Editorials

Zack Greinke Outduels Madison Bumgarner As Dodgers Squeak By Giants

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

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Belt worked a 12-pitch at-bat in the top of the fourth only to line out to center. Posey flied out on the first pitch he saw, and Byrd flied out to center as Greinke set the Giants down in order. The Giants again failed to get a runner on the fifth, giving Greinke 10 consecutive batters retired since Peraza’s two-out error in the second inning.



Following a Rollins a one-out single in the bottom of the fifth, Pagan made a sliding catch in right-center field to rob Peraza of a likely extra-base hit. Rollins later stole second base with ease, where he was stranded as Turner checked his swing and tapped back to the box.

Greinke remained only a Posey infield single and Peraza error from a perfect game as the Giants failed to get anything going in the sixth, with the inning ending on a Duffy strikeout. Bumgarner labored a bit in the bottom half of the inning as he struck out two and allowed two base hits to face Greinke with runners on first and second.

Bumgarner fell behind in the count 3-1, but worked his way back to strikeout his counterpart. Greinke similarly ran into some trouble in the seventh as Belt led off the inning with a base hit to right field. Posey drew a walk and the Dodgers narrowly avoided a bases loaded situation with no outs as Turner’s throw to first base after fielding a chopper to his left was just in time to get Byrd.

Giants manager Bruce Bochy challenged the call to no avail. An outside pitch to Alejandro De Aza was called strike three and Grienke completed the high wire act by getting Kelby Tomlinson to fly out. Pederson led off the bottom of the seventh with a line-drive solo home run to center field that extended the Dodgers’ lead to 2-0.

Pederson joined Bryce Harper as the only left-handed batters to hit a home run off Bumgarner this season. With the extra run support, Greinke took the mound to start the eighth despite already being up to 106 pitches.

Ruggiano nearly misplayed a line drive off the bat of pinch-hitter Nori Aoki, but made a leaping catch to record the first out. Pinch-hitter Gregor Blanco, Pagan and Duffy then combined for a trio of one-out base hits, with the final of the three scoring a run and cutting the Dodgers’ lead to 2-1.

Luis Avilan entered and got Belt to hit a grounder up the middle that Peraza got to, and did a glove toss to Rollins at second base for the start of an inning-ending double play. Tim Hudson replaced Bumgarner in the bottom of the eighth and promptly gave up a leadoff double to Gonzalez.

After Carl Crawford advanced Gonzalez to third base, Andre Ethier pinch-hit for Ruggiano. The Giants countered by bringing in flamethrower Hunter Strickland, who got Ethier to fly out to shallow center field. Strickland then struck out A.J. Ellis to strand Gonzalez.

Kenley Jansen retired the heart of the Giants’ order to close out the Dodgers’ 2-1 win. The victory was the Dodgers’ second consecutive against the Giants, and it extend Los Angeles’ lead in the National League West to 5.5 games.

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