27-27, .500, 2nd place, 5-1/2 GB
The Giants had a four-game winning streak last week and with a chance to make it five they blew a 6-2 lead in the 9th. The Giants had a four-game winning streak right after that, and with a chance to make it five today in New York, they blew a 3-1 lead in the 9th.
Logan Webb's strong seven (3 H, 1 R, 1 W, 8 K) was backed by another good inning from Ryan Walker who is the go-to guy for big outs these days. Tyler Rogers couldn't close it out, unfortunately. The Giants hit a lot of balls hard today and had scoring chances they didn't convert. The final game of the road trip was a 4-3 walk-off win for the Mets. Here's how the six games went: blown lead in the 9th, comeback, comeback, comeback, comeback, blown lead in the 9th.
But that's enough about today. The important thing is that the Giants are playing better baseball. They rank 11th of the 30 teams in runs scored with 237, or 4.39 rpg. They get on base at a decent clip (.317, 8th-best) but don't slug much (.387, 15th-best). They are mostly middle-of-the-road: 8th-most in doubles, 18th-most in homers, 12th-most in walks, 14th-fewest in strikeouts. Their .249 BA is 8th-best. They are dead last in stolen bases (19). I think those numbers square with what we've seen.
On the pitching side, the Giants have allowed 256 runs (24th-most) or 4.74 rpg. Over this stretch of 18 games they've allowed 78 runs (4.33 rpg) and ten of those were in one of the losses to LA. The Big Three of Webb, Harrison, and Hicks are all doing well. It's worth noting that Blake Snell (19) and Keaton Winn (29) have given up almost 19% of the team's runs. One expects Snell will improve but a fifth starter remains elusive. Winn is on the IL and will likely rehab in the minors. Mason Black (14 runs) is not quite ready, it seems. Injured pitchers Alex Cobb, Robbie Ray, and Tristan Beck are still far away.
Other than Ryan Walker the bullpen is shaky although Randy Rodriguez seems to be coming along nicely. Tyler Rogers, other than today, has been solid, and brother Taylor looks a lot better. As does Sean Hjelle who seems to be finding himself. Maybe he'll get some starts. Camilo Doval is walking too many people and he needs to tighten that up.
On the fielding side it's clear that Matt Chapman is a huge upgrade and a run-saving, out-generating machine. His hitting is much better these days as well. The outfield looks a lot better despite losing Jung Hoo Lee. The youngsters (Matos and Ramos) have really brought a lot of energy to the club. Losing SS Nick Ahmed was a blow as Marco Luciano is still struggling at the position despite swinging the bat well. Overall the Giants rate last in defensive efficiency and still make way too many errors. I think that fits our eye test. The team is more athletic with the youth infusion but there are still a lot of blown plays and missed chances. I'm happy to see Patrick Bailey behind the plate again and it looks like youngsters Wisely and McKenna might have some fielding chops.
One-third of the season is over. Lots of baseball (108 games) left. The Phillies are in San Francisco tomorrow (2:05 Pacific). Blake Snell is back, he gets the start. Two more games follow on Tuesday (6:45) and Wednesday (12:45). Thursday's an off-day and then it's the Yankees for three over the weekend.
Go Giants!
--M.C.
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