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		Wine a little sweeter for Alou, Giants By Stefani Rebekah Black June 15, 2005
	San Francisco Giants pitcher Noah Lowry throws against the Minnesota Twins in the third inning Wednesday, June 15, 2005, in Minneapolis, on his way to his third win as the Giants beat the Twins 8-4. (AP Photo/Jim Mone)
	After winning only two games in 17 previous tries, the San Francisco Giants won a third time, beating the Minnesota Twins at the Metrodome Wednesday night, 8-4. The Giants had offensive help from catcher Mike Matheny with an RBI double and an Omar Vizquel two-run homer - his first as a right-handed hitter after 117 at-bats. "We'll take them anyway we can get them," said Matheny. "Getting a win any way we can right now is a beautiful thing." The Giants opened up the game with four runs in the first inning on a Moises Alou single to center that scored Vizquel, Michael Tucker doubled to deep right to score J.T. Snow and Alou, and Pedro Feliz singled to score Tucker. With the score 5-4 in the ninth and the Giants barely hanging on, Matheny's double scored Jason Ellison and Vizquel's homer gave the Giants a valuable three-run lift. Twins starter Kyle Lohse (5-5) pitched seven innings and was shelled for ten hits and five runs. Stefani's Giants footnotes: Manager Felipe Alou said prior to the game regarding the injuries and bad luck recently for the club, "The wine is not tasting the same these days. Wine after a loss is different - it's tasteless." Alou was referring specifically to injuries suffered by Edgardo Alfonzo (left quadriceps strain) and outfielder Marquis Grissom (hamstring). Both are on the 15-day disabled list. Also before Wednesday night's game, Lance Niekro fouled a ball off his left big toe in batting practice and had to be taken into the hospital for x-rays. Giants trainer Stan Conte says he will observe and take a look at Niekro before deciding whether or not to let him play on Thursday night. Also during Wednesday night's game in the first inning, Snow was hit in the right knee cap and collapsed, withering in pain. Conte said that Snow will be evaluated when he arrives at the dome on Thursday night as well. Starting pitchers for Thursday night's matchup: Right-hander Brent Tomko (5-8, ERA 4.07) will work for the Giants. He'll duel against the Twins Joe Mays (3-2, ERA 3.70). Mays has lost his last three decisions, with his last victory coming on May 27 against Cleveland. Stefani Rebekah Black covers the Giants every Wednesday night home and away and co-host Sportstalk on 1430 KVVN San Jose and 1110 KLIB Sacramento. The Associated Press contributed to this report.