A loss, but not a total one

After the Giants came up a run short in Saturday's 4-3 loss to the Dodgers, San Francisco has now dropped seven consecutive games against their rivals this year.

This one wasn't a hard pill to swallow though. Maybe it's because after six months and 161 games, I'm pretty numb to the pains of Giants' baseball; or it's the fact that wins–and-losses are besides the point right now; or it's knowing that coming up short against one of the better teams in baseball history is not a particularly shameful occurrence — but most of all, I think this actually turned out to be a decent game.

First of all, this didn't feel like a postseason soft launch for Blake Snell . Giants hitters weren't milling about the field as underpaid caterers serving canapés while Dodger pitchers snacked and schmoozed for nine innings. They only managed to plate one run off him, but they kept the infamously sensitive starter from getting comfortable. Snell needed 77 pitches to record 12 outs — two pitches more than Tarik Skubal needed to record 21 on Friday . A Giant had an at-bat with a runner in scoring position in each of the first three frames. He allowed five hits, recorded just three strikeouts, and broke one necklace over four innings.