Giants lose battle of bullpens as Royals level series

By Larry Fine

By Larry Fine KANSAS CITY Missouri (Reuters) - The Giants lost the battle of the bullpens on Wednesday and San Francisco reliever Hunter Strickland nearly ignited a brawl after losing his temper as the Kansas City Royals leveled the World Series 1-1. With the score tied 2-2 in the sixth inning, the Royals erupted for five runs, finishing off the explosion with a two-run double by Salvador Perez and a two-run home run by Omar Infante both off Strickland. As Perez jogged toward home plate ahead of Infante, he and Strickland got into a shouting match, prompting both dugouts to empty and the Royals' relievers to stream onto the field from the outfield bullpen before umpires intervened to restore order. "I was just frustrated with myself," Strickland told reporters. "I let the team down. It was miscommunication, I guess, on my part and no hard feelings toward anything. It was just my emotions got to me. "I don't know if he thought I was yelling at him or not. I wasn't yelling at him, I was just frustrated with myself." Strickland was asked what Perez was saying to him. "I have no idea, I don't speak Spanish. I don't know what he said." Asked why he screamed back, challenging Perez to settle the matter on the field, Strickland said: "It's just me. I'm not going to back down from anything. It's just the way it is, (I got) caught up in it." Strickland said he did not expect any carry-over from the incident. "This is the World Series. We got to come back, take it home and try to win three." The best-of-seven series shifts to San Francisco for Game Three on Friday. Kansas City's bullpen, meanwhile, hurled three and two-thirds innings in securing the 7-2 victory. Giants outfielder Hunter Pence gave the Royals credit. "They put together some really good at-bats and they pitched really good," said Pence. "They have great arms. And their starter (Yordano Ventura) was great tonight, too." Pence said he was not at all worried about the Giants' relief corps. "We have a lot of faith in our bullpen," he said. "I think that's one of our strongest points. Our bullpen is phenomenal. I think both teams have confidence in their bullpens." "Anything can happen in the game of baseball and that's the beauty of this time of year, playing in a World Series. Just enjoy the competition." (Editing by Ian Ransom)