Why the Giants will win Game 7
— -- KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Cheer up, San Francisco Giants fans! Your team was routed 10-0 in Game 6 on Tuesday night and it has been 35 years since a visiting team has won Game 7 in the World Series. But don't give up hope. Here's why all signs from what happened in Game 6 point to San Francisco winning Game 7 to secure its third championship in five years.
After hearing Tuesday how home teams have thoroughly dominated Game 7, Adam Wainwright apologized to the Giants for grooving that pitch to Derek Jeter in the All-Star Game to give the American League home-field advantage. He offered to make it up to them by pitching Game 7 for the Kansas City Royals and grooving a pitch to Pablo Sandoval.
The Giants have never lost a World Series game started by Madison Bumgarner. True, Bumgarner won't be the starting pitcher in Game 7 ( Tim Hudson will) but he can still start in Game 7. That's because Michael Morse went 0-for-4 as the designated hitter in Game 6, which should prompt manager Bruce Bochy to use Bumgarner (who averaged a home run every 16.5 at-bats) as his DH on Wednesday.
Better news: On Tuesday's episode of "CSI: Kansas City," Marg Helgenberger investigated several Royals as suspects in the bludgeoning of the Giants, including Yordano Ventura, Lorenzo Cain and Mike Moustakas before the real Game 6 killer confessed. Jake Peavy, who allowed five runs in 1? innings to increase his postseason career ERA to 8.69, is now in custody and thus unavailable in Game 7.
Even better news: Hunter Strickland gave up his sixth home run of the postseason Tuesday, but he also pitched two innings and is therefore too tired to pitch in Game 7.
Best news: Tim Lincecum, meanwhile, warmed up in the bullpen Tuesday, but did not pitch. He is therefore available! Lincecum has not pitched in six days, has not allowed a hit since Sept. 28 and has not allowed a run since Sept. 13, a span of 45 days (beat that, Mr. Bumgarner!). San Francisco also has never lost a World Series in which Lincecum has pitched in at least two games. Let Timmy pitch!
Yes, Buster Posey went 0-for-4 and grounded into a rally-killing double play on the first pitch thrown to him in the top of the third inning after Ventura had walked the bases loaded. Yes, Posey is batting .182 in this series. Yes, he does not have an extra-base hit this entire postseason. But he's still Buster Posey, the heart of the Giants! He is due to launch a Jeremy Guthrie pitch into the fountains for San Francisco's first home run since Gregor Blanco's leadoff shot in Game 2. In fact, it's guaranteed. Why? Because Buster Posey has always hit more home runs in the World Series than Buster Olney (who is unavailable).
Royals manager Ned Yost did not make a bad managerial decision in Game 6 so fans should feel confident that he is all but guaranteed to make one in Game 7, such as having Billy Butler try to steal home.
For those concerned that the Giants have never won a seven-game World Series -- losing in seven games in 2002, 1962 and 1912 -- they have won a Game 7, though that was in an eight-game World Series way back in 1921. More encouraging: Yost did not add Scott Spiezio to the postseason roster Tuesday night and Omar Infante will be playing second base for Kansas City, not Bobby Richardson. And infamous Giants goat Fred Merkle is still dead.
Also following Tuesday's game, MLB official Joe Torre confirmed that Don Denkinger will not be in the replay booth for Game 7.
That Marlins fan, Laurence Leavy, was there for Game 6 and has a ticket for Game 7. True fact: The Giants have twice won the World Series with Leavy in the stands (he even wore a Panda hat in 2012) while the Royals have never won a World Series with him in the stadium. Or at least not while he wore a Marlins jersey.
San Francisco's Game 6 loss means there will be one last night for fans to dream up more of those amusing and inspiring Hunter Pence signs, such as the one from Tuesday that read: "Hunter Pence Prefers RBIs to Ribs."
In fact, as a lifelong Giants fan, I may bring my own sign: "Lorde Says Hunter Pence Will ALWAYS Beat Royals."
