Giants fans should have expected this one...against Milwaukee and Los Angeles -- the Giants' two previous series -- the Giants had scored a combined three runs in games one and two of both those series. But in the finales of both of those series, they had scored a combined 19 runs. They continued the trend on Thursday, finishing up their Chicago series with a 13-run outburst...after scoring a grand total of one run in the first two games of this series.
I must begin by acknowledging two important facts:
- Ryan Dempster is a good pitcher, as evidenced by his 3.50 ERA on the year coming into this game.
- He came into the game riding a 14-inning scoreless streak.
The Giants didn't seem to care...
Scoring for the Giants began with some executed fundamental baseball. The leadoff hitter, Mike Fontenot, got on with a single. Check. The next batter, Freddy Sanchez, executed the hit-and-run, getting Fontenot all the way to third base with a single. Check. Aubrey Huff showed some plate discipline by taking a walk to load the bases. Check. Buster Posey put the ball in play (with a double play groundball), thus scoring the runner from third. An early 1-0 lead seemed to be a great sign for the Giants, especially behind Madison Bumgarner, who had been a monster of late (1.38 ERA since August 31).
But they weren't done...not by a long shot. Jose Guillen led off the second inning by getting hit by Dempster. The next batter, Juan Uribe, unleashed the ball into the left field stands to extend the Giants' lead to three. Cody Ross struck out for the first out of the inning...then Bumgarner decided to help out his cause, hitting a single. That was followed up by a Fontenot double and a Sanchez single. Huff struck out looking for the second out of the inning...then Posey singled, Pat Burrell walked, Guillen was hit by a pitch once again, and Uribe crushed the ball to left once again. Ross and Bumgarner followed that up with singles, but Fontenot failed to score them, as he flied out to center.
The Giants scored a total of nine runs in the second inning. Uribe became the first Giant with a two-home-run inning since Willie McCovey did it in 1977. Guillen became the first Giant ever to get hit by a pitch twice in the same inning.
Posey and Ross would later add solo shots, and even Pablo Sandoval joined the fun with an RBI single in the 8th. But they weren't done...not by a long shot. Jose Guillen led off the second inning by getting hit by Dempster. The next batter, Juan Uribe, unleashed the ball into the left field stands to extend the Giants' lead to three. Cody Ross struck out for the first out of the inning...then Bumgarner decided to help out his cause, hitting a single. That was followed up by a Fontenot double and a Sanchez single. Huff struck out looking for the second out of the inning...then Posey singled, Pat Burrell walked, Guillen was hit by a pitch once again, and Uribe crushed the ball to left once again. Ross and Bumgarner followed that up with singles, but Fontenot failed to score them, as he flied out to center.
The Giants scored a total of nine runs in the second inning. Uribe became the first Giant with a two-home-run inning since Willie McCovey did it in 1977. Guillen became the first Giant ever to get hit by a pitch twice in the same inning.
If anything, this game will serve as a confidence booster. The Giants were feeling pretty inadequate after scoring one run of support for their staff in the first two games of the series, but now understand the legitimacy of their abilities. What's even more impressive is that they did it against a good pitcher, who has pitched well lately. Let's just hope they saved a little for the Rockies series.
The Rockies series will be the most difficult series the Giants have left on their schedule. It's their final road series, and it's against a team that plays very well at home.
As for the notion that the Giants are a feast-or-famine team, this graph that I produced of the Giants' runs scored in their last 15 games seems to support this theory:
A playoff contender cannot get by on feast or famine. The Giants are probably done with those days, as evidenced by the execution of basic fundamental baseball in today's game (as well as the home runs...).
Amid this offensive outburst, Madison Bumgarner was once again left in the shadows. He pitched seven beautiful shutout innings, striking out nine. His ERA on the year is down to 3.06 -- and he's the fifth starter in this rotation. I can honestly say that this is the best rotation in baseball, from top to bottom.
Best rotation in baseball? Why, yes. Look at this streak they've put together...they've gone 22 consecutive games without allowing more than four runs. That is the longest such streak since the '72 Cubs went 23 straight games. They're one game away from tying the single-season record.
It's really too bad that this year's Rookie of the Year class is so good. Bumgarner would have easily won in other years, but not up against players like Posey, Jason Heyward, Gaby Sanchez, Tyler Colvin, and Jaime Garcia (to name a few...). He's put together fantastic numbers. I consider his year to be better than Andrew Bailey's '09 AL Rookie of the Year campaign...but in the end, it's just an award. And the bigger prize could be awaiting him if he continues to pitch like this along with the others in the Giants' rotation....a World Series ring.
The Giants reclaimed first place in the NL West and their playoff chances according to ESPN are as follows...
Yesterday, their odds were estimated at 56%....
Tomorrow: Cy Young will be pitching at Coors against Jhoulys Chacin...who's actually a good young pitcher (3.30 ERA). It should be a good game, as all Coors Field games tend to be...
Nine more games. Three more series. Three more road games.
