Saturday, October 1, 2016

All Hands on Deck!

9-3 win Friday
3-0 win today
If the Giants win tomorrow they are the second wild card in the NL and will travel to NYC to play the Mets on Wednesday. If they lose, and the Cardinals win, the Giants will play a tie-breaker in St. Louis on Monday. Obviously a loss by the Cards means the Giants are in.

Two stirring wins, back-to-back against the Dodgers, and a win against the Rockies before that and that's three in a row for the first time in three weeks. The Giants will play a 163rd game no matter what, and that's something I thought impossible mere days ago. This team is capable of great things, this little run here at the end is the epitome of Veteran Savvy Clutchness, don't count the boys out--ever.

Fabulous effort by the rookie--can we call him a phenom?--Ty Blach today against the best pitcher in the game. What a tremendous performance! That's what this team needs, a young stud stepping up in October. A stupendous win on Friday night as well, coming from behind and getting a huge hit from Madison Bumgarner himself. And Brandon Belt's three-run bomb was epic.

Matt Moore tomorrow. GO GIANTS!

--M.C.



p.s. Russian River I expect a full report in the comments about your trip to the game.

9 comments:

Brother Bob said...

If Blach can follow up today's game with similar performances then maybe we can begin a new legend. I'm reminded of when Lincecum hit the Bigs and dazzled for what, about five years?

nomisnala said...

I saw a pre-game blurp saying the giants are pitching a guy for his third major league game against Kershaw who has 3 Cy Youngs. Well today we had Cy Blach. Of note, Blach could make a serious run at the 5th starter position next year, moving Cain to one of the most expensive middle relievers in history. Or perhaps a CLOSER? Rotation could be, Bummy, Cueto, Moore, Samardjxxx, and Blach. As it stands, if healthy, that looks as if it could be an outstanding rotation. I expected Cain to be much better this year, and now I am not sure what lays ahead for his career.

carmot said...

I'm so psyched for Ty Blach! For the past couple of years I've thought (and been saying) that no stage and no moment is too big for him. He really came through! But, I wouldn't want to anoint him just yet. He's got great control and pitchibility. He's got a competitive attitude that has no back down. But can he PITCH? Consistently? Fair to say this was a huge "yes" for today.

Many Giants fans are just learning his name. I hope it's one that sticks around for a long time. If anybody saw what I wrote up beforehand... Well, I'm glad Kerwin Danley didn't become an issue/topic (unlike Andy Fletcher of Friday night). Regular season winding down, pitchers that work quick- generous but mostly consistent zone.

Some very inspired baseball. I hope this isn't a matter of too little, too late. This 2016 Giants team has far more talent than they've been playing to these past few months. I'd like to see how far they could get- after Game 163. Dream big...

Russian River said...

MC....thank you for the prod. Allow me to describe our Friday night experience at ATT. I met my fellow Giants fan at Paragon before the game for eats and drinks. I was amazing how many Dodger fans and how much blue we saw before entering the park. Hey, I guess even the Fodgers have fans as well.

We had been to a number of game earlier this year, and in my semi-professional opinion, there was different vibe/feeling/air to Fridays game. First game of the last three of the regular season against the dreaded Dodgers. AND their fans were here in force.

Rivalry: a state or situation in which people or groups are competing with each other.

So, first inning, Bum is not so sharp and Dodgers take advantage and score a pair. The blue people around us are happy, high five-ing and sneering in our general direction (my apologies to Monthy Python).

But then came the bottom of the first and the lads showed some moxie by tieing the game, which got us, the crowd, into the game.

From time to time, the crowd got really loud and I firmly believe we played a part in this game. And then came the sixth!

The inning started with the boys in blue stringing together a few two out hits to take a 3-2 lead, which did diminish our enthusiasm a bit. But little did we know that magic was about to happen. The boys got the bases loaded and Gillaspie, single- handedly, raised the decibel level within ATT park by doubling to right, to an eardrum blowing level, and the fun was just getting started.

Bumgardner. What more do I need to say. Do we have one of the best all time hitting pitchers or what? He doubles down the left field line and forget about the decibel level of a few minutes ago........orange towels are waving, high fives and given out to all neighbors and Dodger fans slink further down into their seats. I watched the Comcast broadcast of the game today and Kuip said after MadBum's bases clearing double, "every once in awhile this place will shake, and it shook"! Ladies and gentlemen, let me tell you...........ATT was shaking!

And then there was Belt. After his ball park leaving blast to center, Kuip said....."ATT Park is alive and well folks". We all join in as one with FULL voice.....BEAT-LA, BEAT-LA, BEAT-LA. Dodger fans head for the door.

After the homer, it felt good to see Dodger's fans quieted, diminished, no longer high fiveing and spying out the exits. By the bottom of the eighth inning, there was nary any blue around us.

Over the course of my humble life, I've had the pleasure of attending many a Giant's game and the game the lads played on September 30th, 2016 will always be one of my favorites. They got behind right off the bat and answered back immediately. Dodgers fans got cocky after they scored a run in the sixth and then, magic happened. What more can I say?

BEAT-LA, BEAT-LA, BEAT-LA!

I love this game.........Go Giants!


carmot said...

Russian River:

Wow! Thanks for that. You all *definitely* played a part in Friday's game. No doubt about it in my mind. The broadcast... Well, loudest and most excited it's been all season? Bum pitching. Dodgers.. Season on the line. Oh, yeah. What's not to love about that experience? Awesome, glad you shared. These last two games have been spectacular. Matty Moe, your turn!

My fave game experience has to be Bum's grand slam game. I think no other (current) Giant can get the AT&T crowds fired up quite like he can. Of course, I mean no disrespect to our Timmy... I was also at his second no-no.

I want to believe in the even year magic. C'mon Giants. PROVE IT.

JC Parsons said...

Thanks RR for one of the best on the scene reports ever! This year has been wacko but it sure has produced some AWESOME trips to ATT for many of us. And not just regular games, big important LA games. I know I will never forget the JohnnyC miracle comeback that a large group of us attended. It sounds like Friday and Saturday were those kind of games too. Congrats and thanks again!

So has the magic switch been thrown? Are they at the right place NOW ? It sure looked like it against Kershaw. JohnnyC sure looks ready. BCraw's glove is SO ready, And, well, MadBum is probably ready to take it to the next level, whatever that is. Even Romo looks ready. Too bad we all know just how fragile it really is....

But maybe a final big piece of this psycho puzzle of a season has arrived: the home crowd post season thrill. Yes, I know that the impact a cheering crowd has on a baseball in nebulous at best. But these guys are loony remember? Jeckle and Hyde like never before. So maybe a crazy weekend of amazing fans will ignite something. As I said before, it sure LOOKS like it right now.

M.C. O'Connor said...

Giants need to win today. No steenkeen' ties!!

(And 'spasibo' RR!)

Russian River said...

A couple of things I forgot to mention.............We sat in Lower Box Section 107, just above first base. Great seats and thanks to my friend who purchased them for us. We had the pleasure of sitting next to a couple from England who were "on holiday" in the San Francisco Bay Area. They had never been to an American Baseball game and picked a pretty good one for their first.

Midway through the game they were dining on chips aka Gilroy garlic fries and enjoying an Anchor Lager (my suggestion). By the end of the sixth inning they had the hive five and high ten, DOWN. They were impressed with the fervor of the fans once the onslaught began in the bottom of the sixth. They said they had been to many a sporting event back home but had never heard a crowd to be soooo loud. When we parted, they thanked us for the company and my last words to them were; "You really picked a GREAT game to attend".

Bring out the broom..........It's time for a SWEEP. Let's Go Giants! BEAT-LA

carmot said...

RR:
More great stuff! LB107, great seats. One cool thing about sitting there is being able to observe the interactions inside the G's dugout. Especially on such a momentous occasion! And what with all the callups present. Wow. I had gone to many a Giants game before I ever even KNEW about the Club Level. Which, I'm sure you (an others here) already know about- and that your Lower Level Box ticket gains you entry upstairs...

All that incredible memorabilia from World Series, Cainer's perfecto, and more. The signed baseballs. The photos from the old NY Polo Grounds. OMG. The triplets are usually there as well. That venue holds a special place in my heart. Cheers.

Go Matty Moe! Go! Go Giants!