As the old adage goes, “Good pitching will always beat good hitting.” In the case of the San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers in the World Series, great pitching completely dismantled good hitting.
Giant pitchers completely dismantled the Rangers lineup in Games 1 through 4, and in Game 5 Tim Lincecum finished the deal. Lincecum tossed one of the more dominant games not only of the postseason but of the entire year, as the Giants beat the Rangers, 3-1, to win the 2010 World Series.
For six innings this game was flat out pitching porn. Lincecum and Cliff Lee were beautiful to watch. Both pitchers were on top of their game. Both pitchers were making hitters look extremely foolish.
Lincecum’s change-up, slider and fastball were almost unhittable. Even when the Rangers did mount any semblance of a rally, like when Mitch Moreland singled to lead off the inning in the bottom of the sixth, Lincecum just squashed it.
Moreland singled, and Lincecum then retired Elvis Andrus, Michael Young and Josh Hamilton on four pitches. It was as if Lincecum went from a 10 to a 15 on the “there is no way I am going to lose this game” scale.
Lee was equal to the task for six innings. In the first two-thirds of the game, Lee allowed three hits and struck out six. Then the top of the seventh happened.
If the first six innings were pitching porn, then the top of the seventh was the equivalent of the director cutting to the dude’s face in the middle of the scene—it just ruins everything.
Lee had Cody Ross and Juan Uribe down 0-2 in the count, and he lost them both. And if you think about it, he made the same mistake against both batters. Instead of throwing something off-speed to set up the fastball, Lee just came at them with fastballs—and paid for it.
The Giants were set up at first and second with nobody out and Aubrey Huff coming to the plate. The next sequence will tell you everything you need to know about why the Giants are World Series champs.
Huff has never had a sacrifice bunt in his Major League career. That is a fact. However, in this situation, a bunt was called for.
Huff proceeded to lay down a bunt that Juan Pierre couldn’t have done better himself. It was a bunt that went between Lee and Moreland, and Lee’s only play was to first. It was such a good bunt that Huff almost beat it out.
That’s how things went for the Giants this postseason. Bruce Bochy asked his players to do things—and not only did they do them, they executed to perfection.
Coincidentally, the Rangers and Ron Washington couldn’t do anything right. Moreland singled in the sixth, Washington called for a hit and run and Andrus flew out to center. Mission unaccomplished.
And just when things couldn’t get any worse for the Rangers and Ron Washington, they hit the mother load.
After a Pat Burrell strike out (shocker there), Lee had to deal with Edgar Renteria. Lee fell behind 2-0, and the consensus was to walk Renteria and face Aaron Roward, who is pretty much an automatic out these days.
Lee decided to pitch to Renteria—that was a huge mistake. Lee threw a fastball right over the middle, and Mr. Clutch hit one into the left-centerfield stands.
Game over. Series over.
Here are some other observations from Game 5.
Washington brought in Neftali Feliz in the eighth inning this game. Congratulations to Washington for finally realizing he wasn’t playing in August. It only took him 16 games into the postseason to realize this.
If Jennifer Aniston knocked on my door and said she wanted to sleep with me, it would be less surprising than a Burrell strike out. Burrell struck out 11 times in 13 World Series at-bats.
Congratulations to Renteria on winning the World Series MVP. For all the sabermatricians that believe “Clutch” doesn’t exist, I will introduce you to Mr. Renteria. The guy is money when it counts.
Brian Wilson didn’t allow a run the entire postseason. Simply amazing.
105 days until pitchers and catchers report to spring training. Just saying.
The team that won the World Series had Cody Ross and Juan Uribe batting fourth and fifth. Again, simply amazing.
Lincecum, Matt Cain, Madison Bumgarner and Jonathan Sanchez—best home grown rotation since ________? You fill in the blank. I will say the Tim Hudson, Mark Mulder, Barry Zito and Rich Harden foursome of the early-2000 Oakland A’s.
Once again, congratulations to the San Francisco Giants on winning the World Series, and in turn pissing all over Moneyball and everything it preaches. Statistical analysis is important, but character and heart are even more so.
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