center fielder 1-2 before inducing him to pop to second for out number two.  Ruggiano then popped to first to extinguish the threat.

The Giants, seemingly inspired, then put together the game-winning rally.  Up to that point, the only San Francisco baserunner had come in the first inning when Arrieta hit Posey with a pitch with two outs before retiring Pablo Sandoval to end the inning.  The Sandoval fly out was the first of 19 consecutive batters retired by Arrieta, one of the longest such single game streaks in the major leagues thus far this season, allowing Arrieta to become just the eighth big leaguer to take a no-hitter into the eighth inning this year. 

Morse ended Arrieta's bid for immortality by grounding a single into left field.  Tyler Colvin's grounder to second allowed Morse to advance 90 feet and Crawford gave the Giants the lead by lining an 0-2 mistake from Arrieta into the gap in right-center for a double, plating Morse easily.  Arrieta recovered to strike out Ehire Adrianza and retire pinch hitter Gregor Blanco on a fly to center, but the damage had been done.

Blanco pinch hit for Hudson, whose Houdini act in the seventh and eighth innings had finished his day in the eyes of Giants manager Bruce Bochy.  Sergio Romo came on in the top of the ninth and retired Rizzo on a fly to center, Castro on a fly to right, and Valbuena on a comebacker to end the game.  Romo fell behind all three hitters, recording a total of only three strikes against seven balls, but once again the Cubs hitters failed to take advantage of a potentially fortuitous situation.

5/27/2014, ChN14-SF14, AT&T Park

                       1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9     R  H  E   LOB DP

2014 Cubs              0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0  0     0  4  0     5  0

2014 Giants            0  0  0  0  0  0  0  1  x     1  2  0     2  1

Cubs                 AB  R  H BI   AVG    Giants               AB  R  H BI   AVG

Bonifacio         cf  4  0  0  0  .260    Pagan             cf  3  0  0  0  .282

Ruggiano          lf  4  0  1  0  .260    Pence             rf  3  0  0  0  .281

Rizzo             1b  3  0  2  0  .286    Posey             c   2  0  0  0  .277

Castro,S          ss  4  0  0  0  .288    Sandoval          3b  3  0  0  0  .260

Valbuena          2b  4  0  0  0  .217     Arias            3b  0  0  0  0  .212

Castillo,W        c   3  0  0  0  .218    Morse             1b  3  1  1  0  .277

Schierholtz       rf  2  0  0  0  .189    Colvin            lf  3  0  0  0  .300

Olt               3b  3  0  1  0  .132     Romo             p   0  0  0  0  .000

Arrieta           p   2  0  0  0  .000    Crawford,B        ss  3  0  1  1  .220

                     29  0  4  0          Adrianza          2b  3  0  0  0  .188

                                          Hudson,T          p   2  0  0  0  .136

                                           Blanco,G         ph  1  0  0  0  .278

                                                               26  1  2  1

Cubs                             INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Arrieta          L 1-4           8.0  2  1  1  0  7  91  67  2.55

                                 8.0  2  1  1  0  7  91  67

Giants                           INN  H  R ER BB  K PCH STR   ERA

Hudson,T         W 7-2           8.0  4  0  0  2  5 102  63  2.97

Romo             S 12            1.0  0  0  0  0  0  12   5  4.19

                                 9.0  4  0  0  2  5 114  68

SF : Blanco,G batted for Hudson,T in the 8th

     Arias inserted at 3b in the 9th

     Blanco,G moved to lf in the 9th

2B-Crawford,B(10). RBI-Crawford,B(18). CS-Rizzo. K-Bonifacio 2, Castro,S,

Valbuena, Olt, Pagan, Morse, Colvin, Crawford,B, Adrianza 2, Hudson,T.

BB-Rizzo, Schierholtz. SH-Arrieta. HBP-Posey. HB-Arrieta.

GWRBI: Crawford,B

Temperature: 80, Sky: clear, Wind: out to center at 2 MPH.

Attendance: 41,867

Game Time: 2:11