HOUSTON -- Ryan Vogelsong had a tough time early in his start on Thursday night. But after using six relievers a night before, San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy was forced to stick with him despite giving up four runs through three innings. Vogelsong (12-7) bounced back, pitching three scoreless frames before Hunter Pence hit a go-ahead two-run single in the seventh inning and the Giants rallied again for an 8-4 win over the Houston Astros. "He kept grinding and that was a gritty effort," Bochy said. "He knew that we needed some innings out of him and he kept going and ends up getting a win. That shows you how tough he is. That was a tough start the first three innings." The Giants were down 4-0 after four innings. They cut the lead to one with a three-run fifth inning, and Pablo Sandoval singled in a run in the seventh to tie it. Pence, who hit a three-run homer on Wednesday, then caused trouble for his former team again, this time with a two RBI grounder off Fernando Rodriguez (1-9) to shallow centre field that put San Francisco on top 6-4. San Francisco came back to win the opener of the series and Thursdays win completed their sixth sweep this season. "Great comeback -- a couple of great comebacks here," Bochy said. "They played us tough." Joaquin Arias added a solo homer in the eighth for the NL-East-leading Giants. Vogelsong allowed seven hits and four runs. Sergio Romo got the last out of the ninth for his eighth save. Tyler Greene homered for the Astros, who dropped to 1-9 under interim manager Tony DeFrancesco. DeFrancesco took over on Aug. 19 after Brad Mills became the first manager in the majors to be fired this season. "The bottom line is we had lead going into the seventh inning, and somebody is going to have to step up out in that bullpen, and theyre going to have to make pitches when they have to," DeFrancesco said. The announced attendance was just 12,835, which set a record for the smallest crowd in the history of Houstons 12-year-old ballpark for the third straight game. The struggling Astros were competing for fans on Thursday night with both the Texans, who were hosting the Vikings in a preseason game, and Rice which took on UCLA. Pence walked in the eighth inning and scored from first when Brandon Belt tied a career-high with his fourth hit of the night -- a double to right field -- to extend the lead to 8-4. Belt, who is from Nacogdoches, Texas, had a large group of family at the park for the first two games of the series. Unfortunately his wife and several members of the group went home early and missed Thursdays game after becoming ill with what he thinks was food poisoning the night before. "Too bad my family already left," Belt said, adding that he was up all night Wednesday tending to his sick wife. Things looked good for the Astros early. Jose Altuve hit a leadoff single before scoring on a two-out double by Jason Castro, which a diving Pence barely missed in right field. Jimmy Paredes singled to centre field to score Castro and put Houston up 2-0. Houstons Matt Dominguez, who was called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Thursday, hit his first career triple to lead off the second inning. He scored on a sacrifice bunt by Brian Bogusevic to push the lead to 3-0. Greenes opposite field solo shot in the third inning left Houston on top 4-0. "I was just kind of off early with everything -- mechanically, tempo. Everything was just kind of out of whack," Vogelsong said. "It wasnt really one thing that I changed to get going, it just kind of started falling into place." Houston starter Jordan Lyles yielded seven hits with three runs in five innings. Gregor Blanco singled and advanced to third on a one-out single by Vogelsong in the fifth inning. Angel Pagan cut Houstons lead to 4-1 with his run-scoring double before an RBI single by Marco Scutaro. The Giants got within 4-3 when Pagan scored on a sacrifice fly. Lyles got into trouble in the second inning when three consecutive singles left the bases loaded with no outs. He wriggled out of that jam by retiring the next three batters to end the inning. The last out of the inning was a nifty one, as Lyles grabbed a comebacker from Vogelsong. NOTES: Astros OF Justin Maxwell entered the game as a defensive replacement in the seventh inning. It was the first time hes played since Aug. 21 because of a bruised right index finger. ... Houston left-hander Dallas Keuchel was optioned to Oklahoma City to make room on the roster for Dominguez. ... Houston OF Ben Francisco, who was scratched from Wednesdays lineup with discomfort in his right wrist, also sat out Thursday. ... The Astros open a series with Cincinnati on Friday and the Giants travel to face the Cubs. Cheap NFL Jerseys . Morse had four hits, including the go-ahead homer in the eighth inning after Washington had blown a four-run lead, and the Nationals beat the Atlanta Braves 5-4 on Friday night. Wholesale NFL Jerseys . "Releasing Scott was not an easy decision but I need to do what I think is best for the future of the Edmonton Rush," said Rush head coach and general manager Derek Keenan. http://www.cheapjerseyscd.com/ . The 18-year-old from Vancouver smashed his racket in frustration after his opponent claimed the title on a first match point. Peliwo had put the Belgian under pressure with three break points in the final game, but Coppejans managed the save them all -- the third with an ace. wholesale jerseys china . The 38-year-old was designated for assignment. The 2009 World Series MVP for the New York Yankees was batting .147 with two homers and seven RBIs and was hitless in his last 16 trips to the plate. Cheap Jerseys . Heres To Good Health - The Eagles offence was slowed by injuries throughout most of 2011 and still managed to finished ranked fourth overall.With 2013 just a few days old, there are already plenty of talking points on the Canadian soccer landscape with the latest being Montreals appointment of a new head coach. The announcement of Marco Schallibaums hiring on Monday caused quite a stir in MLS circles with many questioning the move, but this type of appointment certainly doesnt come as a surprise. It is, however, a big gamble. Its no secret that the most successful coaches in Major League Soccer have deep roots within the North American game. They either came through the college system in the United States or played in MLS during their career, which gives them a major advantage when coaching in the league and dealing with the unique aspects of the game here. There has been a long list of coaches who have come from Europe who havent been able to find success in MLS, but there are also exceptions such as Gary Smith, who came over from England and won MLS Cup in 2010 after just three seasons in the league. Although Schallibaum is a name that will be new to many people, Impact president Joey Saputo had very specific criteria when searching for his new head coach and Schallibaum ticks all of those boxes. When I spoke with Saputo at the MLS Cup in Los Angeles in early December, he told me he wanted someone with European experience but said that man wouldnt be an Italian. He wanted someone who agreed with the footballing philosophy that the club has and also someone who could speak both English and French. But one of the key aspects of the appointment was the desire to teach. Saputo wanted his new coach to mentor players but also develop the younger coaches currently at the club. Schallibaum arrives in Montreal having spent the last couple of years as a FIFA coaching instructor so he has the teaching abilities that Saputo was looking for. He also speaks four languages, including English and French, and has almost a decade of experience managing in the Swiss top flight. None of that means that he will be a success in MLS, but in a unique market, Saputo has managed to find someone who meets his requirements. Until we see what the rest of Montreals coaching staff will look like and also get a chance to watch Schallibaum at work, its difficult to fully assess the appointment, but it will be key for Montreal to learn from mistakes at other clubs and ensure their new coach has the support necessary to navigate uncharted territory. Along the 401 Speculation continues to gain momentum surroundding the potential arrival of New Zealander Ryan Nelson at Toronto FC.dddddddddddd The 35-year-old is currently playing for Queens Park Rangers in the English Premier League but, according to his current manager Harry Redknapp, hes been offered a coaching job in MLS. Toronto FC is the likely destination for Nelson, who previously played in MLS for DC United and is therefore well known to TFCs new president and general manager Kevin Payne. Given Kevin Paynes public statement that Paul Mariner will be the clubs coach in 2013, it seems logical that Nelson would be brought in as an assistant to work alongside Mariner. However, at a club where nothing should come as a surprise, it cant be counted out that Nelsons position could be more than just an assistant and that he would be given the opportunity to manage the team. The rebuild continued on Monday as technical manager Bob de Klerk left the club. The move comes as no surprise, given that de Klerk didnt really fit into managements plans following the departure of fellow Dutchman Aron Winter last spring. Miller For Canada The news broke Sunday night on Team 1040 in Vancouver that, as expected, Colin Miller will be named as the interim head coach of Canadas Mens National Team. The current FC Edmonton head coach will take charge of Canada for friendly matches against Denmark and the United States later this month. Theres no doubt Miller provides a safe pair of hands for Canada and that is exactly what they need right now. After the humiliation of the 8-1 loss to Honduras in World Cup Qualifying, its important that the Canadian Soccer Association doesnt rush into hiring a full-time successor to Stephen Hart. They need to make sure they get the right candidate for the long haul. That doesnt mean just having someone in place for 2013, but a leader who can take the team forward towards the next World Cup qualification campaign. That man might not be available right now. So the CSA has turned to a man who is steeped in Canadian soccer. Miller is a former captain of Canada and has held the position of interim coach before. Just as importantly, he places great emphasis on developing young Canadian talent, something he talked about in great depth when he was appointed as FC Edmonton head coach recently. At a time when it is important to give younger players the experience of international football to groom them for later years, Miller seems a good fit until a full-time head coach is hired. ' ' '