I got home from the yard too late last night to write, but you all probably know the story. Opposing pitcher Yovani Gallardo pulled a Brad Hennessey and won the game with his arm and bat. Just before Gallardo's homer, I told my bleacher mates that Gallardo was a good hitter. I was simply relaying what I heard on the radio as I stood in line for beer during Gallardo's previous at-bat, but I got a few ugly stares.
The good news is Randy Johnson was dominant except for that one pitch. Throw like that all year and he'll be fine, though he might not throw any complete games. He was up to 80 in the fifth thanks to all those strikeouts. He might have had another inning or two in him, but Bochy recognized runs would be tough to come by against Gallardo, Milwaukee's true ace despite his #2 rotation slot. So Schierholtz batted for Johnson in the bottom of the fifth.
More good news:
* Aaron Rowand hit three more shots, two of them became doubles and one found the glove of third baseman Bill Hall.
* The bullpen looked good again, especially Merkin Valdez. He gave up a loud double to Ryan Braun (no sin, that) then blew away Prince Fielder with a high fastball that registered 98 on the stadium gun. If Valdez stays healthy, he'll be a closer one day.
* The Giants at least had some chances to score. If Molina had snuck one through the infield instead of grounding to short with bases loaded in the 7th, the game would have been tied. I really liked Fred Lewis's at-bat just before Bengie. Against a very funky lefty reliever, Lewis stayed patient and coaxed a walk. Other than Rowand's opposite field, absolutely crushed double (probably a home run in many other parks), Lewis had the at-bat (or, technically, the plate appearance) of the night.
Concerns:
* Manny Burriss doesn't look comfortable at the plate. I'm eager to see how he fares batting right-handed today against the lefty Parra.
* Pablo Sandoval's three-pitch sequence against Gallardo (in his second at-bat, I think) went like this: 1) Late swing and foul on a high fastball. 2) Swing and miss at a high fastball. 3) Watch a big curve for strike three. I'm very worried that good pitchers are going to tie Sandoval up in knots.
* Worst Sabean trade not involving AJ Pierzynski? Perhaps it's Wayne Franklin for Carlos Villanueva plus others in 2004. Villanueva is now a reliever for Milwaukee and looked sharp notching the save last night.
