I like this (today's Comical):
Stealing is not the only goal, but also scoring from second on singles and taking the extra base whenever possible - not exactly a hallmark of recent San Francisco baseball.
I don't like this:
This year, manager Bruce Bochy plans to give most of his players a standing green light. They can go unless he gives the signal to stay put.
Here's the best part:
Moreover, the top third of the lineup can take off now without fear of running the Giants out of a Barry Bonds inning and incurring the wrath of homer-drunk fans. (emphasis mine)
Yeah, that's it. I'm a damn drunk. Homers--who needs 'em? We've got Mr. 411 (as in career SLG) at the four-spot. And we have Warrior Boy and his 54-for-73 in 849 games in his illustrious speed-burning career to lead the way on the bases. OK, OK, we have some good base runners and base-stealers. And just to set the record straight: I LOVE SPEED. But I hate the over-valuing of SBs. Steals are a great weapon for one-run games and one-run innings. It is written: if thou playest for one run thou wilt score only one run. Winning teams, the statistics will show, score runs in bunches. They put up those squiggly numbers. And that, my friends, requires HITS.
Now I hate to make all this negative talk. So, I require all RMC'ers to read this:
http://mvn.com/mlb-giants/2008/02/16/the-power-of-postive-thinking/
2 comments:
I can give positive thinking a try: Let's imagine Davis,Ortmeier, Frandsen, Cain & Lincecum all make unambigous progress this year and we all of a sudden have an exciting core of above-average athletes. Then suppose the Home Run Fairy grants us a wish and someone, somehow hits a few over the fence. Say Sabes pulls a studly 3B out of thin air.
We might just have a reason for celebration sooner than everyone thinks, and without special GM magic.
It's "You Gotta Like These Kids" all over again.
Brother Bob (surely not rotation material)
It's a sad day, when the 28th-rated prospect in the Pirates farm system is one of our big cogs. Let me repeat: 28TH-RATED ... PIRATES. Now that I've gotten that off of my chest, I really can get behind Frandsen, Ortmeier, Lewis, & Schierholtz, although they all really already have too much ML experience to be 'shock successes' a la Robby Thompson. '86 was '86 ... I think that our progress this time will be a little more gradual. Now, a mid-season trade for someone like Kevin Mitchell may propel us somewhere ... that & our studly starting pitching.
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