tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-79412614883803550052024-03-18T20:39:03.319-07:00Raising Matt CainWe are all GiantsM.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.comBlogger3146125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-68889627035280693612024-03-18T19:43:00.000-07:002024-03-18T19:46:10.130-07:00Giants Sign Blake Snell<p>Like Matt Chapman, the Giants have been linked to Blake Snell for the entire off-season. Like Matt Chapman, it wasn't just talk. <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/03/giants-to-sign-blake-snell.html" target="_blank">Today it became official.</a></b> Snell signs a two-year, $62M deal that pays him $15M for 2024 and a $17M bonus down the road if he takes $30M for 2025. It's a crazy Zaidian thing, I know, but it's just fine by me. The Giants needed to beef up the rotation and they signed the best player they could get. Snell is a wild card: when he's good he's the very best; when he's not, he's ordinary. But the reigning NL Cy Young Awardee joins second-place finisher Logan Webb to make a dandy tandem at the top of the rotation. Does this make us contenders?</p><p>It's all about Snell's health, of course. If he can pitch he's a dominant presence. Like a lot of today's aces (Jacob deGrom comes to mind) he is often unavailable. That's the risk you take. But it's a worthwhile risk in my mind.</p><p>This is the craziest off-season ever, I think. It's a heapin' pile of <b><a href="https://raisingmattcain.blogspot.com/p/rmc-glossary.html" target="_blank">FNGs</a></b>!!</p><p>Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.</p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-39331599097905995052024-03-02T08:36:00.000-08:002024-03-02T08:36:20.372-08:00Hullo, Chap!<p>Matt Chapman has reportedly signed a three-year deal with the Giants. It's $54M with opt-outs. They've been linked to him for the entire off-season but it took until March to get the deal done. He's the first of the 'Boras Four' to break the ice. According to MLBTR the Giants are "<b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/players/blake-snell" target="_blank">still interested</a></b>" in Blake Snell.</p><p>This is exciting news. Chapman immediately improves the team. It's getting crowded on the infield bench, though. They'll have to move someone--I wonder who? Roster Resource is a great place to ponder such questions. <b><a href="https://www.fangraphs.com/roster-resource/depth-charts/giants" target="_blank">Here's the link</a></b>.<br /></p><p>Snell or not, the Giants need another starter.</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-70030221741662301162024-02-26T20:20:00.000-08:002024-02-26T20:20:55.357-08:00BCraw<p>It is always sad to see a beloved player depart. Brandon Crawford, the greatest shortstop in San Francisco Giants history, will be wearing another uniform this season. It is not a surprise. After two injury-plagued, disappointing seasons the 37-year old lost his spot on the depth chart to young Marco Luciano. I can't fault the team for wanting to move on. At some point all ballplayers show their age. This one is hard because Crawford has been such a fun player to watch all these years. He delivered so many great plays with such routine nonchalance that we all got spoiled and expected him to get everything. A hit past BCraw was a real hit! Speaking of hits, he had a heapin' pile of clutch hits. It seemed like he really thrived in the dramatic moments. And of course he was a key man in a bunch of great teams and two World Series championships. Add in the local boy background and the chill vibe, not to mention the luscious locks, and you have yourself an all-time fan favorite. He will be missed. Best of luck, BCraw!<br /></p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-70444906905713367442024-02-25T11:38:00.000-08:002024-02-25T11:38:43.065-08:00Youth Movement?<p>The Giants opened their Spring Exhibition season with a uninspiring loss to the Cubs. Speaking of the Cubs, Cody Bellinger returns to Chicago on a three-year, $80M deal. Lest you think only the Giants have a thing for opt-outs, Belli's deal includes opt-outs after the first two years. The Giants were linked to J.D. Martinez but opted for Jorge Soler instead. Martinez is still unsigned but will catch on somewhere. Boras Boys Matt Chapman, Blake Snell, and Jordan Montgomery are still "in the wings."</p><p>Farhan Zaidi has hinted that the Giants are going with the gang they have. We shouldn't expect any more additions to the roster. So, rather than think the club has a glaring hole at shortstop, I've decided FZ & Co. are all-in on the youth movement! Marco Luciano is not yet 23 and has a mere 14 games on his ML-résumé. He signed with the Giants as an international free agent (from the Dominican Republic) in 2018. Young catcher Patrick Bailey has a veteran backup—Tom Murphy—but there isn't a veteran shortstop behind Luciano. The main backup at this point seems to be 25-year old utilityman Otto López who was picked up for cash from the Blue Jays. Or 25-year old 2020 2nd-rounder Casey Schmitt. Not a grizzled mug in the bunch.</p><p>Speaking of grizzled, two veteran hurlers are on the shelf until after the All-Star Break. Both FNG Robbie Ray and returning stalwart Alex Cobb are recovering from off-season surgeries. Rather than view this as a glaring hole in the starting rotation, I'm joining the Front Office in their enthusiastic embrace of the youth movement. I like the signing of flamethrowing Jordan Hicks and think his transition from the 'pen could really work. I suspect they'll run him out there until the Break as a stopgap. Hicks will pitch like hell then blow out his arm but the return of the aforementioned Big Two will pick up the slack. He's the rabbit in the race.</p><p>After that it is lefty phenom Kyle Harrison, who is also not yet 23, and has 34-2/3 IP in the bigs under his belt. From there it is take-your-pick of Keaton Winn (26, already injured), Tristan Beck (27), Erik Miller (26), Sean Hjelle (26), Kai-Wei Teng (25) and a plethora of up-and-comers like Carson Wisenhunt (23), Landen Roupp (25), Mason Black (24), and Hayden Birdsong (22). Logan Webb is certainly an ace but right now it is a one-man rotation. I really thought they'd sign another veteran arm but it seems clear they will go with the kids. (And the Hicks Experiment.)</p><p>This is either folly or supreme self-confidence, I can't tell. I actually love youth movements in general. It is fun to watch young players develop their game. The Giants have been an old, slow bunch lately and that needs to change. But it seems unnecessarily risky to have key spots (SS, SP) manned by inexperienced players. It could all go south in a hurry. I'm okay with that, actually, but on one very important condition. I think the Giants should tell us so. That FZ should say "yes we <i>are</i> entrusting these big responsibilities to rookies." Use the words "youth movement" and "rebuild" in public. He can add "we really like our rookies and expect them to get the job done." That would help!</p><p>But teams can't do that. They have to pretend they have a playoff-caliber squad even if they don't. Right now I am excited by Jung-Hoo Lee and Patrick Bailey. I'm intensely interested in Marco Luciano. And of course there is Logan Webb, one of the best in the business. Camilo Doval is among the game's top closers. Thairo Estrada has established himself as the everyday second baseman. There's a lot to like and to be interested in. The rest of the roster is familiar: Slater, Yaz, Wade, Davis, Flores, and Conforto. If healthy, it's a solid mix, and Soler's right-handed pop is a good addition. But after last season's stumbling finish I have to wonder if they did enough despite having an active off-season.</p><p>The 1986 team had an advertising slogan: "You Gotta Like These Kids." They ought to think about bringing it back for 2024.</p><p>What say you?</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-20582202110328845542024-02-13T07:17:00.000-08:002024-02-13T07:49:06.478-08:00Bopper<p>The Giants sign <b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/solerjo01.shtml" target="_blank">Jorge Soler</a></b> for three years and $42 million. The righty slugger will slot in as the primary DH and will give the lefty-leaning lineup a real power threat. He hit homers in Miami which is a hard place for right-handed power hitters so I expect the adjustment to Oracle Park will not be a problem. He's a limited player defensively but if he can hit the ball hard regularly he will help the team.</p><p>--M.C.<br /></p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-4017252245126016822024-01-31T11:34:00.000-08:002024-01-31T11:34:22.275-08:00Cool Giants<p>The Giants signed flame-throwing Jordan Hicks on the 12th of January. It looked like things were heating up. Alas, it has since been quiet on the player acquisition front. There have been a few smaller moves, at least one that's intriguing, but nothing addressing the team's weak spots. The Giants picked up a 26-year old righty named Tommy Romero who was once a <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/01/giants-sign-tommy-romero-to-minor-league-deal.html" target="_blank">notable prospect</a></b> in the Rays system. His MLB time is scant (8-1/3 IP, 44 TBF) but scary (9 BB, 7 HR). Like I said, intriguing. They added Cooper Hummel, a switch-hitting left-fielder who also catches. He's the backup for Blake Sabol, I suppose. Does this put Joey Bart on the trade block? <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/01/five-potential-trade-fits-for-joey-bart.html" target="_blank">MLBTR thinks so</a></b>. (They also think teams are "<b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/01/teams-showing-interest-in-brandon-crawford.html" target="_blank">showing interest</a></b>" in Brandon Crawford.)<br /></p><p>While Zaidian tinkering around the edges of the roster is necessary, it doesn't fill the fans with enthusiasm. They need another starter. They need another infielder—a shortstop, actually. Don't you think? And it wouldn't hurt to add a bat, just to give the fans something to get excited about. J.D. Davis is the only arb-eligible player who is unsigned. I wonder if that's just a small sticking point in negotiations as the Giants usually wrap all that stuff up early. If they are really interested in Matt Chapman, <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/11/giants-interested-in-matt-chapman.html" target="_blank">as has been reported all off-season</a></b>, that would make Davis redundant. Are they positioning themselves for a trade? Davis led the team in games (144), plate appearances (546), strikeouts (152), and grounding into double plays (16). His .248/.325/.413 is solidly league average (104 wRC+). FanGraphs credited him with good defense and 2.2 fWAR while Baseball-Reference knocked his glove and pegged him at 0.9 bWAR. Chapman is a slight hitting upgrade but is usually rated very high for his fielding. Both men turn 31 in April.</p><p>I suppose I'll leave the strategic thinking to the team brass, after all <i>they get paid to do it</i>. This blogging stuff is strictly amateur. I've been away from my desk and unable to write but there's been nothing noteworthy so I didn't miss anything. We all saw the Dusty Baker news. The Giants have this unfortunate image of the team nobody wants to play for. It's bullshit of course, just media jive, but you have to deal with it. Dusty is well-loved all over the game and he puts a welcoming face on the Giants brand. That'll help.</p><p><b><a href="https://www.mlb.com/giants/schedule/2024-02" target="_blank">The calendar</a></b> says February 15th for the first Pitchers & Catchers workout and February 20th for the first Full Squad workout. The first Spring Game is on the 24th. I'm ready for some baseball, how about you?</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-44502805242877240172024-01-12T14:50:00.000-08:002024-01-12T14:50:08.010-08:00Big Heat<p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/hicksjo03.shtml" target="_blank">Jordan Hicks</a></b> throws as hard as anyone in baseball. He averages just over 100 mph on both his four-seam fastball (which has hit 105!) and his bread-and-butter, a sinking two-seamer. He also has an 86-mph slider. His career 60% ground ball rate is Webb-like. It's easy to see why the Giants are interested, and in fact they signed him to a four-year, $44M deal.</p><p>Hicks has logged only 243 innings in 212 games over five seasons with the Cardinals and Blue Jays. He made eight starts in 2022 but has otherwise been a reliever. He turned 27 in September. Like a lot of flamethrowers he walks a lot of guys and is an injury risk. He had TJS in 2019.</p><p>Oh, but that <i>talent</i>! I think that's what this deal is all about. Reaching free agency at a relatively young age makes Hicks a better-than-average risk. <b><a href="https://baseballwithr.wordpress.com/2017/05/08/what-age-do-baseball-players-peak/" target="_blank">The peak years for most ballplayers are ages 26-29</a></b> or thereabouts. The Giants see starter potential and want to put him in the rotation.</p><p>I was reading something on <b><a href="http://www.tangotiger.com/index.php" target="_blank">Tom Tango's blog</a></b> about predictive wOBA (I know, pretty nerdy stuff), and he introduced the column with this tidbit:</p><p style="margin-left: 40px; text-align: left;"><i>Hitting a 450 foot HR is very indicative of a batter's talent. It
shows that he has raw power and it shows that he can really put the
barrel on the ball. Hitting a 110 mph high popup to an outfielder for an easy out is also
a good indication of a batter's talent. It shows that he has raw power
and that a small mistiming is what kept him from hitting a 450 foot HR.</i></p><p style="text-align: left;">A bloop hit is a better outcome for the team than a pop-out, but a lucky Texas-leaguer doesn't tell you anything about the batter's talent. The major-league pop-up does.</p><p style="text-align: left;">I think the same logic applies to this deal. Hicks has some serious pitching talent. Maybe the <i>outcomes</i> haven't been there, but all the <i>indicators</i> are certainly there. A relatively modest deal for a young major-league arm with lots of upside is OK by me. The rotation is still full of question marks after Logan Webb, but at least the pool of possible answers is getting bigger. I would still like to see them go after Blake Snell or Jordan Montgomery, and I keep wondering about shortstop, but at least the Hicks signing is something to talk about.</p><p style="text-align: left;">--M.C. <br /></p><p></p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-20710777969962572812024-01-05T12:48:00.000-08:002024-01-05T12:50:37.429-08:00Hey, Robbie Ray<p>The Giants make their first move of the new year by trading for Seattle lefty <b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/r/rayro02.shtml" target="_blank">Robbie Ray</a></b>. Mitch Haniger and Anthony DeSclafani go to the Mariners.</p><p>It's no secret that the Giants need starting pitching. Ray was the <b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/awards/awards_2021.shtml#all_AL_CYA_voting" target="_blank">AL Cy Young awardee in 2021</a></b> and has delivered a mostly strong body of work over his ten seasons. He's thrown 1228 innings in 226 games (222 starts) with excellent strikeout numbers (1505 total, 11 K/9, 28.9%). Lifetime he sports a 3.96 ERA and 4.07 FIP. He made one start last year before a flexor strain (followed by Tommy John surgery) ended his season.</p><p>It's an interesting risk for the Giants. Ray is 32 and missed a lot of playing time in 2020 as well. He's signed (@$25M/yr.) through 2026. They relieved themselves of some salary by sending away Haniger ($20M) and DeSclafani ($12M). The Giants are sending cash ($3M) to the Mariners as well. If Ray is healthy he will be a solid addition. Unfortunately I'm not clear on when Ray will be available to pitch--recovery from TJS takes a long time. Alex Cobb will open the season on the IL and the other arms after ace Logan Webb are unproven rookies (Kyle Harrison, Keaton Winn, Tristan Beck).</p><p>I'm glad to see the transaction wire heating up in San Francisco. I hope they will continue to pursue another starter, and they'll have to do something about shortstop, don't you think?</p><p>Meanwhile, welcome to the Giants, Robbie Ray!</p><p>--M.C.</p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-25252750049841067932023-12-22T11:08:00.000-08:002023-12-22T11:08:00.057-08:00One Billion Dollars<p>With the signing of NPB super-ace <b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=yamamo004yos" target="_blank">Yoshinobu Yamamoto</a></b> (12 yrs, $325M) the LA Dodgers have purchased the services of the two best Japanese ballplayers on the planet. One of them is arguably already the best player in MLB. Shohei Ohtani's $700M takes the total outlay to over one billion dollars. If you laid one billion dollar bills end-to-end (a bill is about six inches in length) they would stretch 500,000,000 feet or about 95,000 miles or nearly four trips around the earth.</p><p>That's a lot of scratch!</p><p>MLB annual revenue is about $10B, and the total value of all 30 franchises is about $70B. TV rights for MLB games come in at a little under $2B annually. <b><a href="https://www.forbes.com/mlb-valuations/list/" target="_blank">According to Forbes the Giants are in the top tier of wealthy clubs, rating fifth with a $3.7B valuation</a></b>. The Yankees top the list ($7.1B), followed by the Dodgers( $4.8B), Red Sox ($4.5B), and Cubs ($4.1B). The hapless and unfortunate A's rate 29th ($1.1B) and the Marlins get the honor of the bottom spot ($1B).</p><p>The Giants have a lot of payroll flexibility if you assume that ownership is indeed willing to spend money. Only Logan Webb and Jung Hoo Lee have long-term deals. Mitch Haniger, Wilmer Flores, and Taylor Rogers are signed through 2025 and are free agents after that. FNG catcher Tom Murphy is signed through 2025 with a club option for 2026. The Giants have a club option on reliever Luke Jackson for 2025. That's it. Everyone else is either a free agent after the 2024 season or is still under team control (or in their arb-years).</p><p>This year's payroll is about $160M meaning they have about $47M to spend without topping the luxury tax threshold ($237M).</p><p>The Giants need a starter. I'm hoping they will still pursue <b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=imanag000sho" target="_blank">Shoto Imagana</a></b>. Also both Blake Snell and Jordan Montgomery are available. The Giants will need a shortstop. They'll have to work the trade market to upgrade at that position. I think they will have to trade some of their young pitching talent to make a meaningful improvement.</p><p>I really like the Lee signing but it won't be enough to compete for the Western Division title. They've still got some work to do if they want to win 90+ games.</p><p>Merry Christmas, everyone! Thanks for reading. I hope we'll have some fun news to talk about before January rolls around.</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-14623514700542776942023-12-18T20:16:00.000-08:002023-12-18T20:16:27.025-08:00Backstops<p>The Giants <b><a href="https://www.mlb.com/giants/news/tom-murphy-agrees-to-two-year-deal-with-giants" target="_blank">signed a veteran free-agent catcher</a></b> to a two-year deal with an option for a third. His name is <b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/murphto04.shtml" target="_blank">Tom Murphy</a></b> and he has just over a thousand plate appearances in the bigs (eight seasons) and over two thousand innings (261 games) behind the plate. Most recently he slashed .290/.335/.538 in 47 games (159 PA) with the Seattle Mariners. He's got some pop and is clearly going to back up youngster Patrick Bailey, the putative starter.</p><p>Blake Sabol, after surviving his rookie season and Rule 5 status, seems like the obvious backup to that tandem. Where does that leave Joey Bart? He can't stay in AAA forever. He has no options remaining either, while Sabol's three are still intact.</p><p>There's a rumor that the Giants are <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/giants-considering-trading-from-group-of-young-pitchers.html" target="_blank">willing to deal</a></b> some of their young arms. Will they include Joey Bart in such a deal? I'd rather they sign <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/giants-reportedly-interested-in-shota-imanaga.html" target="_blank">Shoto Imanaga</a></b> or <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/mlbtr-poll-yoshinobu-yamamotos-market.html" target="_blank">Yoshinobu Yamamoto</a></b> but if they can pull off a trade for someone like <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/latest-on-framber-valdez-2.html" target="_blank">Framber Valdez</a></b> I won't complain. There's also talk of a reunion with <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/nl-west-notes-snell-dodgers-manaea-giants-e-rod.html" target="_blank">Sean Manaea</a></b>.</p><p>Regardless, the catcher position seems to be in good shape. The Giants have a trio of young players and added a seasoned, part-time slugger to the mix. We all know FZ likes to make lots of moves around the margins that aren't exciting but are necessary. They also added a <b><a href="https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/12/giants-claim-devin-sweet-from-athletics.html" target="_blank">minor-league righty named Devin Sweet</a></b> to the 40-man roster.</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com18tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-7832175869523011622023-12-12T16:01:00.000-08:002023-12-12T16:01:16.895-08:00Who is Lee?<p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=lee---009jun#" target="_blank">Jung Hoo Lee</a></b> is a left-handed outfielder from Korea. He's played for the Kiwoom/Nexen Heroes of the KBO for the past seven seasons. He's known for his glove and is a high-average/high-OBP hitter. His career line is .340/.407/.491 (884 G, 3947 PA) and he turns 26 in August.</p><p>The Giants signed Lee to a six-year, $113M deal. That should beef up the outfield!</p><p>Wikipedia lists him as <b>Jung-hoo</b> Lee but all the baseball sites list him as Jung Hoo Lee. I suppose rendering Korean names into American English could have a few quirks. His father is a famous Korean ballplayer as well.<br /></p><p>This is all very exciting. Let's strike while the iron is hot! Sign Yamamoto!</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-9422679262527320832023-12-09T13:04:00.000-08:002023-12-09T13:04:19.217-08:00Oh, it figures<p>Shohei Ohtani goes to the Los Angeles Dodgers where everyone expected him to go. The rumor about him signing in Toronto was very convincing, and it seemed like a bold move for him, but he took the safe path. (I-5 in this case.) It's a monster deal: $700 million for 10 years.</p><p>It figures. The Dodgers have the capital to blow away the competition, and that they did. The projections all said it would take a ten-year deal but they also settled on $500M. That narrowed the field to a handful of teams but LA would have none of it and simply went "all-in" to chase them away. It was Godzilla vs. a Bunch of Bambis at that point.</p><p>I was not expecting the Giants to sign Ohtani. The only thing I wanted for Christmas was that he <i>wouldn't</i> sign with LA. I should have expected the Dodgers to get their man all along, but I suppose I had blocked it out in hope of a better outcome.</p><p>Time for the Giants to start signing some new players, don't you think?</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-66991101583363778312023-11-11T08:36:00.004-08:002023-11-11T08:36:39.613-08:00New old blood<p>The Giants love their former players and they brought two back to beef up the coaching staff. Local boy Pat Burrell will be the new hitting coach and former Giants third baseman Matt Williams will now man the third-base coach's box. Current third base coach Mark Hallberg will move across the diamond, replacing Antoan Richardson. Bob Melvin's bench coach will be Ryan Christenson. The former Pepperdine and A's player was BoMel's guy in both Oakland and San Diego. He replaces Kai Correa.</p><p>Assistants J.P. Martinez, Alyssa Nakken, and Tairu Uematsu are supposed to be back. Justin Viele and Pedro Guerrero will stay on as assistant hitting coaches. Brian Bannister and Craig Albernaz, on the pitching side, are both with Cleveland now. Pitching coach Andrew Bailey is interviewing elsewhere so I expect we'll see a new top guy real soon. What former Giants pitcher and/or local boy would make a good pitching coach?</p><p>Anyway, I'm fine with the changes, it's to be expected with a new manager. Roster upgrades are next, I suppose. What moves do you think the Giants should make for the 2024 season? What moves do you think they <i>will</i> make?<br /></p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com16tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-13768987725702943052023-11-01T20:26:00.003-07:002023-11-01T20:26:41.786-07:00Rangers wrap it up<p>The Arizona Diamondbacks had no answer--once again--for the relentless Texas Rangers who won their 11th road game to take the World Series title. Bruce Bochy joins Joe McCarthy, Casey Stengel, Connie Mack, Walter Alston, and Joe Torre as managers with at least four rings. It was a close series until it wasn't. Even a six-inning no-hit effort from Zac Gallen couldn't help the D-Backs win a game at home.</p><p>Things can happen now. Things like signing free agents and stuff. I've no idea what to expect from the Giants. My shopping list is: Shohei Ohtani. Other than that, I'm open to lots of new players. Bring 'em on board! I'm sure the new manager has some ideas about the roster, we'll see how that plays out.</p><p>It's November already! I think the baseball season should finish by Hallowe'en, don't you?</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-61797525553158524192023-10-25T15:47:00.004-07:002023-10-27T08:04:50.449-07:00Melvin comes back to the Bay<p>The Giants did what I hoped they'd do--get a new manager quickly and without a lot of fuss. Bob Melvin is well-known and well-regarded around MLB and he's a safe, solid choice. Melvin is from Palo Alto and went to Menlo-Atherton HS. He played amateur ball at Cal and at Cañada College. The 1980 Golden Bears team that Melvin played for was probably the best in school history (44 wins, 10-3 at CWS). They lost to the Arizona Wildcats by one run in the semifinal. (Arizona won the title and their star player was Terry Francona!) Melvin was drafted by the Tigers and came to the Giants with Juan Berenguer in a 1985 trade. He was traded to the Orioles in 1989 for Terry Kennedy. Melvin has managed four clubs (Seattle, Arizona, Oakland, and San Diego) over 20 seasons. In 2942 games his record is 1517-1425 (.516) and his teams have made eight playoff appearances.</p><p>Speaking of the playoffs, I was astounded by the NLCS result. The Diamondbacks played two exceptional baseball games in Philadelphia to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. The Phillies seemingly had the pennant in the bag after their Game 5 win but Arizona would not be denied. They got big performances from two rookies: pitcher Brandon Pfaadt and outfielder Corbin Carroll.</p><p>Bruce Bochy is back in the World Series after a rousing finish in Houston. Like the Phils the Astros got a huge Game 5 win on the road but the Rangers turned it up to another level for the final two games. They also have a rookie outfielder (Evan Carter) who looks like the real deal. I like to see new teams in the World Series and I think it's good for the sport. Expanding the playoffs means more upsets and more "wild cards" and this year really showed that. The Rangers and Diamondbacks were the number five and number six seeds.Three 100-win teams (LAD, ATL, BAL) and one 99-win team (TBR) were bumped in the early rounds.</p><p>It's clear the new mandate for any club is "just make the playoffs" as winning the division accrues no real benefit. Even a seven-game series cannot swing the odds enough towards the stronger team. Luck and chance still rule. A couple of big individual performances can really make an impact in a week of baseball. Billy Beane famously said "my shit don't work in the playoffs" and he was right. Teams have to be built for the long haul, but the short haul post-season is pretty close to a coin toss.</p><p>The Texas Rangers will have the home field advantage. Game One is Friday. Texas is listed as a -170 favorite. You'd need to bet $170 to get a $100 payout. Arizona comes in at +150, so you'd win $150 on a $100 bet. A betting line of -170 has an implied probability of about 63% which seems ridiculous. Texas is clearly better on paper but I don't think any baseball match-up is that lopsided. As we've seen, they have to play the games, and anything is possible.</p><p>--M.C.</p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-59245844992496344572023-10-01T15:11:00.002-07:002023-10-01T15:11:43.139-07:009th inning: 5-13<p>The Giants stumbled badly in the final stretch but it's OK, they fired the manager and solved the problem. Interim manager Kai Correa finishes the season with a 1-2 mark after <b><a href="https://www.mlb.com/gameday/dodgers-vs-giants/2023/10/01/716363/live" target="_blank">today's loss</a></b> in the final game of the season. Rookie Kyle Harrison pitched five shutout innings and rookie Casey Schmitt hit two homers. Brandon Crawford started and hit leadoff but went 0-for-4 in what is likely his final game in SF, maybe his final game ever.</p><p>Here are the team's runs scored for the final eight games (they went 2-6): 0, 2, 2, 0, 2, 2, 2, 2.</p><p><b><a href="https://raisingmattcain.blogspot.com/2023/04/1st-inning-6-12.html" target="_blank">1st inning: 6-12</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">2nd inning: 10-8</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">3rd inning: 12-6</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">4th inning: 12-6</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">5th inning: 9-</a><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">9</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">6th inning: 10-8</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">7th inning: 6-12</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">8th inning: 9-9</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">9th inning: 5-13</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.mlb.com/standings" target="_blank">The final tally is 79-83, fourth place, 20 GB.</a></b></p><p>The 84-78 Diamondbacks finish second (15 GB) and get the final Wild Card spot despite losing their last four games. The Padres edge the Giants for third place.</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com19tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-6173033352673196202023-09-29T21:54:00.001-07:002023-09-29T21:54:02.809-07:00Giants find their fall guy<p>No one is a happy about the Giants late-season collapse. And, it seems, someone has to take the blame. In baseball the manager usually gets the axe if the team under-performs and the Giants stuck to the script and fired Gabe Kapler. It's tacky to cut the guy loose with a weekend of baseball left to play. Why not just wait until Monday morning? It's a silly move in my mind. Kapler wasn't whiffing with the bases loaded or booting the ball around the outfield. No, the players did that. And so what if there was some whining in the clubhouse? Players should be upset by their individual performances and should be upset about the team's overall performance. Everyone had a hand in the team's poor play. No one gets off the hook--are they going to turn over the roster as well? Or the rest of the coaching staff?<br /></p><p>This tells me that Farhan Zaidi doesn't value the manager all that much. It could be anyone, as long as it is one that works. I thought the 107-win 2021 season would buy Kap a little more goodwill but the sports world moves too fast for that stuff. "What have you done for me lately?" The Washington Nationals won the World Series in 2019 and have gone 204-306 (.400) since then, including a 107-<i>loss</i> season, and they just signed manager Dave Martinez to a two-year extension! Explain that.</p><p>Kapler was an unorthodox manager and had an unusual personal style. San Francisco seemed like a perfect fit. I had no problem with him. He's weird, but it's not an act. He is exactly who he presents himself to be. I thought he brought a lot of smarts and freshness to the role and I liked his hands-off style in the clubhouse. He expected players to show up and do their best, like professionals, and didn't go for too much rah-rah or hand-holding. He was business-like and analytical and that perhaps was a bridge too far for a sport steeped in tradition. I suspect the big-money season-ticket holders squawked the loudest and the drop in attendance was a clear signal to the ownership that they needed to act.</p><p>I'm really not interested in another managerial search. I'd rather they have someone in mind already and we can be spared the speculation. After all, it apparently doesn't matter that much, there are plenty of guys who can step in to the job. Just as long as they know they have a very short leash.<br /></p><p>By the way Kai Correa is <b><a href="https://www.mlb.com/gameday/dodgers-vs-giants/2023/09/29/716382/final/box" target="_blank">0-1</a></b> in his managerial career.</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-60943552735666363112023-09-25T22:05:00.001-07:002023-09-27T15:36:58.025-07:00Logan Webb is the man!<p><b><a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/boxscore/_/gameId/401473360" target="_blank">SF 2 SD 1</a></b></p><p>In my <b><a href="https://raisingmattcain.blogspot.com/2023/09/webb-cant-do-it-alone.html" target="_blank">last post</a></b> I said that "Webb can't do it alone" but it seems he took exception to that tonight and damn well tried to do it all alone. Fortunately his fielders made the plays and the the lineup eked out the bare minimum of runs to edge the Padres. Webb gave up a run in the 1st on a dinker, a double, and a dunker, and it looked like Blake Snell and the Padres bullpen (and the Giants offensive ineptitude) would make the 1-0 lead stand. Webb kept throwing his nasty stuff and kept grinding out one scoreless frame after another and it finally paid off in the 8th. Marco Luciano, who had a great night, doubled after LaMonte Wade, Jr. walked with one out. Joc Pederson was walked to load the bases and Patrick Bailey forced out Wade at home. Is there any team in baseball lousier with the bases loaded than the Giants? Michael Conforto, however, knocked in two with an opposite-field hit to give the Giants (finally!!) the lead. In a surprise but well-deserved move Kap eschewed his closer and sent out his ace to finish the job. Webb quickly got in trouble with back-to-back singles but once again Kap stuck with him and he got three ground balls from the next three hitters to complete the game and seal the win. One of the outs was a close play at home and I thought I was going to pass out from the tension. That was one of the best finishes we've seen in this agonizing, frustrating season.</p><p>We all know Webb is the star of the club and it's great that he had one of his best performances at home in his penultimate start. It was also good to see young (22 years old) Luciano put his stamp on the game. He's the 2024 shortstop at this point. Brandon Crawford is the greatest SS in SF history but I think we can all see that he's at the end of his illustrious career. I hope he retires and gets a proper send-off in the final home series vs. LA this weekend.</p><p>Webb's final line: 9 IP, 9 H (8 singles), 1 R, 0 BB, 7 K, 110 pitches (76 strikes), and 15 ground ball outs. He was masterful. I would like to note that Cy Young candidate Blake Snell (14-9, 2.25 ERA) threw 100 pitches in his six shutout innings. He leads all starters in walks with 99! I prefer Webb's efficiency (only 31 free passes). Snell averages just under 5-2/3 IP per start (180/32 = 5.63); Webb almost an inning more (216/33 = 6.55).</p><p>Kyle Harrison, who looked a lot better in his last outing (and the team played one of their worst games of the season), gets the start tomorrow night (6:45 PT).</p><p>Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.</p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-73621890386663903902023-09-21T08:35:00.003-07:002023-09-21T08:35:45.056-07:00Webb can't do it alone<p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ARI/ARI202309200.shtml" target="_blank">ARI 7 SF 1</a></b></p><p>The Giants dropped the final contest in Arizona yesterday and fell back to .500 and three games off the Wild Card pace. There are ten games left and the math is pretty close to impossible. Of course they could always simply "win out" (10-0 the rest of the way!) and shut everyone up but I reckon that's a bet no one will take. They will now have to compete with the San Diego Padres for third place in the NL West.</p><p>Logan Webb got peppered for nine hits in six frames but only one went for extra bases and he kept the game close with another quality start.The Giants had three hits total in another anemic display with LaMonte Wade, Jr.'s solo shot leading off the 1st providing the only run. Webb leads MLB in QS with 23, batters faced with 816, pitches thrown with 3072, and in IP with 207. He's a "horse" in the old-fashioned sense. His BB/9 (1.35) is 3rd-best, HR/9 (0.87) is 8th-best, FIP (3.21) is 6th-best, and ERA (3.35) is 10th-best. His 61.6% ground-ball rate leads MLB by a lot, the second-best belongs to Framber Valdez (54.3%). You'd figure Webb for a lot of DPs and in fact he's the best with 28. FanGraphs says he's 7th-best with 4.6 WAR and Baseball-Reference pegs him 4th with 5.0 WAR. Interestingly, Baseball Prospectus has <b><a href="https://www.baseballprospectus.com/leaderboards/pitching/" target="_blank">Webb at #1 (5.0)</a></b> in their version (called WARP) of this rather abstract metric. He's a stud, that's for sure, and is the team MVP by far. We should get to see him pitch two more times before the season wraps up. If the Giants had a better club and Webb had a winning record he would be a serious Cy Young Award candidate. (He'll get some well-deserved down-ballot votes but I suspect Spencer Strider* will take the NL prize with his ridiculous K-numbers.)</p><p>Kyle Harrison gets re-called for tonight's game in LA (7:10 PT). Let's hope The Kid can find his footing.</p><p>Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.</p><p> </p><p>*Strider leads MLB in a stat called <b><a href="https://library.fangraphs.com/pitching/xfip/" target="_blank">xFIP</a></b> with 2.89 and, you-guessed-it, Webb is 2nd with a 2.98 mark. xFIP tries to account for the "noise" in home run rates which vary a lot from year-to-year. It is otherwise calculated and scaled just like <b><a href="https://library.fangraphs.com/pitching/fip/" target="_blank">FIP</a></b> which tries to separate out the parts of the game pitchers can actually control (BB,SO, HR, HBP). <b><a href="https://www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article/878/pitching-and-defense-how-much-control-do-hurlers-have/" target="_blank">Defense Independent Pitching Stats (DIPS)</a></b> were developed by a man named Voros McCracken about 25 years ago and the ideas are fundamental to sabermetrics.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-51915927287097305812023-09-20T07:48:00.004-07:002023-09-20T11:21:27.197-07:00Disaster in the desert<p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ARI/ARI202309190.shtml" target="_blank">ARI 8 SF 4</a></b></p><p>The Giants shot themselves in the foot last night and hobbled through another ugly loss. Poor fielding, once again, was pivotal. Alex Cobb is clearly hurting, I'll be surprised if gets another start. Apparently he's had hip issues before and might need surgery in the off-season. The team has a $10M option ($2M buyout) on him for 2024 and I hope they keep him around.</p><p>I'm a fan and I always hold out hope for a miraculous turn-around but short of an eight-game winning streak or somesuch the Giants chances for the playoffs are vanishingly small. They really needed to win yesterday. At this point I hope they can hang on and finish with a plus-.500 record. There are eleven games left and seven of those are against the Dodgers.<br /></p><p>Logan Webb goes this afternoon (12:40 PT). He was a beast last time out but got no help from his mates. He gets the Matt Cain Award for 2023, of course. I'm sure glad they signed him to a long-term deal.</p><p>Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.</p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-10783585817555437562023-09-13T16:34:00.006-07:002023-09-14T11:12:45.127-07:00Epic fightback takes series<p><b><a href="https://www.espn.com/mlb/boxscore/_/gameId/401473197" target="_blank">SF 6 CLE 5 (10)</a></b></p><p>This afternoon was just about the Most Giants-y Game of the year. This year, that is. They took a dump in the 1st when rookie Kyle Harrison pitched like, y'know, a rookie, and rookie third baseman Casey Schmitt played like, y'know, a rookie. Anyway, rookie Luis Matos salvaged something from an inept rally in the bottom of the 1st, then the Guardians tacked on, and it was 5-1 after two. It looked just like all those other hideous losses where the starter/opener takes it on the chin and the team can't recover. Alas, this time they rallied improbably, and scored in the 7th, the 8th, and the 10th to get their 75th win. Here's a short list of teams who don't have 75 wins: Mets, Yankees, Padres, Cardinals, Angels, and Red Sox. This season has been a slog but they are still in the fight so it was great to see them pull off a big comeback.</p><p>Alex Wood gets a nod for a superb relief stint. Harrison was done after four (82 pitches) having allowed seven hits (four doubles and a homer) and five runs (two on Schmitt's error). Wood threw four scoreless on just three hits. The Giants big hit came from J.D. Davis who hit a homer with two on in the 8th to tie the game. It didn't clear the fence by much but it was a huge blow nonetheless. Tyler Rogers put two on in the 9th after two were out but Camilo Doval bailed him out. Then Doval pitched a clean 10th and the Giants rallied in the bottom half with Late Game LaMonte delivering the winner, a sacrifice fly to score rookie Patrick Bailey.</p><p>Logan Webb gets the start tomorrow in Denver (5:40 PT). It's a four-game set through Sunday. Monday's an off-day.</p><p>Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.</p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-44615220245169432552023-09-12T07:57:00.004-07:002023-09-12T07:57:50.070-07:008th inning: 9-9<p>The Giants got a walk-off hit from Late-Inning LaMonte last night to beat the Guardians <b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SFN/SFN202309110.shtml" target="_blank">5-4 in the 10th</a></b>. That was the team's 144th game, the end of the eighth seasonal inning. There are 18 games left to play--a mere 1/9 of the 162 we started with. The <b><a href="https://www.mlb.com/standings/wild-card/2023-09-12" target="_blank">74-70 Giants</a></b> (.514) are in third place in the NL West, 1-1/2 games behind the Diamondbacks who happen to have the third Wild Card spot by the same margin. Here's how we got here:</p><p><b><a href="https://raisingmattcain.blogspot.com/2023/04/1st-inning-6-12.html" target="_blank">1st inning: 6-12</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">2nd inning: 10-8</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">3rd inning: 12-6</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">4th inning: 12-6</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">5th inning: 9-</a><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">9</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">6th inning: 10-8</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">7th inning: 6-12</a></b></p><p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/SFG/2023-schedule-scores.shtml" target="_blank">8th inning: 9-9</a></b></p><p>This last stretch of games featured six straight losses. If you prefer a monthly breakdown it's Mar/Apr 11-15, May 17-12, June 18-8, July 12-13, August 12-15, and September 4-6.</p><p>Since the All-Star Break their record is 25-29 (.463). They can't afford to do that (8-10) as 82 wins will likely not be enough. A 10-8 record and 84 wins seems like an absolute minimum. Maybe they can really turn it around and pop off another 12-6 stretch. After all they've done it twice already.</p><p>Sean Manaea and Cal Quantrill square off tonight at 6:45 in the battle of the big ERAs (5.00 vs. 5.70). Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-66274293254806997172023-09-11T08:10:00.001-07:002023-09-11T11:09:34.486-07:00Quality Winn<p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SFN/SFN202309100.shtml" target="_blank">SF 6 ARI 3</a></b></p><p>Rookie Keaton Winn ran into trouble in the 2nd inning but otherwise threw five scoreless frames and the result was his second career quality start. This one resulted in a win (the last one was a loss in Toronto on <b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/TOR/TOR202306290.shtml" target="_blank">June 29th</a></b>). Behind 3-0 the Giants bounced back with two in the 2nd and three in the 3rd. Mitch Haniger had a double and a homer, and Thairo Estrada also homered. Joc Pederson added a solo shot later. Ryan Walker, Tyler Rogers, and Camilo Doval finished up.</p><p>Winn was a 20th-round pick in 2017. He missed time with Tommy John surgery but has over 300 IP in the minors, mostly starting. He's from nowheresville Iowa and the story was he had never been in an ML ballpark until his debut earlier this season. Giants need reliable starters and they like Winn's splitter and his high groundball rate. Let's hope the 25-year old can come up with a few more strong starts in the final weeks.</p><p>The Cleveland Guardians come to San Francisco for a three-game set. Alex Cobb gets the start tonight at 6:45 PT.</p><p>Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.</p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-90804434567730500102023-09-10T08:14:00.002-07:002023-09-10T12:30:12.305-07:00Webb's a winner<p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SFN/SFN202309090.shtml" target="_blank">SF 9 COL 1</a></b></p><p>Logan Webb hadn't picked up a "W" in a month but last night he was overpowering and the lineup had another nine-run outburst against the Rockies. That beats the three total they scored in his last three starts, and in fact the team has scored two or fewer runs a total of <i>thirteen times</i> when Webb takes the hill this year. That's Matt Cain territory. Webb leads MLB in starts (30), innings pitched (193), and ground ball percentage (60.9). Last night he got TWELVE ground balls! FanGraphs says he's at 4.1 WAR, good for seventh overall, and Baseball-Reference says he's fourth with a 4.5 mark. Either way, he's a beast.</p><p>The Giants needed a team to beat up on and Colorado came to town at just the right time. Mike Yastrzemski hit in the leadoff spot and went 4-for-5 with two doubles and Luis Matos got two more hits from the ninth spot. A two-run homer in the 1st by Thairo Estrada got things going. They were 7-for-13 w/RISP.</p><p>Keaton Winn gets the ball tonight at 5:10 Pacific with a chance for a sweep.</p><p>Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.</p>M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7941261488380355005.post-89206187414191267652023-09-09T08:05:00.004-07:002023-09-09T08:05:45.548-07:00Giants stop skid<p><b><a href="https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/SFN/SFN202309080.shtml" target="_blank">SF 9 COL 8</a></b><br /></p><p>So they won't go 0-for-September! Whew. It was looking like a real possibility. The Rockies came to town and threw away enough leads for a week's worth of baseball and the Giants capitalized and won a wild one. The game lasted almost three hours (2:53) which is increasingly unusual in today's pitch-clock world. The winning runs came on back-to-back bases-loaded walks! Credit to the Giants for muscling up (four homers including a back-to-back-to-back sequence to tie it in the 6th) and getting the line moving again (13 hits). Rookie Luis Matos was in the leadoff spot and hit two doubles and a single and added a walk. He looks more polished and seems to be finding himself. The team could sure use a spark, and a young stud (he's 21) having a big month would fit the bill. Someone has to help Wilmer Flores carry the load. The 32-year old is having a career year (.290/.356/<b>.540</b>) with 22 doubles and 22 homers in 108 games (393 PA).<br /></p><p>Kyle Harrison got himself in trouble in the 2nd after an error and had a little bad luck, but hung on to get through five innings. He came out for the 6th and gave up a homer which made it 4-0 Colorado and Kapler pulled him (90 pitches). The lineup tied it in the bottom half and scored two in the 7th and three in the 8th to give Camilo Doval a 9-7 lead. He gave up a two-out RBI but got a strikeout to end it.</p><p>It has been an ugly stretch, that's for sure. Let's hope they can turn the page on all that and look better going forward. They are playing themselves out of a playoff spot but there are 21 games still on the calendar and a lot can happen in three weeks of baseball. All I can say is "right the ship, lads" and find a way to pull on the oars together.</p><p>It's Logan Webb tonight, 6:05 Pacific.</p><p>Go Giants!</p><p>--M.C.M.C. O'Connorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12258035192484655635noreply@blogger.com2