Magic # 7
Tim Lincecum continued to salvage his "challenging" 2012 season and the Giants continued their march to the post-season with a convincing 6-3 victory over the Rockies. The smogsuckers got rained out in D.C. (lucky chumps have to play a DH tomorrow) but it really doesn't matter. It seems clear that we control our own destiny in the division ... and the way we are playing, that is a very good thing.
Timmy has clearly turned his ship around. He may not be the dominant force he once was, but he is consistently getting the job done now. Something we all know he wasn't doing AT ALL earlier this year. The team record tells it all : first 14 starts - 2 wins and 12 losses, next 17 starts - 11 wins and 6 losses. Those are numbers that can't be denied. Timmeh also took care of a couple other, less important, but significant numbers. First, he FINALLY got his friggin' ERA below FIVE ( 4.91 ) !! I know that still sucks but it sounds so much better. Second, and of historical interest, Lincecum became 1 of 7 pitchers in SF-era history to have double-digit wins in 5-straight seasons. The Freak has joined Jack Sanford (5 seasons from 1959-1963), Gaylord Perry (6, 1966-1971), Juan Marichal (11, 1961-1971), Kirk Rueter (7, 1997-2003) and Jason Schmidt (5, 2002-2006). That is a list of truly great Giants ! Congratulations Tim ! (Nice bunt, too.)
The good: The offense continues to look potent and well-rounded. Well, maybe no long balls, but I think sac flies are sexier anyway. Marco Scutaro (3 hits, 2 runs), Pablo Sandoval (2 hits), Xavier Nady (2 hits, 2 RBI's) and Hector Sanchez (2 hits) all chipped in. Oh yeah, two intentional walks for Buster Posey. Didn't that bring back flashes of rubber chickens?
What can I say? We rock right now.
How long will it last?
5 comments:
We beat, and should beat what is essentially a Rockies triple A team. Their young catcher looks like he is going to be quite the power hitter. It may present a bigger problem when the Rockies get a healthier team together with a few of their injured guys back, and a few good free agents. But until then, lets enjoy this year, and lets keep beating this triple A rockies team.
Tim looked good. He had a 6 or 7 pitch inning maybe for the first time all year. And he had some bad luck in the 7th or he would likely have finished the inning. The one pitch DP grounder Affeldt-to-Giambi was great, just what the doctor ordered.
Giants are 12-4 vs Rox. 6-1 vs Cubs. 8-1 vs Astros. That's 26-6 (.813) vs. the three sub.-400 clubs in the NL. You gotta beat up on the lousy teams and hang tough with the good ones. Giants are 59-57 vs. the rest of baseball. Of potential playoff foes, Giants are 1-5 vs Nats, 4-3 vs Braves, 3-3 vs Cards, 3-4 vs Reds.
Tim is returning as a somewhat reinvented & effective Pitcher - that's good to see. He's getting the big outs in different ways, with a lot more grounders. OK, as long as Brandon Crawford is playing Gold Glove defense, why not?
As far as our offense is concerned, the last 2 games have not given me a lot of comfort. We are facing some mediocre pitching, & we are squandering scoring opportunities just like early in the season. We need that to turn around. Of course, part of it is because people are pitching around Buster & Pence, so others need to get their extra base hit power going.
Last night's game entered a bizarre phase lasting from the bottom of the 6th through almost the end of the game. That 'runner's interference' call on Nady was perhaps the worst umpiring call that I've ever seen in a ML game. It was fabricated out of nowhere. The play was either a 'nothing' (i.e. an infield hit for Crawford) or interference on the Colorado fielder for elbowing Nady as he ran by. It was astounding, & the umpire who made the call should sit out a few games to contemplate just what the hell he was doing. Thank God that that didn't happen in a big game with big implications. It's rare to see one type of interference call in one half inning, then another in the next half inning. There were a few more spooky plays & situations the rest of the way - early Halloween?
Anyway, in the final analysis, we got it done. Affeldt's one-pitch DP bail-out of Lincecum was the moment of the game for me. Massive sigh of relief.
If the Giants continue to roll along this week, Bochy will have a big job keeping the team sharp over the final few games of the season & the off-days that precede the start of the playoffs for us.
If you look at the leaderboards, the Nats have the best pitching (3.60 rpg), the Reds are 2nd (3.72), Braves 4th (3.85), Giants 5th (4.06), Cards 6th (4.14).
On the hitting side its Cards 3rd (4.72 rpg), Nats 4th (4.47), Braves 6th (4.41), Giants 7th (4.39), Reds 8th (4.26).
Those five teams are pretty close and are certainly the best ones. Should be well-matched playoff baseball. LA has great pitching (3.80, 3rd), but lousy hitting (3.90, 13th). They are still in it but the injuries may derail them if the schedule doesn't.
If LA gets their pitchers healthy, along with their current projected lineup for next year, plus a few selected free agents, they will be a major contender, perhaps the favorites. They have a solid bullpen with guys who seem to be able to pitch on a daily basis. I think our entire division will most likely be much tougher next year.
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