Fabulous Baker boys

Supporting cast -- batboy and all -- has Giants in command

J.T. Snow showed why he's a Gold Glover in Game 5. AP

By Stephen Cannella, Sports Illustrated

SAN FRANCISCO -- Forget Barry Bonds.

The Giants have a new MVP -- Most Valuable Pipsqueak. It’s Darren Baker, Dusty Baker’s 3-year-old son, who was again prowling the dugout and foul ground during Game 5 of the World Series as the team’s batboy.

After thrashing the Angels, 16-4, the Giants are now 8-0 this season when little Darren is in uniform. The kid is headed to Anaheim with the team for the weekend to help it nail down the franchise’s first World Series title since 1954.

Said his father, "A couple of guys said that if he doesn’t go, they don’t go."

CNNSI.com's John Donovan Viewpoint: Nobody felt worse about Jarrod Washburn's poor showing in the World Series than the Angels lefty himself. Pitchers do get weary: Neither pitching staff has much left in the tank after the offensive onslaught of the first five games. SI's Stephen Cannella Most Valuable Batboy: Barry Bonds may be the best player in the world, but the Giants don't win unless Darren Baker shows up. Giants go small Click the image to launch the clip The Giants' early lead dug a very deep hole for the Angels. Start J.T. Snow offers his theory on why the Giants were able to establish such a large early lead. Barry Bonds warns that in the World Series, no lead is ever safe. Video Plus Visit Video Plus for the latest video and audio. HEROES & GOATS HERO GOAT Jeff Kent J. Washburn Tired of being the weak link in the Giants' lineup this October, Jeff Kent put the game out of reach with a pair of two-run homers. The ace lefty suffered his second loss of the Series while leaving the bullpen out to dry by only pitching through the fourth inning. BY THE NUMBERS 3 Base hits (two doubles, single) by Barry Bonds in Game 5 that were not home runs. All three of his hits in the first four games were homers. 4 Runs scored by Jeff Kent in Game 5, the most in a World Series game since Lenny Dykstra scored four for the Phillies in 1993. 5.02 Jarrod Washburn's postseason ERA, much higher than his 3.15 mark during the regular season. 10 Hits by the Angels in Game 5, their fourth straight game they reached double digits.

But they found out early in the series that the Angels weren’t going to let Barry drive in key runs and that they weren’t going to win by relying on Bonds alone.

Bonds homered in each of the first three games. The Giants lost two of those because the rest of their offense sputtered.

Fast-forward to Games 4 and 5. Bonds didn’t go deep in either one, though he did get on base. After being walked intentionally three times in Game 4 and racking up a single, two doubles and another intentional pass in Game 5, Bonds has been on base 16 times in 22 plate appearances in the Series.

That’s a lot of baserunners, and the Angels’ pitching staff is beginning to crack under the pressure of constantly pitching out of the stretch. Whether out of fatigue or frustration, they’re feeding the rest of the San Francisco hitters pitches to hit.

The Giants exploded on Thursday. Leadoff hitter Kenny Lofton went 3-for-6 and scored three times. Rich Aurilia had two hits, one of them a three-run home run.

Most important, their other MVP (the traditional kind), Jeff Kent, went 3-for-5 with a pair of two-run homers. That outburst ended Kent’s 3-for-16 slump in the Series.

"Jeff will probably tell you he hasn’t had the best series," first baseman J.T. Snow said. "We knew it was just a matter of time before he got some key hits. We know Barry gets a lot of the pub, and deservedly so, but we have a lot of other guys on this team who contribute."

Bonds recognizes the importance of that, and he was even able to admit that he was happy for Kent on Thursday night.

As for Darren Baker, those of you who wonder if it’s such a good idea to have a 3-year-old wandering among the mayhem of the home-plate area during a major league game have good reason to be worried.

In the seventh inning, Darren prematurely scampered out to pick up a bat and was nearly steamrolled by Snow, who was scoring from second on Lofton’s triple. Snow grabbed the tyke by the collar as he crossed the plate and carried him back to the safety of the dugout.

"His eyes were huge," Snow said. "I don’t think he knew what was going on."

When the Giants’ whole lineup is clicking, neither do the Angels.

 

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