SAN FRANCISCO — This is hardball now. A hard slide woke up the Giants last night against the burly Cardinals.
Get ready for a knock-down, drag-out series in this NLCS. These are the last two World Series champions, and both teams are going to fight to the bitter end.
The Giants found a way to win a playoff game at home this October, and it wasn’t just because Marco Scutaro was crushed at second base on a late slide by former high school football star Matt Holliday in the first inning and suffered an injured left hip in the Giants’ 7-1 win over the Cardinals at AT&T Park.
That’s the way the Cardinals play the game. That’s not going to change.
Scutaro got his revenge in the Giants’ four-run fourth that snapped the 1-1 tie, a bases-loaded single to left off Chris Carpenter that Holliday booted, allowing all three runners to score. Scutaro was replaced by Ryan Theriot at second in the sixth, and was not available to the media after the game.
Giants catcher Buster Posey put the play in perspective.
“I don’t think [Holliday] was trying to hurt him, but regardless, it was still a late slide,’’ said Posey, who fractured his leg in a home-plate collision with the Marlins’ Scott Cousins in 2011. “It fired us up, but at the same time guys are trying to stay under control because it’s already a high-intensity game.
“I don’t think anything is going to be easy in this series. Both teams have a lot of gutsy players, it should be fun.’’
“It’s going to be an intense series,’’ promised Theriot.
Holliday explained his thinking, and said, looking back on it, he slid too late. But that’s playoff baseball.
“I’m not a dirty player,’’ he said. “I was trying to knock him down so he can’t turn the double play. He was right on the base. In hindsight I wish I would have started my slide a step earlier, but it was happening fast and you’re trying to get to his lower half so you can’t turn the double play. I hope he’s OK. I know him, he’s a good guy. I wasn’t trying to do anything more than try to keep us out of the double play.’’
There was no double play.
As for Scutaro hanging in on the play, Holliday said: “It didn’t surprise me at all, he’s a great player. He’s had an unbelievable second half and he’s come up with some huge hits for them. I just asked him if he was OK. He was obviously hurting. He wasn’t talking.’’
In the postseason, everything is stepped up a notch, including breaking up two.
“It’s part of the deal,’’ Holliday said. “You’re trying to keep us out of the double play. Every run in the postseason is huge. The only regret I have is maybe I should have started my slide maybe a step earlier so I wouldn’t have ended up on top of him.’’
The Giants had lost their all three home games this postseason. The series now shifts to St. Louis for Game 3 tomorrow.
The Giants finally got the kind of starting pitching performance they needed from Ryan Vogelsong, who became the first Giants starter to make it through six innings this postseason. If Vogelsong is back, the Giants will be in good shape. He was the NL ERA leader up until Aug. 12 with a 2.27 mark but over his last 10 starts he posted a 6.75 ERA. Vogelsong lasted seven innings, allowing only one run on four hits.
Every time Holliday came to the plate, the sold-out crowd chanted: “He’s a bum.’’
In this LCS, there has been no booing of the hometown players. The Giants fans always seem to make this an orange-and-black frat party. You can expect a calmer hometown flavor at Busch Stadium for Games 3, 4 and 5. Kyle Lohse will be on the mound tomorrow for the Cardinals while Matt Cain goes for the Giants.
With more hard plays to come.