The Dodgers beat the Giants in the bottom of the ninth last night as Delwyn Young hit a pinch-hit single to drive in Rafael Furcal, who dashed home from second to win the game with a score of 3-2.
Derek Lowe and Giants starter Matt Cain fought through the first six scoreless innings. In the seventh, Lowe gave up a few base hits that resulted in two runs for the Giants after he was pulled after being hit in the left by a Jose Castillo single. The bullpen then came in to hold the Giants at two, giving up only one more hit. Saito then came in to close the ninth out and did so with perfection: 3 strikeouts.
The Dodgers also rallied in the seventh to tie the game at two with Furcal’s 2-RBI single to score DeWitt and pinch-runner Hu, who had succeeded in a double steal.
The starting lineup had Juan Pierre in left and Ethier in right. Matt Kemp then came in to play right, where Ethier was moved to left and Pierre benched. This shuffling of the outfielders may seem problematic because there is no concrete outfield lineup, yet for Torre it shows the depth and oversupply of talent that the Dodgers have available for the outfield. Torre mentions that he will continue to shuffle around the outfielders based on pitching matchups, as well as the fact that he doesn’t want one player to sit for too long and get disconnected by being on the bench.
The intensity heated up during the game when third base coach Larry Bowa was ejected in the sixth for stepping out of the coaches box, which will be a more strongly enforced rule this season.
Next up: The Dodgers go for the sweep of the Giants tonight at 7PM. Chad Billingsley will face Tim Lincecum.
