|
 They used the strikeout as an offensive weapon.
In fact, the Dodgers got positive results from two strikeouts in a
three-run fifth inning, taking the lead for good en route to a 4-3
victory over the Giants and a three-game sweep in the matchup of the
National League West's top two teams.
"It doesn't matter how you do it," Dodgers first baseman Adrian
Gonzalez said. "The fact that we got the sweep in San Francisco,
that's great. Especially against a team that handled us earlier this
year."
Left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu earned his 12th win and three Dodgers
relievers combined for three innings of shutout ball as Los Angeles
moved 1 1/2 games ahead of San Francisco after beginning the series
1 1/2 games back.
In losing for the 19th time in their past 25 home games, the Giants
dropped into a tie with the Atlanta Braves atop the wild-card
standings, a half-game ahead of the St. Louis Cardinals.
"It's going to be important we put this one behind us," Giants
manager Bruce Bochy said. "We have to regroup. You have no choice in
this game. You're going to stumble, and what's important is how we
deal with this.
 "L.A. played great. Sure, it's not fun getting swept here at home,
but there's a lot of baseball left."
Shortstop Hanley Ramirez broke a 2-2 tie with an RBI single in the
fifth, and left fielder Carl Crawford drove in the eventual winning
run with a triple. The Dodgers went on to post a win that capped a
5-4 road trip, one that began with series defeats at St. Louis and
Pittsburgh.
"You make enough of a statement by winning three games, but that's
all it is," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "You've got a lot of
baseball to play. We're going to see these guys again. They're not
going anywhere."
Ryu (12-5) gave up a solo home run to Giants catcher Buster Posey in
the bottom of the sixth, then turned the ball over to the bullpen
after the inning. He allowed three runs on six hits, walked one and
struck out seven.
Left-hander J.P. Howell, right-hander Brian Wilson and closer Kenley
Jansen held the one-run advantage from there, with Jansen striking
out the side in the ninth to record his 30th save.
The Giants held 1-0 and 2-1 leads early, but the game flipped on
first-time San Francisco starter Jake Peavy in the top of the fifth.
After a diving stop by Giants third baseman Pablo Sandoval denied
Ryu a probable double to lead off the inning, things got crazy.
It began innocently enough when Dodgers second baseman Dee Gordon
struck out on a Peavy curveball in the dirt. However, the pitch got
away from Posey, allowing the speedy Gordon to reach base.
Puig followed with a walk, and both runners advanced on a wild
pitch, Peavy's second of the inning.
With the Giants playing their infield back and willing to concede
the tying run on a groundball, Peavy then struck out Gonzalez on
another pitch that bounced. Posey managed to keep this one within 15
feet, but when he left the plate area to retrieve it and throw out
Gonzalez at first, Gordon dashed home ahead of first baseman Adam
Duvall's return throw to Peavy, tying the game at 2-2.
"I always think about it at third base, but I don't have the speed
for it," Gonzalez said of Gordon's feat. "I'm glad he took advantage
of it."
Gordon admitted he was just trying to make something happen with the
Dodgers trailing by a run.
"It was on my own," he said. "I just wanted to help us win the game.
That's what I was able to do.
[to top of second column] |
"(I took off) as soon as (Posey) snapped his head (toward first
base) and didn't look at me. I didn't think he could get me and
Gonzo (Gonzalez). That's when I decided to go." Mattingly labeled
the mad dash the turning point in the game.
"Obviously Dee does things that nobody thinks about," he noted.
"Guys like him and (Cincinnati's Billy) Hamilton, they're the only
ones who know how fast they are. Dee knows his speed well, and over
the years he's learned how to use it."
Ramirez then hit the next pitch into left field for an RBI single
that scored Puig from second and gave Los Angeles a 3-2 lead.
Crawford followed with a bloop triple down the right field line, and
Ramirez came all the way around to make it a three-run inning and a
4-2 game.
Posey's two-out home run in the bottom of the inning got the Giants
back within 4-3, but San Francisco managed only two baserunners in
the last three innings, none of them advancing past first base.
Posey's home run, his 12th of the season, came on a 3-0 pitch and
was the Giants' first extra-base hit of the series.
The Giants out-hit the Dodgers 7-6, with shortstop Brandon Crawford
collecting two of San Francisco's hits.
Ramirez and right fielder Matt Kemp had two hits apiece for the
Dodgers.
Peavy (0-1) entered the game with a 14-2 lifetime record against the
Dodgers but just a 1-9 mark for the Boston Red Sox this season
before he was traded to San Francisco on Saturday. He gave up four
runs (three earned) in six innings, allowing six hits. He walked two
and struck out five.
"That's tough when you give a good team extra outs," Peavy said of
the fateful fifth inning. "But at the same time, that's what being
on a team is about, I've got to pick up my team."
NOTES: The Dodgers' starting pitchers, RHP Zack Greinke, LHP Clayton
Kershaw and RHP Hyun-Jin Ryu, went 3-0 with a 1.23 ERA in the
three-game sweep at San Francisco. ... The Giants lost each of their
past seven one-run games. ... Both teams wore patches on their
uniforms commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Baseball Hall of
Fame. Two former Dodgers -- RHP Greg Maddux and manager Joe Torre --
were inducted into the Hall on Sunday. ... Giants INF Joaquin Arias
was credited with a hit and Dodgers SS Hanley Ramirez had an error
taken away after a review of a groundball in Saturday night's game.
... The Dodgers announced that SS Erisbel Arruebarrena (hip) had his
rehab assignment moved from Triple-A Albuquerque to Class A Rancho
Cucamonga after he was involved in a brawl Saturday. Arruebarrena
hit a home run for Albuquerque on Friday.
[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
