A shocking misplay in right field by Cody Ross on a broken-bat liner from Carlos Gonzalez turned a Jonathan Sanchez gem into a Giants nightmare. JSanchez batted for himself in the bottom of the 8th, having thrown 102 pitches, but couldn't put away Dexter Fowler leading off the 9th despite having him 0-2. Ol' Boch didn't hesitate and summoned closer Brian Wilson. Gonzalez has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball this week, and Wilson shattered his bat with 95-mph heater on the 7th pitch of the at-bat. Alas, Ross broke in on the ball and it sailed over his head when he tried to turn around and run it down. In an instant it was a tie ballgame. Gonzalez looked like he should have been out trying to make it a triple, but FSanchez' three-hop relay throw eluded both Sandoval and Wilson and the run was awarded when the ball went out of play. Just like that a sterling start was wasted and a win slipped away. JSanchez deserved better--he dazzled the Rockies all night long with his change-up, flashing the stopper form he showed in Philly on August 19th.
Leading 1-0 entering the top of the 9th, the Giants win expectancy stood at 84.8%, and Fowler's lead-off walk knocked that down to 73.3%, a pretty big swing for one base runner. Then again, a 1-run lead is never a comfortable thing. Too much weird shit can happen to turn the game either way, as evidenced tonight. Going back to JSanchez' big win in Philly, Sergio Romo had a bit of a meltdown in relief in the 9th of that game, but the Giants were up 5-0 at the time. It's always nice to have a little cushion, you know? The Giants never really got on track against Jorge De La Rosa, who pitched a fine game and had a nasty change-up as well. The surging Rockies gain a game on the Giants and the Padres (who've lost 5 in a row). Even the Dodgers won tonight, with Hiroki Kuroda flirting with a no-hitter against the Phils. The Giants have to be content tonight with what-should-have-been, and no matter what happens tomorrow they finish August with a losing record.
--M.C.
6 comments:
This is 2 atrocious losses on the same homestand: the great comeback, followed by an error-driven collapse against Cincinnati & now this one - another one fueled by horrid defense. There was absolutely nothing redeeming about losing that game to the Reds. It reeked of weakness - you make that come back, you win - period. Then, this ghastly thing last night. Forget the blowout losses over the weekend - the Reds loss & last night are much more predictive. Nothing less than an immediate 10-game winning streak will turn this around now.
The announcers made a lot of noise about how the sound of the broken bat fly ball fooled Ross, this was re-iterated in the paper today. Not sure I buy it, though. It seems as though an eye exam might be in order for Mr. Ross. Also, if he is not used to ATT's right field, and known as a sub-par fielder, should he have been in right in the ninth inning of a 1-0 game? It is not as though he was contributing a lot at the plate. We have, unfortunately, wasted six losses in a row by the Padres and are very close to finding ourselves tied for second with Colorado. I break down last night's L this way: 80% Ross, 15% Bochy, 5% Wilson. Too bad the scoring system doesn't allow this.
I can't take it anymore.
Go Niners!
Another thought. Tonight Madison Bumgarner will pitch. It has been awhile since he has had a decent outing. That might change, but he has already exceeded the number of innings he has ever pitched in a year. Is there a plan to replace him if he proves to be out of gas? Do we have a pitcher we can rely on for spot or one month of starts? We lose tonight and have to face Jimenez tomorrow with a one game difference between ourselves and the Crockies. I'm not comfortable with that.
I don't think the Giants have anyone in the farm system that is ready to start in the majors. I thought if we limped through to the roster expansion we'd be OK, but now I'm really worried.
This team is bi-polar: score 38 runs in a 3 game series, then score 13 in the next 4 games. Play good D all year, then cough blood in the field by the bucketful when it counts. Hit like shit in May and June, lead the league in July. Pitch lights-out in the spring, fade to crap in August.
Which team is the real Giants? The 20-8 July squad that could do no wrong or the deeply flawed August club that looks like it is going to tank?
Help!
M.C., I'm sure that we'll know by my birthday.
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