Post-Game 107 Thread: Media Circus and Sold-Out Crowd Get the HR They Were Waiting For (Dodgers 6, Giants 4)

DODGERS 6, GIANTS 4; BARRY 0 HR, NOMAR 1 HR

I wasn't at the game last night. And after hearing Vinny tell us in the eighth inning, with the Dodgers down 4-2, that the Dodgers 3-through-6 hitters were 1-for-23 in the series, I wasn't very hopeful. Russell Martin leading off the inning with a weak comebacker seemed to augur another loss to the Giants at the Stadium.

Then Furcal gets his bunt single. Then Pierre gets a bunt single, advancing Furcal to third on a Omar Vizquel throwing error, and shortly thereafter steals second. Two RISP for Luis Gonzalez, who then comes through with a clutch double down the left field line to score both and tie the game.

And then, swinging early in the count as usual, Nomar knocks one over the left field fence to put us up 6-4. Mayhem ensues in my household, as I watch the whole thing in HD goodness (thanks, KCAL9). Cheers erupt. Women swoon. Men weep.

Even long after he was traded, the ghost of Armando Benitez (who was traded for Randy Messenger, who gave up both the tying and go-ahead hits) helps the Dodgers yet again.

Said Eric Neel on the majestic home run that no one came to see and few expected:

Such talk let me imagine what it might be like after Bonds breaks the record, as games and at-bats run on past 756. The tendency now, in the anxious days of waiting, is to think everything is epic. Hank Aaron's number looms larger than ever. Bonds' claim upon the record seems as if it will be forever fraught with fans' resentment and ambivalence. We think, following this thing day by day, that it's a big deal set in stone, and that we will always carry it with us.

But I don't think it will work that way. I think it will recede into the distance over time. It will be replaced by guys like Garciaparra hitting home runs. Wins and losses, for the Giants, the Dodgers, for whomever you root for, will push it off the stage. "We're all out here trying to win ballgames," Garciaparra said with a shrug. "If [Bonds] hits a home run and you're still standing here talking to us because we won, that's fine with us."

Garciaparra's home run last night, fifth on the year and 216th in his career (now placing him solely in 241st place on the all-time HR list), was indeed the epic shot of last night. And it may not have been what all the press or fans came to see at Dodger Stadium. But it sure stole the spotlight away from that other guy.

By the way, we haven't heard much from Delino, the Son who has been at both Dodgers-Giants games this series. Hope he hasn't been blinded by flashbulbs such that he's wandering around the parking lot like Oedipus.

AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian