MILWAUKEE - Ben Sheets probably won't please all the doubters until he pitches a complete season without some sort of major injury. But in the past seven weeks, he at least has calmed worries about his balky pitching shoulder.

The right-hander tossed eight strong innings Sunday to lead the Milwaukee Brewers to their fifth straight win, 5-3, over San Francisco before 23,049 in the season finale at Miller Park.

Sheets (6-7) has thrown at least six innings in nine straight starts since leaving an Aug. 5 game in the first inning after feeling pain in his shoulder, which has troubled him at times this year after having offseason surgery to repair a torn muscle in his upper back.

In those nine starts, Sheets has demonstrated his trademark control, striking out 65 while walking six. On Sunday, he scattered five hits and allowed two runs, striking out six without walking a batter.

The Brewers equaled their longest winning streak of the season - they started the year 5-0. Milwaukee capped an amazing year at Miller Park with a 48-33 home record that is better than every National League team but the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Giants, meanwhile, were eliminated from contention in the NL West and are seven games back of wild-card leading Philadelphia with seven games remaining. San Francisco has lost nine of its last 11 games and has been outscored 93-50 in its last nine.

"You have got to play for the fans," said right fielder Moises Alou, whose second-inning double was his 2,000th hit. "You have to be a professional about it. You can't go out there and go through the motions."

Mike Rivera had a big day at the plate, going 2-for-3 with three RBIs as the Brewers cooled off Giants starter Matt Cain, who went 5-1 with a 1.52 earned-run average in his previous seven starts.

Sunday, Cain pitched well until the sixth, when he walked the bases loaded with two outs. Rivera lined an 0-2 double high off the wall in left-center to drive in Bill Hall, Geoff Jenkins and David Bell.

"I am still frustrated with myself about that," Cain said. "I don't know. I just walked three guys that are (free) swingers, and I just didn't give them a chance to swing. I just messed up terribly 0-2 to Rivera."

Francisco Cordero allowed Pedro Feliz's one-out RBI single in the ninth before getting Eliezer Alfonzo to ground into a double play with the bases loaded. It was Cordero's 16th save in 16 chances since joining the Brewers on July 28.

Barry Bonds did not play for the Giants one day after passing Hank Aaron for the National League home run record (734). Manager Felipe Alou said Bonds was available to pinch hit in the ninth, but he did not want to take out Alfonzo, who had two doubles.

"We kind of kept looking for him once the winning run got to the plate," Brewers manager Ned Yost said of Bonds. "I'm glad they didn't use him."

Notes: The Brewers scored at least nine runs in their three wins to open the series against the San Francisco Giants. It was just the second time in franchise history (1978 was the other) that the Brewers won three consecutive games while reaching the nine-run mark.

This is cache, read story here