Brandon Crawford steps up to help Giants win World Series Game 5
SAN FRANCISCO — Here’s the thing about these San Francisco Giants, on any given night, in any given postseason game, someone else seems to step up.
On Sunday night, in Game 5 of the World Series, it was shortstop Brandon Crawford. He had an RBI in each of his first two at-bats, giving the Giants an early 2-0 lead. Neither was particularly pretty, but when it’s the World Series, the teams are tied 2-2, and the best pitchers are on the mound, you take the runs how you can get them.
After the Giants scored two more runs in the eighth — more than enough at that point for a cruising Madison Bumgarner — Crawford came up to face Wade Davis with Juan Perez on third. That’s when Crawford laced his second hit of the night to make the score 5-0.
“Crawford had quite a game,” said Giants manager Bruce Bochy.
“I’m just trying to put the bat on the ball,” Crawford said, “and hope something good happens. With Madison on the mound, two runs early is definitely big.”
Crawford came up in the second inning with one out and runners at second and third. A deep Travis Ishikawa fly out and smart Giants base running had put Hunter Pence and Brandon Belt both in scoring position. Crawford grounded out to second base, good enough for Pence to run home.
In the fourth, Pablo Sandoval and Ishikawa singled, and Crawford came to the plate with two outs. Crawford reached for one of James Shields’ pitches and looped a ball into center field that Jarrod Dyson couldn’t get to. When Dyson bobbled the ball, Sandoval raced home to give the Giants a 2-0 lead.
Crawford’s had a solid postseason — he’s hitting .250 and he’s had a hit in each World Series game. But Crawford hadn’t driven in a run since Game 3 of the National League Division Series. His biggest postseason moment remains his grand slam in the NL wild-card game.
Given the Giants’ someone-new-steps-up nature, it was bound to be Crawford’s turn again eventually.
“It just shows how deep our lineup is,” Crawford said. “That anybody at anytime can contribute.”
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Mike Oz is an editor for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @MikeOz
