SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Brad Hennessey is no longer worrying each

outing which pitch will be the one that sends him back to the

minors.

That mind-set along with some minor tweaks to his delivery are

making quite a difference -- and all but earned him a longer stay in

San Francisco.

Hennessey pitched seven shutout innings in a spot start and

Michael Tucker hit a fifth-inning single to break a scoreless tie,

leading the Giants over the St. Louis Cardinals 2-0 Saturday.

Ray Durham added two hits and scored a run for the Giants, who

won for the third time in four games on a day they honored retired

closer Robb Nen, the club's all-time saves leader, in a pregame

ceremony.

Hennessey (3-2), recalled late Friday to start in place of

struggling lefty Kirk Rueter, made his sixth start of the season

and 13th of his career. Hennessey spent his time at Triple-A Fresno

working on a more compact windup, and he's liking the results.

"I came up here with the attitude to throw the best I can and

whatever happens happens," Hennessey said, "and not to worry as

much about my fate as I did before."

He earned his first win since May 12 at Houston and ended a

two-start losing streak. The right-hander impressed the Giants with

a strong June in the minors, going 3-0 in five starts.

The 25-year-old Hennessey outpitched Matt Morris (10-2), who was

trying to win his third straight start and move closer to his 100th

career victory -- he's still three wins away.

"So, what about Hennessey, the mystery starter?" manager

Felipe Alou said. "He looked like a different guy on the mound,

more relaxed. We owe it to that guy to give him a little more

credit, more than a guy used for emergency."

Tyler Walker completed the three-hitter, pitching the ninth for

his 13th save and 12th since taking over the closer job May 12. He

came out to the mound to Nen's signature song "Smoke on the

Water," finishing just the Giants' third shutout.

A day after Mark Mulder pitched seven shutout innings for his

10th win of the year in a 3-1 St. Louis victory, Hennessey hung

tough. He went to 3-1 counts on three of the first four St. Louis

batters, including walking Jim Edmonds.

Hennessey also gave up a first-inning single to Albert Pujols,

then faced the minimum in each of the next five innings. He got two

double plays and retired 11 straight during one stretch.

"Morris pitched well enough to win, but Hennessey pitched

better," Cardinals manager Tony La Russa said. "He was

outstanding."

He allowed three hits, struck out two and walked one in place of

Rueter, demoted to the bullpen Wednesday after his winless stretch

reached nine starts in Monday's 11-10 loss to the Reds.

Morris faced the minimum through four before allowing three

straight singles to start the fifth, including a line drive to

right by Tucker that put San Francisco ahead. Pedro Feliz grounded

into a double play to drive in a run moments later and make it 2-0.

Morris threw just 93 pitches in eight effective innings. He

allowed six hits, struck out three and didn't walk a batter for the

third straight start.

He's pleased with his first half and how he bounced back after

offseason shoulder surgery.

"I'm kind of surprised at my record coming off surgery," he

said. "I didn't know what to expect this season, so I'm thankful

and grateful for my statistics. I'm looking forward to having a

great second half."

The Cardinals had won five out of six and six of eight, but

couldn't muster enough offense. After working the count to 3-2

against Hennessey in the sixth, So Taguchi fouled off nine pitches

before grounding into a 6-4-3 double play.

The highlight for the Cardinals came on defense.

Edmonds made a great grab in the second on a hard-hit ball to

center field by Durham. Running toward the wall with his back to

the plate, Edmonds stretched out to make the play and fell to the

ground afterward.

Moises Alou, the Giants' lone representative in next week's

All-Star game in Detroit, had two hits in the franchise's 9,999th

victory. His managing father is a coach on La Russa's NL staff.

Mike Mahoney started at catcher for St. Louis a day after being

recalled from Triple-A Memphis.Game notes
LaTroy Hawkins pitched his second perfect inning in as many

outings with a 1-2-3 eighth. He left the team after the game to

attend a family member's funeral Sunday in Indiana. ... The Giants

didn't strand a runner until the seventh. ... It was Hennessey's

first career appearance vs. St. Louis. ... Before the game, the

Cardinals activated LHP Randy Flores from the 15-day disabled list

and optioned LHP Carmen Cali to Triple-A Memphis. ... Giants SS

Omar Vizquel had his eight-game hitting streak snapped. ... The

game drew 42,423 for the waterfront ballpark's 10th sellout this

year.