Maholm Busts In debut, As Dodgers Lose Again

Giants    7 11 0

Dodgers 2 9 0

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Now I’m really ticked off. This opening weekend has been a disaster. The Dodgers lost to the Giants for the second consecutive game, with another day filled with crappy uninspired Baseball. Yeah the Dodgers looked like zombies as the Giants beat them by a score of 7-2.

Just so everyone knows, Yasiel Puig showed up extra early to the ball park, thanks to the advice of Gonzo. Puig arrived at 7:30 in the morning, and even arrived before Don Mattingly did. So there was no drama. The only drama was the Dodger’s zombified play on the field. The defense was fine today, this time the Dodgers got terrible starting pitching, (again, although to be fair Maholm hadn’t pitched in a while, but still he was bad), ineffective offense, and sloppy base running.

Mahom was just excrutiatingly bad today-Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Speaking of Mattingly he loaded the lineup with right handers as the game featured a battle of left handers, veteran Paul Maholm versus Madison Bumgarner. Justin Turner was at second base batting second, and even though Carl Crawford, and Andre Ethier have been hitting a little bit, they were benched in favor of Scott Van Slyke, who played in left.

But back to the Dodgers, if this opening series was a television show, it would be called the walking dead. The Dodgers were horrendous on both sides of the ball. The pitching has been total garbage, as Maholm was unable to last past the fifth inning.

He allowed five earned runs on seven hits through 4.2 frames, and was more terrible than any of us could properly imagine. He only whiffed one, and walked two. The Giants put base runners on in just about every frame. Even after Maholm was out of the game, they kept doing it.

The Giants scored one run in the second, one in the fourth, four in the fith, and one in the sixth. The Dodgers had to blow through their entire bullpen again, although they had little choice, as Maholm is clearly not major league caliber.

The club was even equally as pathetic on offense. The Dodger bats couldn’t score anyone with runners in scoring position. The Dodgers were 2 for 12 with runners in scoring position, and left seven men on base. Madison Bumgarner who had only allowed 12 earned runs to the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in his entire career, limited the Dodgers to two earned runs on eight hits, with one walk and ten whiffs in 6.1 strong innings. Bumgarner made 114 pitches, and gave way leading 6-1.

The Dodgers could only manage two runs, despite getting nine hits. While the Giants were lighting up Maholm like a Christmas tree. The Giants got their first run on a Brandon Crawford force out. Mike Morse hit a solo home run in the fourth, but the game really turned for the worse for the Dodgers in the fifth.

In that frame, Bumgarner and Pagan reached on consecutive singles off of Maholm. After a Pence fly out, Pablo sandoval’s three-run home run into the Dodger bullpen put the Giants up 5-1. That pretty much sealed the deal. Buster Posey added a home run of his own, and the Giants slugged three home runs on the day.

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Not that the Dodgers didn’t blow ample opportunity after ample opportunity. The club got a lead-off double from Gonzo one frame, but Bumgarner whiffed three Dodgers in a row, (Kemp, Van Slyke and Uribe). The Dodger’s base running was pitiful as well. Puig was picked off of first base in the third, and A.J. Ellis made a costly Tootblan by being thrown out at the plate on a RBI single from Andre Ethier. He would have been the third run for the club, and his base running gaffe deprived the Dodgers from getting Hanley a bases loaded at-bat.

Anyways, I don’t want to be too negative considering they’ve only played seven games this year. But still, this is opening weekend. And if the Dodgers are going to play this pathetically on opening weekend, against the Giants, then you better believe I’m going to ream them a new one. Losing to the Giants like this is unacceptable, especially at Dodger Stadium.

Let’s not forget Matt Kemp took an ohfer, and his ground ball double play in the eighth, destroyed another rally. Anyways, why go on any further with this loss cap. The final tally was 7-2. Here’s how the crapfest played out at Chavez Ravine.

So Maholm starts out 3-2 to Angel Pagan, and walks him. Second hitter Hunter Pence hits a sharp grounder up the middle, Hanley Ramirez makes a great diving stop, and shovel passes the ball with his glove to Turner, who turns a beautiful 6-4-3 double play! Pablo Sandoval flies to Left, and the Dodgers come to bat.

In the bottom of the first, on-time Yasiel Puig flies out to left, and Justin Turner follows with a fly out to center. Hanley Smokes a double into the left field seats, but Adrian Gonzalez whiffs to end things in the first.

The Dodger’s early game loser continued in the top of the second. The Giants put more runners on base. Juan Uribe’s great backhanded stab and long throw of Buster Posey’s grounder played huge as the Giants scored a run to take a 1-0 lead. If not for Uribe’s great stop, it could have been much worse.

And that’s because Mike Morse, better known as practice swing boy, walked. Brandon Belt singles over Hanley’s head, sending Morse to second. Brandon Hicks hits a piddly ground ball single to short, and the bases are loaded. Brandon Crawford’s grounder is a force out at second, as Belt’s takeout slide breaks up the double play. Morse scores though, and it’s 1-0 Giants. Bumgarner whiffs to end the frame, but the Dodgers are behind early again.

Puig was on time to the ball park today, the crowd goes wild-Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

The Dodgers rally back in the bottom of the second to tie the game at 1-1. After Kemp whiffs, Van Slyke walks. Uribe doubles into the gap to score Van Slyke, who seems to run the bases a lot better now that he’s shed a few pounds. Tie game. A.J. Ellis’s line out is the second out, and Maholm whiffs to end the inning.

The Giants threaten again in the top of the third, but get nothing. With one out, Pence ground-rule doubles over the low wall in left. Sandoval flies out to left, and Posey pops out to Hanley.

Puig leads off the bottom of the third with an infield single, as he dives into first base ala Nick Punto. Turner whiffs swinging, and then cowboy Joe West rings up Hanley on a called third strike. With Uribe at the plate, Puig is immediately picked off of first base for an inning ending Tootblan.

Michael Morse leads off the top of the fourth with a solo home run into the left field pavilions. That puts the Giants back in the lead with a 2-1 score.

In the bottom of the fourth, Gonzo leads off with a double, but the Dodgers waste it with some pretty awful at-bats against Bumgarner. He whiffs Kemp, Van Slyke, and Uribe all in order to get out of the inning.

The fifth inning doesn’t get any better for the Dodgers as Maholm allows consecutive singles to Bumgarner and pagan to put runners at first and second. Pence flies out to van Slyke for the first out. Then Sandoval crushes a three-run home run into the Dodger bullpen to put the Giants up 5-1. Mattingly finally begrudgingly takes out the awful Maholm, and brings in Jose Dominguez. That doesn’t help as Dominguez was utterly wild. Posey crushes a 3-1 pitch for a home run way up into the left field seats, and the score is 6-1. Dominguez recovers to whiffs Morse for the second out. And then he whiffs Belt for the third out. But the damage is done.

Bumgarner retires the side in order easily in the bottom of the fifth, and we go to the sixth.

The Giants score another run off of Paco Rodriguez in the top of the sixth, to extend the lead to 7-1. Brandwon Crawford a one out walk. After Bumgarner sacrifices him to second, the evil Pagan’s double scores him.

The Dodgers can’t do anything again in the bottom half of the sixth, and leave a runner stranded at second base.

Chris Perez pitches the seventh, and allows a walk to Sandoval, and a single to Posey. But pinch-hitter Juan Perez’s ground ball double play erases any chances of the Giants scoring that frame.

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Bumgarner begins to tire in the bottom of the seventh, as his pitch count climbs over 100. Van Slyke’s slicing single to left starts things off for the Dodgers. But Uribe whiffs for the first out. A.J.’s single to the hole at short puts runners at first and second. The Dodgers use Dee Gordon to hit for Perez. Gordon smacks a base hit through the hole at short, as well, and Van Slyke has to hold up at third, and the bases are loaded.

The Giants take out Bumgarner, who leaves still leading 6-1. Right hander Santiago Casilla is called in to pitch to Puig with the bases loaded. But Pug flies to Pence, and it’s too shallow to score Van Slyke. The Dodgers use Andre Ethier off the bench to pinch-hit for Turner. Ethier strokes a base hit into right, scoring Van Slyke, but A.J. tries to score and is nailed at the plate by Pence/Posey. Mattingly attempts a challenge, but to no avail. The Dodgers get one run, and the score is now 7-2. Foolish base running as Hanley would have been up with the bases loaded.

J.P. Howell is in to pitch the top of the eighth for the Dodgers. After he tosses a scoreless frame, we move to the bottom of the eighth. Casilla stays in for the bottom of the eighth. Casilla walks Hanley, and Gonzo to start the frame, and the Dodgers had a rally going. Unfortunately Kemp immediately ruins any chances of the Dodgers scoring by hitting into a 1-4-3 double play. Then Van Slyke whiffs. Utterly pathetic.

Everybody get up! Hey Hey Hey!-Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Moving on to the top of the ninth, with the score still 7-2 Giants. Kenley Jansen comes into the game in a non-save situation. I actually said a non-save situation with the Dodgers losing by five runs. I made a funny. Anyways, Jansen gave up a double to Pence, and walked Sandoval. He does get Posey on a fly ball, and Hector Sanchez swinging. The Dodgers had to bring in Jamey Wright to get the last out.

Yusmeiro Petit replaces Casilla for the bottom of the ninth. He retires the Dodgers in order, as Uribe whiffs, A.J. lines out to Blanco, and Gordon grounds out for the last out. The Giants win the series.

What a train wreck of a series. The Dodgers now fall to 4-3 on the season, and will try not to get swept by the Giants at home tomorrow night at 5PM on ESPN Sunday night Baseball. The Dodgers paid attendance was 49, 520, and with the sold out crowd from yesterday, means the Dodgers have embarrassed well over 100,000 Dodger fans this weekend.

Join us tomorrow night for the concluding game of the series, as Matt Cain draws Zack Greinke. Will the Dodgers get pathetically swept by the Giants at home? If they keep playing the same brand of atrocious Baseball that they have been the last two days, then all signs point to probably.

Find out with us tomorrow night. Go Blue!