Jarrett Parker stole the show today in Oakland with three titanic home runs including a first-pitch grand slam in the 8th to lead the Giants to victory. It was billed as the Tim Hudson v. Barry Zito show but neither made it past the 3rd inning. Both men were well-received and feted properly for their long, successful careers and their connections to both sides of the Bay. I'm not sentimental about ballplayers. They've had their time in the sun and now it's time for the youngsters to get their chance. Enjoy retirement, Huddy. I don't know what Zito has planned for next year, but I wish him well, too.
Parker's day is the first three-homer game for a Giants rookie EVER and the first three-homer game for a rookie in the bigs since Andrew McCutcheon in 2009. I think we can say he is "serving notice" that he wants a spot on the roster next year. You go, kid. Keep on rockin'!
The bullpen somehow managed not to lose the game and the Giants snapped their skid. I was starting to wonder if anyone on the team (besides Bum, of course) could still pitch!
Chris Heston tomorrow. GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Showing posts with label Barry Zito. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Barry Zito. Show all posts
Saturday, September 26, 2015
Sunday, September 29, 2013
162: All bad things must come to an end
The Giants settle for a third-place tie with the Padres, and I settle for a headline that I stole from 'Breaking Bad.' For those of you living in a cave, the much-hyped (and quite excellent) AMC TV series ends this evening. Giants baseball, alas, ended this afternoon. At least they made it exciting. When Gregor Blanco got hurt with two outs in the top of the 9th, 40th man Francisco Peguero took his spot. Sure enough, the long-tenured farmhand blasted a game-tying homer (his first in the bigs) off San Diego closer Huston Street in the bottom of the 9th. A hit, a wild pitch, a walk, and another walk loaded the bases for the man of the hour, Hunter Pence, who whacked a 3-2 pitch into center field for the game-winner. The Padres had employed five infielders and two shallow outfielders, a scheme that you only get to see in those walk-off situations, but it was to no avail and the Giants pulled off a fun comeback win.
Barry Zito got a curtain call when Bruce Bochy summoned him with two outs in the 8th to pitch to Mark Kotsay. Bud Black played along and left in the veteran lefty, who obligingly struck out to give the home crowd a thrill. Kotsay took his final cuts today--he's retiring after 16 years in the majors. That's a hell of an accomplishment. The Cal State Fullerton grad was the 9th pick (Florida Marlins) of the 1996 draft.
The final tally is 76-86 or .469 ball. LA (92-70) wins the West by 11 games over Arizona (81-81), who just break even despite a strong showing in the first half. San Diego (76-86) matches San Francisco, but claim the high ground only on alphabetical order. The Giants won the season series eleven games to eight and thus merit the tiebreaker. You know it's been a bad season when your favorite team has to have its best month (16-11, .593) just to pass the Colorado Rockies (74-88) and stay out of the basement.
But have a good month they did, and that's something. I like ending the year on an up note. And speaking of notes, the Giants will send ninety million or so Pence's way for the next five years. It's a lot and a long time, Rowandian in scope, but I like the deal. I think he'll earn his pay. This will be an interesting off-season. We should have plenty to talk about. By the way, I put twenty on Timmy. Blog-mate JC and I have a wager: I say The Freak will be on the Giants next year, he says not. We'll see!
--M.C.
Barry Zito got a curtain call when Bruce Bochy summoned him with two outs in the 8th to pitch to Mark Kotsay. Bud Black played along and left in the veteran lefty, who obligingly struck out to give the home crowd a thrill. Kotsay took his final cuts today--he's retiring after 16 years in the majors. That's a hell of an accomplishment. The Cal State Fullerton grad was the 9th pick (Florida Marlins) of the 1996 draft.
The final tally is 76-86 or .469 ball. LA (92-70) wins the West by 11 games over Arizona (81-81), who just break even despite a strong showing in the first half. San Diego (76-86) matches San Francisco, but claim the high ground only on alphabetical order. The Giants won the season series eleven games to eight and thus merit the tiebreaker. You know it's been a bad season when your favorite team has to have its best month (16-11, .593) just to pass the Colorado Rockies (74-88) and stay out of the basement.
But have a good month they did, and that's something. I like ending the year on an up note. And speaking of notes, the Giants will send ninety million or so Pence's way for the next five years. It's a lot and a long time, Rowandian in scope, but I like the deal. I think he'll earn his pay. This will be an interesting off-season. We should have plenty to talk about. By the way, I put twenty on Timmy. Blog-mate JC and I have a wager: I say The Freak will be on the Giants next year, he says not. We'll see!
--M.C.
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Exercise His Option!
Well, maybe not. But Barry Zito, in his final start of 2013, and probably his final start of his Giants career, pitched well, and I couldn't be happier. I always rooted for Zito, I always hoped he would just somehow magically become a curve-ball throwing, opponent-mowing, winning machine like he was in his Cy Young year. It wasn't for lack of trying. He worked hard throughout his contract, and I don't believe he ever got lazy for all the money. The results weren't there, except every now and then, they were. More on that later. Tonight Zito got his first credited win since May. He went 5 innings, gave up 2 runs, and 1 of those was the result of an error. He was the first batter in the 5th inning, and Roger Kieschnick pinch hit for him. Final score, Giants 6, Los Angeles 4. That gives the Giants a winning record this year against that team, regardless of tomorrow's outcome. You know what else? Pablo Sandoval hit his first home run at ATT Park since May. Tony Abreu had a career-high 4 rbi. Barry Zito, for all his failings, had some very good games for the Giants.
Dodgers Dingers Sink Cain, Giants
Matt Cain gave up two solo home runs to two power-hitting Dodgers outfielders, Yasiel Puig and Matt Kemp, and that was enough for LA to take the opening game. The Giants got a solo homer from an unlikely source--Tony Abreu--and that took care of their scoring. Hyun-jin Ryu had the rest of the team befuddled for his seven innings, allowing only four hits and one walk. Brian Wilson pitched a perfect 8th, just to rub salt in the wounds, and looked sharp doing it, throwing only ten pitches and striking out two. Like last week, my takeaway from this game is that Matt Cain is back to looking like Matt Cain. After the worst April of his career, the big righty has gradually righted the ship and that bodes well for 2014. His September numbers tell the story of the season for the Giants: 28 IP, 27 H, 7 R, 18 K, and the team goes 0-4 scoring only 8 runs. If this was indeed Cain's last start, and I hope it is, he finishes with exactly half the pitcher-wins (8) he had last season (16), and twice (10) the number of losses (5).
Take a look at FanGraphs. Matty threw his slider in 2013 more (28%) than ever before, and and his fastball less (49%) than ever before. His home run rate (1.1/9) and home run to flyball rate (10.8%) are his highest ever. Interestingly, his xFIP (3.88) is in line with the last few seasons: 4.16, 4.00, 3.78, 3.82 since 2009. He was about half a run higher than that for 2005-2008. His walk and strikeout rates have been pretty consistent, and his 2013 BABIP of .260 is right at his career mark (.264). So, what happened? Why did we see so much "Bad Matt" this season? I like to think it was fatigue--both mental and physical. The burden of expectations is a heavy one. After a near-perfect 2012, a little "regression to the mean" is not surprising. The wear-and-tear of innings pitched and batters faced is also a big one, and I hope the Giants address that with their starters next season. Cain has pitched better since he was on the DL--maybe skipping a start or two now and then throughout the year could become a regular practice. Looks like they are shutting down Madison Bumgarner for the season (Barry Zito gets the start tonight). I find it hard to argue with that.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Take a look at FanGraphs. Matty threw his slider in 2013 more (28%) than ever before, and and his fastball less (49%) than ever before. His home run rate (1.1/9) and home run to flyball rate (10.8%) are his highest ever. Interestingly, his xFIP (3.88) is in line with the last few seasons: 4.16, 4.00, 3.78, 3.82 since 2009. He was about half a run higher than that for 2005-2008. His walk and strikeout rates have been pretty consistent, and his 2013 BABIP of .260 is right at his career mark (.264). So, what happened? Why did we see so much "Bad Matt" this season? I like to think it was fatigue--both mental and physical. The burden of expectations is a heavy one. After a near-perfect 2012, a little "regression to the mean" is not surprising. The wear-and-tear of innings pitched and batters faced is also a big one, and I hope the Giants address that with their starters next season. Cain has pitched better since he was on the DL--maybe skipping a start or two now and then throughout the year could become a regular practice. Looks like they are shutting down Madison Bumgarner for the season (Barry Zito gets the start tonight). I find it hard to argue with that.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Sunday, September 1, 2013
Petit Is Grand
The Giants find their way today and beat up on the Diamondbacks 8-2. Patrick Corbin has seen his fortunes change in the last two starts, giving up 14 runs in 10 innings after a complete game win at Cincinnati two weeks ago. The young Arizona lefty is having a great season but might be hitting a wall as he approaches 200 innings. The Giants had a big day, rapping out 15 hits with a new-look September lineup. Yusmeiro Petit had a career-high 10 strikeouts, and is making a pitch for a spot in the rotation. Chad Gaudin is going to have some competition, and that has to be a good thing for 2014. Fifth starters don't have to be very good, and if they are close to league-average, or at least better than most team's fifth starters, they can be valuable pieces.
The Giants need to start stockpiling pitchers as there is a new arms race in the West. The Dodgers have the best pitcher in baseball (Clayton Kershaw) and a healthy number two (Zack Greinke) who would be the ace on most clubs. A resurgent Ricky Nolasco (I guess you were right about him, Ron!) has put together perhaps his best stretch ever, and MLB-rookie Hyun-jin Ryu gives them another formidable southpaw. I note that even with Chris Capuano holding down the 5-spot, they still picked up Edinson Volquez as insurance. And they still have two veterans on the DL who will likely be back next season, Josh Beckett and Chad Billingsley. The LA team has been dubbed "The West Coast Yankees" for their otherworldly payroll, and this season their depth has certainly paid off. They are winning at an historic pace since their early-season woes. It will be interesting to see how the Giants will try to match up with the new front-runners in the off-season.
Believe it or not, Barry Zito is listed as the starter for tomorrow's game in San Diego.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
The Giants need to start stockpiling pitchers as there is a new arms race in the West. The Dodgers have the best pitcher in baseball (Clayton Kershaw) and a healthy number two (Zack Greinke) who would be the ace on most clubs. A resurgent Ricky Nolasco (I guess you were right about him, Ron!) has put together perhaps his best stretch ever, and MLB-rookie Hyun-jin Ryu gives them another formidable southpaw. I note that even with Chris Capuano holding down the 5-spot, they still picked up Edinson Volquez as insurance. And they still have two veterans on the DL who will likely be back next season, Josh Beckett and Chad Billingsley. The LA team has been dubbed "The West Coast Yankees" for their otherworldly payroll, and this season their depth has certainly paid off. They are winning at an historic pace since their early-season woes. It will be interesting to see how the Giants will try to match up with the new front-runners in the off-season.
Believe it or not, Barry Zito is listed as the starter for tomorrow's game in San Diego.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Saturday, August 10, 2013
Pitching in 2014
Ryan Vogelsong is in the second year of his deal that paid him $3M last season and pays him $5M this season. The club has an option for next season at $6.5M ($0.3M buyout). Safe to say they'll pick it up and pencil him in for 30+ starts. Matt Cain is locked up until at least 2017. Madison Bumgarner is, too. Jeremy Affeldt is inked for 2014 and 2015, as is Santiago Casilla. The Giants have Sergio Romo signed for 2014, but he's a free agent in 2015. That's the nucleus: Cain, MadBum, Vogie, Affeldt, Casilla, Romo. Three starters, three late-inning relievers. Total cost in the neighborhood of $48M. Throw in another $7M to give Barry Zito his walking papers and you've got half of a payroll for an upper-echelon team. The Giants have consistently spent in the top third of ML franchises, this year they are seventh at $138M.
Three pending free agents loom large: Javier Lopez, Chad Gaudin, and the biggest of them all, Tim Lincecum. Nothing but good things have happened to the Giants since Lopez has been on the payroll. He's the quintessential LOOGY, something the team values and is willing to pay for ($4.25M this year). Alas, he turns 37 in July. Jesse Orosco pitched until he was 46--anyone willing to bet on Lopez channeling his inner Orosco? Chad Gaudin, surprise story of 2014, started 34 games for the Oakland Athletics in 2007 when he was 24, and 25 games for two teams in 2009. Otherwise he's been a reliever. Will he be the next chapter in the Rags-to-riches tale? Finally, there's nothing to say about The Freak that hasn't been said already. He could be the most interesting potential free agent signing in all of baseball.
What, then, should the Giants do? What say you, my friends? I've said nary a word about Jose Mijares, Jean Machi, Guillermo Moscoso, Mike Kickham, Eric Surkamp, George Kontos, Sandy Rosario, Jake Dunning, Edwin Escobar, Dan Runzler, or any of the other newbies, re-treads, or up-and-comers. I understand there's an entire minor-league system full of barely-known hurlers with the potential to be Giants. Build me a pitching staff, me buckos.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Three pending free agents loom large: Javier Lopez, Chad Gaudin, and the biggest of them all, Tim Lincecum. Nothing but good things have happened to the Giants since Lopez has been on the payroll. He's the quintessential LOOGY, something the team values and is willing to pay for ($4.25M this year). Alas, he turns 37 in July. Jesse Orosco pitched until he was 46--anyone willing to bet on Lopez channeling his inner Orosco? Chad Gaudin, surprise story of 2014, started 34 games for the Oakland Athletics in 2007 when he was 24, and 25 games for two teams in 2009. Otherwise he's been a reliever. Will he be the next chapter in the Rags-to-riches tale? Finally, there's nothing to say about The Freak that hasn't been said already. He could be the most interesting potential free agent signing in all of baseball.
What, then, should the Giants do? What say you, my friends? I've said nary a word about Jose Mijares, Jean Machi, Guillermo Moscoso, Mike Kickham, Eric Surkamp, George Kontos, Sandy Rosario, Jake Dunning, Edwin Escobar, Dan Runzler, or any of the other newbies, re-treads, or up-and-comers. I understand there's an entire minor-league system full of barely-known hurlers with the potential to be Giants. Build me a pitching staff, me buckos.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Wednesday, July 31, 2013
Helpless Team
Barry Zito had a magical run last season, and earned a spot in the franchise's pantheon with his start for the ages in Game Five of the LCS, and his gritty showdown with the game's best in Game One of the Series. But now he's done. Finished. Kaput. His career as a Giants pitcher will come to an end in two months, as it seems impossible to imagine the team offering him $18M to stay when they can pay him $7M to go. And it seems increasingly likely that he will miss some starts. Ol' Boch was cagey about that in the post-game interview, but you have to think they've already pencilled in a few extra rest days for the beleaguered lefty. Since beating Miami at home on June 22nd, Zeets has thrown 25-1/3 innings over six starts, allowing 39 hits and 21 runs, and the team's gone 1-5. He's still listed as the starter for Sunday's game in Tampa Bay, but if it were me I'd find a Mike Kickham, Eric Surkamp, or Guillermo Moscoso for that duty. The team is home against the Brewers right after that--why not give Barry-Z an extra day off and a chance to pitch in friendlier confines? His road WHIP is 2.352 and teams are hitting like Ted Williams against him. Literally, his road BAA is .406!
The Giants have seven wins in the month of July. They have a chance to make it eight today behind Chad Gaudin. They had ten wins in the month of June. They are 19-32 on the road. They are in last place, eleven games behind the Dodgers. What, exactly, are the Giants going to do at the trade deadline to change that? I'll tell you: nothing. They can't acquire any player or combination of players that will make a big enough difference. If they sell, they are building for 2014, not for the rest of the season. If they are going to salvage the last two months (57 games), they are going to do it with the hand they've got. You don't throw good money after bad in poker, and you don't reinforce failure in war. This team has players who can win baseball games. The fact that they are not winning baseball games does not change the truth of the first statement. If the Giants win 35 of their remaining games (.614 ball) they'll finish the season with 81 wins and a .500 record. If the Dodgers win only 25 of their final 57 games (.438 ball, exactly what the Giants are doing now), they will finish with 82 wins. That's what "11 games behind" means. Like I said before, the math ain't pretty.
C'mon, Giants. Win some goddamn games.
--M.C.
The Giants have seven wins in the month of July. They have a chance to make it eight today behind Chad Gaudin. They had ten wins in the month of June. They are 19-32 on the road. They are in last place, eleven games behind the Dodgers. What, exactly, are the Giants going to do at the trade deadline to change that? I'll tell you: nothing. They can't acquire any player or combination of players that will make a big enough difference. If they sell, they are building for 2014, not for the rest of the season. If they are going to salvage the last two months (57 games), they are going to do it with the hand they've got. You don't throw good money after bad in poker, and you don't reinforce failure in war. This team has players who can win baseball games. The fact that they are not winning baseball games does not change the truth of the first statement. If the Giants win 35 of their remaining games (.614 ball) they'll finish the season with 81 wins and a .500 record. If the Dodgers win only 25 of their final 57 games (.438 ball, exactly what the Giants are doing now), they will finish with 82 wins. That's what "11 games behind" means. Like I said before, the math ain't pretty.
C'mon, Giants. Win some goddamn games.
--M.C.
Sunday, July 14, 2013
Break Time
The Padres got their revenge today. It's been a humiliating run for them (2-12 in July, 6-20 since beating the Giants on June 17th, getting no-hit, etc.) and they took it out on Barry Zito and the bullpen. The loss comes immediately after the high point of this low point in the season, something only lifers like us can appreciate. You have to be encouraged by the team taking three of four from San Diego, especially since they won so impressively, flashing all of their considerable tools. And they avoided the basement, at least for the Break, and that has to feel good. But there are things to be discouraged about, most especially the math, which I'll get to in a bit. Tim Lincecum pitched a no-hitter last night, and that was damn exciting. Remind yourself of that when this much-needed hiatus from the games is over. Mostly, this season is about missing Ryan Vogelsong, wondering about Matt Cain, and remaining bewildered about Barry-Z. The Giants come to the ASB 43-51 with 68 games remaining. They need 39 wins to finish with a winning record. To win 90, they have to go 47-21 which is .691 ball. There are only three .600 or better clubs in the majors right now. If the Arizona Diamondbacks play roughly their current .532 ball the rest of the way, they'll finish with 87 wins. That means the Giants will have to go 45-23 (.662) to beat them out. That's taking two of three in every series from this point forward. The team has 21 series left.
It's long odds, to be sure. I'd put down a bet only if you gave me at least 10-1. But I'm not a betting man, I'm only happy when my money rides on sure things. (As if there are any of those.) It is not outside the realm of possibility, though. That's the thing. It could happen. There is a lot of talent in San Francisco. There's grit, moxie, élan, esprit de corps, and VSC aplenty. Not to mention pennant race experience. The NL West is still open despite the Giants being out by seven games, that's something that can be halved on a good weekend. A ten-game win streak, a stretch of 12 wins in 15 or the like, could turn the season around. Such things happen, as we know, quite often in baseball. So, let's relax and enjoy the respite, and if you get the urge post up your notions about the second half. Let's kick 'em around and see what we've got, maybe we'll come up with all the answers.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
p.s. Madison Bumgarner and Buster Posey are awesome.
It's long odds, to be sure. I'd put down a bet only if you gave me at least 10-1. But I'm not a betting man, I'm only happy when my money rides on sure things. (As if there are any of those.) It is not outside the realm of possibility, though. That's the thing. It could happen. There is a lot of talent in San Francisco. There's grit, moxie, élan, esprit de corps, and VSC aplenty. Not to mention pennant race experience. The NL West is still open despite the Giants being out by seven games, that's something that can be halved on a good weekend. A ten-game win streak, a stretch of 12 wins in 15 or the like, could turn the season around. Such things happen, as we know, quite often in baseball. So, let's relax and enjoy the respite, and if you get the urge post up your notions about the second half. Let's kick 'em around and see what we've got, maybe we'll come up with all the answers.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
p.s. Madison Bumgarner and Buster Posey are awesome.
Sunday, June 23, 2013
Collapse
Matt Cain wasn't pretty, but he was reasonably effective, and I've learned not to scoff at the "Quality Start" statistic. Stringing together quality starts is what usually leads to winning baseball. The Giants though, can't seem to get clutch hits. Today they had a runner at third with one out and failed to score him--that would have tied the game in the 7th. They had a runner at third in the 8th with only one out, but only for a brief moment, as Marco Scutaro was thrown out at second after a questionable decision to advance. In light of Joaquin Arias' double play grounder the inning before, I can understand the desire to have runners on second and third rather than first and second. But it was one of those situations that required the runner to be absolutely sure of not getting thrown out. In fact, he was thrown out, and that meant Buster Posey (2-for-16 in the series) had to get a hit to tie the game, which he did not. Thus the Giants failed to give themselves a chance to win. Jean Machi collapsed completely in the 9th, giving up four runs and ending any hope of a comeback.
Mostly, though, this game was about another Marlins starter befuddling the lineup. We had Jacob Turner one night and Tom Koehler another, and today we got the overpowering Nathan Eovaldi. The Giants were averaging over four runs per game coming in to this series, but they could only manage EIGHT runs total against the vaunted Miami pitching staff. Only Ricky Nolasco was ordinary, and despite giving up nine hits the Giants could not finish him off and wound up losing. Even with Barry Zito throwing a gem yesterday, the Giants still had to resort to extra-inning heroics to win. This was a winnable game and a winnable series, but collapses from the bullpen and feeble efforts from the hitters meant another lost weekend.
Matt Cain continues to give up home runs. Today Justin Ruggiano murdered the second pitch of the game and put the Giants in a hole they never came back from. Cain has allowed 16 dingers in 16 starts. Before this year, he had allowed 129 homers in 235 starts. In 2011 he only allowed nine in his 33 starts, an anomalously low number considering that all his other seasons were between 14 and 22. So, is 2013 just an anomaly, an extreme case of bad luck, much like 2011 being, perhaps, an extreme case of good luck? Is the swing just normal variation? Or is something wrong? If so, what? His hit rate of 7.4/9 is close to his career norm (7.5), as is his walk rate of 2.7/9 (3.1), and strikeout rate of 8.3/9 (7.5). His BABIP of .249 is right there (.263), and his 37.0% ground ball rate (37.2) and 40.8% fly ball rate (43.7) aren't much different. Even his xFIP (3.82) is the same as last season's, suggesting that his expected runs allowed should be close to the same. Alas, he's allowing a home run on 14% of his fly balls, about twice his career rate of 7.1% (it was 8.4% last season and 3.7% in 2011). What's the deal? How can a guy do just about everything else the same and have one thing be completely out of whack? I tell ya, I just don't know, but it ain't no fun to watch.
Giants are firing on only one cylinder at a time these days, and it's hard to take. The parts and pieces are all there, despite the injuries, but they can't seem to get them coordinated and working in a mutually supporting way.
Let's go, Giants. Let's get some goddamn wins!
--M.C.
Mostly, though, this game was about another Marlins starter befuddling the lineup. We had Jacob Turner one night and Tom Koehler another, and today we got the overpowering Nathan Eovaldi. The Giants were averaging over four runs per game coming in to this series, but they could only manage EIGHT runs total against the vaunted Miami pitching staff. Only Ricky Nolasco was ordinary, and despite giving up nine hits the Giants could not finish him off and wound up losing. Even with Barry Zito throwing a gem yesterday, the Giants still had to resort to extra-inning heroics to win. This was a winnable game and a winnable series, but collapses from the bullpen and feeble efforts from the hitters meant another lost weekend.
Matt Cain continues to give up home runs. Today Justin Ruggiano murdered the second pitch of the game and put the Giants in a hole they never came back from. Cain has allowed 16 dingers in 16 starts. Before this year, he had allowed 129 homers in 235 starts. In 2011 he only allowed nine in his 33 starts, an anomalously low number considering that all his other seasons were between 14 and 22. So, is 2013 just an anomaly, an extreme case of bad luck, much like 2011 being, perhaps, an extreme case of good luck? Is the swing just normal variation? Or is something wrong? If so, what? His hit rate of 7.4/9 is close to his career norm (7.5), as is his walk rate of 2.7/9 (3.1), and strikeout rate of 8.3/9 (7.5). His BABIP of .249 is right there (.263), and his 37.0% ground ball rate (37.2) and 40.8% fly ball rate (43.7) aren't much different. Even his xFIP (3.82) is the same as last season's, suggesting that his expected runs allowed should be close to the same. Alas, he's allowing a home run on 14% of his fly balls, about twice his career rate of 7.1% (it was 8.4% last season and 3.7% in 2011). What's the deal? How can a guy do just about everything else the same and have one thing be completely out of whack? I tell ya, I just don't know, but it ain't no fun to watch.
Giants are firing on only one cylinder at a time these days, and it's hard to take. The parts and pieces are all there, despite the injuries, but they can't seem to get them coordinated and working in a mutually supporting way.
Let's go, Giants. Let's get some goddamn wins!
--M.C.
Saturday, June 22, 2013
Agony in Extras Avoided
Good starts. Wins. That's the connection, right? The Giants get good starts, the Giants win. That's our mantra around here. As goes starting pitching, so go the Giants. This season we've seen some poor starting pitching from our beloved ballclub. This week, though, we've seen a nice change. The trend line ticked up a bit. Matt Cain threw seven strong against the Padres on Tuesday. Madison Bumgarner followed that with seven strong on Wednesday. Two good starts, two wins. Chad Gaudin was pitching well before the line drive knocked him out of the game on Thursday but you add in Sandy Rosario's relief job and you got yourself another seven strong. That game was a loss. OK, it happens. Sometimes the bullpen blows it. The lineup can't hit. The breaks don't break. The team pitches well but gets beat anyway. Hell, this franchise cornered the market on that for a while--we fans called it "getting Cained." Yesterday Tim Lincecum pitched well for seven innings but the bullpen coughed it up. And his mates could manage only three runs to help him. Today, Barry Zito delivered his version of seven strong, and his hitters barely squeaked out a run. Fortunately, the 'pen bent, but did not break, and the Giants kept getting second chances. The lineup was pretty damn feeble, and could not conjure up a big hit until the 11th inning. But conjure they did, and the Giants finally crack the Marlins curse and walk off with a much-needed win. I'm happy the team won, and I'm even happier that they've given us a bit of hope with a nice run of good starts. Get the 'pen back in order and the hitters hitting again and wins could start to pile up. They could use a big pile here real soon, on the road against LA and Colorado to close the month.
Matt Cain tomorrow. Seven strong, eh, Matty?
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
p.s. Game 72 was Thursday's loss. Sorry for my tardy innings analysis. That's 4/9 of the season. Giants went 11-7 in their first 18 games, and 10-8 in the next 18. Unfortunately they followed that with an 8-10 stretch. After 54 games, 1/3 of the season, they were an uninspiring 29-25. The fourth seasonal inning was another 8-10 stretch, putting them at 37-35. With today's win. they are 1-1 for inning five and sit at 38-36, 2-1/2 back of Arizona. Time to get those winning ways back, lads!
Matt Cain tomorrow. Seven strong, eh, Matty?
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
p.s. Game 72 was Thursday's loss. Sorry for my tardy innings analysis. That's 4/9 of the season. Giants went 11-7 in their first 18 games, and 10-8 in the next 18. Unfortunately they followed that with an 8-10 stretch. After 54 games, 1/3 of the season, they were an uninspiring 29-25. The fourth seasonal inning was another 8-10 stretch, putting them at 37-35. With today's win. they are 1-1 for inning five and sit at 38-36, 2-1/2 back of Arizona. Time to get those winning ways back, lads!
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Padres Wear Down Giants
The Giants played 13 innings and had 44 at-bats yet only managed 10 hits, all of them singles. They strung together a rally against Edinson Volquez in the 4th and took a 3-0 lead but that was all they could do. They sent only three men to the plate in seven of those innings. Meanwhile the Padres had 18 hits, 14 singles and four doubles, and had only one 1-2-3 inning. They kept the pressure on all night and finally wore the Giants down and collected their seventh straight win. The Pads bullpen threw eight scoreless frames, giving up four hits, no walks, and striking out six. The Giants got a good start from Barry Zito, who deserved better, but spent the final 7-1/3 dodging bullets. If it weren't for a terrific play from rookie Juan Perez in center to throw out Logan Forsythe at third in the 9th, the game would probably have ended in regulation. The Giants 'pen struck out eight, but gave up 12 hits, three walks, and three runs. One of the runs charged to Zito was the result of a wild pitch from Jean Machi. Perhaps a better play by Hector Sanchez would have kept the ball from going to the backstop, but you really couldn't give him a passed ball there. Other than that, I thought Sanchez looked a lot better with the glove and seemed to be in a good groove with Zito. He also seems to have stopped moving around in the squat and is giving a cleaner, steadier target. Brandon Crawford got the call for the three-spot in the lineup with Buster Posey sitting and went 1-for-6 and scored a run. Hunter Pence, right behind him, was 0-for-5 with three whiffs.
San Diego sends the Giants to fourth place, 1-1/2 games behind Arizona. Colorado is a half-game out in second, with the Padres half a game behind them. San Francisco was 38-31 at this point last season, 4-1/2 back of LA. That's right, the Dodgers (29-39, 7 back) were the West leaders then. Fortunes change fast in this game.
Matt Cain gets the ball tonight. GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
p.s. I was done by the top of the 11th and so I missed Will Venable's catch. Apparently he saved the game.
San Diego sends the Giants to fourth place, 1-1/2 games behind Arizona. Colorado is a half-game out in second, with the Padres half a game behind them. San Francisco was 38-31 at this point last season, 4-1/2 back of LA. That's right, the Dodgers (29-39, 7 back) were the West leaders then. Fortunes change fast in this game.
Matt Cain gets the ball tonight. GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
p.s. I was done by the top of the 11th and so I missed Will Venable's catch. Apparently he saved the game.
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
Giants Noir
noir
The San Francisco club showed up in the desert neat, clean, shaved and sober, and they didn't care who knew it. They took a shot and went down, but they got back up and smacked those yeggs around. They showed up in Steel City in their grey suits, black shirts, black brogues, and tall black socks and got their clocks cleaned.
And that was just the beginning.*
The Giants went to Toronto just short of a month ago and had an epic meltdown, playing perhaps their worst games of the young season. Now they are in Pittsburgh, getting schooled by the up-and-comers, looking not the least bit like defending champions, and making those games in Canada look not half bad. At this point you flip a coin (or bet on the spin of a wheel) when they trot out there. You don't know which team you are going to see or which performance any particular player is going to deliver. Barry Zito, post-season hero? Or Barry Zito, eight runs and leave the check on the table? And I'm not picking on Zeets, really, as easy as that would be. This is a team-wide malaise, especially if you include in your malaise-ing the ability (or inability) to stay on the field. You've got Angel Pagan down, Pablo Sandoval down, Ryan Vogelsong down, Santiago Casilla down, and most likely Marco Scutaro down. At this point, if they throw in a piper, then that's it, baby.
No, I joke. I'm not a towel-throwing kind of guy. This is some crap-ass base-balling we are seeing here, yet the team is 2-1/2 back with 98 to play. I can handle numbers like those. It's the bleakness I'm having trouble with. It's some kind of bleak-a-thon I'm running. It's bleakosity and bleakitude bleaking out all over. Did I mention my bleak feelings?
Lads, lads, lads. Give an old fan a break here. Play a proper stretch of ball, willya? String together something resembling a streak, eh? Quit teasing me with two good games and following them with two lousy ones. I don't like it.
The Giants are on the road for four more, and after seven at home, finish the month with six more away games. This is the tough time. The club is short-handed. Their opponents are hungry. The team will have to "nut up" and grind it out. It may even get uglier before it gets better, so we'd best steel ourselves. No one said being a fan was easy.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
*with apologies to R.T. Chandler.
adjective; French.
black; noting the black numbers in roulette.having the characteristics of film noir; tough and bleakly pessimistic.
The San Francisco club showed up in the desert neat, clean, shaved and sober, and they didn't care who knew it. They took a shot and went down, but they got back up and smacked those yeggs around. They showed up in Steel City in their grey suits, black shirts, black brogues, and tall black socks and got their clocks cleaned.
And that was just the beginning.*
The Giants went to Toronto just short of a month ago and had an epic meltdown, playing perhaps their worst games of the young season. Now they are in Pittsburgh, getting schooled by the up-and-comers, looking not the least bit like defending champions, and making those games in Canada look not half bad. At this point you flip a coin (or bet on the spin of a wheel) when they trot out there. You don't know which team you are going to see or which performance any particular player is going to deliver. Barry Zito, post-season hero? Or Barry Zito, eight runs and leave the check on the table? And I'm not picking on Zeets, really, as easy as that would be. This is a team-wide malaise, especially if you include in your malaise-ing the ability (or inability) to stay on the field. You've got Angel Pagan down, Pablo Sandoval down, Ryan Vogelsong down, Santiago Casilla down, and most likely Marco Scutaro down. At this point, if they throw in a piper, then that's it, baby.
No, I joke. I'm not a towel-throwing kind of guy. This is some crap-ass base-balling we are seeing here, yet the team is 2-1/2 back with 98 to play. I can handle numbers like those. It's the bleakness I'm having trouble with. It's some kind of bleak-a-thon I'm running. It's bleakosity and bleakitude bleaking out all over. Did I mention my bleak feelings?
Lads, lads, lads. Give an old fan a break here. Play a proper stretch of ball, willya? String together something resembling a streak, eh? Quit teasing me with two good games and following them with two lousy ones. I don't like it.
The Giants are on the road for four more, and after seven at home, finish the month with six more away games. This is the tough time. The club is short-handed. Their opponents are hungry. The team will have to "nut up" and grind it out. It may even get uglier before it gets better, so we'd best steel ourselves. No one said being a fan was easy.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
*with apologies to R.T. Chandler.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Gaudin Gets It Done
In the 1st inning, rookie Juan Perez ran a screaming Paul Goldschmidt liner down in right-center, crashing into the wall but holding on for the out. It was his first major-league play, and it was spectacular. Chad Gaudin had dispatched the first two hitters but the slugging Arizona first baseman hit what looked like an easy double and possible triple. The 26-year old débutant, though, seized his moment and set the tone for the game. From that point on it was great pitching and defense and the 2013 Giants, looking a lot more like defending champs, won a series on the road since sweeping these same Diamondbacks at the end of April. Chad "I'm the Man" Gaudin was impressive again, throwing hard, throwing strikes, keeping the ball down and snapping off some nasty sliders to boot. The two runs he did give up were on a bloop and a balk, and other than that inning he was in command. The lineup rapped out 12 hits including a double (Hunter Pence), triple (Gregor Blanco), and two homers (Marco Scutaro and Brandon Belt). The bullpen faced ten batters to get the last nine outs, striking out three (Jeremy Affeldt two and Sergio Romo one) and walking none.
The Giants take the series from the front-runners and cut the lead to 1-1/2 games. It was almost a sweep. Matt Cain had the best start of the weekend but the team could not pull out the win. I like it when they score lots of runs. That way late-game homers don't hurt so much. But I like it best when they win, and when they bunch together good starts and quality innings they usually find a way to do just that. Madison Bumgarner wasn't pretty last night, but he was tough and kept the ball in the yard and the game close. Chad Gaudin was even tougher today, and I'd be surprised if we don't see him again on Saturday in Atlanta. The team has another off-day tomorrow, then a three-game set in Pittsburgh. The website says it will be Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito, and back to Cain. That means Bumgarner for Friday and then Gaudin's spot. Their next off-day won't be until the 27th.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
The Giants take the series from the front-runners and cut the lead to 1-1/2 games. It was almost a sweep. Matt Cain had the best start of the weekend but the team could not pull out the win. I like it when they score lots of runs. That way late-game homers don't hurt so much. But I like it best when they win, and when they bunch together good starts and quality innings they usually find a way to do just that. Madison Bumgarner wasn't pretty last night, but he was tough and kept the ball in the yard and the game close. Chad Gaudin was even tougher today, and I'd be surprised if we don't see him again on Saturday in Atlanta. The team has another off-day tomorrow, then a three-game set in Pittsburgh. The website says it will be Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito, and back to Cain. That means Bumgarner for Friday and then Gaudin's spot. Their next off-day won't be until the 27th.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Wednesday, June 5, 2013
Dickey Downer
R.A. Dickey did it all today, mesmerizing Giants hitters with his arsenal of drunken butterflies for 8-1/3 as well as executing a perfect butcher-boy RBI double in the fateful 5th. Barry Zito didn't pitch badly, but got burned by a couple of walks and two two-out hits, one by former Giant Mark DeRosa. He also failed to keep an eye on Jose Bautista who stole two bases in that same 5th and ultimately scored. That was it--one bad inning and the game was effectively over. Dickey had the ball diving and corkscrewing and the local lads were over-matched. Giants have another off-day and then head to Arizona for a showdown Friday night with the division-leading Diamondbacks. Lefty phenom Patrick Corbin is 9-0 and has allowed only 18 runs in 11 starts (74-1/3 IP). Matt Cain gets the call for San Francisco, he's allowed 46 runs, the third-most in the NL (behind Wily Peralta and Edwin Jackson). I never thought I'd type that sentence. Oddly, today's winning knuckleballer and 2012 NL Cy Young Award winner has allowed 47 runs this season. It's an upside-down world, my friends.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
Giants Finally Tame A's
It was looking a little scary for a while, contemplating a sweep at the hands of the Oaklanders, but the lads put together a big rally and pulled off the win. Props to Barry Zito for a fine start (Game Score 61), something that's been missing for much of the month. Hey, Timmy, how about you follow BZ around and see how he does it? After all, he was on top of the world at one point, and rock bottom not much later. Sound familiar? And he is the same guy with the same tools (only older) and now, somehow, he can be an effective pitcher, a stopper, and a big-game winner. If Barry can rediscover his mojo, so can you.
I don't mean to pick on Tim Lincecum. I will always love the guy, he will always be in the pantheon of all-time Giants greats. But he is NOT a lost cause. Zeets is living proof of that. But as much as I'd like to see The Freak be in orange and black next year and beyond, unless he delivers the goods he will hit the road in search of a "fresh start." The bullpen thing was great in the post-season, but I'm not sure it works over the long grind of June, July, August, and September. Tim needs to chew up innings and string together some starts. In fact, they all do. Matt Cain has not been up to snuff so far this season, and when you throw a hundred million bucks at a guy, you expect better. But I'm not worried about Cain, he is Mr. Consistency. He will "regress to his mean" and start pitching more like the Matt Cain we know and love. Madison Bumgarner has mostly been himself, with a few horrid outings, but I'm not worried about MadBum either. He's good. He's very good. He will deliver down the stretch. Obviously those two will have to carry the load for the other two, and hope those other two can find a groove where they can be positive contributors. As far as a fifth starter goes, I don't see the Giants doing anything rash anytime soon. They will stick with duct tape and band-aids until Ryan Vogelsong comes back. Now Vogie was absolutely terrible in his nine starts, but I think he will find his form again. Here's another guy who hit rock bottom and then became a champion. I like that sort of mental makeup in a player--it gives me confidence that they can "turn it around."
Let's look at some numbers. First, the good: the Giants are fourth in the NL in runs scored (243), and first in OPS+ (112). They are tied for first in wRC+ (104) and are fifth in wOBA (.318). They don't hit a lot of homers (42, 12th), but they do hit a lot of doubles (101, 3rd). Doubles were a big part of the offense today. They are only 8th in walks (155), but they are tied for first in sacrifices (46). The offense has been carrying the load. This is not the San Francisco Giants we are used to watching, although we should remember that this was the best-hitting road club in all of baseball in the second half of 2012. Now for the bad, and brace yourselves: the Giants have allowed the second most runs in the NL (245) and rank last in ERA+ (82). They are 10th in FIP (3.95) but only 8th in xFIP (also 3.95). If you use FIP- (FanGraphs version, roughly, of ERA+, but flipped over so below 100 is good and over is bad), the Giants are third from the bottom (107), topping only the Brewers and Padres. Here's a simpler look: San Francisco pitchers lead the NL in walks (185!!) and have allowed the fifth-most homers (53). Obviously that has to change if the Giants expect to stay in the hunt.
Today was Game 54, and that's the first third of the season. Three innings are in the books. Here's what they've done:
1st inning: 11-7
2nd inning: 10-8
3rd inning: 8-10
That's 29-25, .537, 1-1/2 games back. I did not talk about the terrible fielding we've seen so far, mostly because we saw it last season, too, then it turned around and they caught just about everything in the second half. I'd like to see more quality starts going forward. I think we all would, and we know that's the backbone of this team and their two championships.
Keep the faith, me buckos. Lots of baseball left.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
I don't mean to pick on Tim Lincecum. I will always love the guy, he will always be in the pantheon of all-time Giants greats. But he is NOT a lost cause. Zeets is living proof of that. But as much as I'd like to see The Freak be in orange and black next year and beyond, unless he delivers the goods he will hit the road in search of a "fresh start." The bullpen thing was great in the post-season, but I'm not sure it works over the long grind of June, July, August, and September. Tim needs to chew up innings and string together some starts. In fact, they all do. Matt Cain has not been up to snuff so far this season, and when you throw a hundred million bucks at a guy, you expect better. But I'm not worried about Cain, he is Mr. Consistency. He will "regress to his mean" and start pitching more like the Matt Cain we know and love. Madison Bumgarner has mostly been himself, with a few horrid outings, but I'm not worried about MadBum either. He's good. He's very good. He will deliver down the stretch. Obviously those two will have to carry the load for the other two, and hope those other two can find a groove where they can be positive contributors. As far as a fifth starter goes, I don't see the Giants doing anything rash anytime soon. They will stick with duct tape and band-aids until Ryan Vogelsong comes back. Now Vogie was absolutely terrible in his nine starts, but I think he will find his form again. Here's another guy who hit rock bottom and then became a champion. I like that sort of mental makeup in a player--it gives me confidence that they can "turn it around."
Let's look at some numbers. First, the good: the Giants are fourth in the NL in runs scored (243), and first in OPS+ (112). They are tied for first in wRC+ (104) and are fifth in wOBA (.318). They don't hit a lot of homers (42, 12th), but they do hit a lot of doubles (101, 3rd). Doubles were a big part of the offense today. They are only 8th in walks (155), but they are tied for first in sacrifices (46). The offense has been carrying the load. This is not the San Francisco Giants we are used to watching, although we should remember that this was the best-hitting road club in all of baseball in the second half of 2012. Now for the bad, and brace yourselves: the Giants have allowed the second most runs in the NL (245) and rank last in ERA+ (82). They are 10th in FIP (3.95) but only 8th in xFIP (also 3.95). If you use FIP- (FanGraphs version, roughly, of ERA+, but flipped over so below 100 is good and over is bad), the Giants are third from the bottom (107), topping only the Brewers and Padres. Here's a simpler look: San Francisco pitchers lead the NL in walks (185!!) and have allowed the fifth-most homers (53). Obviously that has to change if the Giants expect to stay in the hunt.
Today was Game 54, and that's the first third of the season. Three innings are in the books. Here's what they've done:
1st inning: 11-7
2nd inning: 10-8
3rd inning: 8-10
That's 29-25, .537, 1-1/2 games back. I did not talk about the terrible fielding we've seen so far, mostly because we saw it last season, too, then it turned around and they caught just about everything in the second half. I'd like to see more quality starts going forward. I think we all would, and we know that's the backbone of this team and their two championships.
Keep the faith, me buckos. Lots of baseball left.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Saturday, May 25, 2013
Angelic Ending
Angel Pagan's inside-the-park walk-off home run with Brandon Crawford on second base rescued the Giants from a frustrating afternoon and squared up the series with the Rockies. Home plate umpire Alfonso Marquez made two bad calls that went against the home team: one cost them a run scored and the other wiped out a likely scoring chance. Ol' Boch took one for the team and got booted after angrily re-hashing the two mistakes with the Man in Blue. He missed being on the field for the crazy ending, and if history is any guide, he won't get another opportunity. New York Giants Hall of Famer Bill Terry was the last orange-and-blacker to do what Angel did today, and that was 82 years ago!
Starter Barry Zito got banged around a bit and the Giants were down 4-0 after four, but they strung together a rally in the 6th to get within one. When Buster Posey scored on an Andres Torres double in the 7th it looked like another great come-from-behind victory chance. Alas, closer Sergio Romo coughed up a massive homer to purple nemesis Troy Tulowitzki and the lads seemed done for. But this is a resilient club. Those shoulder patches mean something, and it is "you'll only get that trophy from our cold, dead fingers." We've seen these guys bounce back many times already here in the early part of the season, and each time the drama knob is turned up another notch. I wonder if it will go to eleven!
There's been a lot of call lately for more use of replay in baseball, and it is getting harder to lay out a valid case for sticking with the current system. One thing that seems obvious is to get the umps to talk to each other and find out if another guy had a better look at a play. When Marco Scutaro was called out on the phantom tag, it seemed like the second base umpire had a much better angle even though he was further away. The crew chief could have saved everyone some grief by ordering the group to "huddle up" and talk about the call before giving a final ruling. That change alone, which involves no replay at all, could fix a few broken circumstances. In the end, it is ridiculous that any clown on the street with MLB TV on their iPhone can see a blown call but the guys on the field cannot. Imagine if the crew chief had a radio and could ask an extra official (I think Seligula can afford it) who is in a booth with all the video feeds if a there is a clear look that could overturn the on-field call. It would not take a lot of time if the mandate was for a "clear look" that requires a call to be changed. In other words, assume the guy on the field is right unless the camera shows without a doubt he was wrong. Managers could ask the crew chief for the review on, say, plays at the plate, or some other limited set, that way there would not be too much delay from gamesmanship. You don't want every goddamn close call at first to be scrutinized, that would be torture. But it seems clear that something has to be done to reduce the frequency of blown calls. If changes do come, they need to be integrated into the flow of the game so that baseball avoids the clumsiness of the system currently used in the NFL, for example, which is an awkward, time-wasting exercise that tries the fans' patience.
But enough of that. The Giants won the game, and they won in pulse-pounding fashion. Tim Flannery ('It fly, men ran') is hard-wired to windmill that left arm, I wonder if he knows what the "stop" sign is. Vida Blue on the post-game show said he thought the Giants caught a break that Tulo was not the relay man (it was DJ LeMahieu), and the big shortstop might have made a killer throw to get Pagan. But it didn't happen that way, and we all get to enjoy another remarkable win by the good guys.
Matt Cain goes tomorrow since they are skipping Ryan Vogelsong's spot. There's a good chance I'll miss the action but I will have a report for you nonetheless, so keep your dial set to RMC.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Starter Barry Zito got banged around a bit and the Giants were down 4-0 after four, but they strung together a rally in the 6th to get within one. When Buster Posey scored on an Andres Torres double in the 7th it looked like another great come-from-behind victory chance. Alas, closer Sergio Romo coughed up a massive homer to purple nemesis Troy Tulowitzki and the lads seemed done for. But this is a resilient club. Those shoulder patches mean something, and it is "you'll only get that trophy from our cold, dead fingers." We've seen these guys bounce back many times already here in the early part of the season, and each time the drama knob is turned up another notch. I wonder if it will go to eleven!
There's been a lot of call lately for more use of replay in baseball, and it is getting harder to lay out a valid case for sticking with the current system. One thing that seems obvious is to get the umps to talk to each other and find out if another guy had a better look at a play. When Marco Scutaro was called out on the phantom tag, it seemed like the second base umpire had a much better angle even though he was further away. The crew chief could have saved everyone some grief by ordering the group to "huddle up" and talk about the call before giving a final ruling. That change alone, which involves no replay at all, could fix a few broken circumstances. In the end, it is ridiculous that any clown on the street with MLB TV on their iPhone can see a blown call but the guys on the field cannot. Imagine if the crew chief had a radio and could ask an extra official (I think Seligula can afford it) who is in a booth with all the video feeds if a there is a clear look that could overturn the on-field call. It would not take a lot of time if the mandate was for a "clear look" that requires a call to be changed. In other words, assume the guy on the field is right unless the camera shows without a doubt he was wrong. Managers could ask the crew chief for the review on, say, plays at the plate, or some other limited set, that way there would not be too much delay from gamesmanship. You don't want every goddamn close call at first to be scrutinized, that would be torture. But it seems clear that something has to be done to reduce the frequency of blown calls. If changes do come, they need to be integrated into the flow of the game so that baseball avoids the clumsiness of the system currently used in the NFL, for example, which is an awkward, time-wasting exercise that tries the fans' patience.
But enough of that. The Giants won the game, and they won in pulse-pounding fashion. Tim Flannery ('It fly, men ran') is hard-wired to windmill that left arm, I wonder if he knows what the "stop" sign is. Vida Blue on the post-game show said he thought the Giants caught a break that Tulo was not the relay man (it was DJ LeMahieu), and the big shortstop might have made a killer throw to get Pagan. But it didn't happen that way, and we all get to enjoy another remarkable win by the good guys.
Matt Cain goes tomorrow since they are skipping Ryan Vogelsong's spot. There's a good chance I'll miss the action but I will have a report for you nonetheless, so keep your dial set to RMC.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Sunday, May 19, 2013
Feeble Giants Get Skunked in Denver
I'm not going to recap the game. You can do that here. Suffice to say Barry Zito gave the lads a fair chance in the first few frames, but they could get nothing going against Juan Nicasio. Alas, it all fell apart and the Colorado Rockies won their third in a row against the slumping Giants. What does one do on days like this when the team plays like puke? Why bar-be-cue a fabulous roast! Local beef, grass-fed, organic, it's mouth-wateringly good, me buckos, and I slow-roasted it, sitting on the patio in the soft spring sun, and listening to the soothing tones of Flemm and Miller as they put as positive a spin on the down-spiral as they could. You, Gee, 'ell, Why, they ain't got no alibi, this team is u-ug-LEE right now. Seriously. I mean ugly, man, really ugly. But a momma still loves an ugly baby, don't she? And tells everyone it's the cutest goddamn critter she ever seen, ain't it so, lads? Why, 'course it is, otherwise parents would have killed off their offspring the first chance they got, wouldn't they? And all of us ugly muthafuckahs wouldn't have made it past our first birthdays, now would we? So take some comfort in that, eh? I mean, we are here, they are there, and the darkest hours are just before daylight, you know what I'm saying?
The mighty Washington Nationals, fresh off a 13-4 thumping at the hands of the San Diego Padres, bring their 23-21 record and -17 run differential to AT&T Park tomorrow. It's at home, fer chrissakes, so I like the Giants chances.
GO GIANTS!
Goddammit.
--M.C.
The mighty Washington Nationals, fresh off a 13-4 thumping at the hands of the San Diego Padres, bring their 23-21 record and -17 run differential to AT&T Park tomorrow. It's at home, fer chrissakes, so I like the Giants chances.
GO GIANTS!
Goddammit.
--M.C.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
The Vortex of Suckitude
Toronto is in Canada, and Canada is, like, weird. Case in point:
All that green stuff? That's bad. They have green stuff in Toronto, but it's not grass. Canada is weird.
The Giants are normally a stalwart defensive club. "They catch everything" I always say. Good thing no one listens to what I always say. The blow-by-blow does not explain the Hunter Punce hee-yuk overthrow that failed to keep a double play possibility in order. It does not explain Nick Noonan and his concrete galoshes. Or his failure to turn the double play when one was in order. The whole mess, I'm trying to say, was not just Barry Zito's doing. I mean, two errors are actually listed up there, but that's not the half of it. The entire outfield and three-fourths of the infield looked bad at one time or another tonight. In Canada.
It must have been the Vortex of Suckitude. Good thing they pass over after a while. The team's titanium necklaces don't work inside one of those. R.A. Dickey, apparently, can conjure up the Vortex when he needs it. And Melky Cabrera, don't forget about him. He can, too. Ryan Vogelsong has his work cut out for him tomorrow. Maybe Brandon Belt will keep hitting, and Pablo Sandoval, too. After all, six runs is usually plenty.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
click to enlarge
All that green stuff? That's bad. They have green stuff in Toronto, but it's not grass. Canada is weird.
The Giants are normally a stalwart defensive club. "They catch everything" I always say. Good thing no one listens to what I always say. The blow-by-blow does not explain the Hunter Punce hee-yuk overthrow that failed to keep a double play possibility in order. It does not explain Nick Noonan and his concrete galoshes. Or his failure to turn the double play when one was in order. The whole mess, I'm trying to say, was not just Barry Zito's doing. I mean, two errors are actually listed up there, but that's not the half of it. The entire outfield and three-fourths of the infield looked bad at one time or another tonight. In Canada.
It must have been the Vortex of Suckitude. Good thing they pass over after a while. The team's titanium necklaces don't work inside one of those. R.A. Dickey, apparently, can conjure up the Vortex when he needs it. And Melky Cabrera, don't forget about him. He can, too. Ryan Vogelsong has his work cut out for him tomorrow. Maybe Brandon Belt will keep hitting, and Pablo Sandoval, too. After all, six runs is usually plenty.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
"The Trouble" Is Not With the Starters
At least not today. The Giants avoided a sweep with a 10th inning score today after a strong 7 innings from today's starter, Barry Zito. Zito's line: 7 innings, 4 hits, 1 run on a home run, 101 pitches. That home run was by a guy who used to be a Giant, Kevin Frandsen. However, the Giants got a home run from a guy who used to be a Phillie, Hunter Pence.
The Giants were up 3-1 going into the 9th after a scoreless 8th from Santiago Casilla and Jeremy Affeldt. Sergio Romo blew a save opportunity in the 9th, and that is not good. Jimmy Rollins doubled, then went to third on a pop out to right. Michael Young walked. Utley singled for an rbi and then the other Young, Delmon, sacrificed him home. Javier Lopez shut down the Phils in the 10th. Then, with Antonio Bastardo on the mound, Buster Posey, hitting for Brandon Belt, singled. Joaquin Arias bunted him to second, and then he went to third on a wild pitch. Crawford walked, Quiroz struck out, and then Andres Torres singled for the gwrbi. Zito picked up another rbi himself, and Scutaro had three hits.
So, life looks better with a Giant victory. Tim was not good, and Madison not up to snuff, but then again, we got an excellent performance from Matt and Barry. Vogey up next, and that will be against the tough Atlantans.
The Giants were up 3-1 going into the 9th after a scoreless 8th from Santiago Casilla and Jeremy Affeldt. Sergio Romo blew a save opportunity in the 9th, and that is not good. Jimmy Rollins doubled, then went to third on a pop out to right. Michael Young walked. Utley singled for an rbi and then the other Young, Delmon, sacrificed him home. Javier Lopez shut down the Phils in the 10th. Then, with Antonio Bastardo on the mound, Buster Posey, hitting for Brandon Belt, singled. Joaquin Arias bunted him to second, and then he went to third on a wild pitch. Crawford walked, Quiroz struck out, and then Andres Torres singled for the gwrbi. Zito picked up another rbi himself, and Scutaro had three hits.
So, life looks better with a Giant victory. Tim was not good, and Madison not up to snuff, but then again, we got an excellent performance from Matt and Barry. Vogey up next, and that will be against the tough Atlantans.
BZ & VSC
Barry Zito pitched another great game today. The magic carpet ride continues for the Beezian One. My mom thinks No. 75's resurgence is due to his getting married. She's a big fan of marriage. She likes to see guys "settle down" and is convinced that Mrs. Zito is at least partly responsible for her husband's recent run of on-field success. Hey, I'll buy it. It's at least as good as my explanation: Veteran Savvy Clutchness. Barry Zito is now old enough to be gritty. And he takes the same tools he's always had and adds more moxie to them. That's enough to make him better. Grit + Moxie = Veteran Savvy Clutchness. Zito's pitching will never move the dials on any sabermetric indicators, mostly because he doesn't strike out a lot of hitters and he pitches in a friendly park. He's the same guy, he just seems a lot better. We shouldn't be surprised--baseball games are played by people, and when said people are happier and healthier they most likely will play better. Now add experience and maturity and you have a formula for an athlete to make the best use of his tools. And with a nod to the saberistas, you have to account for luck. What I mean is random variation. You know, streaks and good breaks and all that. Sometimes you just have to ride the hot hand and not question it, I suppose. Keep it rolling, Barry.
Sergio Romo doesn't blow many saves, so it's hard to get too upset. He's been close to automatic. I was impressed by Buster Posey snagging third base in the bottom of the 10th on that pitch Carlos Ruiz couldn't quite handle. Ballsy move, man, imagine if they'd nailed him. The Giants would probably still be playing and it would be the 22nd inning. It was nice to see Andres Torres contribute as well. One thing the Giants like to do is swing the bat, and he swung at the first pitch to get the walk-off win.
The Atlanta Braves (20-13, first place NL East) come to town for three starting tomorrow.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Sergio Romo doesn't blow many saves, so it's hard to get too upset. He's been close to automatic. I was impressed by Buster Posey snagging third base in the bottom of the 10th on that pitch Carlos Ruiz couldn't quite handle. Ballsy move, man, imagine if they'd nailed him. The Giants would probably still be playing and it would be the 22nd inning. It was nice to see Andres Torres contribute as well. One thing the Giants like to do is swing the bat, and he swung at the first pitch to get the walk-off win.
The Atlanta Braves (20-13, first place NL East) come to town for three starting tomorrow.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
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