7 5 1 1 2 8
Game Score 69
WIN #11
The Cain Train just keeps on rolling. That's the NINTH time this season he's racked up at least 7 IP. Tim Lincecum, for comparison, has THIRTEEN such starts, but we all know that Tim Lincecum is the best in the league. After two good starts and two losses, the team stepped up today to get a big win. M.C. led the way, looking a little wild in the 1st but then getting the big K's. In the 4th, Olympic Nate made a great play to throw out Ryan Doumit at second base and, as it turned out, save a run. Otherwise, The Tennessee Stud was cracking 95-mph four-seamers and popping 79-mph hooks, subduing a feisty Pirates lineup with the grit and patience of a grizzled vet. I liked that he mixed in his slider and used the change-up effectively to get 8 K's and 9 ground balls. In short, it was just what the doctor ordered. The Lineup of The Walking Dead we saw yesterday and the day before came to life with a spirited Fiesta de los Dobles in the 6th to give us the winning margin. Sergio Romo made us all question our orientations with a rocky 8th, but "Lights-out" Affeldt came through again. Wilson, for once, gave us a ho-hum 9th, and we got out of Pittsburgh with a win.
Two items of note:
R.I.P. Sue Burns, a true Giant. By all accounts she and her late husband Harmon were passionate and devoted owners--fans, lovers of the game, friends to all who were part of the team. They will be missed. Let us hope the bean-counters, nickel-squeezers, and marketing analysts learned something from them about the joy of baseball, and about the hopes and dreams of all of us who follow the team. Corny, I know, but I doubt if Mrs. Burns would argue with the sentiment.
Jason Schmidt will pitch for the LAtriners tomorrow in Cincinnati.
10 comments:
Great & timely game, Matt Cain & the Giants!
Now for something completely different - could it be a signpost that another long sports drought will come to an end this year? This occurred today in London:
"FLINTOFF ENDS ENGLAND'S 75-YEAR WAIT
In his last Test at the home of cricket, Andrew Flintoff broke England's 75-year Lord's curse [had not beaten Australia at Lord's in 75 years] with his first five-wicket haul since the Ashes-clinching Oval Test of 2005 ...
Victory was sealed 17 minutes before lunch when Graeme Swann, another major contributor on Monday, pegged back Mitchell Johnson's middle stump with the Australian total at 406. The wicket prompted scenes of jubilation not witnessed at Lord's in decades, and a collective furrowing of brows in the Australian dressing rooms as the series momentum shifted sharply in the hosts' favour ...
Having spent the better part of Sunday evening chasing leather to all corners of Thomas Lord's playing field, England could scarcely have began the final day's play more positively. James Anderson's first delivery of the morning cannoned into Michael Clarke's thigh and prompted a raucous lbw appeal from both bowler and slips cordon, which was turned down by Billy Doctrove ...
Flintoff displayed similar menace steaming in from his favoured Pavilion End, as 25,000 screaming voices drowned out the pain of a knee that, after four years of numbing injections, now resembles a pin cushion ...
Haddin was seldom ruffled on Sunday ... but a new ball and an inspired Flintoff would prove an irresistible combination. Fast and full, Flintoff coaxed Haddin into an edge that flew to Paul Collingwood at second slip, terminating his innings for an impressive 80 but placing Australia in precisely the position they had hoped to avoid. Flintoff, the victor, did not so much celebrate the dismissal as assume Nelson's Trafalgar Square pose. A candidate, if ever there was one, for the fourth plinth."
Once again Matt is looking like this season's MVP. Sure, Tim is awesome and he is what puts us on back on the map, but if we get truly great, it takes a village. Or at least a commune of really good pitchers. This is another game score that seems low to me....guess I want to add points for significance.
Can't wait to see what happens with Sanchez. I have often said that he was a bit of a head case; that he needed confidence. Well gee, do you think he's feeling confident about now?? It may seem heartless but I still look to trade him. WAKE UP RON, I SAID IT. Alderson, Bumgarten (and later our Matt clone Zack Wheeler) all have more upside and really shouldn't be touched. Since we must give value to get, that basically leaves Affeldt, Wilson and Sanchez. (Obviously no MC,TL and PS). The first two play crucial roles this year and Sanchez, whose value can't be higher, is our 4/5 starter that already lot his job once this year. Even if he finishes strong, he is a 3/4 starter for us at best for years to come. Isn't a LEAGUE AVERAGE firstbaseman more important than that?? Given the fact that we have NO HITTING TALENT(save Posey) in the minors and GREAT PITCHING TALENT it would seem like the an obvious option is a trade. I'm OK without any trade this year, but it seems inevitable. Our imbalance almost forces it.
Whoa that's a lot of cricket in the morning! I need a crumpet.
Freddie's heroics at Lord's certainly made my morning as well. England beat Australia for the Ashes in 2005 when we were there. I remember watching the last innings of the 2nd Test in a pub--gripping stuff.
GO GIANTS!! Keep winning!!
Alderson, Bumgarner, Wheeler ... all wonderful prospects. But, every team needs a nice 3/4 starter, &, in 2009, we have one in Sanchez. Those other guys are for the future. Sure, Sanchez is inconsistent, occasionally has no idea where the strike zone is, & so on, but he's still good now, may get much better, & will maintain trade value for a couple of more years at least. If you want to tell me that he won't be a part of 2010's rotation, fine. However, we need him now, whether we are headed to the post-season or not. Once again, I must repeat that none of the possible offensive acquisitions I keep hearing about are 'difference makers' in the short-term, let alone for any extended period.
Would you trade Jonathan Sanchez & one of the 3 minor league prospects for Roy Halladay? I would say "no" to any trade of pitching for half-baked offensive players, but what about an opportunity to have 3 of the best pitchers in the game in the same rotation? Plus, that would keep him away from la. What do you all think?
It seems strange to talk about acquiring pitching, but Halladay is a special case. One blog I read talked about taking Vernon Wells and his Zito-like contract off of Toronto's hands as a way to sweeten a deal for Halladay. Yikes! I'm not opposed to trading as long as Tim, Matt, & Pablo are not included. Posey, Bumgarner, and Alderson are also "hands-off." So, that doesn't leave much. Also, WHO ARE WE TRADING FOR?? Let's get some NAMES before we argue the merits of a trade.
#1 I trade Sanchez and Alderson (not MadBum) for Halladay in a heartbeat. That's easy and that move gets us the wild and makes us the team no one wants to face in the playoffs THIS YEAR. We could even take Wells off their hands and still come out ahead. Remember BOTH Sanchez and Alderson are #4 starters AT BEST on our team for the next many years.
#2 Totally disagree about starting with names you want. That gives the control to the other guy then you react,. I say first decide what you can afford to move to fill your needs, then set your targets.
The only reason I can see for trading for Halladay is so that the smogsuckers don't get him. That is simply not a strategy designed to win. The Jays will want young pitching talent, wouldn't you for Halladay?
I have seen a lot of trade suggestions that seem to have this phrase in them: "His trade value has never been higher." I have seen Schierholtz, Cain, Sanchez and other guys all mentioned in conjunction with the same phrase. Isn't it also true that Lincecum's trade value has never been higher? Sandoval's? Doesn't anyone's trade value increase when they are doing well? Do you really want to trade guys because they are doing well? If you really think that some guy's recent performance is a temporary blip, don't you think other GM's would recognize that as well? You make a trade, at least, an intelligent trade by finding a match with another team where it is mutually beneficial. Something you have in excess. The only thing we have in excess is pitching, young pitching with upside. You either need to give it away or stand pat and hope these guys become, as if by magic, better hitters.
If the Giants make a trade I fully expect pitching to go, either Alderson, Bumgarten, some other minor league prospect, or one of our starters. That said, I do agree with Ron, a good number of the names I have heard bandied about don't float my boat. Reggie Sanders, anyone?
When someone says "His trade value has never been higher" that clearly implies a belief that he has peaked or is exhibiting a false heightened value. Both of which I think are true about Sanchez. I would NEVER use that phrase for Tim or Pablo; their future values are almost unlimited. Also there is no reason to think that all GM's have the same info or ability to recognize "blips." We better damn well know alot more about Sanchez than anyone else or we are screwed.
a note on Sue Burns; I heard Ted Robinson relay this story that conveys the type of owners the Burns were.
In 1997 the partners vetoed making a move at the deadline that would increase payroll. When Sabean was talking with the White Sox about the "white flag" deal, Harmon and Sue said go for it, and wrote the check (about $4 mill) to offset the expense of trading minor leaguers for veteran pitching. Were it not for them, the Giants may not win the division that season.
Awesome stuff, I hope their passion rubbed off on their children.
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