Game Recap: SF 7, LA 5

What a demoralizing loss for the Los Angeles Dodgers. But really, who cares?

Despite a less than stellar performance from Tim Lincecum, that was the best Giants vs. Dodgers game I have seen in a long, long time and maybe ever. Hit batters, pitchers getting ejected, managers and bench coaches too, and most importantly, a Giants win. So much went down in this game, let's see if we can dissect it all.

- Lincecum was maybe the worst he's been all year. Just three batters into the game, he had already allowed 3 runs and in total gave up 7 H, 5 ER and 3 BB in just 4 2/3 innings. The main issue was his fastball. Tonight for whatever reason it topped out at just 87-88 mph, so it was basically an ineffective pitch. When he left the game, the Giants were down 5-1.

-In the top of the 6th, the Giants finally scored some runs, thanks to Xavier Paul. With runners on first and third, Pat Burrell hit a deep fly ball to the warning track that Paul dropped, bringing in one run and leaving runners on 2nd and 3rd. The next batter, Pablo Sandoval, stayed hot, roping a double down the line, scoring both baserunners and making it just a 5-4 Dodgers lead.

- The tension in this game started in the 5th inning when Lincecum came in with a pitch high and tight to Matt Kemp. On the next pitch, he hit Kemp. Kemp was visibly angry, taking a couple of steps toward the mound, before the home plate umpire intervened. In the 6th inning, Denny Bautista also came in high and inside to Russell Martin, prompting a swift ejection of Dodgers bench coach Bob Schaefer. It was pretty comical how upset the Dodgers were and how sure they were that these inside pitches were intentional. Maybe they were intentional, but Lincecum's command was off all day and Bautista always has problems throwing strikes, so it just seemed like some unintentional wildness from Giants pitchers to me.

-But like I said, the Dodgers were angry, and sure enough, Clayton Kershaw retaliated by plunking Aaron Rowand in the top of the 7th. Really, they were doing us a favor by putting Rowand on base. Kershaw and Joe Torre were both ejected and Kershaw will probably be suspended. Perfection! Ah, to bask in the failure of the Los Angeles Dodgers.

- The biggest and most bizarre moment of the game came in the bottom of the 9th inning. The Giants are down 5-4, one of the best closers in the game, Jonathan Broxton, was pitching, and the Giants had the bases loaded with just 1 out. Don Mattingly, who was the acting manager for the Dodgers, came out to the mound, presumably to talk strategy with Broxton and his infield. Mattingly started to head toward the dugout when he turned around and came BACK towards the mound. It's all very confusing, I know. Anyway, Bruce Bochy rushed out to tell the lead umpire that Mattingly had visited the mound twice. Per MLB rules, if a manager visits the mound twice in 1 inning, he has to take his pitcher out. BRUCE BOCHY, YOU SLY DOG. He really caught the Dodgers off-guard with this one. All of a sudden, they have no one warming up in the bullpen, and they have to bring in a pitcher who hasn't warmed up to replace their All-Star closer. It was quite a turn of events.

- So, the Dodgers bring in George Sherrill, one of their worst relief pitchers this year, without having warmed up. Andres Torres proceeded to make Bruce Bochy look like the smartest man in the world, and it's almost impossible to make Bochy look smart in any way. Torres hit a double in the gap to score two runs and give the Giants a 6-5 lead. They added one more run and Jeremy Affeldt closed it out in the bottom of the 9th.

What a game. It's almost exhausting trying to comprehend everything that just happened. The Giants beat the Dodgers even with their ace struggling. The Giants came back to win in the 9th, and made the Dodgers look like absolute fools at the same time. Oh, how sweet it is.

We would also like to cordially invite Matt Kemp to the 8thInningWeirdness Hate List. Although, he has to come, he doesn't really have a choice. What a pompous jerk.