Giants raisin’ Cain in Game 2

Associated Press

SAN FRANCISCO

Matt Cain shut down the Texas Rangers with the type of suffocating pitching that put the San Francisco Giants in the World Series.

Two more games like this and they’ll win the World Series.

Cain pitched four-hit ball for 72/3 innings, Edgar Renteria homered and drove in three runs and the Giants routed the Rangers 9-0 on Thursday night for a 2-0 Series lead.

Cain drew frenzied ovations from a crowd waving orange pompoms, and the Giants scored seven runs in the eighth — the biggest inning in their postseason history — a follow-up to their 11-7 win in the opener.

C.J. Wilson allowed Renteria’s fifth-inning homer, then left the mound accompanied by a trainer with a blister on the middle finger of his pitching hand following a leadoff walk in the seventh. Juan Uribe added a run-scoring single against reliever Darren Oliver.

San Francisco broke open the game as Rangers manager Ron Washington again made bullpen moves too late. Derek Holland relieved with a man on and forced in a run with three straight walks, the last to Aubrey Huff, and Mark Lowe forced in another run with a walk to Uribe.

Renteria, whose 10th-inning single won Game 7 of the 1997 Series for Florida against Cleveland, followed with a two-run single to left. Pinch-hitter Aaron Rowand hit a two-run triple against Michael Kirkman, and Andres Torres doubled in a run.

Cain struck out two and walked two — one intentional. With the Giants ahead 2-0, left-handed specialist Javier Lopez retired Josh Hamilton on a lazy flyout to strand a runner on second in the eighth.

As fans stood on their feet cheering, Guillermo Mota completed the four-hitter.

Forty of the previous 51 teams to take a 2-0 lead have gone on to win the title, including seven straight and 13 of the last 14. The last to overcome a 2-0 deficit was the 1996 New York Yankees against Atlanta. The Giants have won each time they took a 2-0 lead: in 1922, 1933 and 1954.

San Francisco improved to 11-0 against Texas at AT&T Park and got its third shutout in nine postseason wins. The Giants sent the high-octane Rangers offense to its first shutout since Sept. 23.

But after a day off, the Series resumes for the first time in Arlington, Texas. Colby Lewis starts Game 3 for the Rangers on Saturday night against Jonathan Sanchez.

Much of the pitching buzz coming into the Series was over Texas’ Cliff Lee, who had been unbeaten in postseason play before getting hit hard Wednesday.

Cain has been even sharper, pitching 211/3 innings in three postseason starts without allowing any earned runs. Sparkling but not surprising, given the Giants led the major leagues in ERA during the regular season.

Cain pitched out of trouble a few times against Texas, which went 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position.

Ian Kinsler’s drive on an 0-2 pitch leading off the fifth hit flush off the top of the fence, just to the left of the 399-foot sign in center field, bounded up and was caught by Torres, who held him to a double. At first it was unclear whether the ball had gone over the wall, but relays showed umpires got the call correct.