The San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers re-kindle baseball's best rivalry this weekend at AT&T Park.
These teams have not played head-to-head since May 11th, and much has changed during that span.
The Giants sit a game and a half up on Los Angeles heading into the series, but are feeling the heat after letting a nine and a half game lead evaporate in less than a month's time.
This series represents a crucial point in the season for both teams, and the winner will improve their chances of capturing the division crown come September.
Records:
Giants: 57-45, 1st place in NL West, 1.5 games ahead of Los Angeles
Dodgers: 56-47, 2nd place in NL West, 1.5 games behind San Francisco
Season series: Giants lead 7-3
San Francisco Outlook: The Giants finished their road trip with a 5-2 record, putting them back in first place heading into an important showdown with the Dodgers.
Despite the injuries to Brandon Belt (concussion), Angel Pagan (back), and Matt Cain (elbow), the Giants have seemingly put their month-long funk behind them, and have gone 7-3 in their last 10 games.
Pablo Sandoval and Hunter Pence have been the biggest contributors to the recent turnaround. Sandoval is hitting .338 with three home runs and 10 RBI's in July, while Pence has posted a .349 average with two home runs and 11 driven in.
On the pitching side of things, Tim Lincecum has been the strength of the staff over his last five starts, going 4-1 with a 0.96 ERA - a run that has included a no-hitter and his first career save.
Los Angeles Outlook: The Dodgers have made an astronomical leap in the standings since June 8th. On that day, they sat 9.5 games behind the Giants for the NL West lead.
A mix of strong play and a cold streak by San Francisco helped shrink that margin, and even saw the Dodgers in first place by a game and a half on July 4th.
However, it's the Dodgers who are now in a bit of a rut, and are once again looking up at the Giants.
The recent struggles of Josh Beckett and Dan Haren are now prompting speculation about the Dodgers adding an extra arm to the rotation – possibly in the form of Rays ace David Price.
Meanwhile there remains a log-jam in the outfield, with Matt Kemp, Scott Van Slyke, Carl Crawford and Andre Either all vying for two starting spots alongside Yasiel Puig.
What to watch for: Both teams are short of full health heading into the series. While the Giants await the return of Pagan, Belt and Cain, the Dodgers are unsure of the status of both Puig and Hanley Ramirez for the start of this series.
Each team is going to need all the offense they can get, as all three pitching matchups are shaping up to be stellar -the Dodgers will send a trio of 11-game winners to the hill, while the Giants counter with two hot pitchers in Lincecum and Ryan Vogelsong.
Lincecum (9-6, 3.65 ERA) faces Zack Greinke (11-6, 2.90 ERA) in the series opener, Vogelsong (5-7, 3.99 ERA) squares off with Clayton Kershaw (11-2, 1.92 ERA) on Saturday, with Yusmeiro Petit (3-3, 4.24 ERA) and Hyun-Jin Ryu (11-5, 3.39 ERA) taking the mound Sunday.
What they're saying – Giants:
Giants getting realistic about Scutaro (CSN Bay Area)
Bochy's rotation reflecting one game at a time (SFGiants.com)
What they're saying – Dodgers:
Josh Beckett, Dan Haren give Dodgers trades to ponder (LA Daily News)
Dodgers ready to give Giants their best (Orange County Register)
For more content by Chris Kersevan, check out his writer’s page and on Twitter @cker7
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