The San Francisco Giants took Game 1 of the NLCS in St. Louis on Saturday night after Madison Bumgarner tossed 7 2/3 innings of scoreless ball. The Cardinals only scattered four hits in the 3-0 loss after the Giants got to Adam Wainwright early on.
Wainwright delivered another lackluster performance in the 2014 postseason. In Game 1 of the NLDS against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the right-hander lasted only 4 1/3 innings and gave up 11 hits and six earned runs. On Saturday, he again couldn't get out of the fourth inning, throwing just 4 2/3 innings before manager Mike Matheny pulled him. He surrendered six hits, three walks and three runs (two earned).
Bumgarner was again masterful in his third postseason start of the Giants' run. He allowed only four hits and one walk while striking out seven during his time on the mound. The left-hander is now 2-1 with a 0.76 ERA in the 2014 postseason. Travis Ishikawa delivered an RBI single in the second inning to go along with another run scored by Gregor Blanco thanks to a Matt Carpenter error. Brandon Belt drove in Buster Posey with a sacrifice fly in the third, and that was just about all of the offensive production on the night. It was all Bumgarner needed.
With the 1-0 series lead, the Giants will send Jake Peavy to the mound to face Cardinal's right-hander Lance Lynn. Peavy earned a win in Washington against the Nationals in the NLDS after throwing 5 2/3 scoreless innings, which was his first career postseason win. Lynn had a strong outing against the Dodgers in Game 2 of the NLDS (6 IP, 7 H, 8 K and 2 ER), but received a no-decision when the Dodgers scored in the eighth inning to win 3-2.
The Cardinals need to get the bats going in order to have a chance - something they haven't done since Game 1 of the NLDS. In Lynn's last eight starts, the right-hander is just 1-2 with a 2.65 ERA due to poor run support. He hasn't given up more than three earned runs in a start since June 28. But Peavy has been excellent for San Francisco since being acquired from the Red Sox. In his last eight starts, he's 5-1 with a 1.05 ERA, including wins against the Brewers, Tigers and Nationals.
St. Louis hopes to get revenge on the Giants after suffering a heartbreaking NLCS loss in 2012. The Giants won the final three games of the series against the Cardinals to advance to the World Series, which they eventually won. But this postseason seems to be the one of the underdog, with the Royals sweeping the Angels and now taking a 2-0 lead over the Orioles in the ALCS.
The Giants could follow suit with another win tonight in St. Louis. Fox Sports 1 will broadcast Game 2 at 8:07 p.m.