The Giants thumped the Nationals tonight 10-3, scoring six runs in the final two frames to turn a taut 4-2 pennant race contest into a rout. Rookie Joe Panik launched his first big-league homer in the 3rd with two on to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 3-1 lead. Young Joe made an error in the 1st that led to the Nats first run but finished with four hits. It was an impressive display by the visiting squad with 14 hits including two homers (Buster had the other) and two doubles (Posey and Travis Ishikawa). Eight different guys got hits and seven different guys scored runs. Here's what I liked: LF Mike Morse had a hit and a run scored, his late-game replacement Gregor Blanco did as well, and he also made a nice grab in the field. That's how it is supposed to work, right?
Tim Hudson was grit and VSC personified, but the patient Washington lineup eventually chased him in the 6th. Javier Lopez was the vanguard of a Giants relief triumvirate with Jean Machi and Sergio Romo that nailed down the next eight outs in nine batters. Juan Gutierrez made a bit of a mess of the 9th, but with an eight-run lead it hardly mattered. Final line for the 'pen: 3-2/3, 2H, 1R, 2BB, 5K.
Big win against a tough team. Tim Lincecum gets the ball tomorrow.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Showing posts with label Macho Machi. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Macho Machi. Show all posts
Friday, August 22, 2014
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Third Inning: 12-6
The Giants stand atop the baseball world at 35-19 after a thrilling victory in St. Louis. Here's the tally for the first third of the season:
First inning, 10-8,
Second inning, 13-5,
Third inning, 12-6.
The Giants .648 percentage projects to 105 wins! Foolish thought, I know, but I couldn't help myself. My goodness, the ballclub is playing well. Michael Morse delivered another huge game this evening--his opposite field double off flame-throwing Trevor Rosenthal in the 8th was equally as impressive as his moon shot in the 2nd off starter Jamie Garcia. The Giants put up six and needed them all as Ryan Vogelsong allowed four and closer Sergio Romo allowed another. I like how the team scored with both big flies and lowly singles and tossed in a stolen base as well. Lots of arrows in the quiver, I say! Vogie had a couple of rocky stretches but still recorded 19 outs against a tough lineup and kept the game close. Strong relief from Javier Lopez and the unstoppable force that is Jean Machi kept the lid on until the 9th. Romo scared the crap out of everyone with an ugly, 25-pitch torture-fest but managed to nail down the save. I have not "worried" about a single Giants player so far this season. I knew Panda would come out of his funk. He now has an RBI in nine straight games. I know Buster will bust loose. Matt Cain will be Matt Cain again. Slumps, bad luck, injuries, they all happen to everyone. But I will admit to some worry about Sergio--that was a dangerous tightrope act he put on tonight.
The Giants rank 14th among 30 teams with a .313 wOBA and 9th with a 100 wRC+ (FanGraphs). They rank 13th with a .716 OPS but 8th with a 105 OPS+ (B-R). The Giants are 6th in both FIP (3.48) and ERA+ (110), and 3rd in ERA (3.03). The team has scored 232 runs and allowed 184--that run difference (+48) is the best in the NL and second only to Oakland's ridiculous +100.
The first third of the 2014 season belongs to San Francisco. They have shown they can pitch, hit, field, and run. They've survived some crucial injuries and some key players have yet to deliver as expected. If they can stay healthy and get some guys back on track (like Cain) they could sustain their excellent play into the summer. It's weird to have the team be so hot early in the year. In 2012 their best months were June, August and September, and in 2010 they were April, July and September. This is a different club, though, and there are many paths to the Promised Land. Let's hope the lads can find theirs.
Three more games with the defending NL champs. Madison Bumgarner tomorrow.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
First inning, 10-8,
Second inning, 13-5,
Third inning, 12-6.
The Giants .648 percentage projects to 105 wins! Foolish thought, I know, but I couldn't help myself. My goodness, the ballclub is playing well. Michael Morse delivered another huge game this evening--his opposite field double off flame-throwing Trevor Rosenthal in the 8th was equally as impressive as his moon shot in the 2nd off starter Jamie Garcia. The Giants put up six and needed them all as Ryan Vogelsong allowed four and closer Sergio Romo allowed another. I like how the team scored with both big flies and lowly singles and tossed in a stolen base as well. Lots of arrows in the quiver, I say! Vogie had a couple of rocky stretches but still recorded 19 outs against a tough lineup and kept the game close. Strong relief from Javier Lopez and the unstoppable force that is Jean Machi kept the lid on until the 9th. Romo scared the crap out of everyone with an ugly, 25-pitch torture-fest but managed to nail down the save. I have not "worried" about a single Giants player so far this season. I knew Panda would come out of his funk. He now has an RBI in nine straight games. I know Buster will bust loose. Matt Cain will be Matt Cain again. Slumps, bad luck, injuries, they all happen to everyone. But I will admit to some worry about Sergio--that was a dangerous tightrope act he put on tonight.
The Giants rank 14th among 30 teams with a .313 wOBA and 9th with a 100 wRC+ (FanGraphs). They rank 13th with a .716 OPS but 8th with a 105 OPS+ (B-R). The Giants are 6th in both FIP (3.48) and ERA+ (110), and 3rd in ERA (3.03). The team has scored 232 runs and allowed 184--that run difference (+48) is the best in the NL and second only to Oakland's ridiculous +100.
The first third of the 2014 season belongs to San Francisco. They have shown they can pitch, hit, field, and run. They've survived some crucial injuries and some key players have yet to deliver as expected. If they can stay healthy and get some guys back on track (like Cain) they could sustain their excellent play into the summer. It's weird to have the team be so hot early in the year. In 2012 their best months were June, August and September, and in 2010 they were April, July and September. This is a different club, though, and there are many paths to the Promised Land. Let's hope the lads can find theirs.
Three more games with the defending NL champs. Madison Bumgarner tomorrow.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Giants fail to hit home runs, win anyway
Two weeks ago the Giants gave up 10 runs to the Colorado Rockies and yet won the game in 11 innings by a score of 12-10. Jean Machi was the winning pitcher. Matt Cain started. Last night the Giants gave up 10 runs to the Pittsburgh Pirates and won in 13 innings by a score of 11-10. Jean Machi was the winning pitcher. Matt "The Knife" Cain was supposed to start but was DL'd beforehand. In between those two contests in extras the Giants went 8-1 and allowed only 16 runs (6 in the one loss), sweeping two teams and taking two of three from the other. The Giants were 6-2 after their Home Opener and I remember thinking I liked a fast start. I mean, your team can have a crappy start and still have a great season, after all it takes six months and 162 games (and sometimes 163) to settle everything. But given the choice between a good start and a bad one I'll take the good one. Wins are wins and the team with the most, wins. Right? Giants are 15-9 since their 6-2 start.
Tim Hudson tonight.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Tim Hudson tonight.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
Saturday, May 3, 2014
Same formula, same result
The Giants win another close contest against the Braves behind a strong start--this time from Ryan Vogelsong--and solo home runs. Michael Morse hit his second in two nights, this one a soaring fly ball to left-center, and both Buster Posey and Brandon Belt chipped in one apiece. The Giants had only four hits total (two by Buster) but they were the right kind of hits, and the bullpen kept the lid on to seal the victory. The Braves young pitcher, Julio Teheran, was impressive, but got burned by the long ball and lack of run support. I wonder what they call "Caining" in Atlanta.
Tim Lincecum worked hard last night, giving up six hits and three walks and needed 93 pitches to get 18 outs. Ryan Vogeslong gave up five hits and four walks in the same span, and needed 107 pitches to get the job done, and like Timmy only allowed one run. He labored, too, working a lot of long counts, but seemed to get stronger as the game went on and he picked up some big late strikeouts to shut down the Braves. The "tail end" of the Giants rotation has back-to-back quality outings and the team has taken advantage and picked up two big wins. Despite an error, Brandon Crawford once again made some very fine plays, taking away hits, none more impressive than the game-ender, a spinning, airborne scoop-and-throw on a grounder up the middle from his counterpart Andrelton Simmons.
Jean Machi threw four pitches in the 8th and got three outs, one coming on a lovely Brandon-to-Brandon-to-Brandon double play. With Sergio Romo being used both nights, and an early contest tomorrow, I imaging Bochy will shuffle the bullpen assignments a bit and go with Santiago Casilla and/or Javier Lopez in any late-and-close situations, neither of them were used tonight. Jeremy Affeldt looked good again but he was also used last night, so I expect Machi will be the first guy in relief if Madison Bumgarner can get things to the 7th inning.
Giants have a chance to sweep a first-place team in their home park. Go, team, go!
--M.C.
Tim Lincecum worked hard last night, giving up six hits and three walks and needed 93 pitches to get 18 outs. Ryan Vogeslong gave up five hits and four walks in the same span, and needed 107 pitches to get the job done, and like Timmy only allowed one run. He labored, too, working a lot of long counts, but seemed to get stronger as the game went on and he picked up some big late strikeouts to shut down the Braves. The "tail end" of the Giants rotation has back-to-back quality outings and the team has taken advantage and picked up two big wins. Despite an error, Brandon Crawford once again made some very fine plays, taking away hits, none more impressive than the game-ender, a spinning, airborne scoop-and-throw on a grounder up the middle from his counterpart Andrelton Simmons.
Jean Machi threw four pitches in the 8th and got three outs, one coming on a lovely Brandon-to-Brandon-to-Brandon double play. With Sergio Romo being used both nights, and an early contest tomorrow, I imaging Bochy will shuffle the bullpen assignments a bit and go with Santiago Casilla and/or Javier Lopez in any late-and-close situations, neither of them were used tonight. Jeremy Affeldt looked good again but he was also used last night, so I expect Machi will be the first guy in relief if Madison Bumgarner can get things to the 7th inning.
Giants have a chance to sweep a first-place team in their home park. Go, team, go!
--M.C.
Wednesday, April 23, 2014
Giants Slug Past Rockies
Matt Cain gave up seven runs in six-plus today and the Giants won the game. That Cain fellow isn't known for his luck--I suppose this is his seasonal allotment. "Not getting a loss" isn't much in the way of luck, but that's baseball. The Giants score 12 runs in their seven previous games, and then score 12 runs today. That's baseball, too.
Balls were flying out of the yard in Coorsian fashion all afternoon. A brace apiece of big, booming bombs from Michael Morse and Hector Sanchez won the day for the Giants. The Giants hit six--one each from Brandon Hicks and Brandon Belt were also part of the barrage. The Rockies hit half as many, Troy Tulowitzki and Charlie Blackmon connecting off Cain, and the last-gasp Justin Morneau bomb in the 11th off Sergio Romo.
Hector Sanchez was the hero. The grand slam that broke the tie and set up the win came on a ten-pitch at-bat. He fought off some tough ones and kept his eye on the prize and finally delivered. He also gave Buster Posey a break--that was a 4-1/2 hour slog today. Greg Papa and the CSN crew were raving about Sanchez' work with Affeldt on the mound in relief of Cain in the 7th, blocking those scuds with a runner on third and preserving the tie. I didn't get to see it, but I'm happy to hear it. No reason to think Hector can't keep improving his game. He's young and still unpolished but he needs to be in the majors and mentored by guys like Bruce Bochy, Buster Posey, and Billy Hayes. He's on a steep learning curve but I like what I see as far as focus and demeanor on field. So, good on you Hector! Way to bounce back.
The Giants get a cathartic win and avoid getting swept. They are off on Thursday and send Tim Hudson out on Friday night when the Cleveland Indians come to San Francisco. I'll put up a review tomorrow of Down to the Last Pitch, Tim Wendel's new book about the 1991 World Series.
--M.C.
p.s. I don't have to call him 'Hanchez' any more, he's the only 'Sanchez' on the 40-man roster! And Jean Machi threw five pitches and got the win, his fourth, which ties him for the league lead.
Balls were flying out of the yard in Coorsian fashion all afternoon. A brace apiece of big, booming bombs from Michael Morse and Hector Sanchez won the day for the Giants. The Giants hit six--one each from Brandon Hicks and Brandon Belt were also part of the barrage. The Rockies hit half as many, Troy Tulowitzki and Charlie Blackmon connecting off Cain, and the last-gasp Justin Morneau bomb in the 11th off Sergio Romo.
Hector Sanchez was the hero. The grand slam that broke the tie and set up the win came on a ten-pitch at-bat. He fought off some tough ones and kept his eye on the prize and finally delivered. He also gave Buster Posey a break--that was a 4-1/2 hour slog today. Greg Papa and the CSN crew were raving about Sanchez' work with Affeldt on the mound in relief of Cain in the 7th, blocking those scuds with a runner on third and preserving the tie. I didn't get to see it, but I'm happy to hear it. No reason to think Hector can't keep improving his game. He's young and still unpolished but he needs to be in the majors and mentored by guys like Bruce Bochy, Buster Posey, and Billy Hayes. He's on a steep learning curve but I like what I see as far as focus and demeanor on field. So, good on you Hector! Way to bounce back.
The Giants get a cathartic win and avoid getting swept. They are off on Thursday and send Tim Hudson out on Friday night when the Cleveland Indians come to San Francisco. I'll put up a review tomorrow of Down to the Last Pitch, Tim Wendel's new book about the 1991 World Series.
--M.C.
p.s. I don't have to call him 'Hanchez' any more, he's the only 'Sanchez' on the 40-man roster! And Jean Machi threw five pitches and got the win, his fourth, which ties him for the league lead.
Monday, March 31, 2014
A Victory In Spite of Themselves
I was all set to write a glowing review of Madison Bumgarner's opening day start, but there was little glowing about it. In fact, I was rather depressed part way through the game, asking myself - how can these guys be so unready to play?
Madison did not look sharp. He walked batters in the first and second innings, and threw 40 pitches between the two. The Giants, meanwhile, were letting Brandon McCarthy set them down with ease. In the third, Brandon Crawford broke the drought with the Giants' first hit, and then scored the first run on Angel Pagan's rbi double. Madison looked a little better in the third, but the Giants conspired to lose this thing in the fourth. Belt error, Sandoval error and a single to load the bases. Another single scored two. Then a couple of outs before Aaron Hill doubled home two more runs to make it 4 - 1 Arizona. In all of that, no earned runs were charged to Madison Bumgarner although he was now up to 78 pitches.
In the fifth, the Giants were able to chip away. Michael Morse walked and Brandon Crawford's second hit of the game, a good looking double, sent him to third. Morse scored on a Gregor Blanco ground out, batting for Madison at the bottom of the order. Arizona tacked on two more in the bottom of the fifth, to make it 6 - 2, again on Giants lack of defense, this time off of Yusiermo Petit. Then in the sixth, Brandon Belt, up to now useless in two at bats, crushed one into the right field stands with no runners on to make it 6 - 3, but of course the snakes' Goldschmidt and Trumbo combined for a run to make it 7 - 4. The snakes appear to have some pretty good hitters with those two and Montero. This was the point at which I was not having fun. Mike Krukow later remarked that the Giants should have been charged with six errors, and that didn't include the mental ones.
But they must believe in themselves, or something like that. They got really a whole bunch of hits, mostly with two outs, and including some flukey ones in the seventh to score 4 and tie the game at 7. Hits from Morse, Adrianza in an impressive at bat, Pagan, Belt, Sandoval and a walk issued by Brad Ziegler to Hunter Pence.
How about some late drama? In the ninth, the snakes' new closer, Addison Reed, induced Pagan to fly out. Belt singled, but Sandoval K'ed on a slider inside. Buster the man was having no losses today, however and hit a very big fly into the left field bleachers (actually, it looked to hit the scoreboard hanging from the upper deck in left in that oddly-configured park. The Giants up 9 - 7, even though Sergio Romo gave up a home run to start the season with a save and a horrendous 9.00 era. Machi got the win, and he looked great with a fork ball or split or both. Sometimes, I guess you get lucky. Sloppy, but a win is a win, and I have to say that the offense seems like they have confidence, or savvy or something. They kept scrapping and it paid off. Go get 'em, Matt.
Madison did not look sharp. He walked batters in the first and second innings, and threw 40 pitches between the two. The Giants, meanwhile, were letting Brandon McCarthy set them down with ease. In the third, Brandon Crawford broke the drought with the Giants' first hit, and then scored the first run on Angel Pagan's rbi double. Madison looked a little better in the third, but the Giants conspired to lose this thing in the fourth. Belt error, Sandoval error and a single to load the bases. Another single scored two. Then a couple of outs before Aaron Hill doubled home two more runs to make it 4 - 1 Arizona. In all of that, no earned runs were charged to Madison Bumgarner although he was now up to 78 pitches.
In the fifth, the Giants were able to chip away. Michael Morse walked and Brandon Crawford's second hit of the game, a good looking double, sent him to third. Morse scored on a Gregor Blanco ground out, batting for Madison at the bottom of the order. Arizona tacked on two more in the bottom of the fifth, to make it 6 - 2, again on Giants lack of defense, this time off of Yusiermo Petit. Then in the sixth, Brandon Belt, up to now useless in two at bats, crushed one into the right field stands with no runners on to make it 6 - 3, but of course the snakes' Goldschmidt and Trumbo combined for a run to make it 7 - 4. The snakes appear to have some pretty good hitters with those two and Montero. This was the point at which I was not having fun. Mike Krukow later remarked that the Giants should have been charged with six errors, and that didn't include the mental ones.
But they must believe in themselves, or something like that. They got really a whole bunch of hits, mostly with two outs, and including some flukey ones in the seventh to score 4 and tie the game at 7. Hits from Morse, Adrianza in an impressive at bat, Pagan, Belt, Sandoval and a walk issued by Brad Ziegler to Hunter Pence.
How about some late drama? In the ninth, the snakes' new closer, Addison Reed, induced Pagan to fly out. Belt singled, but Sandoval K'ed on a slider inside. Buster the man was having no losses today, however and hit a very big fly into the left field bleachers (actually, it looked to hit the scoreboard hanging from the upper deck in left in that oddly-configured park. The Giants up 9 - 7, even though Sergio Romo gave up a home run to start the season with a save and a horrendous 9.00 era. Machi got the win, and he looked great with a fork ball or split or both. Sometimes, I guess you get lucky. Sloppy, but a win is a win, and I have to say that the offense seems like they have confidence, or savvy or something. They kept scrapping and it paid off. Go get 'em, Matt.
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