NewsGiants bring playoff hopes to desert
San Francisco (80-69) at Arizona (65-85), 6:40 p.m. PT
By Chris Haft / MLB.com
09/20/09 7:31 PM ET
LOS ANGELES -- The Giants have thrived against the Arizona Diamondbacks this season, winning eight of 12 games. Given their precarious status as postseason contenders, the Giants had better maintain their dominance over the D-backs to sustain their October hopes. And, actually, the win-loss disparity doesn't reflect the tight competition of the season series. Only three games have been decided by margins of more than two runs. San Francisco, which opens a three-game series Monday at Arizona's Chase Field, gets a big break. The Giants won't have to face Arizona ace Dan Haren, who pitched Sunday, or up-and-coming right-hander Max Scherzer, who lost to them in two early-season games but blanked them on three hits over 7 2/3 innings on June 11. With left-hander Doug Davis scheduled to pitch the series opener for Arizona, expect Giants manager Bruce Bochy to use a lineup similar to the one he employed Sunday against Los Angeles southpaw Randy Wolf. Andres Torres, who homered twice off Wolf, probably will return to the outfield. Center fielder Aaron Rowand owns a respectable .280 career average (7-for-25) against Davis. And Randy Winn, who's likely to play right field, is hitting .313 (15-for-48) with two home runs off Davis. Freddy Sanchez (.459, 17-for-37) and Bengie Molina (.386, 17-for-44) have been torrid hitters against Davis. But they'd probably start regardless of who's pitching. So would Pablo Sandoval, who's batting .357 (5-for-14) off Davis in his brief career. Pitching matchupSF: LHP Barry Zito (10-12, 3.94 ERA)
Zito's coming off a dream game Tuesday against Colorado. Not only did he thrive, allowing two runs and five hits in seven innings, but the Giants also scored 10 runs behind him, marking the second time in his three-year Giants career that he has received double-digit support. This is relevant because Zito has received only 22 runs of support in his 11 starts against Arizona, partly accounting for his 3-6 record against the D-backs. ARI: LHP Doug Davis (7-13, 4.01 ERA)
Davis yielded three runs over six innings Wednesday in San Diego and was in the line for the victory before the bullpen blew the save in a game Arizona eventually lost, 6-5, in 10 innings. The left-hander worked out of some trouble, mostly due to five walks in the contest, but will still be looking to pick up his first win since Aug. 10 when he faces San Francisco, against whom he is 1-2 in three starts this season. Tidbits
The Giants are thankful for the expanded September rosters. They used each of their 11 relievers in the first two games of the Dodgers series. ... The Giants' high-Class A San Jose affiliate captured its third California League title in the last five years by defeating High Desert, a Seattle Mariners outpost, 4-3, on Saturday night. The junior Giants overcame a 3-0 deficit to win and complete a three-game sweep in the best-of-five series. ... However, Double-A Connecticut lost, 10-6, to Akron (Cleveland), which captured the Eastern League title by winning the best-of-five championship series 3-1. Tickets
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• Tuesday: Giants (Matt Cain, 13-6, 2.71) at Diamondbacks (Billy Buckner, 2-6, 6.79), 6:40 p.m. PT
• Wednesday: Giants (Jonathan Sanchez, 6-12, 4.29) at Diamondbacks (Kevin Mulvey, 0-1, 10.95), 7:10 p.m. PT
• Thursday: Giants (Brad Penny, 3-1, 4.01) vs. Cubs (Ryan Dempster, 10-8, 3.72), 7:15 p.m. PT
Chris Haft is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
