There was no sweep of the struggling Philadelphia Phillies, but the San Francisco Giants (57-45) finally remembers what it's like to win some games.
After getting blown away by Oakland, San Francisco has won three consecutive series and boast a 7-3 record in their last 10 games. Sure, those series are against some of the worst competition in the National League at the moment, but after a horrendous June and all the nagging injuries that are piling up this team, the Giants will take anything positive.
The SF offense finally took a slide this week in the finale, losing a 2-1 decision that saw the team strand seven in scoring position. Tim Hudson had too high of a pitch count to get past six innings but pitched relatively well considering he gave up eight hits. Cole Hamels was a shade better with 10 strikeouts in eight innings.
At least Jonathan Papelbon didn't give it up for Philly. He was the reason why Tuesday night's game turned into a 5+ hour long jaunt by giving up the game-tying run in the ninth inning. He was also responsible for giving up a three-run double to Hunter Pence on Wednesday night, the only runs scored in that game.
Papelbon's rough week was glorious for the Giants. Now taking a firm lead back in the NL West, they look to extend it in a weekend series against the Los Angeles Dodgers (56-47).
LA lost their final two games in Pittsburgh and have lost four of their last six. It could be a lot more if San Diego wasn't so insufferable on offense, barely scraping by with 1-0 wins on the weekend before the All-Star Break.
The offense has been a let down for most of the slide, but in the last two losses, both pitching and defense has been a problem as they gave up 18 total runs. But the Dodgers will have their great trifecta of starting pitchers coming to San Francisco. Runs could be at premium.
Notes
- Brandon Belt, who's still fighting concussion symptoms, will be returning to San Francisco with the team.
- It's possible that Yasiel Puig will be back as early as the series opener on Friday night.
- The Dodgers are 3-7 against the Giants this season.
Pitching Matchups
- Friday, July 25th - Zack Greinke (R, 11-6, 2.90) vs Tim Lincecum (L, 9-6, 3.65)
First pitch - 10:15 PM ET | TV: NBC Bay Area, SportsNet LA - Saturday, July 26th - Clayton Kershaw (L, 11-2, 1.92) vs Ryan Vogelsong (R, 5-7, 3.99)
First pitch - 9:05 PM ET | TV: CSN Bay Area, SportsNet LA, MLB Network - Sunday, July 27th - Hyun-Jin Ryu (L, 11-5, 3.39) vs Yusmeiro Petit (R, 3-3, 4.24)
First pitch - 8:07 PM ET | TV: ESPN
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