The Battle of the Weavers wasn't quite the pitching duel that people thought it could be, but that was okay for Jeff. The older Weaver gave up two runs in five innings, and a two-run triple by Andre Ethier was the big blow as the Dodgers won, 6-4.
The Angels tacked on a couple of runs in the first two innings. A single by Chone Figgins and a throwing error by Jeff put him at third to start the game. Bobby Abreu, kind of an unusual choice for a #2 hitter, singled him home for the quick lead.
Kendry Morales lead off the second with a solo shot to make it 2-0. The younger Weaver cruised through the first six batters in the order.
The third is when something monumental happened: Russell Martin hit a home run. Yes, I did just say that. It wasn't a cheap one either, as he launched one to left to make it 2-1. Kudos to the Dodgers' dugout for giving him the silent treatment at first. I love seeing that!
That homer ignited the Dodgers, as they took over the game after that. Still in the third, the bases got loaded with one down on walks to Matt Kemp and Rafael Furcal, and a single by Juan Pierre. A sac-fly RBI by Orlando Hudson, something he couldn't do the previous night, made it tied at two.
The fifth is when the Dodgers broke it open, all with two outs. With James Loney on first and Hudson on second, Casey Blake hit an RBI single to make it 3-2. The big blow was Ethier's triple that scored both, and it was 5-2.
A wild pitch scored Martin to tack on another run in the sixth. Gary Matthews Jr. took Jonathan Broxton deep for a two-run homer in the ninth, and that was it for scoring.
Give Jeff plenty of credit here, as it sure looked like Jared would get the better of him after two innings. Jeff didn't walk anybody over five innings, striking out four. The no walks is something Chad Billingsley could learn from. He let his defense do their job, and it worked.
Once again, Ronald Belisario and Ramon Troncoso were great. How good was Belisario? All five of his outs were strikeouts. Wow.
About the only bad spot was Broxton's ninth, but he's still battling a sore right big toe. And when I say big, I mean really, really BIG. Seriously, just imagine that thing. Yikes.
I'm glad Martin has finally gotten on the board with a longball. A 3-for-4 night raised his average to .249. He's 5-for-9 his last three games, so maybe things are starting to click for him. His average is still only .173 in June, so it's not like it can get much worse.
The final game of the Freeway Series for 2009 is on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball. Clayton Kershaw will take on John Lackey. Kershaw was great in a no-decision against the A's last start. Lackey has pitched 21 straight scoreless innings against the Dodgers at home.
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