Detroit manager Jim Leyland says San Francisco’s two-game World Series lead over his Tigers can’t be blamed on a bad bounce or a poor decision, it’s just that the Giants are that good.
“I don’t think they’re getting any breaks,” Leyland said after San Francisco played precision baseball to edge Detroit 2-0 in game two of Major League Baseball’s best-of-seven championship series.
From Pablo Sandoval’s three home runs — two off formidable Tigers ace Justin Verlander — in San Francisco’s 8-3 game one triumph to Gregor Blanco’s perfectly placed base-hit bunt in game two, the Giants have found all kinds of ways to beat the Tigers.
Leyland said it was to the Giants’ credit that they built on the bits of luck they had, such as a ball bouncing wildly off the third-base bag in game one that saved them from a near-certain out and opened the door for a scoring burst.
“I think they’ve earned everything they’ve got,” Leyland said. “Up to this point they’ve outplayed us. They’re playing like the Giants play, and we expected that coming in. They’re good. They’re really good.”
San Francisco has had two sterling outings by starting pitchers Barry Zito and Madison Bumgarner.
Bumgarner yielded just two hits and issued two walks while striking out eight in seven innings in game two.
Home run hero Sandoval delivered a key defensive play, reaching behind him to grab a ball hit high and hard down the left-field line by Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera, and the Giants plated two runs on plays where the batters were out.
The first was a ground ball into a double play with the bases loaded, the second a long fly ball to outfield with a runner on third, who tagged up and scored.
“We’re just trying to play fun baseball,” Blanco said. “Anything can happen.”
However the Tigers, who stunned the New York Yankees in four games in the American League Championship Series, haven’t been able to make much happen.
The closest they came to scoring on Thursday was in the second inning, when first baseman Prince Fielder was waved to run for home on a double off the outfield wall by Delmon Young.
Blanco played the awkward ball and relayed it to second baseman Marco Scutaro, who fired it home to catcher Buster Posey to make the tag as Fielder was sliding toward the plate.
“I don’t even know what Scutaro was doing there,” Blanco said. “But I’m glad he was there.”
Tigers fans were left to wonder why Detroit third base coach Gene Lamont gave Fielder the green light with no outs in the inning.
“I think Gene just got a little over-aggressive,” Leyland said.
Leyland could only hope the Tigers’ big bats will wake up when they return home to Detroit, where they host games three, four and, if necessary, five.
“We are a good offensive club, so hopefully we’ll get our offense going when we get back to Motown,” he said.
Giants making their own luck – Leyland
