18 games in September: VI

The Padres ran the old "pitch-like-hell-and-pray-for-a-run" con on the NL West for 139 games. It was good enough for a one game lead in the division with 23 to play. Then the Giants came to town and showed they could do it, too. It was the 142nd game for the visitors, who would move into a virtual tie (80-62 to 79-61) with the leaders after a shutout win. To really run the "pitch-like-hell" game, you have to throw a shutout. And it's best when it is a nail-biting, agonizing, torturous 1-0 shutout. Which is exactly what happened. Jonathan Sanchez walked 7 guys in 5 innings but only gave up 1 hit. He would do something much like that in Game 162 against this same team!

The Giants used six pitchers, including what would soon become known throughout the league as The Middle Four Death Squad. Santiago Casilla threw 55-1/3 innings for the Giants in 2010, giving up only 40 hits and striking out 56. Sergio Romo threw 62 innings, gave up 46 hits and struck out 70. Ramon Ramirez joined the club at the end of July, and chipped in 27 innings with 13 hits and 15 strikeouts, allowing only 3 runs. Javier Lopez, acquired at the same time, added 19 innings, 11 hits, 16 strikeouts, and only 3 runs. These guys really got a lot of big outs for the club--let's hope the 2011 'pen can do as well.

The go-ahead and ultimately game-winning run was scored in the top of the 7th and set up with an impossible play. Aubrey Huff had been hit by a pitch and stole second. That's not the part I meant. He then took third on a grounder to the shortstop. The Thonged One was on a mission! He scored on an out. That was Padres Giants baseball! Here's what I wrote then.

                                                              
Pitching                     IP H R ER BB SO HR  ERA BF Pit Str
Jonathan  Sanchez             5 1 0  0  7  4  0 3.29 22  88  44
Santiago  Casilla W (7-2)   1.1 1 0  0  0  1  0 2.22  5  28  18
Ramon  Ramirez H (5)        0.2 0 0  0  0  0  0 3.39  2   8   5
Sergio  Romo H (16)         0.1 0 0  0  0  1  0 2.48  1   5   4
Javier  Lopez                 0 1 0  0  0  0  0 2.29  1   3   1
Brian  Wilson S (42)        1.2 0 0  0  1  2  0 1.80  5  25  14
Team Totals                   9 3 0  0  8  8  0 0.00 36 157  86

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 1/26/2011.


--M.C.