SAN FRANCISCO – LaMonte Wade Jr. had his first career multi-home run game and starting pitcher Alex Wood earned his third win in his last four starts as the Giants beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-1 on Sunday to avoid a rare three-game sweep this year at Oracle Park.

Wade homered in the first and third innings to give him three in two games and 12 this season. Wilmer Flores and Thairo Estrada also went deep for San Francisco, which now has a Major League-best 151 home runs this season.

Wood lasted 5 1/3 innings before he gave way to Jay Jackson with the bases loaded and one out in the sixth. Jackson then provided the game’s most critical moment, getting Kevin Newman to ground into a 4-6-3 double play.

The win moved the Giants (62-37), for the moment, 2 ½ games ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in the National League West. The two teams meet in San Francisco for a three-game series that starts Tuesday.

The Giants and Dodgers played a thrilling and emotionally draining four-game series earlier this week at Chavez Ravine, with San Francisco three times. Los Angeles is the only team to sweep a three-game series from the Giants this season at China Basin.

Wade made sure the Pirates, who outscored the Giants 16-6 through the first two games of the series, didn’t duplicate the feat.

Wade in the first inning led off by hammering a sinker from Pirates right-hander JT Brubaker sinker an estimated 429 feet over the center-field fence to tie the game 1-1. In the third inning, Wade drove a Brubaker changeup 400 feet into the right-field arcade.

Wade’s career-high for home runs in a season as a professional was 11 in 2018. That year he hit seven in 46 games for Double-A Chattanooga and four in 74 games for Triple-A Rochester.

Wade also doubled with one out in the fifth inning, putting runners on second and third. But Pirates reliever Duane Underwood, Jr. retired both Donovan Solano and Alex Dickerson to end the threat.

Wood allowed one earned run and five hits, but also matched a season-high with eight strikeouts.

In his last four outings before Sunday, Wood had a 2-0 record with a 2.82 ERA with 29 strikeouts and seven walks. His last win came on July 7 when he allowed one earned run over seven innings.

The Pirates went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position through the first five innings, leaving four runners on base.

INJURY UPDATES: First baseman Brandon Belt (right knee inflammation) ran again Sunday and is nearing a rehab assignment. Shortstop Brandon Crawford continues to progress from a left oblique strain and as of now, is on track to return when he is eligible to come off the 10-day injured list next week.

NEXT WEEK: Manager Gabe Kapler said the Giants will stay on their regular pitching rotation for their three-game series with the Dodgers from Tuesday to Thursday. Logan Webb is slated to face Julio Urías on Tuesday, Anthony DeSclafani will pitch Wednesday vs. Walker Buehler and Johnny Cueto will pitch in the Thursday finale vs. David Price.