And then Giles hit the wall, the ball bounced out, and Winn's triple allowed the tying run to score. Winn then scored on a base hit by J.T. Snow, and for a change it was the other team's vaunted closer who failed to get the job done, as SD's Trevor Hoffman took the loss when the Pods did not score in the bottom of the ninth.
That puts the Giants three games back with six games to play -- but the next three are at San Diego. It will not be easy, but it's possible that if the Giants could pull off the four-game sweep that the two teams would be tied as they each go into their final three game series. To finish their respective seasons, the Giants will host the Diamondbacks and the Padres will host the Dodgers. I hope to find myself in the very unusual for a Giants fan situation of cheering for the Dodgers this weekend. I have tickets to that last game of the season against Arizona, and I hope the game matters -- unless of course the San Diego loses every game between now and then and the Giants win every game, which would make next Sunday a celebration of the Giants somehow managing to make the playoffs with a losing record. (Right now, the best they can finish is 80-82.)
It's still a long shot, I know. Barry Bonds looks really painful out there, and people don't mind pitching to him because he isn't hitting. But I'll be there cheering next Sunday no matter what, because I'm a Giants fan.