THEARON W. HENDERSON/GETTY IMAGES
OK, the Giants weren’t going to beat Kershaw. I don’t think bringing back the 1976 Reds in a Time Machine could have beaten Kershaw.
And Greinke is a tough customer.
But the Ryu and Peavy match up was a winnable one for the Giants. They could have ended the series with the Dodgers still in first place and with an 8-5 head to head record.
The key was the 8th. Brian Wilson is hardly the Brian Wilson who pitched for the Giants now. And with Pence, Posey and Sandoval up and Wilson looking wild, the Los Angeles 4-3 lead looked like it was in danger.
But a Pence pop up and a horrible swing by Sandoval ended THAT hope. The Giants couldn’t even put the ball in play in the 9th inning.
So now they are 1 1/2 games back and the season advantage has been reduced to 7-6 against LA.
Pirates are in town and then they go to the Mets. They can still win the division, but they need to get some momentum back.
Time to update the Dodged Bullet/Teeth Grinder tally.
An explanation of what this is all about can be found HERE.
A’S DODGED BULLET – TEETH GRINDER Tally
39 Dodged Bullets 32 Teeth Grinders
TOTAL: +8
GIANTS DODGED BULLET – TEETH GRINDER Tally
A 3 run fifth was the Giants undoing as they could not rally against Brian Wilson in the 8th and LA swept themselves into a 1 1/2 game lead, 4-3. TEETH GRINDER
40 Dodged Bullets 33 Teeth Grinders
TOTAL: + 7
RED SOX DODGED BULLET – TEETH GRINDER Tally
David Ortiz’s homer may have upset bicep kissing Chris Archer, but it was enough to snap the Rays 9 game winning streak and give the Red Sox a 3-2 win. DODGED BULLET
34 Dodged Bullets 42 Teeth Grinders
TOTAL: -8
The tally includes the Red Sox teeth grinder from Saturday night.
