Thursday, September 22, 2011

Seven games to go

The Giants earned their ninth win over the Dodgers last night and can secure the season series with a win today. The D-backs also won and their magic number is down to two. They'll only need to win one game this weekend to clinch the West (they are off today). I heard some talk that Matt Cain would get moved up to pitch Friday night in Phoenix, but the website still says it is Eric Surkamp. If so, perhaps Ol' Boch is offering him up as the sacrificial lamb so Kirk & Co. can get the dog-piling and champagne-spilling over with ASAP. That's OK by me. All that's left for the Giants is a long, long shot at the Wild Card (3-1/2 back), but we've all stuck our forks in them already, so I can live with dropping the pretense. They had a nice run and earned back some respectability. With two more wins they can guarantee themselves second place. Not bad for the worst offense in baseball.

If Cain pitches Friday, he'll get the last start of the year on Wednesday at home against the Rockies. If he goes Saturday, he'll be done, and the rookie will get the call for game 162. We know what Matt can do, perhaps it is best to give the youngster another real-time audition before next spring. Tim Lincecum gets his final start of the year on Sunday. Ryan Vogelsong, who looks a little ragged and run-down at this point, would then get the Monday game at home. 172-2/3 IP is his career high, so I'm not surprised he's gassed. All the better to prep him for a full season in 2012. Madison Bumgarner goes today, and gets his last start on Tuesday at home. That will be 33 starts and over 200 IP for the super southpaw.

GO GIANTS! BEAT LA!

--M.C.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

It's funny: last season "torture" was the theme, it was ecstasy: the Giants won it all.

This year's theme? More like agony.

Beat LA.

Zo said...

I for one, am NOT OK with Kirk and company getting the dog-piling and champagne-spilling over with ASAP. I very much want the Giants to sweep them, not to keep hope alive, but so that Arizona knows that their "title" (if you can call it that in the western division) is a fluke, not an accomplishment. Let them celebrate against someone else if they must celebrate at all. And let their exit from the playoffs be as quick and painless as possible.

Ron said...

Perk up, Mark. I agree that the Division is almost 100% lost. But, the chances of the stars aligning to let us into the Wild Card (or into a playoff for the Wild Card) are not that far-fetched:

- We are playing well. Sure, it will take another 8-game winning streak to give us a chance, but, as long as we avoid left-handed pitching, we get the Panda back in there.

- Atlanta is really struggling. They are at Washington (not a gimme), then play Philadelphia at home. You could say that Philadelphia has nothing to play for, or you could say that the last thing that they want to do is go into the post-season giving away games.

- St. Louis is almost as hot as we've been. They have one more against the suddenly hand-to-handle Mets. Then, 3 at home against the Cubs, their #1 rivalry. Then, 3 at Houston, who as we know first-hand, can be difficult.

One day at-a-time, of course, but we can still make some serious noise. GO GIANTS!

Brother Bob said...

Who is this Christian guy? Is he for real? Or a flash in the pan?
And, if by some miracle we happen to make the playoffs, we will be very hard to beat.

Ron said...

By the way, Mark, similar to the words of the Major on the great '70's British comedy, 'Fawlty Towers', with John Cleese:

"No ... no ... I won't have it ... we are not the worst offense in baseball ... there's a team in Seattle!"

I think that the actual quote is something like:

"No ... no ... I won't have it ... this is not the worst-run hotel in all of England ... there's a place in Blackpool!"

The Cardinals just lost, so, by the end of the evening, we could be one game behind them & 3 behind Atlanta. GO GIANTS!!!