Tim Lincecum's pitching like a Cy Young once again, and if there is one player that is key to the Giants in their postseason race, it's the ace of their staff, the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner. With their ace pitching like he should, they can be confident coming to the yard that they have a great shot at winning.
Lincecum's line: 5 IP, 2 ER, 6 H, 3 K, 2 BB...I'll get into why he lasted just five innings...anyway, the Giants hitting was poor as usual. In each of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd innings, the lead off hitter got a single. They failed to capitalize on any of those opportunities, though. In the 5th inning, with runners on the corners and one out, Tim Lincecum's spot in the order came to the plate. He had pitched a decent ballgame, his only runs coming because Pablo Sandoval failed to turn two on a bases-loaded groundball hit to him (he probably could have touched third and fired home, with Buster Posey tagging out Prince Fielder for the final out of the inning, but he opted to throw home immediately for the force). Even so, though, the hits that Lincecum allowed were weak bloopers and such. Because of the recent lights-out pitching by the bullpen, and the Giants' desperate need for runs, Nate Schierholtz pinch hit for Tim Lincecum. This was probably the right decision...the bullpen didn't end up giving any runs, Tim Lincecum got a little extra rest, and Nate Schierholtz is a much better hitter than Tim Lincecum. Schierholtz walked, and with the bases loaded, Fontenot hit a double-play ball to second base, but was able to get to first in time to avoid an inning-ending double play. That is how the Giants scored their only run...perhaps the icing on the cake -- when down 2-1 in the bottom of the 9th, the Giants' 3-4-5 hitters came to bat. They each struck out.
The Giants are playing exactly like they did last year -- a team with a superb rotation and bullpen, but mediocre offense. Over the last five games, they've scored 13 runs, an average of 2.6 runs per game; and 10 of those runs came in one of the games, for a grand total of three runs in the other four games. Their ERA during this five-game span, however, is an impressive 1.20...now this formula isn't necessarily a bad thing -- as the ancient philosophy of baseball clearly states, "Pitching wins ballgames." And it's true. If a staff shuts down the other club entirely, it's impossible for them to lose; but a team can score as many runs as possible, and they still aren't guaranteed the win. The Giants aren't going to go out and pitch a shutout in every game. But they will give up fewer than three runs in the majority of their games down the stretch. They just need to to add a hint of offensive support to this playoff recipe and then...Bon appetit.
The Giants are, by most standards, a below-average offense; but that doesn't mean they aren't capable of scoring two, three, or four runs in support of their pitching on a consistent basis. They clearly have some competence in their lineup -- Huff can hit, Posey can hit, Burrell can hit, Fontenot, Sanchez, Uribe, Ross, and the list goes on...it will all click together eventually -- hopefully sooner rather than later, though.
Tomorrow: Barry Zito will face CHRIS NARVESON. Why is Chris Narveson's name in capital letters? Because he's the man who allowed 10 runs against the Giants in 3.1 innings. He's the man who defibulated the Giants' offense in a game in early July, sparking them to win 20 games that month. Barry Zito has pitched well of late, as have all of the Giants pitchers. He likely won't pitch poorly tomorrow. Narveson's pitched well lately, allowing just six earned runs over his last 26.1 innings (four starts), but the Giants will enter this game knowing what they did to Narveson last time they faced him. They will enter it with a confidence that they probably haven't felt in a while.
The Giants will win tomorrow. It is simply not possible that a second-place team with a former Cy Young award-winner on the mound, at home, against Chris Narveson could lose the game. In spite of everything related to their recent struggles, they are simply not capable of losing tomorrow's game. It would defy the laws of baseball.
On one final positive note, according to Andrew Baggarly of the San Jose Mercury News, Torres said he is confident he can return before the regular season finale Oct. 3.
Lastly, I have pictures from this game. They might be posted later...
