The Giants have had a rough week to close out the season, going 4-1 so far. After losing last night 2-1, Tim Lincecum will wrap up the season this afternoon at 1:05 p.m. to try to strengthen his case for a Cy Young bid.
Matt Cain put in a solid effort in attempting to help the Giants break out of this latest slump, but the offense would not produce for him. He allowed just two runs over seven innings pitched, one of them coming on a solo shot by Blake DeWitt in the third inning to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead. He allowed another run to score in his final inning, ending his day with eight hits, four walks, and six strikeouts. Billy Sadler pitched a scoreless eighth inning to maintain the one-run deficit. And then Keiichi Yabu, Alex Hinshaw, and Tyler Walker combined to hold the Dodgers off in the ninth inning in hopes of an offense rally in the final frame.
Giants hitters had a miserable day at the plate, picking up just four hits, not walking once, it is amazing they were able to score just one run. Their lone run came in the fourth inning on a Randy Winn homer to tie the game 1-1, but that would not hold up. The remaining three hits were all singles by Eugenio Velez, Nate Schierholtz, and Omar Vizquel. Velez tried to stretch his single into a double, but was thrown out at second base by Los Angeles centerfielder Matt Kemp. Schierholtz and Vizquel aslo spoiled their singles by getting caught trying to steal second base. A perfect ninth inning pitched by Dodgers closer Takashi Saito closed the book on the Giants.
