Results tagged ‘ Rich Aurilia ’
No Joy In Mudville
The Giants trail the Rockies by only 2.5 games this
Wednesday and a series sweep tonight would bring them a game closer with
sixteen games left to play in the season. And we have our 13-4 co-ace Matt Cain
facing the mile high boys and their 14-9 co-ace Jorge de la Rosa. I liked our
chances, especially when Matt escaped a two on, two out situation in the maiden
inning by getting Brad Hawpe with a ground out to second baseman Freddy
Sanchez.
However, I didn’t like our chances as much after
Jorge de la Rosa faced the minimum of Giants batters (twelve) over the first
four innings aided by an Edgar Renteria double play ending the second inning
and a Pablo Sandoval double play ending the fourth inning. Ouch. And shortstop
Troy Tulowitzki‘s solo home run leading off the fourth inning did not bode well
for the Giants. Nor did second baseman Clint Barmes‘ two out double driving in
catcher Yorvit Torrealba with the second run of that inning. Double ouch.
All in all, the Giants did not seem to be playing
with a sense of urgency tonight and the AT&T Park crowd also seemed a bit
complacent. The Giants did not help themselves when Edgar Renteria and Aaron
Rowand both struck out after Juan Uribe walked in the fifth inning. Oy. Nor
were their cause assisted when the top three of the Giants order all struck out
swinging after rightfielder Nate Schierholtz and pinch hitter Rich Aurilia
opened the sixth inning with a walk and a single, respectively. Double oy. So
when the Rockies hit back-to-back homers off of Matt Cain in the sixth inning
after two were already out, prospects for victory did not look good for the
hometown nine.
But trailing 4-0 in the bottom of the ninth inning,
Freddy Sanchez, Pablo Sandoval, and Bengie Molina all led off with singles
followed by an error by Clint Barmes made the score 4-2 with nobody out. But
after Edgar Renteria popped up and Randy Winn grounded out to Todd Helton
thereby driving in the their run and pinch runner Eugenio Velez to third base
with the potentially tying run… mighty Nate Schierholtz struck out.
Somewhere children are playing. Elsewhere, people
shout. But tonight the Giants slipped behind the Rockies by 3.5 games again,
though we have neither time nor reason to pout because sixteen games remain to
be played this year. Go Giants!
Just Another Night At The Zoo
Take
one part Los Angeles Dodgers, throw in a good measure of pennant race fever,
add a warm Friday night, and mix it all together within an AT&T Park filled
with Giants fans and you’ve got yourself a potent potable (if not an outright
explosive substance). Enjoy! And I certainly intended to as I arrived to the
park at 4:30 to watch both teams take batting practice.
Matt
Cain did not start the game sharp. Although he got lead off hitter shortstop
Rafael Furcal out on a spectacular diving catch by Nate Schierholtz in
rightfield, rightfielder Andre Ethier hit a single to leftfielder Eugenio Velez
on a full count. And although the doubly hated and feared leftfielder Manny
Ramierez struck out looking at an 87 mph slider on a full count, centerfielder
Matt Kemp hit another single to left field. And then, when two out in the
inning, James Loney nailed a double over Nate Schierholtz‘s head and into
Triple’s Alley for a stand-up double and a two run Dodgers lead.
Tonight,
the Giants could not answer the Dodgers until the second inning when catcher
Bengie Molina led off with a single to leftfield followed on the next pitch
with a double into the right field corner by third baseman Juan Uribe sending
Bengie to third with no outs. Nate Schierholtz moved the runners over and the
first run on the board with a ground out Rafael Belliard at second base. But
Juan Uribe died at third when centerfielder Aaron Rowand impatiently swung at
two inside pitches from Hiroki Kuroda finally grounding out to Hiroki Kuroda at
third base and shortstop Edgar Renteria grounding out to his counterpart for
the last out. 2-1 would be as close the Giants would get to the Dodgers
tonight.
After
Matt Cain threw 31 pitches in the first inning, he threw 54 more from the
second through fifth innings giving up just two walks and a single to catcher
Casey Martin. During that span (from the third through the fifth innings) the
Giants went three-up, three down on just 29 pitches from crafty Hiroki Kuroda.
And
then the sixth inning happened. After getting the first two Dodgers out, James
Loney hit a home run for his third RBI of the game. That was as bad as Casey
Blake‘s home run just three pitches later for a 4-1 Dodgers lead. It’s
interesting to note that Matt Cain‘s second pitch to Casey Blake seemed to
catch much of the outer plate, thigh high; especially considering the strike
calls Hiroki had been enjoying.
I’m
not one to carp gratuitously on umpire’s calls but when a pattern of bias
appears to be established, I’m not shy about calling that fact out to the
responsible party. I asked home plate ump Brian Gorman where he was from.
Pacoima? Toluca Lake? When he did finally call a strike, I agreed that Matt’s
pitch was “right down El Segundo!” I know it’s obscure but if Brian was from
the Southland, he knew of which I spoke.
So
once Matt Cain was able to struggle through the rest of the Dodgers lines and
finally get the final out with a strike out against Hiroki Kuroda, he was
lifted in the bottom of the inning for Fred Lewis who could only manage to
ground out five feet to the catcher for the first out. The next two batters
were also dispatched on five pitches and the Dodgers lead stayed 4-1.
And
then the seventh inning happened. The first three Dodgers in the line up all
singled against reliever Merkin Valdez for a 5-1 lead. When Merkin walked Matt
Kemp to load the bases, he was lifted for Bob Howry. No “Neuvo Roberto” this
night. After a sacrifice fly by James Loney for a 6-1 lead, Casey Blake hit a
single and Russell Martin hit a double for a 9-1 lead by the time Hiroki Kuroda
struck out again to end the inning again.
At
this point, the only thing to do is to have fun… or fight. And, although there
were plenty of rumbles in the bleachers in the late inning causing security
personnel and uniformed policepersons scurrying all around the premises, my
section stayed relatively calm. There were a couple of elder “vato-ish” sitting
to my left but the just laughed off some of the comments directed at them. And
when the slaughter was in full flower, I shushed at them while they laughed and
celebrated at us warning then, “Those are the last runs you’re going to score
this weekend! You’d better enjoy them!” And there was another big, large
Dodgers fan with a 99 Ramirez jersey on who would stand up and taunt us at not
so crucial moments to which the funny, drunk young man would retort, “When are
you due, Manny?” Sit down before your baby drops!” “You shouldn’t be drinking
beer while you’re pregnant, Manny!”
In
the top of the eighth, Bruce Bochy finally treated us to a glimpse of the
future. He started the inning with this substituted lineup: Eugenio Velez LF;
Rich Aurilia 3B; Travis Ishikawa 1B; Kevin Frandsen 2B; Joe Martinez P; Nate
Schierholtz RF; John Bowker 1B; Ryan Rohlinger SS; and… Buster Posey catching!
This is what I had been waiting all season long to see. And although Joe
Martinez gave up the 10th Dodgers run with a walk to Manny Ramirez
and a double to Matt Kemp (all with two out), the young Giants answered with
their second run of the night when John Bowker triples into Triples Alley and
scored on Ryan Rohlinger‘s ground out.
But
Buster Posey struck out looking at a 94 mph fastball from Hiroki Kuroda to end
the inning and end his maiden at bat in the big leagues. And the Dodgers scored
their tenth run in the top of the ninth inning to lead 10-2 which is only
notable to mention because, in the bottom of the ninth with the crowd clearly
things, a gaggle of pre-teen girls gathered behind me to jump, yell, scream,
dance, and chant to their hearts’ delight. They call out to now centerfielder
Eugenio Velez if they could meet Aaron Rowand. And in the bottom of the ninth,
they invented the chant, “NINE IN THE NINTH!!! … NINE IN THE NINTH!!! … NINE IN THE
NINTH!!!” It was not only humorous, it even worked to the extent the Giants got yet another run on a two out rally no less via a single by Travis ishikawa followed by a double by Kevin Frandsen off of reliever Ramon Troncoso to make the final score of the night 10-3.
Those young ladies also represent the future of the Giants franchise insofar as if their enthusiasm in this dynamic product can be sustained for another two or more years with exciting playoff-caliber baseball, they and their fellow youthful “demographic” will imprint a fertile, growing fan base that will sustain the ball club throughout the next generation to come.
The Rockies won last night. The Giants’ prospects are slipping. But through it all, the Giants fans are remaining true and loyal. We fans like this team. It has character we can identify with and believe in. And if it is not meant to happen in 2009, it will get better in 2010. Go Giants!
Cool, Daddy-O! Cool!
I
arrived at the ballpark at 6:30. Before the game, the daughters of Art
Rosenbaum (whom I used to read in the San Francisco Chronicle) presented prizes
to the best high school sports writers and two of them were from my old
newspaper which was pretty cool so I took a picture of that. And then came a
group of other cool looking Giants fans so I took a picture of them. And then
came the pre-game Memorial for the late Sue Burns who owned the biggest share
of the San Francisco Giants Ballclub and she seemed like a very cool lady so I
took a picture of that. And then Barry Bonds received the ceremonial first
pitch from Sue’s daughters along with Rich Aurilia and that was very cool so I
took a picture of that.
But
before the pre-game ceremonies even took place, pitchers Paul Maholm and Tim Lincecum were on the field at 7:00 doing their pre-game warm ups. As Paul Maholm
was throwing the traditional long toss with his catcher Ryan Doumit, Tim
Lincecum was going through a series of yoga exercises. Paul Maholm stole a
couple of glances at his Cy Young winning rival as he finished up and went to
the mound to begin his warm up pitches. Tim later threw a few pitches off the
mound almost as an afterthought and he was good to go. Tim Lincecum: too cool for school.
A
cool fog began to blow into AT&T Park as the game began. Pirates
centerfielder Andrew McCutchen and second baseman Delwyn Young on just four
pitches apiece. The Giants answered their initial batting bell by grounding out
to shortstop Jack Wilson twice (although right fielder Randy Winn was barely
nipped at the base if that). And then third baseman Pablo Sandoval doubled off
the centerfield wall to my right. And then, on the next pitch, catcher Benji
Molina doubled off the centerfield wall to my left. And suddenly, the Giants
were ahead 1-0.
The
Pirates began their second inning with a single to left field before Tim
Lincecum finally struck out left fielder Brandon Moss and third baseman Andy
LaRoche on just five total pitches to end the inning. The Giants then came to
bat to begin one of the quirkiest string of events I’ve ever witnessed on a
professional ballfield. Newly recalled first baseman Jesus Guzman opened the
inning with a solid single up the middle before newly recalled left fielder
Eugenio Velez followed with an identically placed high hopping grounder up the
middle that Jack Wilson got to but had skip off his glove and into centerfield
just as he was about to step on second base to begin a double play allowing
Jesus Guzman to race around that bag and on into third base just ahead of
Andrew McCutchen‘s throw. On the next pitch, second baseman Juan Uribe smashed
a one hopper down the third base line that Andy LaRoche snagged and immediately
threw home to cut down Jesus Guzman attempting to score. But Jesus saw the
throw and immediately reversed course to scramble back to the bag before
catcher Ryan Doumit could return the ball thereby filling the bases with Giants
sans any out. But on the very next pitcher, Tim Lincecum smashed an identical
one hopper down the third base line that Andy LaRoche snagged again while
stepping on the bag for a force out and then threw the ball again to Ryan
Doumit who easily put the tag on Jesus Guzman completing the double play.
But wait, the second inning was far from over. In fact, it was just starting to get interesting.
Lead off hitter, centerfielder Andres Torres, lined a 1-2 pitch toward the
right-centerfield gap that right fielder Garrett Jones and Andrew McCutchen
caught up to at the same time put then both pulled up at the same time to look
at each other and the ball screaming past them for an eventual triple and two
more runs across the plate. But then, two pitches later, Randy Will hit the
ball to the same general area but right at Garrett Jones who ran in, slid, and
bounced the ball off his glove and leg and up in the air where trailing second
baseman Delwyn Young grabbed it with his bare hand and turned to present it to
trailing umpire Dale Scott asking for an out. But Dale Scott immediately
signaled “safe” allowing Andres Torres to score another run. However, the play
continued when Randy Winn took the turn at first base too aggressively thereby
allowing Delwyn Young to throw the crazy baseball behind him to first baseman
Steve Pearce who caught it and easily put the tag on Randy Winn for the third
and final out. Two singles up the middle followed by two grounders to third base followed by two line drives to the outfield produced three runs and three outs. How symmetrical and how cool was that? After all the proverbial dust had settled, the Giants led 4-0.
Now
it was up to Tim Lincecum to protect the lead and protect he did. He struck out
two batters in each of the successive three innings. But he also walked three
Buckos in that span. In fact, he walked Brandon Moss to open the fifth inning
and then filled the count against Andy LaRoche. It was at that point I shouted
at the top off my flu-addled voice, “Let ‘em swing!” Tim turned around and
seemed to look back towards Andres Torres as if he had called to him. Was it
possible Tim actually heard me? Regardless, Brandon Moss ran for second base
when Tim Lincecum threw a 75 mph changeup for a swinging strikeout and Benji
Molina returned a heater down to shortstop Edgar Renteria who put the tag on
Brandon Moss at the bag thereby completing the double play. So it hardly
mattered then Tim Lincecum walked the next batter, Jack Wilson, because he then
struck out pitcher Paul Maholm on a 94 mph fastball, his 71st pitch
of the game, for the final out of the now official game.
The
Pirates did break through for two unearned runs against Tim Lincecum in the
sixth inning because Jesus Guzman couldn’t handle Edgar Renteria‘s errant throw
in the dirt allowing speedster Andrew McCutchen to get on base and reach third
base on Delwyn Young‘s double into centerfield causing Andres Torres and
Eugenio Velez to do a nifty slide and jump, respectively, to avoid a collision
while cutting off the ball. Both runners eventually scored on an infield
grounder and sacrifice fly increasing the score to 4-2. And there the score
stood for the remainder of the game as Tim Lincecum pitched the final three
innings with 29 pitches to just one batter over the minimum nine for the
complete game, a career-high fifteen strikeouts, and an impressive 11-3 season
record. It was truly a remarkable outing by Tim Lincecum.
It
was a thoroughly enjoyable game witnessed by the 40,000+ in the stands. We had
a lot of fun in the stands talking about the new players just called up and
heckling outfielder Andrew McCutchen. When a young Indian lady tapped me on the
shoulder and asked what did the rookie do to deserve such derision, I informed
he did nothing more than to wear a black and gold uniform and we would do the
same to the other outfielders if only they could hear us. To demonstrate the
point, I stood up and shouted to Brandon Moss who was coincidentally shading
his defense toward centerfield, “Hey Brandon! We haven’t forgotten about you!
You’re a bum, too!” Everyone laughed (including the young lady) and began
haranguing Brandon with abandon also. I just wish the batteries of my batteries
hadn’t of failed earlier or else I could have posted a few crowd shots. But
throughout the cool night, the Giants righted their ship and gained a game on
both the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Dodgers. It was a good start to a
seven game home stand. Hopefully, the Giants can keep the momentum going and
that would be very cool. Go Giants!
A (Little) League of Their Own
Sunday
was Little League Day again at AT&T Park. Hundreds, if not thousands, of
Little Leaguers showed up in their uniforms to participate in a pre-game
question and answer session with Giants players Tim Lincecum, Travis Ishikawa,
and Giants coach Tim Flannery. Then they got to parade around the field on the
warning tracks before the game started. It is a great tribute to Pat Gallagher,
the Giants Marketing Director for the past 33 years who retired last week. This
promotion is pure marketing genius. Surrounded by all these Little Leaguers
together with their families, I pictured myself coming to this park thirty
years from now and seeing these kids today grown up and bringing their Little
Leaguers to experience the same thrills they’re having today. Not only are the
Giants making devoted Giants fans out of these Little Leaguers today but they
are also sowing the seeds to grow their fan base exponentially for many years
to come. It’s pure marketing genius.
And
the game this sold out crowd watched this afternoon was a very enjoyable
experience to boot. Although the Cardinals got runners in scoring position
against Giants starting pitcher Jonathan Sanchez in every inning he pitched
(except the fourth), they only scored one run in the third inning until left
fielder Nick Stavinoha hit a bases loaded double to the outfield wall, just
beyond the glove of centerfielder Aaron Rowand, in the bottom of the fifth
inning driving in another two runs and driving Jonathan Sanchez out of the
game. Brandon Medders came in and intentionally walked catcher Yadier Molina to
reload the bases. He then struck out third baseman Brian Barden looking at a 91
mph fastball for the second out of the inning before inducing eighth place
hitter and pitcher Adam Wainwright to fly out to Aaron Rowand and end the
threat of a big inning. Did Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa rue his decision to
bat his pitcher eighth in the batter order at this point of the game?
And
at that point, the Giants were trailing the Cardinals 3-1 after opening the
game in the first inning with a double by Aaron Rowand followed by a
hit-and-run single by shortstop Edgar Renteria. This allowed right fielder
Randy Winn to drive in that first run of the game with a sacrifice fly to right
fielder Ryan Ludwick. And so it was later at this midway point of the game that
the Giants did what they have been doing for most of this home stand. They
answered their opponents’ run scoring with a rally of their own. Rich Aurilia (who
came into the game for third baseman Juan Uribe on a double switch with Bandon
Medders) started off the bottom of the fifth inning by singling Adam
Wainwright‘s first pitch off of second baseman Joe Thurston‘s glove. Aaron
Rowand lined Adam Wainwright‘s next pitch down the left field line for a
double. With runners on second and third, Edgar Renteria brought Rich Aurilia
in with a grounder to shortstop Brendan Ryan for the first out of the inning.
Aaron Rowand advance to third base by tagging up on Randy Winn‘s fly out to
centerfielder Skip Schumaker and came in to finally tie the score when first
baseman Pablo Sandoval banged a single out into right field.
And
so it was that Giants bench player emeritus Rich Aurilia came up again leading
off the seventh inning and crushed Adam Wainwright‘s fourth pitch deep into the
left field bleachers creating a 4-3 lead for the Giants. After that, things got
even more interesting. Relief pitcher Merkin Valdez, pitching his second
inning, got the first two outs of the eighth inning before walking last place
hitter Skip Schumaker. When lead off hitter Brendan Ryan next singled into
centerfield, Giants manager Bruce Bochy brought in lefthander Jeremy Affeldt to
face Joe Thurston with the fearsome Albert Pujols waiting on deck eagerly
swinging his big bat. On a full count and with the runners running, Jeremy
Affeldt snapped off a nasty 91 mph thing for an inning ending strikeout thereby
preserving the 4-3 lead.
The
Giants even padded their lead in the bottom of the eighth with a lead off
double by Pablo Sandoval splitting the left and centerfielders. He moved over
to third base on a single by Fred Lewis and scored on pinch hitter Bengie
Molina‘s two-strike sacrifice fly to newly substituted centerfielder Colby
Rasmus. That extra fifth run proved serendipitous when the Cardinals first
baseman Albert Pujols led off the ninth inning with a single for his third hit
of the game. Giants closer Brian Wilson then got Ryan Ludwick and Nick
Stavinoha both out on high, twisting, wind-effected fly outs to newly
substituted centerfielder Andres Torres and leftfielder Fred Lewis,
respectively. When Brian Wilson struck out Bengie’s brother, Yadier Molina, on
four pitches to end the game, the fans went crazier and the Little Leaguers
began queuing up to run the bases around the infield thus adding more happy
moments to take home and cherish forever with their memories of today.
To
quote Bruce Bochy, this game turned a good home stand into a great home stand.
By winning five of six games this week, this victory kept the Giants’ record
above .500 and still in second place ahead of the San Diego Padres in the
National League West Division. As a paying fan, it is very gratifying to see
this team keep its heart and desire for success strong as it struggles through
its early-season clutch hitting problems. Have they finally turned that corner?
Yes, they have at home in AT&T Park. The question remains if they can keep
that corner turned away from home while playing on the road. The next ten games
in Washington D.C., Miami, Florida, and Phoenix, Arizona will answer that
question. We can only hope… and pray… and run the bases whenever we can. Go
Giants!
Mr. Bug, Meet Mr. Windshield
You know the old adage: On the road of life, sometimes you’re the windshield and sometimes you’re the bug. Well, last night, the Giants were the bugs. Big fat flying bugs like the huge moths that were flying in swarms about AT&T Park last night after the game ended. Meanwhile, the New York Mets morphed into a big, black and blue, fast-moving windshield that suddenly flattened the Giants 8-6 at the end of the game. The game started out well enough when the Giants answered the Mets’ one run with four of their own in the bottom of the first. And Fred Lewis‘ solo home run in the second inning gave Tim Lincecum a 5-1 lead to work with.
Tim did well enough getting into but working out of trouble. He had at least one runner on in each inning except the fifth. He had eight strike outs in the first six innings but also got roughed up in that last one for two runs on four hits to left fielder Gary Sheffield, right fielder Ryan Church, catcher Jeremy Reed, and pinch hitter Daniel Murphy. I can understand Sheffield and Church but who the heck are Reed and Murphy? Nonetheless, Tim Lincecum himself drove in the Giants’ sixth run of the game in the bottom of that inning on a drive down the left field line that Sheffield picked up and threw Tim out at second base to end the inning. The only thing more surprising than seeing Lincecum bat for himself in the sixth inning was seeing him start the seventh inning.
And just like other Giants pitchers I’ve written who had to go out and pitch an additional inning immediately after running the bases (Randy Johnson and Osiris Matis), Tim Lincecum didn’t fare well either. He gave up a single and a walk to start the inning. So Bruce Bochy brought in Merkin Valdez who walked Gary Sheffield on four pitches that weren’t even close. But Bruce had Merkin pitch to the next batter, third baseman David Wright, and he cleared the bases on Merkin’s second pitch with a double down the leftfield line to tie the game. It took and incredible effort by Jeremy Affeldt to stop the Mets’ momentum by striking out three of the next four batters to end the inning and preserve the 6-6 tie.
The Giants had a beautiful opportunity to grab the lead in the bottom of the eighth when Randy Winn‘s moon shot deep into right-centerfield tripled off the high brick wall less than a foot from being a home run. So with one out, Aaron Rowand swung at reliever Pedro Feliciano‘s second offering bouncing it meekly down to David Wright at third base who held Randy at third and threw on to first base for the second out. Aaron Rowand also had a bases loaded, one out situation in the first inning wherein he struck out. He has reverted back to his bad habit if trying to muscle every pitch out of the park but is only upper cutting his way into outs. I wish he would concentrate on using the entire field to hit line drives instead of aiming everything over the left field wall. Regardless, Rich Aurilia bailed out Aaron in the first inning with a single but could only line out to shortstop Alex Cora in the sixth inning.
Enter Brian Wilson. Not only could he not throw strikes to the plate when he wanted to, but he could not throw a batting practice strike to third base on an easy force play to get the first out of the ninth inning. Instead, he sailed it wide down the left field line and the Mets scored their winning run. It was astonishing. I don’t know what has gotten into Brian Wilson. Is Casey Blake in his noodle with his mocking crossed arms gesture? Is Brian Wilson holding on to that hate? Maybe he should take a tip from his savior and simply left it go. Turn your cheek, Brian, and love your enemies to death. Brian needs to change his mojo fast. Me, I’m listening to Disney radio this morning and it is like, OMG, so amazingly awesome, LOL!
Round Pegs Meet Round Holes
It’s a nice day for a ballgame. It’s neither too cold nor too windy. I bought my repast and refreshments before getting on the ferry to the city. Outside the ballpark, I had a leisurely lunch reading the new issue of the USA Sports Weekly and listening to “The Razor and Mr. T” on the local sports radio station. I learned from Manny Pacquiao‘s trainer that Manny will probably knock out Ricky Hutton before the ninth round next Saturday. We shall see.
The gates opened to the public at 5:15 p.m. and I went in to watch the Dodgers take batting practice. Standing at the outfield wall with his young son was this middle aged white-bearded white guy wearing a Dodgers uniform and artificial Mannyesque dreadlocks under his blue batting helmet. He shouted at Matt Kemp to throw him up a souvenir baseball but Matt just laughed at him and threw the baseball up towards another group of fans. As the faux Manny father took his son and walked back up the bleachers, I seriously considered whether it was my civic duty to report this man to Protective Child Services so that they could rescue that poor little boy and put him safely away in a foster home for mercy’s sake.
Tonight was the first time Boy Wonder (Tim Lincecum) would pitch against Bat—-Crazy Man (Manny Ramirez). Adding to the zaniness was Dodgers manager Joe Torre‘s decision to bat his pitcher Eric Stults eighth in batter order before Juan Pierre. Not since Dodgers manager Walter Alston batted hall of fame pitcher Don Drysdale seventh against the Pittsburgh Pirates had any Dodgers pitcher ever begun a game batting higher than ninth in the order. And Don Drysdale went on to hit seven home runs, a triple, and nineteen RBIs in 1965. Eric Stults has only has nine hits and two RBIs in his four years in the majors. (And not only did Don Drysdale not get a hit in that game but he ended up getting charged with the 4-2 loss.) I suspect Joe Torre is pulling a gimmick trying to get inside young Tim Lincecum’s head.
The mercurial Rafael Furcal came up and shot Lincecum’s first pitch of the game to the opposite side of the diamond where third baseman Pablo Sandoval snagged it out of the air on its way to left field. Them the methodical Orlando Hudson looked at a pitch but then clubbed a grounder down the first base line where Rich Aurilia short-hopped it before it could continue to the outfield corner and stepped on first for the second out. And finally, the mysterious Manny Ramirez also looked at a pitch before he stroked the next offering to the opposite field where rookie Nate Schierholtz rushed in to catch the sinking liner below the knees with two hands for the third out. Five pitches for three outs was a good omen to start off a game.
The Giants soon amplified that positive portent when Edgar Renteria hit a single to right field with one out and Pablo Sandoval followed suit with a single to left field. And then Bengie Molina cashed them all in with a deep fly ball to centerfield that bounced high off the wall and past Juan Pierre for a triple. Bengie Molina has only hit five triples in his twelve-year career. That is not to say that Bengie is a slow runner but this fly ball was a true thing of beauty to behold. And so was the Giants’ 2-0 lead after the first inning.
Over the next six innings, Tim Lincecum struck out seven swinging Dodgers (six on slow 85 mph change ups) and gave up no runs on three hits and two bases on balls. Meanwhile, the Giants battered Eric Stults for five runs in the initial three innings on more hits by Edgar Renteria, Aaron Rowand, Nate Schierholtz, and Emmanuel Burriss. When Fred Lewis walked with two outs in the sixth inning and came around to score the Giants’ sixth run on Edgar Renteria‘s double to centerfield in the sixth inning, the Giants fans couldn’t have been happier and the Dodgers fans couldn’t have been quieter. And then Bengie Molina led off the seventh inning with a home run into the bleachers and all was right with the world.
But then the world began to spin off its axel and the center was unable to hold. The Dodgers led off the eighth inning with three straight hits scoring Juan Pierre for their first run. Then Lincecum walked Ramirez on five pitches to load the bases and the 2008 Cy Young winner’s night was finished. In came lefty Jeremy Affeldt and, on his very first pitch, induced the ever-dangerous Andre Ethier to hit a sharp grounder to substitute third baseman Juan Uribe who stepped on the bag and threw to first base in time for a double play. Although substitute Dodgers catcher Brad Ausmus drove in Manny Ramirez with the second run with a single, Affeldt won his six pitch battle with Casey Blake when Juan Uribe leaned over the railing at the stand and caught his foul ball for the last out of the eighth inning.
However, the Dodgers fans began to get very vocal through all this. And the Giants fans began to get very demonstrative in their response. And the policemen were running up and down the bleacher stands with ballpark security personnel in tow leading miscreants and misfeasors by the dozens down the stands, through the exits and out of the stadium in their individual walk of shame as the pictures below detail.
But the Giants righted the listing ship in the bottom of the eighth inning primarily on the strength of htting by Edgar Renteria, Juan Uribe, Bengie Molina, and Aaron Rowand inability to duck out of the way of a Guillermo Mota shoulder high hard slider. The picture below shows Emmanuel Burriss up with the bases loaded before he eventually struck out on a 93 mph Mota fastball. So even when Brian Wilson drew out the drama in the ninth inning with a run on a couple of hits, the Dodgers finally succumbed at 10:15 p.m. to a score of 9 -3. I slept well last night. The Giants were able to end April with an even 10-10 record and I was able to witness six of those victories in person at AT&T Park. I think May will be even more interesting to watch.
The Good, the Bad, and the Funny
Getting on the ferry at 5:30 p.m., the wind is whipping and it is cold. Maybe not arctic cold but it is definitely Washington State cold. The Giants are playing the hated Dodgers tonight so it will be bitter; both figuratively and literally. It will be Candlestick Park bitter like back in the days when the Dodgers always seemed to be in first place and the Giants fans were always looking to vent their baseball frustrations; preferably on nearby unsuspecting Dodgers fans. It may have been cruel but it was an undeniable fact of life.
Coincidentally, the Dodgers are again in first place and the Giants just experienced a disappointing (i.e. bitter) extra inning loss yesterday to the D-backs. Barry Zito is pitching tonight and if he doesn’t keep the Dodgers in check, the Giants fans will likely act out their disappointment on nearby vocal Dodgers fans. It will be like a Friday night at Candlestick Park and the moon might as well be full. I suspect it will be drama at its best; both comic and tragic.
Barry Zito sets down the Dodgers in the first inning on nine pitches and the Giants answer by getting to Dodgers pitcher Randy Wolf for three gift runs which should have all been unearned because Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, and Orlando Hudson all came together in short right-centerfield on Edgar Renteria’s one out pop up and conspired to bump into each other like Larry, Moe, and Curly and let the ball bounce to the ground for a double. And then Randy Winn hit a routine looking line drive to centerfield that Matt Kemp froze on like a Popsicle in the AT&T winds before drifting back and allowing the orb to sail over his outstretched glove for a triple. Then Aaron Rowand picked up Rich Aurilia for striking out and banged a double to right to drive in Randy Winn for the second run. More accurately, Aaron Rowand popped a double over Andre Eithier who never got back to the wall he was slowly backing up to. And Pablo Sandoval singled in Aaron Rowand for the third run and the game was on. The crowd was in a festive mood. The Dodgers fans were safe… for now.
Barry Zito sailed right on through so the sixth inning competently handling all adversity facing him mostly by getting fly balls hit to Randy Winn in right field or double play grounders to the infielders. But all hell broke loose in the seventh inning when Barry Zito walked Mark Loretta on a full count and then balked him to second on an accidental eephus pitch that landed somewhere between first base and home plate. Two pitches later, Casey Blake pumps a two run home run deep into the left field bleachers and the fans turned surly. The guys behind me started to heckle the Dodger fan standings at the exit watching the game telling them it’s the seventh inning and time to leave. By the time Orlando Hudson drove in pinch hitter Juan Pierre with the tying run and Manny Ramirez drove in Rafael Furcal with the go ahead run, Giants fans everywhere were grumbling and moaning. I even managed to yell to a typical blonde Dodgers fan waving her blue cap to the fans that she wasn’t impressing anybody but her pimp. But Merkin Valdez finally stopped the blue bleeding with a double play by Matt Kemp to keep the score at 4-3.
We Giants fans didn’t give up. We kept razzing Matt Kemp standing within earshot. And the Giants didn’t give up either. They mounted a rally in the eighth inning helped along with pitcher Ronald Belisario‘s comedically wild glove-handed over throw home on Rich Aurilia‘s swinging bunt down the first base line trying to stop Fred Lewis from scoring the tying run but instead allowed Edgar Renteria to reach third base with only one out. And pinch-hitting Benjie Molina brought in the go ahead run with a hard fought, two-strike grounder to Casey Blake and the Giants fans were happy again. The bare armed Brian Wilson struck out the ninth inning in order and the Giants fans celebrated. The Dodgers fans were safe again. And so the circle of life completes itself.
I’ve got to post this without proofing it so I can get to work on time. But I will go back to the ball park tonight to watch Chad Billingsley (he of the gaudy 4-0 record) test the young left arm of Jonathan Sanchez. It should be a great game and hopefully not as cold. Go Giants!
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