Saw some great baserunning yesterday as both Denard Span and Hunter Pence had to make slick, creative slides at home to score. Both were safe on close plays. I'm not the biggest fan of stolen bases as a key weapon. Don't get me wrong, they are nice--and necessary--arrows to have in the quiver, but speed and savvy are more important. Scoring from first on a hit to the gap, for example, is a huge thing. Guys need to have a nose for the plate and need to be able to take extra bases on balls in play. And the new collision rule means opportunity for baserunners to be creative and put pressure on the catcher to be athletic. Good thing the Giants have Buster Posey who seems to have made the sweep tag his signature play.
We have yet to see the rotation settle in and show us what they can do. Got a great start from MadBum against Kershaw. Got a great start from Cueto in Milwaukee. Got a fine effort from Matt Cain against LA. But we need a few more turns before we can do any analysis. I was happy watching Matty. He looked good. I figure if he is being "Cain'd" that means life is normal! Obviously the new guy, Samardzija, is a key figure. I think if he can use that splitter/forkball effectively he could be a groundball machine which plays to the team's strength. I think he will figure it out and be a solid contributor.
That's enough for now. Here's a few more pictures from yesterday:
That seriously hairy dude is me. Didn't need the jacket--or the sunglasses.
My dear friends Ron and Susanna. Good times!
Giants hit the road tomorrow for three in Denver followed by three in LA. Looks like MadBum v. Kershaw again on Friday. Wow.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
1 comment:
The number of Giants who have hit home runs is now 11.
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