There no longer was a need to leave Martinez (15-6) in the game with the fat lead. Martinez, who yielded two hits but walked a season-high six batters, was removed after throwing 115 pitches in seven innings.
The Giants have two more chances to make it interesting for the Dodgers. They still want to exact revenge from 1993, when the Dodgers knocked them out of the playoffs. It doesn't even matter to Giant Manager Dusty Baker that Russell is now the manager and not Tom Lasorda.
"Well, Russell isn't as boastful or animated," Baker shrugged.
But isn't there a statue of limitations on revenge?
"There's no statute to pay-back where I come from," Baker said.
* CARDINALS CLINCH: St. Louis defeated Pittsburgh, 7-1, to earn its first divisional title since 1987. C4
(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)
THE NL WEST
Stretch Drive
TUESDAY'S GAMES
* Dodgers 6, San Francisco 2
* Colorado 5, San Diego 4 (11)
TODAY'S GAMES
* San Francisco
(VanLandingham 9-14)
at Dodgers (Astacio 9-8)
ESPN, 7:30 p.m.
* Colorado (Thompson 8-11)
at San Diego (Hamilton 15-8)
WEST DIVISION RACE
*--*
WEST W L Pct. GB Dodgers 89 68 .569 -- San Diego 88 70 .557 1 1/2
*--*
WILD-CARD RACE
*--*
TEAM W L Pct. GB San Diego 88 70 .557 -- Montreal 86 71 .548 1 1/2
*--*
One wild-card team qualifies for the playoffs.
