Game Wrap 2014 NLDS Game 3: Nationals 4 Giants 1

A wild throw on an ill-conceived attempt to get the lead runner at 3B on a sacrifice bunt doomed an otherwise stellar pitching performance by Madison Bumgarner.  The problem was the offense went silent again until the 9'th inning when it was too little, too late.  Key Lines:

Gregor Blanco- 0 for 4.  BA= .071.  Blanco made several highlight reel quality catches in CF, but again failed to get on base to set the table for the middle of the order.  It's a problem.

Joe Panik- 0 for 4.  BA= .133.  Panik's bat has also gone silent in the last 2 games with the 9'th inning walk in Game 2 being his only trip to 1B.  Nats have figured out that he likes fastballs and are pitching him backward.  He has to make the counter-adjustment.  Gotta have at least 1 of the 2 guys at the top of the order getting on base.

Madison Bumgarner-  7 IP 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 2.57.  Bumgarner, if anything, was pitching better than he did in the Wild Card game until the 7'th inning when the first two batters reached base on a groundball hit and a walk.  Wilson Ramos laid down a good sac bunt to the right side of the mound.  Bummy jumped on it, looked like he was thinking first base, but then Buster Posey yelled 3B. There was just enough hesitation that the throw had no chance to get the speedy Ian Desmond anyway, but Bummy pulled his throw and it went all the way past the bullpen down the LF foul area.  2 runs scored and you knew it was the ballgame right there.  We'll never know what might have been if Bumgarner had just gotten the out at 1B putting runners at 2'nd and 3'rd with 1 out, but there would have been a fighting chance to hold them scoreless, a decent chance to limit the damage to 1 run and an almost guarantee of limiting it to 2 runs.  Maybe the Giants were feeling the pressure on defense of the offense's failure to generate any runs and they felt they had to get that lead runner at all costs?

Doug Fister- 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.  On a day that seemed like the ball should be jumping out of the park(it was 76 degrees at game time), it actually did not seem to carry well at all.  Crawford had a promising drive die at the warning track in left-center and the Nationals had several balls seem to stay in the park when it looked like they might not.  Fister is no slouch of a pitcher.  If I remember right, he was the Tiger pitcher who gave the Giants the most problems in the 2012 WS.  He's only gotten better since.  Giants have to do better on offense, though, if they want to win this series.

The Loss dropped the Giants lead in the series to 2-1.  Ryan Vogelsong faces Gio Gonzalez tomorrow evening.  This is now looking like a must win for the Giants as they do not want to have to fly back to Washington to face Stephen Strasburg again.  We may see a lineup shuffle tomorrow with the LHP going and the offense struggling for the last 2 games.  Gotta remember, though, that every one of these Nationals starters had ERA's under 3 this season.  If you want to beat this team, you better scrap for every run and pitch your heart out.  The Giants did all that, but sometimes these games and series turn on a bad decision as much as any physical activity on the field.  Giants have mostly made the right decisions until the 7'th inning today.

Around the League:

Cardinals took a 2-1 lead in the other NLDS series with a 3-1 win over the Dodgers.  Nice to see our old friend Kolton Wong get the game winning 2-run HR.  Kershaw and Greinke are now both going to go on short rest.  That will be interesting.  This is not the 1960's when Koufax and Drysdale went on short rest every World Series.  I mean, there are still two 7-game series' remaining if they get past the Cards!  Remember Orel Hershiser?