Game 1 of the NLDS between the Atlanta Braves and the San Francisco Giants set up to be a tight one. We headed into this series thinking that pitching would reign supreme and offense would be something of a luxury for either team. Needless to say, Game 1 certainly met expectations.
Derek Lowe pitched arguably his best game of the year only to be outdone by his paper-thin counterpart in Tim Lincecum. Lincecum had, as they say, “Roy Halladay stuff” on Thursday night and he was almost as unhittable.
Timmy went the distance, striking out 14 and allowing just three runners to reach base. Lincecum’s dominance comes as no surprise given the level at which he has been pitching lately. Combine that with a slumping Braves lineup and you get nine innings of near perfection.
The lone run came as a result of a blown call on a steal at second base on what turned out to be a busted hit-and-run attempt as Pat Burrell swung and missed on a 3-2 pitch. Posey later scored on a two-out base hit by recently acquired Cody Ross.
The first game went off without much surprise, but Game 2 sets up to be an interesting one. The Giants will be starting their other young ace Matt Cain. Cain nearly sent the Giants into a one game playoff with the San Diego Padres for the division after a poor outing on the second to last day of the season.
He will match up against Atlanta’s young right-hander Tommy Hanson, who is making his postseason debut—but then again who isn’t in this series?
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