San Francisco Giants vs LA Dodgers: Preview, Prediction and Analysis of Series

Good afternoon, and welcome to AT&T Park, home of the San Francisco Giants. Today’s matchup features the defending champion Giants and the cellar-dweller Dodgers, in one of the most storied rivalries in baseball. Tim Lincecum and Clayton Kershaw, two All-Stars, take the hill this afternoon. Let’s get to the team recaps!

L.A. Dodgers
Other than Kershaw, center fielder Matt Kemp, and right fielder Andre Either, the Dodgers have been pathetic. The team currently is 42-53, eleven-and a half games behind the Giants. Right now, Dioner Navarro is starting at catcher, and Aaron Miles is starting at second.

Los Angeles has gotten solid seasons from Kershaw and Chad Billingsley, but Jon Garland, Ted Lilly, Hiroki Kuroda, and Rubby De La Rosa have struggled to find their mark. The starters have combined for a 35-41 mark, while the bullpen is 7-12.

Matt Kemp leads the Dodgers with 24 homers, 72 RBI’s, and 107 hits. Andre Either has 9 homers and 44 RBI’s, second on the team in both categories. While both have stepped up, other guys for L.A. haven’t stepped up.

Juan Uribe was picked up by the Dodgers with high expectations, as he was one of the main reasons the Giants won the 2010 World Series, with 26 homers and 93 RBI’s last year, including the playoffs. However, his .206 batting average, 4 homers and 27 RBI’s in 252 at-bats has been a huge disappointment.

Marcus Thames was picked up from the Yankees, also with high expectations. However, he hasn’t boosted the Dodgers much, with a meager .197 average, 2 homers, and 7 RBI’s in 66 at-bats.

Rafael Furcal, a longtime Dodger who could be bound for San Francisco, has been the biggest disappointment of all, with a horrific .168 average, 1 homer, and 7 RBI’s in 98 at-bats. If the Dodgers want to make a run, they need production from these three, and the pitching staff. It will take a lot to overtake San Francisco.

San Francisco Giants
Despite injuries to Pablo Sandoval, Andres Torres, Freddy Sanchez, Buster Posey, Mike Fontenot, Jonathan Sanchez, Brandon Belt, Pat Burrell, Cody Ross (twice), Barry Zito, Mark DeRosa, and Bill Hall, the Giants are still riding high, three games ahead of the second-place Diamondbacks.

Sandoval struggled early in his return from injury, but since then, he’s been on. The Kung Fu Panda is following a 22-game hitting streak, where his average was, and still is, over .300. In 203 at-bats, the Panda has 8 homers, 32 RBI’s, and a fantastic .301 batting average. When Placido Polanco was ruled out for the All-Star game, Sandoval was chosen to play, and he hit an RBI double in the NL’s 5-1 win.

While Sandoval has been picking apart National League pitching, Aubrey Huff hasn’t. He has just a .234 average, with 9 homers and 46 RBI’s in 347 at-bats, nothing like last year. Pat Burrell hasn’t helped much either, with 61 strikeouts in 172 at-bats. Burrell has just 7 homers and 21 RBI’s, and just a .233 average. Currently, Burrell is on the 15-day DL, while catcher Hector Sanchez was called up from Fresno.

Miguel Tejada was expected to have a big season, but he only has 4 homers and 26 RBI’s, which isn’t what the Giants wanted. His .243 batting average is better then Pat Burrell, Aubrey Huff, and Andres Torres, but in 292 at-bats, Tejada was expected to have given the Giants more.

While the Giants hitting has struggled (other than Sandoval and Nate Schierholtz), the pitching has been stellar. Since returning from a foot injury, Barry Zito is 3-1, and during one period, he only gave up three runs in 20 innings. Zito’s replacement, Ryan Vogelsong, has been Vogelstrong, going 6-1 with a 2.17 ERA. Vogelsong, Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Pablo Sandoval, and Brian Wilson made the All-Star team.

Wilson, aka “The Beard,” has gotten fans amped up with his frequent funny comments, his beard, and his pitching. Wilson has converted 28 of 32 save opportunities, and he has an impressive 6-2 record this year. The torture hasn’t ended yet, though, as Wilson continues to get into jams.

As long as Sandoval stays strong and the pitching tears apart the NL, the Giants will still be elite. For now, they still are, and the Dodgers are the next victims.

Giants-Dodgers Rivalry
The Giants-Dodgers rivalry isn’t even close to what it used to be, as the Dodgers just filed for bankruptcy protection and the Giants are atop the NL West, but “Beat L.A.” shirts are still common in San Francisco, and the opposite goes in L.A. But can the Dodgers become competitors and help renew this rivalry?

Los Angeles took three of four from San Francisco to open the season, and fans thought that the Dodgers could follow a disappointing 2010 campaign with a successful 2011 season, but that hasn’t worked out so far. The Giants have gotten revenge on L.A., and as of now, the defending champs lead the season series 5-4.

The Giants have won a couple torturous games over the Dodgers, as Aaron Rowand scored the game-winning run on a wild pitch, Mike Fontenot and Pablo Sandoval homered in a 4-3 win, Cody Ross hit a tiebreaking ninth inning jack, and Madison Bumgarner dominated, all in separate W’s. To top it off, Brian Wilson has three saves and one win against L.A.

San Francisco currently has a four-game win streak against the Dodgers, who dominated their rivals early. Rafael Furcal and Juan Uribe powered the Dodgers to four victories, but the Giants have fought back. Mike Fontenot has had a lot of success against the Dodgers, and he looks to continue that.

Every Giants player wants to beat the Dodgers badly, and the same goes for Los Angeles. While this rivalry isn’t as storied as the Brooklyn-New York days, when both teams were contenders, the rivalry is still atop all of sports.

Today, Tim Lincecum and Clayton Kershaw try to add to their rivalry team’s success. From Pablo Sandoval to Matt Kemp to Ryan Vogelsong to Clayton Kershaw, this rivalry just needs a little bit of competition from both teams to return to it’s elite status. Players are going from the Giants to the Dodgers and the Dodgers to the Giants, which is not something that usually happens in a huge rivalry.

Right now, the Reds-Cardinals rivalry is becoming one of the top rivalries in all of sports, as both teams are now contenders, so Los Angeles just needs a second half run to make this rivalry better.

Even though Los Angeles is struggling, they still have a lot of games left, especially against the NL West, where they are doing well. The Dodgers just ended a seven-game win streak against the NL West, and the Giants recently ended a four-game win streak against the NL West.

Statistics
L.A. Dodgers
Home Runs-Matt Kemp, 24
RBI’s-Matt Kemp, 72
Batting Average-Aaron Miles, .316
Hits-Matt Kemp, 107
On-Base Percentage-Matt Kemp .396
Runs-Matt Kemp, 58
Doubles-Andre Either, 23
Triples-Jamey Carroll, 4

Wins-Clayton Kershaw, 10
ERA-Clayton Kershaw, 2.88
Strikeouts-Clayton Kershaw, 155
WHIP-Blake Hawksworth, 1.00
Saves-Jonathan Broxton, 7
Holds-Matt Guerrier, 10

San Francisco Giants
Home Runs-Aubrey Huff, 9
RBI’s-Aubrey Huff, 46
Batting Average-Pablo Sandoval, .301
Hits-Aubrey Huff, 83
On-Base Percentage-Pablo Sandoval, .348
Runs-Andres Torres, 35
Doubles-Aaron Rowand, 19
Triples-Eli Whiteside, Mike Fontenot-2

Wins-Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, 8
ERA-Ryan Vogelsong, 2.17
Strikeouts-Tim Lincecum, 139
WHIP-Sergio Romo, 0.72
Saves-Brian Wilson, 28
Holds-Sergio Romo, 15

Giants-Starting Pitching
As expected, the Giants have gotten great production out of their pitching staff. Although Madison Bumgarner is 4-9, he has been good as of late, and the Giants are finding ways to win on his no-decisions. Bumgarner’s last three starts have been no-decisions, and the Giants have won them all, and Mad-Bum’s last four starts.

And still, Bumgarner has been the worst pitcher on the Giants staff this year. Tim Lincecum has a stellar ERA and made the All-Star team, Matt Cain leads the team in wins, Ryan Vogelsong has one loss in 14 games started, Barry Zito has won three straight starts, and the Giants have found ways to give Jonathan Sanchez wins.

Right now, Sanchez is the only struggling pitcher, and he is hurt. Rumors have spread that Carlos Beltran might become a Giant, and if that happens, Jonathan Sanchez is the most likely to leave. He has been saved by his offense countless times, and without Sanchez, the Giants would keep their stellar five-man rotation.

Many thought Barry Zito’s career might be over and the Giants would cut him after Vogelsong’s pitching, but with two changes, he is back in business. Zito cut the slider, the pitch that made him change his arm delivery (which was working well), and he became ineffective. Zito is also changing his arm delivery back. It’s working well, as he is 3-1 since returning from his sprained foot injury.

For Lincecum, his 8-7 year is like a 5-10 year for another pitcher, but right now, he’s starting to find his stroke. Lincecum got the win in his last start before the All-Star break, and in the late innings of his starts, he’s finding ways to get hitters out. However, his inconsistency has hurt the Giants. A couple good starts, though, and Lincecum should be off to the races.

Matt Cain has been productive this year, and he’s given the Giants an 8-5 record and a good ERA. Cain’s opponents hit the ball a lot, but the Giants defense, which hardly commits any errors, backs Cain up. Cain made the All-Star team for the Giants.

Last, Vogelsong, the man with a heartwarming story. He went from the Giants to the Pirates to Japan to the Phillies Triple-A team to thinking he’d never pitch again. And here he is, with that crazy pitch movement helping him to a 6-1 record, a 2.17 ERA, and the nickname “Vogelstrong.”

The Giants starters have combined for a 33-29 record, and if they keep this up, a good second-half is in the making.

Dodgers-Hitting
While Juan Uribe, Marcus Thames, and Rafael Furcal are undergoing slumps, the Dodgers have found hope with Matt Kemp, who leads the team in homers, RBI’s, slugging percentage, hits, and runs. As expected, Andre Either has played well, with nine homers and 44 RBI’s. Either knocked in a run in the All-Star Game.

Aaron Miles leads the team with a .318 batting average, but with 236 at-bats, he only has one homer and 23 RBI’s, not what the Dodgers are looking for. Jamey Carroll has four triples and 82 hits in 276 at-bats, but only eight RBI’s and zero homers. The Dodgers are getting hits, but stranding runners on base.

Unfortunately for the Dodgers, Miles and Carroll are two of the Dodgers most productive hitters. Tony Gwynn Jr. hasn’t turned in a horrible campaign, but with 172 at-bats, he should be expected to pick up more than 12 RBI’s and a .256 average. James Loney has just 4 homers and 31 RBI’s, and he has not been productive for the Dodgers.

Casey Blake is currently on the 15-day DL, but even before, he wasn’t productive at all. Blake’s .243 average was disappointing for the Dodgers, just as everyone else’s has been (besides Either and Kemp). Rod Barajas has just 21 RBI’s in 182 at-bats.

I think I’ve made it clear that the Dodgers hitting and production has been absolutely horrific, and it has been. Uribe and Thames are nothing like the players they were in San Francisco and New York. Rafael Furcal and James Loney aren’t the players they were three years ago. Tony Gwynn Jr. isn’t playing like his father.

Like I said, the Dodgers weren’t bad at the start of the season, and their hitting picked apart San Francisco at the start of the season. However, the Giants staff is improved, and the Dodgers hitting is on a slump. San Francisco is catching the Dodgers at the perfect time. Now, they just need to make sure they use that to their advantage.

If Pablo Sandoval, Eli Whiteside, and Nate Schierholtz continue their hot streaks, and the Dodgers continue their slump against the Giants, this game today could easily be a Giants win. Even with Clayton Kershaw on the hill, Tim Lincecum will likely get enough run support, and a good matchup. Prediction: Giants 4, Dodgers 1.

Playoffs Predictions

National League-NLDS
(1) Phillies-2
(3) Brewers-3

(2) Giants-3
(4) Braves-1

National League-NLCS
(2) Giants-4
(3) Brewers-2

American League-NLDS
(1) Red Sox-3
(3) White Sox-1

(2) Angels-2
(4) Yankees-3

American League-NLCS
(1) Red Sox-3
(4) Yankees-4

World Series
(2) Giants-4
(3) Yankees-2

The Giants have the tools to win the championship. This team is different than last year, with no Buster Posey, no Juan Uribe, and no Freddy Sanchez (until August), but when you have Barry Zito and Ryan Vogelsong going strong, and the Giants top three playoff pitchers, there’s no limit to your success.

Arizona is bound to have a slump at some point of the season, and I don’t think the Rockies can go on a big enough run to have a shot at overtaking the Giants. In the playoffs, the Giants will most likely be the second-seed, where I have them taking on the Braves.

I think in a rematch of two powerful pitching staffs, the Giants prevail, and I have the Brewers upsetting the Phillies. The Giants have the pitching edge, and I think Prince Fielder and Ryan Braun’s club are shut down. The Giants advance to play the Yankees in the World Series.

In the World Series, the Giants pitching dominates, the Giants light up Bartolo Colon and A.J. Burnett, and San Francisco takes a second straight World Series title. The Giants stay elite contenders until Buster Posey and Lincecum leave.

Series Predictions
Game 1-Giants 4, Dodgers 2; W-Vogelsong, 7-1 L-Billingsley, 8-8
Game 2-Giants 2, Dodgers 1; W-Bumgarner, 5-1 L-De La Rosa, 3-5
Game 3-Giants 1, Dodgers 4; W-Kershaw, 11-4 L-Lincecum, 8-8