Friday, October 22, 2010
And That Happened
Posted by Craig CalcaterraPhillies 4, Giants 2: The Giants had a shot here, and no matter what Tim Lincecum said after the game about not making good pitches in the third inning -- which he didn't -- Aubrey Huff and Pablo Sandoval's defense was the real killer here. A pitcher shouldn't have to be perfect. He should get picked up from time to time by the guys behind him, and that's just not possible with the dudes in the Giants' infield. Not that this game was over in the third inning. Kudos to Roy Halladay for fighting through an injury and gutting one out, and kudos to the Phillies bullpen for being on point. Not once in the final three innings did it feel like San Francisco had much of a chance to do anything.
Now back to Philly, which has to be deflating for the Giants. Are they still favored? They probably have to be because winning one of two is still an easier trick than winning two of two. But in losing at home with their ace on the hill on a night when one of the Phils' big three wasn't as sharp as he could have been was absolutely their best shot to close this series out. And quite frankly, the Giants blew it.
Craig writes the HardballTalk blog for NBC Sports.com