Those Old NL Rivals


Monday night, the Giants and Dodgers played a game that will rank with the legendary battles of this 130-plus year long rivalry.
With the Dodgers -- not long ago the hottest team in baseball -- deperate for a victory, the clubs battled each other and mother nature until 2 in the morning, Pacific Time.
Hey, when do you see lightning in the sky at a game in California? And there was plenty of it on the field as well: the Giants jumped on top 4-0; after the evening's first rain delay, the Dodgers rallied and took the lead on a Yasiel Puig home run. Hunter Pence finally put San Fran on top to stay with a two-out RBI single in the 6th inning. Like a lot of his teammates, Pence is on the down side of his career and not producing as he once did. Perhaps it was the rivalry that ignited that old spark?
Residing in the Western Division cellar with the second-worst record in baseball, the Giants pulled off their most satifying victory of the season. Why? It extended the Dodgers losing streak to 11 -- their longest since 1944 when the clubs called the Polo Grounds and Ebbets Field home.
Hard to believe the way this Dodger season has gone. Weeks ago, they appeared on track for the most successful regular season ever. At one point, they'd won an outrageous 41 out 50. Now, they've lost 16 out of 17. And while almost no one thinks they'll blow their still-10 game lead in the division, their aura of invincibility has been dented, to say the least. It's only fitting that their low point coincided with a visit to their forever rivals home park.

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