At this juncture of September, with the Los Angeles Dodgers close enough to touch a fourth consecutive division title, a result like Tuesday’s 2-0 loss to San Francisco neither creates panic nor evokes comfort. There is little reason for the Dodgers to fret about the immediate future. The team still holds a five-game lead in the National League West with 11 to play.
On a muggy night at Chavez Ravine, Manager Dave Roberts chose not to extend Rich Hill beyond the fifth inning. His lone blemish was a solo homer in the fifth. Hill gave up six hits but struck out seven. Giants first baseman Brandon Belt added a homer off reliever Grant Dayton in the ninth.
His teammates poked at Giants starter Johnny Cueto for nearly six innings, but could not produce a run. Cueto scattered eight hits before exiting with a leg injury. A pair of left-handed Giants, Steven Okert and Will Smith, collected eight outs.
“I felt uncomfortable,” Cueto said through an interpreter. “It was bothering me, so that’s why I didn’t finish the inning.”
The Dodgers (85-66) can still claim the series with a victory Wednesday. Standing in their way will be Matt Moore, who finished one out shy of a no-hitter against the Dodgers on Aug. 25. Moore throws with his left hand, which makes his presence problematic for his hosts.
The Dodgers could not build off the excitement from Monday’s game, even if some verbiage carried over. Suppressed by Giants ace Madison Bumgarner, the Dodgers caught a break when Bumgarner jawed with Yasiel Puig after the seventh inning. “Don’t look at me,” Bumgarner hollered at Puig, but it was Bumgarner who left the game and watched from the dugout as the Dodgers made a furious comeback in the ninth.
A night after letting their bats end the discussion, the Dodgers revived it with a fashion choice. Puig, Adrian Gonzalez, Justin Turner and a few others sports T-shirts that read “#DontLookAtMe” on Tuesday afternoon. “I didn’t see them,” Roberts said. “What’s that referencing? Technology, man. People are quick these days.”
Hill and Cueto traded scoreless frames at the start. Hill gave up a pair of two-out singles in the second inning. On the second hit, shortstop Brandon Crawford tried to advance from first to third. To do so, he needed to challenge the arm of rookie Andrew Toles. Crawford lost the gamble; Toles threw him out, and Crawford left the game because of a dislocated left pinky finger.
The Dodgers showed an ability to make hard contact against Cueto during the first three innings, but could not cobble together a run. Justin Turner swung at the first pitch with two on and no outs in the first inning and grounded into a double play. Toles cracked a line drive into left in the second - which landed in the glove of outfielder Gorkys Hernandez. A one-out double by Corey Seager in the third went for naught.
The Giants stressed Hill in the fourth. Buster Posey saw four curveballs, and lined the fourth a single. Up next, outfielder Hunter Pence flicked a first-pitch curve into right field for another single. Two batters later, second baseman Joe Panik loaded the bases with a walk. Into the batter’s box stepped Belt. Hill favoured his fastball over his curve. He snapped a 90-mph heater on the inner half to freeze Belt for the third strike. Hill skipped off the mound and into his dugout.
In the fifth, Hill blinked first. He tried to handcuff third baseman Eduardo Nunez with a 1-1 fastball inside. Nunez was ready. He lifted a high fly toward left field. The baseball cleared the fence, clipped a camera, bounced off a wall and returned to the field. Nunez was initially credited with a triple, but a replay review showed the solo homer.
After five, Hill had thrown 77 pitches. He was due to bat first in the bottom of the inning. Roberts sent Howie Kendrick to hit for him. Hill shook Roberts’ hand in the dugout and lamented the location of the fastball to Nunez.Like the night before, Giants Manager Bruce Bochy turned to his bullpen earlier than he preferred. Cueto looked uncomfortable in the bottom of the sixth, clutching at his left leg. The official diagnosis would be a strained left groin. After he walked Toles to place runners at first and second, Bochy sent in Okert. The Dodgers could not touch him. Roberts sent up two pinch-hitters, Yasiel Puig and Enrique Hernandez. Both struck out. The Dodgers would not place another runner on second base all evening.

RESULTS
Boston 5 Baltimore 2
Philadelphia 7 White Sox 6
Atlanta 5 NY Mets 4
Cleveland 2 Kansas City 1
NY Yankees 5 Tampa Bay 3
Miami 1 Washington 0
Chicago Cubs 6 Cincinnati 1
Texas 5 LA Angels 4
Detroit 8 Minnesota 1
Pittsburgh 6 Milwaukee 3
St. Louis 10 Colorado 5
Houston 2 Oakland 1 (10 innings)
San Diego 5 Arizona 2
San Francisco 2 LA Dodgers 0 Toronto 10 Seattle 2