The Rockies won again today in dramatic fashion, which is highly annoying, but won't matter much if the Padres can continue to win ballgames. And an opportunity to win four critical games against the second-place Giants starts tonight out in San Diego.I'll be watching this series with rapt fascination, in particular paying attention to the following storylines:
1. Which Padres bullpen will show up? All season long the Padres bullpen has been the best in the league. But over their 10-game losing streak, the bullpen looked vulnerable, relinquishing leads or failing to keep games close in the late innings. The last three days, during the sweep of the Dodgers, the bullpen was back in form. The Padres need the bullpen to be in top form if they hope to win the series.
2. Don't let the Giants go yard. The Giants lineup isn't all that power-laden, but they have a knack for timely bombs. The Padres must neutralize the likes of Juan Uribe, Buster Posey and Aubrey Huff, especially with runners on base, and especially in the late innings.
3. The Lincecum - Latos showdown. On Sunday afternoon, Mat Latos faces off against Tim Lincecum in a matchup of pure beasts. We don't know now where the series will stand going into this game, but at a minimum, this is a statement game. If Latos can win this game, he'll have faced off and beaten two of the top aces in division - Clayton Kershaw and Tim Lincecum - in back-to-back games. That would be ever so choice.
Series starts in about an hour.
No comments:
Post a Comment