San Francisco Giants starter Carlos Rodon throws against the Los Angeles Dodgers line up in the top of the first inning at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Sun Jun 12, 2022 (AP News photo)

Los Angeles (NL). 0. 5. 0

San Francisco. 2. 5. 0

Sunday, June 12, 2022

By Lewis Rubman

SAN FRANCISCO–Two days ago, one of the most unlikely scenarios in the world of baseball was that the Giants would be going for a sweep of their current three game series against the division leading Dodgers.

But that’s exactly where things stood when Carlos Rodón toed the rubber at 1:06 this afternoon against the snake bitten visitors from Chavez Ravine. The 29 year old Miami native was toting a 4-4,3.51 record for the season and was 2-2 against the Dodgers, both of his wins coming at home and both of his losses in LA.

Snake bitten or not, the visitors still were at the head of the NL West by half a game over San Diego and four and a half over the resurgent San Franciscans.

Los Angeles put their trust in Julio Urías, making this, at least at the beginning, a battle of southpaws. The Dodgers´seven year veteran started the day at 3-5, 2.78. He threw six innings of scoreless ball at them on May 3 , his only appearance against SF this year. His lifetime mark against the home team stood at 3-3, 2.41.

The two hurlers put on a hell of a pitcher´s duel, worthy of the event that the Giants were celebrating this afternoon, the tenth anniversary of Matt Cain’s perfect game of June 13, 2012. Rodón went six innings, shutting Los Angeles out on two hits and three walks.

He struck out eight and brought his ERA down to 3.18. 64 of his 98 pitches went for strikes. Urías also went six frames, allowing two runs, both earned, on home runs.

He yielded only one safety and struck out 10 without giving anyone a free pass. 61 of his 87 offerings were considered strikes. In the end, the Giants held on to an early lead and won, 2-0, to reestablish themselves as a winner in the division race.

It didn’t take long for the Giants to grab the lead. With the count at 1-2 on Austin Slater, Urías hung a slow curve, and Slater hammered it 405 feet into dead center field for his third career lead off home run. It also was his third round tripper of the season and allowed his RBI total to match his uniform number, 13. (Ironically, Urías sports number 7).

One out later, Mike Yastrzemski doubled the lead by taking a 92 mph four seamer deep to left center, 385 feet into the bleachers, for his sixth four bagger and 22nd ribby of ’22.

After Will Smith connected for a solid two base hit to left center in the second, LA fell victim to the Curse of the Lead Off Double, withUrías retiring the next six batters, three by strike outs, before Freddie Freeman walked to open the top of the fourth. Freeman was stranded at first while Rodón notched his fifth and sixth Ks.

Chris Taylor´s bouncer down the third base line put him on second with nobody out in the fifth. He almost scored from there when Hanswer Alberto hit a sharp grounder to the right side, but Thairo Estrada made a beautiful diving play to nab the ball and throw him out at first.

That moved Taylor on to third. Austin Barnes followed with a full count walk. Then Rodón got Betts to pop out to Crawford at short. The Curse of the Lead Off Double came to the rescue!

Urías was even more impressive. After the Yaz blast in the first, he retired the next 16 Giants in a row before Ruf rifled a two out double to the left field corner in the bottom of the sixth frame. The Dodger lefty recovered to close the ending by striking out Yastrzemski, his tenth K of the day.

John Brebbia replaced Rodón to start the seventh. Talor smacked his first pitch up against the 354 foot sign to the right of the Toyota ad on the left field wall for a two bagger. After Cody Bellinger popped out to a falling Flores at third, Max Muncy stepped in to pinch hit for Alberto.

He worked a full count walk to put the potential tying runs on base with Austin Barnes at bat and the top of the order lying in wait. Barnes whiffed on a 3-2 slider, bringing up the always dangerous Mookie Betts. Brebbia got him to ground into a 6-4 put out. The Curse of the Lead Off Double strikes again!

Evan Phillips took over for Urías once ¨God Bless America” and “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” had been intoned. He last only the required three batters and left with one out and Estrada, who had singled, on second and Crawford, who drew the Giants’ first walk, on first.

The new Dodger pitcher was Alex Vesia, a lefty called on to face Joc Pederson, the left handed hitter who had been announced to pinch hit for Ramos when the right handed Phillips still was on the mound. Pederson took a called third strike, but Wynn walked to load the sacks with two down.

Manager Kapler then called on Evan Longoria to hit for González, and the new three batter minimum rule prevented a counter move by LA. Nonetheless, Longoria’s fly out to deep right kept the lead at 2-0.

Now it was Dominic Leone on the hill, trying to protect that slender margen. He got past Freeman, but Trea Turner punched a single to right. Will Smith then sent a towering fly to deep right center that Slater tracked down and hauled in with a breath taking running catch.

Justin Turner slapped a dying liner to right for a single that sent the runner to third. With the tying runs on base, Leone threw a 90 mph cut fastball and got Taylor to swing and miss for the third out.

Brusdar Graterol retired Slater and Ruf to open the ninth for the Angelinos but surrendered a mighty double to the left field corner by Yastrzemski. Taylor took a terrible tumble on the play and had to leave the game but, I’m glad to say, under his own power. Bellinger popped out to third, and we went into the ninth.

Jake McGee entered the game at 1-1-,6.46, with two saves in four opportunities, to hold the Dodgers one more inning. He did it, retiring the pinch hitting Max Muncy, Austin Barnes, and Mookie Betts in order.

The win went to Rodón; the loss to Urías. The former deserved his win; the latter didn’t deserve his loss. The Giants will open a three game interleague series against the Kansas City Royals tomorrow evening at 6:45.