DENVER — Matt Cain was nearly unhittable, though that couldn’t keep the San Francisco Giants from continuing their recent slide.

Cain’s best performance of the season was wasted, as he scattered three hits, allowed a run, struck out five, walked one and retired the last 20 batters he faced.

“What a great job he did, saved us in the second inning when we were throwing the ball all over the place,” said San Francisco manager Bruce Bochy. “He picked us up and kept them from scoring again.”

But Nolan Arenado hit a game-ending single with two outs in the ninth inning to lift the Colorado Rockies to a 2-1 victory over the Giants, losers of six straight for the first time in three years.

“It’s not a good stretch,” Bochy said. “I’ll leave it at that.”

Cain was reached for a single run with two outs in the first inning. Michael Cuddyer drove an 0-2 pitch into center field to drive in the run.

Andres Torres had three hits and Buster Posey had two hits and an RBI for the defending World Series champion Giants, who last lost six in a row from June 26 to July 2, 2010.

Cardinals 7, A’s 1: At Oakland, Jarrod Parker was primed for quite a pitcher’s duel with Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright.

Parker had some of his best stuff all season when he fell to the ground and grabbed his right hamstring in the fourth inning on an unusually hot Bay Area afternoon, forced into an early exit in Oakland’s 7-1 loss to St. Louis on Saturday.

Parker stretched for several minutes with athletic trainer Nick Paparesta before throwing some warmup pitches to try to stay in the game. But manager Bob Melvin turned to Jesse Chavez.

Parker will be re-evaluated Sunday.

Wainwright tossed a five-hitter to become the NL’s second 11-game winner and Matt Adams hit two home runs for the Cardinals.

UC Davis graduate Daniel Descalso broke a scoreless tie with a sacrifice fly in the fifth.

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