Jeff Samardzija pitched a great game and also smacked a couple of run-scoring hits to lead the team to a much-needed win. Who knew The Shark would be The Stopper? Madison Bumgarner and Johnny Cueto both gave valiant, stopperesque efforts, but neither of them tallied three RBI, and neither enjoyed a 14-hit attack. Everyone but Matt Duffy had a hit, but in true team-first fashion it was the third baseman's 1st inning sac fly that plated the Giants first run.
Tonight's win over the Marlins was Game 18 and thus the end of the First Seasonal Inning. 18 x 9 = 162 so every 18 games is 1/9th of the season, a perfect time to look back on the state of the team. And the state of the team is OK. Really. Losing streaks fill a fan with an irrational terror that their team will never win again. Reasonable people know this to be unlikely, but fans are not reasonable. Fan is short for fanatic, from the Latin fanaticus or divinely inspired, that itself from fanum, temple. The ballpark is our church; we are its adherents. Cultists can be forgiven for losing all reason in the midst of losing streaks.
Alas, we are still here, and thus still possessing our rational faculties. Isn't it wonderful what a win can do? Believing myself to be among the rational, I present to you the history of the First Seasonal Inning since the Giants moved to PhoneCo Park. In case you've forgotten, Pacific Bell Park opened for the 2000 season and the Giants went 7-11 in their First Inning. For the rest, make of it what you will:
The visitors throw Jose Fernandez tomorrow, the home squad counters with Jeff Peavy.
GO GIANTS!
--M.C.
7 comments:
I really like the inning division of the season that you use. Much better than the usual monthly one people often use. It is interesting how little variation there is, that 15-3 inning must have been something, how come I'm pulling a blank? Barry times.
Anyway, Jeff S is a total jock. I guess that should have been clear back when I was watching him be an All American tight end. Dude can hit! Dude can pitch! I think I really like this dude.
Why couldn't this have been the game I attended? I would have loved to see Barry and cheer for him.
15-3 was the year after they lost the Series. First place all season. Best record. Lost to Florida in the first round. Edgardo Alfonzo and etc. Marlins beat the Yankees behind Josh Beckett at the end.
Average First Inning record: 9.8-8.2
I like that we improved on last season.
Anyway, time for the team to win some home games!
I do not consider myself to be among the rational. However, I do believe that to win the NL West, you have to beat the other teams in the NL West. Thus far, we are 4 - 3 against the smogsuckers, 1 - 2 against the roxies, and 0 - 4 against the snakes (note: I don't think you could get a real snake to bite a baseball). Got to do better than that.
Colorado and Arizona are both determined to "make their mark" on a West everyone thinks is a two-team race between SF and LA. I expect it to be a fight the whole way. I also think the small sample so far is a bit flukish, that the Giants will matchup fine and will win their share down the road.
Arizona has some genuinely good players, enough to make them a contender if things can break right for them. Colorado does too, although the team has more prominent flaws. Still, I am beginning to suspect the Roxies may be better than the pre-season consensus believed them to be. They beat Arizona, us and Chicago 2 games to 1. That said, they are 1 - 2 against San Diego and Cincinnati.
Post a Comment