Yasiel Puig
Yasiel Puig #66 of the Los Angeles Dodgers dives but can't make the catch as the ball drops in for a single by buster Posey #28 of the San Francisco Giants in the second inning at Dodger Stadium on June 19, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images) Stephen Dunn/Getty Images

LOS ANGELES – Buster Posey imposed his will on the rival Dodgers with a third inning grand slam to silence Los Doyers as the San Francisco Giants pummeled Los Angeles 9-5 on Friday.

The Giants had two, four-run innings on the night as Los Angeles imploded against their NL West rivals, and now lead the division by just 1.5 games. Both the four-run rallies for San Francisco occurred with two outs in the inning.

Justin Turner hit two doubles and a homer, going 3-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored hitting in the three-hole for the first time all season. Turner is on a tear in the month of June, batting .377 with five doubles, two round-trippers and nine RBIs.

"I believe you're going to get pitched the same way no matter where you are in the order," Turner said. "Never once have I heard 'this guy is htting third tonight, so let's pitch him differently than when he was hitting fifth,' so it really doesn't matter where I'm at in the order."

San Francisco's rookie pitcher Chris Heston (7-5) made his first career start against the Dodgers allowing three runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings. Heston threw a no-hitter against the New York Mets just 10 days prior, and on Friday, became the first Giants rookie to beat the Dodgers since Madison Bumgarner in 2010.

To the contrary, Dodgers starter Mike Bolsinger lost for the first time at home all year, allowing a season high five runs on eight hits in 5.1 innings. Bolsinger was 4-0 with a 1.01 ERA at Dodger Stadium prior to tonight. "This was reminiscent of my last outing in San Diego. I'm cruising along, I get two outs, and then suddenly I work my way into a bases-loaded jam," Bolsinger said. "The good thing is its self-inflicted, and I can learn from it."

Dodgers' catcher Yasmani Grandal hit an RBI single in the second inning, snapping LA's 32-inning scoreless streak against San Francisco. It was the second longest scoring steak in franchise history behind only a 33-inning scoreless steak against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Despite one of Turner's best games at the plate this season, the Giants put up four runs in the third inning and seventh inning as they pulled away from LA thanks to Posey's grand slam.

"I was just trying to stay small there with two strikes and not try and do too much," Posey said. "Fortunately, I got a pitch that stayed up and hit the home run."

Joc Pederson made a sensational diving catch in center field in the sixth inning as the Giants looked to blow the game open. Pederson dove to his left and snagged a hit away from Gregor Blanco on what is sure to be a web gem on Baseball Tonight on Satuday.

The Giants bullpen outdueled the Dodgers as San Francisco allowed just two runs over the final four frames. In contrast, Dodgers relievers Daniel Columbe and Josh Ravin allowed four runs on four hits with two walks over the sixth and seventh innings.

Santiago Casilla picked up his 19th save on the season by retiring just one batter. Casilla came in with two on, and two-out in the bottom of the ninth, striking out Yasiel Puig to end the game.

© 2024 Latin Times. All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.