MORE FIGHT LEFT
Can Giants use brawl to turn the corner?
Wednesday night’s Giants-dodgers game was tied 3-3 at the end of the 11th inning and didn’t finish before the A-D’S press deadline.
LOS ANGELES – When Nick Hundley stunned the Dodgers with a two-out, two-run single to lead the Giants to a 5-2 comeback win Monday, several Giants players were asked whether their victory could spark a late-season run.
Hundley and his teammates used the opportunity to reiterate the internal sense of confidence emanating from the clubhouse, but most tried to keep the win in perspective.
“It’s a big win for us for sure,” Hundley said Monday. “Whenever Bum starts against another ace like Clayton (Kershaw), it’s a big matchup. It’s must-see TV and one of those games the best in the world are playing so it’s fun to come out on top.”
After Hundley and Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig went faceto-face in a Tuesday fight that led players from both dugouts to race onto the field in the seventh inning, the Giants are now looking to seize the momentum an emotionally-charged victory can provide.
Thanks to Alen Hanson’s twoout RBI single off Kenta Maeda in the ninth inning, the Giants maintained their five game deficit in the National League West and sent the Dodgers tumbling to third place. The tone in the clubhouse following Tuesday’s game was decidedly different.
“I was proud of our guys, they were in there in a heartbeat,” Hundley said. “That’s something that’s going to bring us even closer together. This is a really tightknit group. We’ll feed off that, that’s a great win.”
The mild-mannered Hundley is in his 11th major league season and often sounds like a manager when addressing reporters. As Puig stood in the home clubhouse and explained what he felt caused the confrontation, Hundley didn’t want to divulge too many details.
“That’s stuff that’s said on the field,” Hundley said. “That’ll be left out there.”
Though Hundley doesn’t play every day, he’s a well-respected leader and the reigning Willie Mac Award winner. After his ejection, he was forced to watch the rest of the Giants’ victory from the clubhouse.
“It was tough being in the clubhouse watching it because you want to be in the game and you want to be able to finish, but I made choices that didn’t allow me to,” Hundley said. “That’s probably the hardest I’ve rooted all year for a win and we got it done.”
The Giants have taken issue with Puig’s flair for the dramatic and fiery antics through the years, but manager Bruce Bochy said he’s not concerned it has an adverse effect on his club.
“The game has changed a lot, it really has,” Bochy said. “I don’t get caught up into it as much as we’ve got to try to get these guys out and try to win a ballgame. I don’t let the little things bother me as much anymore.”
Can the Giants take inspiration from back-to-back ninth inning victories and surge up the standings?