All night, the boom was dynamite, fear of a crash truck-on-monster-truck in the first inning between Pablo Sandoval and Buster Posey with three-run homer to Pat Burrell in the bottom half, with Alex Gonzalez's double off Brian Wilson's three-run eighth that tied the game and caught a record crowd of 44,046 at AT & T Park.
The biggest rise of all came with one out in the inning 11, when Rick Ankiel hit a fastball from Ramon Ramirez in McCovey Cove to give the Braves a 5-4 victory in a game the Giants led by 4-0, a game that seemed in the bag again when they loaded the bases with one out in the 10 - until Posey reminded all that is mortal and hit into a double play.
Ramirez retired his first four batters before Ankiel, the pitcher turned, has a line of 96 miles per hour through the medium that was supposed to be inside and sent it to water.
The Braves tied the best of five series at one win each, while the Giants fell to 0-5 in the Division Series game two, one of the reasons they have advanced only once in the first four series.
The momentum and the action now change to Atlanta for Games 3 and 4 on Sunday and Monday night. The Giants need to win at least once at Turner Field, not its place of greater success in recent years, to ensure another game in San Francisco.
In the losing clubhouse, players grabbed the resistance they have shown throughout the season. They had to blow after a victory that would have put in a dominant place.
"We have had heartbreaking losses throughout the year," said first baseman Aubrey Huff. "We have a travel day, the day off, out of our heads. Let it go. The series is 1-1."
Both teams have injury problems heading to Georgia. Braves manager Bobby Cox said closer Billy Wagner is "probably done for the series after injuring an oblique muscle to make a shot in the 10th inning. His replacement, Kyle Farnsworth, Freddy Sanchez hit his right hand. Sanchez stayed in the game, but it was for X-rays on the middle finger.
Sanchez later said X-rays were negative, but seemed to be in a lot of pain as a protective put on the finger. He said he was not sure about this situation for Game 3.
Most significantly, Posey Sanchez joined the walk to the X-ray room. The rookie catcher Sandoval collided at the top of the first inning chasing a foul. Posey took the brunt of the force in the ribs, Sandoval above the left eye. Both were in the game after hitting the roof and scaring the sellout crowd.
"It's just a little bruise," Posey said before the medical staff decided to make sure. "I called the wind out of me."
One Touch at 10, Sanchez blow-by-step and a walk to Huff Edgar Renteria loaded the bases with one out for Posey. A hit, flyball or a well-placed grounder would have put the Giants a 2-0 lead in the series. But Posey did what he could not afford to do. It is based on a play about double horn.
"Do not do the job," said Posey. "I'm proud to be in these situations. Plain and simple, we did not."
Neither a bullpen that finished the regular season with 24 scoreless innings.
three-run homer to Pat Burrell in the first inning against Tommy Hanson and an RBI single by Matt Cain in the second gave the Giants a 4-0 advantage. It remained so until Burrell error contributed to an unearned run in the sixth inning off Cain, the first step of any type allowed by the Giants in 29 innings.
Sergio Romo started the eighth and allowed singles to his only two batters, Derrek Lee and Brian McCann, before manager Bruce Bochy sent Wilson to get a six to keep. He got up only one before the Braves went 4-1 in a game 4-4.
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