Comparing the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Dodgers position-by-position
Notable Bench Players:
OF Carl Crawford OF Justin Maxwell
INF Alberto Callaspo VS. INF Kelby Tomlinson
Apr 27, 2015; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers left fielder Carl Crawford (3) rounds third base on a triple in the second inning against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
As mentioned earlier, the Dodgers are very deep, with such names as Crawford, Callaspo, and Ellis. This allows them to use pinch hitters more effectively, whereas, the Giants do not have a threat off the bench. Susac is the Giants biggest bat off the bench, but before his DL stint he had been starting at catcher and Posey moved over to first base. The Giants bench is very thin.
Advantage Dodgers.
Extra Innings: Giants 5–Dodgers 5
Notable Bullpen Arms:
LHP J.P. Howell RHP Sergio Romo
RHP Matt Latos VS. RHP Sergio Romo
RHP/Closer Kenley Jansen RHP/Closer Santiago Casilla
Jul 22, 2015; San Diego, CA, USA; San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Sergio Romo (54) pitches during the eighth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Jake Roth-USA TODAY Sports
Both the Giants and Dodgers have been sketchy and inconsistent in the bullpen throughout the season, as the Giants rank 9th in the MLB in ERA and the Dodgers are ranked a very poor 22nd. Reaching the 9th inning to hand the ball to their dominant closer in Jansen has been the biggest struggle. To compare, Jansen is in another league than Casilla, but the poor middle relief pitchers in the Dodger pen is a reason to worry. The Giants bullpen has been much better at holding leads and stranding inherited base runners as the Giants rank 2nd in the MLB in holds with 77, and the Dodgers rank 13th with just 60 holds.
Advantage Giants.
Final Score: Giants 6–Dodgers 5
All in all, we have gone position-by-position and San Francisco seems to have the slight advantage over the Dodgers. Nevertheless, baseball has shown us that team chemistry and clutch performances often prove to be more important than statistics and match-ups.