Where the #$%&! has this been?

For the first time in recent memory San Francisco went to AT&T Park, or any ballpark for that matter, and acted like it actually had something to play for.

With just six games remaining, some routine scoreboard watching told the Giants everything they needed to know. St. Louis and New York, both suitors for the two wild-card spots in the National League, notched one-sided victories. The Giants needed their own, and they got it. Backing starting pitcher Matt Moore with a 19-hit attack, Giants cruised to an easy 12–3 victory over visiting Colorado. 

It was nice to see the Giants delivering the hits for a change.

Easy victory? Those words have been used far too little during the second half; at least not with the Giants on the positive side of them.

Moore came one out short of pitching eight full innings, striking out 11 without walking a batter (we were stunned as well) while scattering six hits. He left the game with a six-run lead, something even the Giants' shaky bullpen couldn't blow on this night.

San Francisco has made a habit of allowing mediocre pitchers to look unbeatable. On this night, Colorado starter German Marquez was in the wrong place at the wrong time. The Orange and Black jumped on top early, getting three singles in the bottom half of the first inning. Hunter Pence did the damage, stroking a two-out RBI single to put the Giants on top 1–0.

Showing he has the true heart of a 2016 San Francisco Giant, Moore (who had done little to make us forget he's wearing the number previously donned by Todd Worrell's less-talented brother) gave the run right back. Christhian Adames led off the Colorado third with a double, was sacrificed to third, and scored on a ground out. San Francisco got that run back in similar fashion, sans the sacrifice. Brandon Belt let off the bottom half of the frame with a ball that found Triples Alley and scored on a ground out by Buster Posey.

Moore pitched through a lead-off double in the fifth and the Giants came looking for more in the bottom half of that inning. Denard Span opened the frame with a two-bagger and Belt lined a shot into the right field corner to chase home the run. Belt was gunned down trying to stretch the hit into two bases, and that stung a bit when Posey and Hunter Pence followed with consecutive long shots into the left-field seats.  The homer by Posey was significant beyond the score, putting his 1,000th career hit in the ledger.

We could use some Moore of that. Bad pun quota achieved. (AP Photo)

Brandon Crawford, making his return from a dislocated finger suffered during the debacle in Los Angeles, followed up the home run binge with a triple into the right field corner. Two homers, a triple, a double and a single; that's the cycle for the Giants in the frame. And they weren't done. Angel Pagan stroked a single down the left field line, bringing in Crawford to up the lead to 6–1 Giants and mercifully chase Marquez from the ball game.

,

Matt Carasiti was the replacement and he promptly hit former St. John's teammate Joe Panik to put runners at first and second. Carasiti pitched out of the jam however, getting Connor Gillespie on a pop up and striking out Moore. Still, after five innings of play the offensively-starved Giants had pounded out a dozen hits and seemed to finally have a laugher to enjoy.

The Giants added on in their half of the seventh. Angel Pagan led off the inning with a base hit and Joe Panik ripped a shot off the bricks in right for an RBI double.

Moore departed with two out but two on in the eighth, and old Greybeard Joe Nathan quickly rapped up the inning.

Congrats on hit number 1,ooo. (Getty Images)

Because apparently it was so much fun, the Giants just kept scoring in the eighth. Posey drew a one-out walk and Pence followed with a single to right. Crawford then ripped his fourth hit of the evening, his second tripke, plating both runners. Crawford came home to score on Pagan's ground out.

Welcome back, Brandon. Could you maybe save a bit of that for the rest of the season? Or better yet, bottle it and spread it around to the rest of the team. Maybe he did. After a Panik triple, Gillespie got into the long ball act by lifting a shot toward McCovey Cove. The Giants had scored five times in the stanza to reach their final total.

Now this is still the Giants, so no game is complete without the prerequisite fright from the bullpen. Josh Osich surrendered  two runs on two hits and a walk in the Colorado ninth, with Stephan Cardillo's two-run double the big blow.

Crawford's four-hit night stole the offensive show but he was hardly alone. Belt and Pence each had three hits, while Span, Pagan, Panik and Gillespie had two apiece.

The Hunt for an Orange October continues on Wednesday with Jeff Samardzija (12–10, 3.83 ERA) going to the mound for San Francisco against Colorado's Tyler Chatwood (11–9, 4.08 ERA). The Mets will continue to battle the Marlins in Miami while in St. Louis, the  Cardinals again battle Cincinnati.

(box)