Giants Vs. Dodgers: Clayton Kershaw Outduels Tim Lincecum In Opener

Earlier Thursday, a potential pitcher's duel between CC Sabathia and Justin Verlander fizzled out with a pair of average performances. Thankfully, the day closed with Tim Lincecum opposing Clayton Kershaw, and this battle lived up to its billing.

Lincecum was strong, allowing just an unearned run over seven innings, but Kershaw was a little bit better, spinning seven shutout frames as the Dodgers edged the Giants 2-1 in their home and season opener.

This one remained scoreless for quite some time. Kershaw struck out eight hitters over his first four excellent innings, but Lincecum kept pace in an only slightly less impressive fashion. The game remained without a run into the bottom of the sixth, when the Giants made a critical defensive lapse. With the bases loaded and one out, Buster Posey attempted a snap pickoff throw to third base trying to catch Matt Kemp napping, but Pablo Sandoval couldn't make the grab and the ball got away, allowing a run to score.

Lincecum limited the damage from there, but the Giants still couldn't touch Kershaw or reliever Hong-chih Kuo. So when James Loney doubled home Matt Kemp in the bottom of the eighth for a little insurance, it seemed like game over. The Giants weren't likely to score two runs off Jonathan Broxton.

As it happened, they did score one when Pat Burrell took him deep to left field. But Miguel Tejada followed with an excuse-me grounder, and rookie Brandon Belt made the final out with a soft liner to Juan Uribe at third. The ex-Giant made the catch and pumped his fist, and Dodger Stadium got to celebrate a hard-fought win over a team they'll have to get through to make the playoffs.

The series resumes on Friday with Jonathan Sanchez and Chad Billingsley.