Giants beat Cardinals 6-1 to force NLCS Game 7

SAN FRANCISCO - Ryan Vogelsong and these San Francisco Giants sure have become adept at saving their season.

Now, they need to do it once more against the comeback champs.

Vogelsong struck out a career-best nine in another postseason gem and on his biggest stage yet, and San Francisco staved off elimination for the second straight game, pushing St. Louis to a winner-take-all Game 7 in the NL championship series with a 6-1 victory Sunday night.

“There are two teams in the same boat right now. You’ll see two teams go out and give it everything they’ve got,” Giants reliever Jeremy Affeldt said. “This is what we play all year for and we’ll put it all on the line. This is Game 7. There’s only one better Game 7. They are no more what-if scenarios.”

Turns out the defending champion Cardinals aren’t the only team tough to put away in October.

Marco Scutaro delivered a two-run double and Buster Posey drove in his first run of the series with a groundout in the first inning as San Francisco struck early to support Vogelsong.

San Francisco’s Matt Cain and St. Louis’ Kyle Lohse are set to pitch in a rematch of Game 3, won by the Cardinals. There’s a forecast of rain in the Bay Area during the day.

“It’s time to get it done,” Lohse said.

These wild-card Cardinals sure seem to like the all-or-nothing route in October, while San Francisco thrives playing from behind.

“Clutch performances are just guys playing normally in big spots. You can’t be petrified by the situation, and neither of these teams have been,” St. Louis’ Lance Berkman said. “One of the things that makes Game 7’s so interesting is that I don’t think either of these teams is going to choke it away.”

Five games with their year on the line, five wins for these gutsy Giants this postseason. Now, it comes down to one game for the past two World Series champions to return, with the Detroit Tigers waiting.

Pitching to chants of “Vogey! Vogey!” from the sellout crowd of 43,070 at AT&T Park, the right-hander didn’t allow a hit until Daniel Descalso’s broken-bat single to center with two outs in the fifth. Vogelsong struck out the side in the first and had already fanned five through two innings.

“This place is going to be loud, I can tell you that,” Vogelsong said of Monday night.

“We’re enjoying this moment. We know how to handle this situation,” San Francisco third baseman Pablo Sandoval said. AP