The national press gave the Giants little chance to win this World Series and no chance to beat Cliff Lee on Wednesday. When that was conveyed to Matt Cain, the laconic starter said, “We’ll just have to write a different story.”
If 43,601 had not crammed into AT&T Park to witness the tale the Giants penned in Game 1, few would have believed it. They hounded and pounded Lee off the mound in a six-run fifth inning that shot them to an 11-7 win against the Rangers, the “hitting team” in this series.
What an unexpected score in such an unexpected season.
“If you threw a hundred bucks on it in Vegas, you’d be a millionaire,” Aubrey Huff said.
The Giants got an important leg up. The Game 1 victor has won six of the last seven World Series and 11 of the last 13, though the Giants know the short end of that history. They took the opener in 2002.
Lee had not lost in eight postseason starts. This postseason, he had surrendered two runs over 24 innings. So forgive the rest of America if it failed to understand how a Giants team that scrimps and scraps for every run hammered the left-hander for seven (six earned) in 4 2/3 innings.
Full story: SF Giants win Game 1, 11-7