Where are the Bochy haters now?

Ford scores the go-ahead run in the 8th.

The Giants drank a little of whatever that magic stuff inside is Wednesday night at AT&T and came away with an improbable 2-1 win over the Rockies…thanks largely in part to…wait for it…Bruce Bochy.

Yeah, you heard me right. Bruce-freaking-Bochy. Sure, Tim Lincecum pitched like The Freak again. Freddy Sanchez‘s crazy back-to-the-plate snare of the final pop up to end the game was all Freddy. And Darren Ford could probably circle the bases twice before Bochy could even get to second base.

But this one belongs to the Skipper.

Now, before you go all Gilligan on me, hear me out.

It was Bochy who started Mike Fontenot at shortstop — on the same day the Giants activated Edgar Renteria from the DL. Fontenot came up huge in this one, knocking in the game-tying run in the fifth just before Lincecum grounded into a rally-killing double play.

It was Bochy who inserted the speedy Ford into the game in the bottom of the eighth to replace Fontenot, who had just walked. It’s not like Fontenot runs like Bengie Molina. Plus, Ford didn’t even make it to the ballpark until the second inning, having just arrived on a flight from Eerie, Penn. for his September cup-of-joe and Major League debut. The only September call-up for the Giants, I might add.

But it was precisely Ford who wreaked havoc on the bases when he scrambled to third on a ball in the dirt that panicky Rockies catcher Miguel Olivo promptly chucked into left field. Ford may or may not have been safe had the throw been on line, but this much I know: Fontenot would not have even tried to break for third, let alone race home after the errant throw. Ford gets credit for his rabbit’s feet but Bochy gets credit for pinch running him in that situation.

It was also Bochy who handed the ball over to Brian Wilson in the ninth inning to close out a Lincecum masterpiece (8 IP, 9 K, 5 H, 1 BB, 1 R), just two nights after the Giants closer coughed up a one-run lead. Wilson was in a similar situation back in April when he was called on to relieve a highly effective Lincecum in the ninth inning of a game vs. the Phillies. We all remember how that turned out and how Bochy took the blame for pulling Timmy. But this time, B-Weez delivered a perfect uno-dos-tres and the Giants pulled within three games of the suddenly-human Padres.

Even though the pimple-faced Dungeon-and-Dragon warlords over at McCovey Chronicles have banned me from their site, I’m betting a jar of Clearasil that you won’t hear any of them give Bochy his due.

RELATED VIDEO: Amy G’s exclusive video interview with Ford after the game >>