Dodgers at Giants
The San Francisco Giants have been able to recover from an abysmal 4-10 start thanks in part to their recent strong play at home — and no team has felt the brunt of that more than the Los Angeles Dodgers. After securing their 11th win in 14 tries at AT&T Park in the opener, the Giants look to improve to 5-0 at home against the Dodgers on Wednesday when the National League West rivals continue their three-game set.
San Francisco, which trailed Los Angeles by six games less than two
weeks into the season, trimmed its deficit in the division to 3½ games
after Tuesday’s 2-0 victory for its 17th win in the last 25 contests.
Buster Posey extended his hitting streak to a season-high 11 games with a
two-out RBI single and is batting .346 against the Dodgers this season
after his 1-for-3 effort in the opener. Los Angeles ranks second in the
NL with 186 runs, but finds itself in the midst of a three-game
offensive drought in which it has scored a total of two runs while
batting .146 (including 0-for-15 with runners in scoring position).
Adrian Gonzalez, who is tied with Colorado’s Troy Tulowitzki for the
most home runs (18) among active players against the Giants, needs two
more RBIs to become the 279th player in league history to reach 1,000
for his career.
TV: 10:15 p.m. ET, SportsNet LA (Los Angeles), NBC Bay Area (San Francisco)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Dodgers LH Brett Anderson (2-1, 3.50 ERA) vs. Giants RH Tim Lincecum (3-2, 2.43)
Anderson
left Thursday’s start with the lead prior to a lengthy rain delay, but
the Los Angeles bullpen gave up three runs in the ninth inning to leave Anderson with his third no-decision in four starts. The 27-year-old, who yielded two runs and fanned a
season-high eight over 5 1/3 innings, has been spectacular in May, going
1-0 with a 1.10 ERA in three turns after posting a 1-1 mark and 5.49
ERA in four April outings. Anderson went 0-1 with a 7.27 ERA in
consecutive starts versus the Giants in late April and is 0-3 with a 6.10 ERA in five
career turns against them.
Following back-to-back dominant
outings, Lincecum saw his 18-inning scoreless streak snapped in a
no-decision during Thursday’s 4-3 loss at Cincinnati. The two-time Cy
Young Award winner struggled with the damp conditions, giving up three
runs and walking a season-high five over 4 2/3 frames. Lincecum split a
pair of starts against the Dodgers last month, allowing one run in six
innings en route to a home win April 21 before coughing up four runs
over as many innings in a loss at Los Angeles six days later.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Dodgers announced the signings of two Cubans – INF Hector Olivera and RHP Pablo Millan Fernandez – on Tuesday.
2.
Los Angeles CF Joc Pederson’s first-inning double in the opener was his
first extra-base hit other than a home run since he became the team's
leadoff hitter April 29.
3. After leading the NL with 138 stolen bases last year (out of 188), the Dodgers are 9-for-23 in 2015.