With yet another series win, the Los Angeles Dodgers have pushed themselves closer to the post-season. They have accumulated 90 wins to just 60 losses and the magic number is down to four. Their lead over division foes Colorado is 5 games. The win which put the team 30 games over .500 for the first time since 1985, sank the Giants to 4.5 games back in the Wild-Card race. In a remarkable year that saw the Dodgers lead the majors for all of the spring and early summer, being highlighted by the emergence of a dynamic duo in the outfield, the team is now poised to win 97 games. That would be the highest total since they emerged victorious 98 times, way back in 1977. It's also a possibility they could see the 100 win mark if they get any hotter over the seasons remaining twelve games. (3 @ Was., 4 @ Pitts., 2 @ S.D., 3 vs. Col.)
"This club is playing with a purpose right now," said manager Joe Torre. "They understand what's out there and what's at stake and they can't expect anyone else to do it for them."
Sunday's win marked the last game between rivals LA and San Francisco for the 2009 season. The Dodgers won not just this series, but also the season series by a 8-5 margin. Randy Wolf the Dodgers southpaw starter (11-6), won the game on 6 plus strong innings. He gave up only two runs, both solo homers to Andres Torres, 5 hits, 2 bases on balls, and struck out three. For Wolf, it has been consistency that keeps him successful. He is 6-0 with a 2.41 ERA in his last eight starts. The Dodgers are now 21-11 in games he starts, and after going six innings against the Giants, Wolf topped the 200 inning mark for the first time since 2003. For Giants ace, Tim Lincecum it wasn't such a happy day. San Francisco was looking for wins as they battle the Rockies for the NL Wild-Card spot. Lincecum, the defending NL Cy Young Award winner, came into the game with the leagues lowest ERA. He was promptly given the boot by a Dodgers offense that retired him to the bench after just four plus innings, his shortest start since Opening Day.
"Definitely today was a big game. You can tell by the look on my face I'm not really happy about my outing and the way I let the team down," said Lincecum. "It's hard to say you let the team down, but I just felt like I could have done a better job out there, put up a better fight, and hopefully it would have been a closer game. But that wasn't the case today."That wasn't the case at all as Andre Ethier belted a two-run blast, his 31st as well as his 100 and 101st RBIs, to right center field two batters after Dodgers pitcher Randy Wolf drew a four pitch walk in the third inning. Shortstop Rafeal Furcal also had a triple and recently acquired Ronnie Belliard drove in two runs in the 6-2 win. After the game Ethier commented on the opposing pitching as well as his own accomplishments of reaching the 100 RBI mark. He is the first Dodger to do so since J.D. Drew in 2006, and the first to have a 30 Hr/100 RBI season since Adrian Beltre in 2004. "That's why teams have an ace," said Ethier. "They don't get beat too often. This is a good test and warmup for what's to come hopefully." He also added, "Seeing those guys, when you're growing up, hitting 100 RBIs, they're the guys doing the job and now I'm one of them." Almost lost in the mix was another solid performance by the Los Angeles bullpen. Hong-Chih Kuo, George Sherrill, and Jonathan Broxton three three perfect innings to end the game. Sherrill and Broxton each had two strikeouts. Broxton is tied for eighth overall and sits fourth in the NL in saves with 35.
I suppose not only is wining infectious, but it's fun. The sold-out game on Sunday that lasted two hours and 38 minutes had a couple of amusing moments for the fans as well. In the outfield it wasn't just 'Manny being Manny' but 'Ethier being Ethier' as well. The top of the sixth inning saw an Andres Torres home run blasted deep into the left-field pavilion. Slugger Ramirez immediately turned to the crowd and opened his glove motioning for the fans to throw the ball back on to the field. After a couple seconds of contemplation the ball was thrown back and then Manny, apparently pleased, threw the ball back to the fans for a souvenir. An inning later in the seventh, Andre Ethier gave a thumbs up to a lucky young fan sitting in the front row of the right-field pavilion, who was shown on the Kiss-Cam enjoying a smooch with not one but two beautiful women who sat surrounding him. We may well soon see the Dodgers outfielders kissing and raising a Commissioner's Trophy, awarded to the winners of the World Series.
If you'd like to see some more interesting facts about the Dodgers-Giants rivalry check out www.great-sports-rivalries.com. I found some neat facts there, as well as the bat-to-the-head picture seen above.
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