Dodgers 2, Giants 1: Hyun-jin Ryu, homers prevail in San Francisco

A well-rested Hyun-jin Ryu gave the Dodgers another strong performance on Tuesday night, and a pair of mammoth solo home runs were enough to beat the Giants 2-1 in the opening contest of a three-game series at AT&T Park in San Francisco.

Ryu, who last pitched on Sept. 16 in Phoenix, allowed just one run in seven innings of work for his 14th win of the season. On seven days rest Ryu had six strikeouts and lowered his ERA on the season to 2.97. Since the All-Star break he has just nine total walks in 11 starts, including one on Tuesday.

Ryu was backed by two solo home runs. Yasiel Puig hit one 436 feet to the deepest part of right center field in the fifth inning, and Matt Kemp hit one 443 feet to left center field in the sixth.

For Puig, it was his 19th home run of the season, the fifth most by a Dodgers rookie since the team moved to Los Angeles in 1958. Puig has hit home runs in three of his last five starts and has six home runs in September.

Kemp was 2-for-4 on the night and since returning from the disabled list on Sept. 16 is 8-for-24 with a pair of doubles, hitting .333/.385/.542.

The only run for the Giants also came via home run, and even that was hit by someone originally signed by the Dodgers. Old friend Tony Abreu went deep in the fifth inning, one of just four hits allowed by Ryu on the night.

Former Giants closer Brian Wilson pitched his first game in San Francisco since April 2012, and after he was greeted with mostly boos he pitched a perfect eighth inning, including a pair of called strikeouts. Wilson as a Dodger has allowed one run in 16 appearances, with 12 strikeouts and three walks in 12⅓ innings.

Buster Posey singled against Kenley Jansen in the ninth inning and as the tying run advanced to second base on a wild pitch (that probably should have been called a passed ball) with just one out. But Jansen struck out Hunter Pence and Pablo Sandoval to end the game for his 28th save.

Notes

• With the win the Dodgers are now 8-9 against the Giants this season, including 3-4 in San Francisco.
• Jansen now has 109 strikeouts on the season, one shy of Aroldis Chapman for the major league lead among relief pitchers.
• Carl Crawford entered the game in a 5-for-42 slump of his own but had three hits, including a double, and a stolen base on t.he night. It was Crawford's 12th game of the season with at least three hits.
  
• Jerry Hairston struck out as a pinch hitter in the ninth inning and is suffering through slumps of 0-for-16 and 3-for-42.
  

Up next

The Dodgers will try to get Ricky Nolasco back on track on Wednesday night in the middle game of the series. The Giants originally planned to go with Madison Bumgarner on Wednesday but have instead decided to shut down the left-hander for the season after 201⅓ innings pitched in 2013. Barry Zito, who last pitched on Sept. 2, will start instead for San Francisco.

Tuesday particulars

Home runs: Yasiel Puig (19), Matt Kemp (6); Tony Abreu (2)

WP - Hyun-jin Ryu (14-7): 7 IP, 4 hits, 1 run, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts

LP - Matt Cain (8-10): 7 IP, 7 hits, 2 runs, 3 walks, 4 strikeouts

Sv - Kenley Jansen (28): 1 IP, 1 hit, 2 strikeouts