SF 5 PIT 3
The Giants complete another sweep, this one on the road, and notch their sixth straight win. A two-run homer in the 8th by Brandon Belt was the difference, but a three-run 7th was the key to the comeback victory. Hunter Pence, not known for his patience, walked to start the rally and Buster Posey followed with a double. Belt's single plated a run, as did Brandon Crawford's, and pinch-hitter Kelby Tomlinson's sacrifice fly finished it. The Giants are suddenly looking like a real team. Jeff Samardzija gave up a two-run homer in his six innings but he also struck out five and walked, you guessed it, none. Another strong outing by the big righty; the team is now 7-10 in his starts. The only blip for the relief crew was Steven Okert giving up a solo homer to make a 5-2 game 5-3, but Cory Gearrin had already delivered a stalwart 1-2/3 and Sam Dyson's 1-2-3 9th (comebacker-comebacker-whiff) was outstanding.
I'm happy the team finally looks good. We knew they could play like this but it's been a rare sighting since last season's ASB. They get these spurts of superior baseball but can't sustain it. Maybe that will change. Did you see that Christian Arroyo got hit by a pitch and broke his hand? Bummer. Looks like next year for The Kid.
--M.C.
6 comments:
The way Hwang and Slater are playing, Arroyo would be at best a September call-up anyway. The chatter has been about not only trading Cueto, but Nunez, and then maybe signing either or both next year. But if Hwang and Slater and Jones continue to look solid, then that suggests that at least 3rd and left are much less of a concern than they were earlier in the year. Slater made a couple of great catches yesterday and today. He looks like he can play some defense.
Flemm was raving about the defense throughout the game. Good fielding has been a team strength, let's get back to that.
UNSOLICITED RANT:
I am so f-ing SICK of these now seemingly perpetual 'special uniforms' that every Team is forced to wear. When I see a Giants' Game (in person or on TV), I want to see Giants' Players in Giants' Uniforms, not some circus-like dopey deal, where everyone wears clown socks + hats & uniforms in 'non-standard' colors (& every Team has to wear the same colors - other than grey for road, white for home). There are now special uniforms for about 15 different reasons - AND THEY DRAG IT OUT OVER THE ENTIRETY OF A SERIES OR LONG WEEKEND - the current one appears to have started on Friday & will continue at least through Tuesday - 5 days of clown socks. 'Back in the day', if you have to had Mothers' Day uniforms, at least it was only on Mothers' Day - what do the Friday & Saturday before Mothers' Day have to do with anything? Do they actually sell this shit at the Stadium now? Is that the deal - just more merchandising? Enough already!
Just another reason to listen to the radio instead of watch TV!!
Just a slick, and annoying marketing tool, to sell more baseball souvenirs to the casual fan,or the collector. Baseball is looking to make money around every corner, and blame player salaries. Baseball ownership is no longer a write off for rich owners. It is a monopolistic profit machine.
MLB is a protected monopoly. That's why they have to make nice to Congress every once in a while (like the PED thing). And there are gobs of money to be had. Players actually make less as a percentage of revenues than they did a decade ago. Hard to believe with Greinkesque salaries, but it's true. Like I said, gobs of money. When the TV people discover that fewer and fewer fans will watch entire broadcasts and will rely instead on phone apps, updates, highlights, condensed games, and other ways to consume their favorite team's adventures there may be some pullback. But right now the trough is full and the water is still gushing out of the spigot.
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