By Morris Phillips

Ryan Vogelsong doesn’t have a winning record in 2014, nor does he have a winning record in his nine-year, big league career filled with peaks and valleys.

His September audition for a critical post-season didn’t go well.  The 37-year old veteran made five starts and lost four of them, giving him a career-worst 13 losses in 2014.  Vogelsong simply didn’t make pitches in critical spots.  If he did make those pitches, his teammates didn’t support him with any offense.

And he wasn’t a winning pitcher in his career at AT&T Park heading into Tuesday’s critical Game 4 with a 20-21mark.  Against the Nationals his numbers were bloated with an ERA over six in nine lifetime appearances.

But given all that, and despite having credible options like Game 1 starter Jake Peavy or two-time Cy Young award winner Tim Lincecum, manager Bruce Bochy handed Vogelsong the ball with a trip to the NLCS on the line.

“You know, Vogey, I think there’s a reason why he was out there tonight,” Bochy said.  “I told him that.”

“I’m proud of him, I really am, because he’s had some tough luck.  We’ve had one pitcher in this rotation that’s had some tough luck, whether it’s run support or what could go wrong went wrong   for him at times with bad hops or bloopers, errors, whatever.”

On Tuesday, Vogelsong didn’t have to worry about any of that stuff.  From his initial pitches in the first inning his velocity was up and his command was sharp.  In his five plus innings of work, he shut down the Nationals on two hits.  The electric atmosphere in the crowd provided a lift but Vogelsong did the rest starting with all the side work beginning after his final regular season start on September 26.

“You never know what you’re going to have until you go out there in the first inning, and the first couple came out of my hand pretty good.  You know, the crowd’s into us, the adrenaline’s running.  And I was really trying to make some mechanical adjustments over the last five or six days when I wasn’t pitching and I was just really focused on what I was doing with my lower half.

Just helped me get some velocity and make my pitches better, and was just trying to focus on that,” Vogelsong said.

Vogelsong re-signed with the Giants for one year in the off-season after a rough 2013 made him expendable.  The negotiations were arduous and the final contract numbers weren’t in favor of the pitcher but he never wavered in his belief of the organization or himself.

“You know this place is special, and especially for me being drafted by these guys and going on this long journey and being able to come back here and have success here.

This place is very special in my heart.  So to have another chance to pitch here tonight in front of these fans was amazing.”

And from the first pitches of the evening it showed.  Vogelsong started it, the fans picked up on it almost immediately, and the Nationals, who would hit just .188 as a team in the series were powerless to stop it.

And the unassuming pitcher with the underwhelming peripherals transformed.  Despite all the negative career numbers, Vogelsong performs in October: after Tuesday he’s 3-0 in five starts and the Giants have gone on to win all five.