Dodger pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu got knocked around.
It could have been a lot worse. The Dodgers’ $36-million man, pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu, gave up hits to the first two batters in more innings than he didn’t. In fact, after the first inning, and the Dodger’s spectacular double-play that got Ryu out of his first jam, I wondered out loud — while watching the first two Giants get hits in the second inning — “How many double-plays do you think the Dodgers have in them?” Then, BAM! The second double-play bailed Ryu out again. Turns out the answer to my query was, “Four.” The Cruz-Sellers-Ellis-Gonzalez infield turned four, count ’em 4, double plays. As it was, Ryu stayed in the game for 6-1/3, giving up 10 hits and leaving while it was only 1-0 in favor of the Giants. (He ended up being charged for the other two runs, unearned though they might be.)
But, as was so often the case last season, the Dodgers bats were nowhere to be found. (I will admit that San Francisco’s Madison Bumgarner pitched a great game, allowing only two hits.)
Now I know that Justin Sellers, whose praises I sang earlier today, was responsible for two costly errors, but that’s not what lost the game, so I won’t hold it against him.
So yesterday we were headed straight for the World Series, the remaining 161 games were just a formality. Billions of dollars had bought a new outcome, and all would be roses and sunshine in the Ravine. Today? Well, today was like a lot of games last season, when the payroll was 1/3 what it is now. It’s a real Jekyll and Hyde kind of thing. We just have to wait and see which of the team’s split personalities will prove to be dominant.
Piewalla's Dodger Blues 