Saturday, September 13, 2014

Post-Game 148 Thread: Sweet Seventeen

DODGERS 17, GIANTS 0

One night after receiving one of the team's most ignominious defeats, the Dodgers came back and bounced back in a huge way--not only shutting out the Giants at home, but almost doubling the number of runs that the Giants had scored on us last night. It was a shellacking of monumental proportions. The Phone Park seagulls started circling at first pitch, given the smell of raw sewage that engulfed the Giants early on.

Hyun-Jin Ryu had a horrible first inning yesterday in which the Giants batted around and scored four runs. The Giants' Tim Hudson eerily received the exact same treatment tonight in his first inning: nine batters, including three doubles (just like last night!), the first of which punctuated the evening when Yasiel Puig legged out a double on a bloop single to Angel Pagan in center field. Look, I know Pagan has been a sparkplug for the Giants--their late-season resurgence can be strongly correlated to his return to their lineup--but today, out in center field, he looked absolutely lost. When A.J. Ellis finished off the first-inning fireworks with a bloop RBI single to center, Pagan's route was absolutely horrific, like he misjudged the ball completely off the bat, and then didn't know what to do. And I thought we had the unorthodox center fielder!

But the Dodgers didn't let up. Zack Greinke came out and allowed a leadoff double to Pagan, and then with one out, Oyster Pubes hit a single to right field. Matt Kemp fielded the ground ball perfectly, blew a bubble with his gum, and then fired home a strike to nail Pagan at the plate by a mile. What's more, Pubes didn't even take second base on the play, and was stranded there when Pablo Sandoval made the third out next. That was the Giants' best chance to get back into this game, because the pummeling went on from there.

Four runs in the second, with eight Dodgers taking swings. A third RBI for Matt Kemp made it 9-0 in the third inning. Juan Uribe homered in the fourth inning to add one run, and then Zack Greinke doubled off the wall in center, coming around to score on a Dee Gordon single, to make it 11-0 in the fourth inning.

And Greinke wasn't done. Not only did Greinke go a very solid 6.0 IP of 4 H, 0 R ball (0 BB, 5 Ks), he also hit a two-run HR in the sixth inning to make it 13-0. And the sixth inning wasn't over easy, either: Carl Crawford hit a bases-loaded shot to short that was initially called an 6-3 out, before the Dodgers challenged and got the call overturned to a RBI single. 14-0. Bruce Bochy brought in his son, Brett, who promptly walked Juan Uribe to make it 15-0.

The one solace Giants fans tried to take came in the top of the seventh, when Yasiel Puig struck out on a foul tip with one out and Dee Gordon on first. Derisive jeers were then summarily shut up when Scott Van Slyke came out and hit a monster shot to left field, to make it 17-0.

So let's total up this carnage, looking at the starting lineup alone:

  • Gordon: 2-for-7 with 3 runs and an RBI;
  • Puig: 3-for-5 with 3 runs;
  • Adrian Gonzalez: 1-for-5 with a run and RBI;
  • Kemp: 3-for-4 with 2 runs and 3 RBI;
  • Hanley Ramirez: 4-for-5 with a run and 2 RBI;
  • Crawford: 2-for-4 with a run and 3 RBI;
  • Uribe: 2-for-4 with a run and 2 RBI;
  • Ellis: 2-for-5 with a run and RBI;
  • Greinke: 2-for-3 with 2 runs and 2 RBI.

Let's look at that scoring history again (it's so long (that's what she said), I had to take two separate screenshots):

The Dodgers had two HR and five doubles. We had 10 two-out RBI. We went 11-for-19 with RISP. And it could have been much worse: we left 15 on base. Still, it was historic: the Dodgers' largest margin of victory and most one-sided shutout since moving to LA; the most runs ever scored by an opponent at AT&T Park; the most hits (24) of any team at AT&T Park; the most hits against the Giants since 1932. The 24 hits were one short of the LA Dodgers' franchise record.

Now, just like the Dodgers must have told themselves last night, it's only one game. But wow, what a game it was; a statement game that sent chardonnay-loving fans home early and pulled the lead back to two games in the west, with 14 to play. But even with all these runs notched, tomorrow's rubber match could bring it back to a mere one-game lead.

Perfect time for a SoSG Fest, if you ask me. We'll be blogging live from the event!

4 comments:

spank said...

i'll be celebrating tonights win into tomorrows game.

Steve Sax said...

Are you coming to the Fest, spank?

spank said...

i would love to Saxy but it's just not in the cards this year. personal crapage.

Hideo Nomo said...

A play involving three sons of major leaguers, and it happens the day BEFORE SoSG Fest.