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(Sports Network) - The San Francisco Giants can record a season high for consecutive victories when the club shoots for a three-game sweep of the San Diego Padres this afternoon at AT&T Park.
After taking the first two tests of this set, including Saturday's 4-3 decision, the Giants have now won four games in a row. That matches the team's best win streak of the year, set between June 6-9.
Rich Aurilia snapped a 3-3 deadlock with a run-scoring triple in the bottom of the eighth inning to keep up San Francisco's winning ways, while lengthening the National League West bottom-feeding Padres' losing streak to six games.
Barry Zito (8-15) contributed a strong eight innings in Saturday's win, with the former All-Star allowing three runs on just four hits. Brian Wilson notched his NL-leading 34th save of the season with a perfect ninth.
San Diego hurler Dirk Hayhurst lasted four innings in his major league debut, permitting three runs on five hits before exiting. Reliever Mike Adams (1-2) took the loss after giving up the go-ahead run in his two innings of work.
Chase Headley knocked in two runs and Jody Gerut added an RBI triple for the Padres, who have lost all five matchups thus far on a six-game road trip.
The Giants have now won nine of their 13 2008 meetings with San Diego, including five of the last six encounters between the divisional foes. San Francisco has a chance for only its second three-game home series sweep of the season this afternoon, with the other one coming against Washington from July 22-24.
Kevin Correia will be put in charge of accomplishing that task for the Giants today. The right-hander has managed only one win since April, however, although he's pitched better as of late.
Correia has posted a 3.42 earned run average in four August starts despite having an 0-2 record over that span. One of those losses came to the Padres, a hard-luck 4-1 defeat on August 3 in which he gave up just two runs and three hits in 6 1/3 innings.
The San Diego-area native, who turns 28 today, was last in action on Tuesday, when he took a loss to Florida after surrendering five runs (3 earned) over 4 2/3 frames.
Correia has faced the Padres 16 times previously, only four of which have come in a starting role, and is 1-1 with a 4.11 ERA against San Diego.
San Diego hands the ball to the struggling Josh Banks, who's endured some major control issues in back-to-back losses his last two times out.
Banks issued six walks which led to seven Milwaukee runs in a 4 1/3-inning stint against the Brewers on August 13. He wasn't any better in Tuesday's start at Arizona, walking seven batters in four frames and allowing six runs in the Padres' 7-6 loss.
The rookie has fared very well in two 2008 starts versus San Francisco, however. Banks has thrown 16 innings against the Giants and limited the club to three runs -- one earned -- while obtaining a win and a no-decision.
On May 31 at AT&T Park, Banks yielded one unearned run and six hits in tossing the first and only complete game of his career.
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