After yesterday’s easy blowout, it made perfect sense that today’s game would get a little weird. Yesterday Buster Posey led the Giants on a rout of a pitcher who used to be fantastic, while Barry Zito shut down an excellent lineup, and the Giants shut down a team that has regularly dominated them in the past. That makes sense, if only to remind you that baseball is baseball, and you’re a fool for thinking that history repeats itself.

Now, Bruce Bochy is naturally going to take heat for pinch-running for Buster Posey (again!) in the top of the ninth inning. Now, I understand that there were many factors that went into the decision to pinch-run. After Posey singled to lead off the inning, Gregor Blanco represented the go-ahead run, and with his speed, Blanco could much more easily steal, go first-to-third on a single, or score on a double. That makes sense. I’m not sure why they didn’t give Blanco the sign to steal, but that’s a complicated decision and it just didn’t work out that inning. Fine.

What I really don’t understand is the decision to intentionally walk Tyler Pastornicky in the bottom of the ninth to load the bases for Michael Bourn. With two outs, it makes more sense to pitch to the weak-hitting Pastornicky than to Bourn, who is one of the best singles hitters in the league. Bourn’s one downside is his lack of power, but with the bases loaded in a walk-off scenario, that doesn’t matter nearly as much as his ability to do everything else like, say, beat out an infield single to knock in the winning run.

But hey, it worked out.

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