Status will be quo for Giants Bruce Bochy in last weekend

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September 25, 9:09 PM

by David Bush, S.F. Baseball Examiner

 

Bruce Bochy won't change his approach this weekend.

Any potential drama was drained from this weekend’s final series of the year at AT&T Park on Thursday when the St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks, handing the National League West title to the Dodgers.

 The Giants, who exited the division race weeks ago, had hoped to spoil the Dodgers’ trip north by denying them the championship, or at least delaying their celebration. But with the Diamondbacks loss, latest pratfall in their inexplicable collapse in the division they led by as many as 6 ½ games, L.A. has nothing to play for in San Francisco. We will not see a repeat of 1982, when Joe Morgan’s home run eliminated the Dodgers on the final day of the season, or even 2006 when the Dodgers clinched their playoff spot in San Francisco.

   Giants manager Bruce Bochy says the diminished importance of the series will have no effect on his approach. “I am not going to do anything different,’’ Bochy said Thursday after learning the Dodgers had clinched. “It might have taken away a little bit of the luster, we are still going to be playing for the most part the guys we have been playing.’’

   Even statistical milestones, which can add some interest to otherwise meaningless games, are not at stake. “I know Bengie (Molina) is close to 100 RBIs,’’ Bochy said. “It would be great for him to get that, but I don’t know of anything else.’’

  Reaching 100 would require an extraordinary weekend for Molina, who needs 11and might not catch all three games.

   Also Tim Lincecum on Sunday gets one more chance to make his case for the Cy Young Award, a quest that suffered a major setback in Tuesday’s loss to the Rockies.

“I know he doesn’t want to end the season on that last one,’’ Bochy said. “He’s anxious to get back out there.’’

   One player who is unlikely to get off the bench is Conor Gillaspie, the 2008 draft choice who has been with the team since Sept. 6, but appeared in just seven games with four at-bats going into Thursday.

“We had a chance to work with Conor and give him a chance to see what it’s like up here,’’ Bochy said. “He’ll be in the minor leagues next year working his way up here. He needs time there. The fact that he was up here was more a case we wanted a chance to look at him, work with him. It wasn’t so much getting him playing time.’’

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