Dodgers @ Giants April 26, 2017: The battle of the funky deliveries

The Dodgers and Giants split the first two of their first four games in San Francisco, both matches ending with scores of 2-1. Tonight, Alex Wood and Johnny Cueto, two pitchers known for their unconventional pitching mechanics, go head-to-head to determine in whose favor the series will tip.

	Dodgers			Giants
	7:15 p.m.			San Francisco
LF	Bellinger		RF	Pence
SS	Seager		1B	Belt
3B	Turner		SS	Núñez
1B	González		C	Posey
C	Grandal		3B	Arroyo
RF	Puig		2B	Panik
2B	Utley		LF	Hernández
CF	Toles		CF	Stubbs
P	Wood (L)		P	Cueto (R)

The herky-jerky Wood (3.29 ERA, 3.38 FIP, 1.244 WHIP) has made four appearances so far this season, two as a starter and two as a reliever. He has yet to allow a run (or a hit) in relief. The Dodgers dropped his two starts, but Wood, filling in for the blistered Rich Hill, wasn’t the primary culprit in either loss. Last time out against Arizona, Wood pitched into the fifth inning and allowed four earned runs; that was the game in which the Dodger bullpen gave up nine runs in the eighth inning.

The shimmy-shaking Cueto (5.25 ERA, 5.19 FIP, 1.375 WHIP) is making his fifth start of the season tonight, and has gotten mixed results. He’s had two good games in which he went seven innings and allowed two earned runs. In his other two starts, he lasted just five innings; in his season debut, he gave up four earned runs, and in his most recent start against Colorado (at Coors Field), he allowed six earned runs. In five starts against the Dodgers last season, Cueto posted a 2.67 ERA, and the Giants won three of those games.

In just his second major league game, Cody Bellinger is batting leadoff. Andrew Toles make his first start in center field of the season. He’s also batting eighth, the lowest he’s been in the starting batting order this year — he’s “pressing,”, according to Dave Roberts.

The Giants made several roster moves today, including recalling Michael Morse and Kelby Tomlinson:

MORSE IS BACK. Span to DL. Crawford to bereavement. Tomlinson recalled

— Andrew Baggarly (@extrabaggs) April 26, 2017

Neither is in tonight’s starting lineup, but we could see them as substitutes at some point.

—–

In what is quickly becoming one of my favorite storylines of the year, Ken Gurnick once again reports that Rich Hill is playing catch:

The sun rose, and Rich Hill is playing catch.

— Ken Gurnick (@kengurnick) April 26, 2017

Kenny G has had it, y’all.

For what it’s worth, though, Hill’s feeling good:

Rich Hill said his finger feels "100 percent." He sounded like a man who very much would like to pitch in a big-league game again soon.

— Andy McCullough (@ByMcCullough) April 26, 2017