Sometimes a split is exactly what you need—whether it's a bad relationship, a smart stock purchase, or even ordering a banana split at an ice cream parlor. But for the San Francisco Giants, their 2-2 split against the Los Angeles Dodgers feels like a mixed bag that's hard to swallow. After a promising start to the series, the Giants fell 5-2 on Thursday, leaving them with plenty to think about.

Winning two games at Dodger Stadium is no small feat, but scoring just two runs in the final two games of the series is a tough pill to take—especially when those runs came on a home run that traveled all of 225 feet in the air. Jung Hoo Lee's inside-the-park home run in the fifth inning tied the game and showed off his blazing speed, but it also turned out to be the Giants' second and final hit of the afternoon. That's not the kind of offensive output that wins series against division rivals.

Emmet Sheehan was the story of the game for Los Angeles. Over six innings, he allowed just two hits, two runs, and two walks while striking out six. But those numbers don't tell the full story of how dominant he was—and how thoroughly he owns the Giants. For his career, San Francisco is hitting just 5-for-88 against Sheehan. Lee's inside-the-parker was the only extra-base hit Sheehan has ever surrendered to the Giants in 28 innings of work across five appearances. That's the kind of baffling dominance that makes you wonder if he's got some secret formula for facing the orange and black.

Lee deserves all the credit in the world for his hustle on the inside-the-park homer, and Teoscar Hernandez's lackluster defensive effort certainly helped. But in reality, that hit should have been a double at best. Lee flew around the bases, Hernandez seemed to be moving in slow motion chasing the ball, and the relay throw was off the mark. It was a rare moment of fortune for the Giants against a pitcher who turns into an ace every time he faces them.

Sheehan's dominance over San Francisco goes back to his rookie season, when he didn't give up a single hit in two starts against them. He missed all of 2024 due to injury, then returned last July to throw 4.1 more hitless innings in a relief appearance. He started his career with 15 hitless innings against the Giants, then gave up just one hit in seven innings in his next start. The pattern is both impressive and frustrating for Giants fans.

That's why the leadoff home run from Will Smith—subbing in as both designated hitter and leadoff man for Shohei Ohtani—stung so much. Sheehan came into the game with a 0.82 ERA against San Francisco, and that early blast was a sign of things to come. For the Giants, this split feels like a missed opportunity, especially when your best offensive moment is a 225-foot sprint around the bases.