42

A few days ago I was astride a granite boulder that rested in the scree along the edge of a Sierra lake. I was craning my neck to examine a small plant through a hand lens--it was a wild orchid, the tiny white flowers spiraling up a short stem that clung to a crack in the rock. The afternoon sun had crisped my forearms umber, and the wind whipped my hat enough so that I needed my chin strap. Down the mountain was a stream strewn with Tiger Lillies in the shady spots, and I soaked my hot, tired flesh in a surging pool eddying out from a small waterfall. The butterflies abounded along meadow verges, iridescent Melissa Blues and stately Lorquin's Admirals, and warblers chased each other among the lodgepoles. A few days before that I was dumping my companions and the beer cooler from the canoe and into the Russian River with an unfortunate maneuver. Fortunately, all was recovered, the summer levels being quite low, and we wrestled our craft back to action and finished the float. There were Fourth of July fireworks from an Oakland Hills vista, a famous play in a small theater in the big City, a Sonoma wine-tasting excursion, a seafood dinner along the Carquinez Strait, and many wonderful long days and late nights with family and friends. In short, it was a hell of a holiday.

And speaking of hell, how the hell did this happen? This 2013 Giants team? Poor performances, sure. Key injuries, of course. But collapse? This is not one of the scenarios I envisioned. At the very worst, I thought this a .500 club. I did not believe this team was capable of playing this poorly. Every baseball team puts up stretches of .350 ball. Sometimes it even lasts a whole season--just ask the Astros. But this sustained run of bad baseball is a shocker. On May 12th, the Giants had just taken three of four from the Braves and were 23-15, in first place in the West by two games. They've gone 19-35 since, including a stretch where they lost 16 of 19. They are now in fourth place, 6-1/2 back, fighting it out with the Padres for the booby prize.

The 2009 Giants won their 42nd game on July 1st (Game 77). The 2010 Giants won their 42nd game on July 5th (Game 82). The 2011 Giants won their 42nd game on June 24th (Game 76). The 2012 Giants won their 42nd game on June 26th (Game 75). The 2013 Giants piled it on in San Diego last night, finally racking up win 42 on July 12th, their 92nd game. That's the kind of math I don't like. In terms of seasonal innings, Games 73-90 constituted their fifth 18-game cluster, and cluster it was. They went 3-15, an unimaginable stretch of bad luck and worse ball-playing. That's 11-7, 10-8, 8-10, 8-10, and the unfathomable 3-15 for the five innings. On a bright note, two wins in Games 91 and 92 gets the sixth frame started off with a nice 2-0 record. If you break it down by month, April was 15-12, May 14-13, June a swooning 10-17, and July a wretched 3-8. If any team could use an All-Star Break, it's San Francisco.

I'm back home, my friends. I'm plugged in again. I'll admit that I took a vacation from the Giants as well--when I go AWOL I go all the way. I did not know about Homer Bailey beating Tim Lincecum and his mates with a no-hitter. I did not know about Zack Wheeler besting Matt Cain and the boys, Matty throwing his shortest start ever, on the heels of getting clobbered by the Dodgers. What's up with Cain? I'm dumbfounded. We watched Tim be just about the lousiest starter in the NL last year, now we get the pleasure of doing it all over again, this time with no. 18. I swear I have not insulted the gods! In fact, I make my regular offerings, just like always. Perhaps more drastic measures are needed. Thanks for holding down the fort in my absence.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

25 for 16: The Brandons

The Giants took a chance on two youngsters this season, and to their credit, showed patience and restraint with both of them. The result was a world championship and a couple of emerging stars.

Brandon Belt was not technically a rookie as he racked up over 200 plate appearances in 2011. Despite a decent .718 OPS the gangly lefty nicknamed "Baby Giraffe" failed to inspire the fans' confidence. Moreover, he still had "lost" stretches were he looked like a hopeless rookie. Fortunately the Brian Trust and Ol' Boch had faith in the kid and not only handed him the first base job for 2012 but stuck with him, mostly, for the entire season. He made 106 starts (102 at first base) in his 145 games played. It was a rocky road, with a solid April (.755), iffy May (.650), breakout June (.963 and his first four HR), scary July (.480, 30 K), impressive August (.887, 30 H), and clutch September (.881, 16 RBI). One of the most interesting things about Belt was his home/road split: a .906 OPS (232 PA) at AT&T and .662 (240 PA) everywhere else. In the playoffs, Belt was 1-13 in the LDS with 7 K, and 1-13 in the Series with 7 K. His one hit, though, was a booming triple that drove in Hunter Pence with the first run in Game Four. He sandwiched in a .304/.360/.565 line in the LCS (7-23, 2B, 3B, HR, 6 R, 2 RBI, 1 SB) though, proving he could deliver in the big moments. Four of those hits came in Games Six and Seven when the Giants put the final nails in the Cardinals coffin. The Giants like their first basemen to have range and good hands, and the big-wingspan Giraffe made several impressive grabs throughout the post-season to steal outs, stop hits, and finish infield plays. Belt turns 25 in April and looks, now, to be a mainstay of the Giants infield for many years. I guess the club can develop young hitters after all!

Brandon Crawford wasn't a rookie, either, as he also racked up over 200 plate appearances in 2011. He, alas, could not crack the .600 OPS line. The Giants had certainly seen his spectacular glove work, though, and were willing to risk his nearly non-existent bat (.204/.288/.296) in the lineup every day in order to keep that flashy leather flashing. Like their forbearance with Belt, it also bore fruit. Crawford committed what seemed like an error a week before the All-Star Game, but settled down in the second half and played arguably the best defense in baseball after that. His effortless acrobatics, soft hands, great range, and cannon arm at shortstop were more valuable to this pitching-dominated club than any 30-HR man. His left-handed bat was still a little weak for the bigs, but like his namesake above he saved the best for last with a .288/.351/.409 final month. He had holes in his swing (95 K in 476 PA), no doubt, but also flashed some power (33 XBH) and the ability to spray the ball to all fields. B-Craw dazzled the national audience with his fielding prowess in the playoffs, making a couple of good young NL SS (Zack Cozart and Pete Kozma) look like wannabes, and a solid veteran ALer (Jhonny Peralta) look like an old man. Yeah, he's that good. The future star also had 10 hits in the post-season, along with 7 walks and 7 RBI. His .603 OPS was higher than both Angel Pagan and Hunter Pence!

Here's what I said in April:

The most exciting story--other than the return of Buster Posey--is the emergence of Brandon Crawford. I really hope the Giants are patient with him. If they are really willing to put him in the 8-hole and let him ride out the rough spots I think they will find he will hit better than they expect. We all know his glove will save piles of runs--can't wait to see it everyday!

Brian Sabean, Bruce Bochy, and the rest of the staff deserve one hell of a lot of credit for their baseball smarts. They made the right decisions in the off-season and throughout the long 162-game haul. They got the right guys and put them in the right spots. They kept their heads during the crises and showed faith in themselves, their supporting cast, and their team. And they were justly rewarded for it with a second title in three years. Now they have a homegrown infield core the envy of all of baseball to go along with their marvelous pitching staff. I can't wait for next year!

--M.C.

25 for 16: Buster Posey

Buster Posey became the Giants full-time catcher in 2010 and the team went on to claim the world championship. Buster was hurt in 2011, missed most of the season, and the Giants finished in second place. Buster was back on the field and in the lineup full-time in 2012 and the Giants won the World Series. Not much more than that needs to be said about Mr. Posey. That's what you call right there "empirical evidence." The guy is a winner. Oh, and he will likely be the NL MVP, too. I've written before about his remarkable sangfroid, particularly his relaxed ease in front of the microphone. The only other player I can remember being such a natural both between the lines and on camera is Derek Jeter. The Yankee captain always manages to look good in his uniform and to say the right things when the tapes are rolling. Posey has that same quality--he expects to be among the elites of the game and he accepts with good grace his role as leader and spokesman of the club. It's a special combination of talent, hard work, and character. When you look up "intangibles" in the Big Book of Baseball, you'll see a picture of those two lads. By the way, here are the four guys drafted ahead of Gerald Dempsey III: Tim Beckham, Pedro Alvarez, Eric Hosmer, and Brian Matusz. Way to go, Giants!

Buster only had nine hits in his 68 plate appearances, but three of them were homers. The first one was in the 6th inning of Game One of the LDS and it was the first run scored by the Giants in the post-season. The second was an epic, series-clinching blast, a massive grand slam off Mat Latos that crushed the Reds dreams in Game Five. It was one of the signature moments of the entire playoffs. The last one was in the final contest, Game Four in Detroit. The Tigers, down three games to none, finally showed some life when their Triple Crown slugger Miguel Cabrera poked a wind-aided ball over the RF fence to take a 2-1 lead in the 3rd inning. But with one out in the top of the 6th and Marco Scutaro (who else?) on first, Buster smacked an errant changeup from Max Scherzer down the LF line just inside the pole to regain the lead and the momentum. It was as clutch a hit as you will find in the history of the organization, and so typically, totally Posey. Oh, and Matt Cain was the starting pitcher in each one of those games. If Tim Lincecum is The Franchise, then that dynamic duo must be The Pillars of Creation.

It's a great time to be a Giants fan.

--M.C.

Ridiculous

Major League Baseball should simply hand the post-season broadcast reins over to the Yankees Network. After all, the entire playoff schedule is based on making sure the Yankees are the prime time game. The Giants and the Cardinals, the last two World Series Champions, play at 1:00 p.m. Pacific Time today--that's 3:00 p.m. Central in St. Louis. That's a ridiculous time to start a baseball game. Unless, of course, you have to accommodate the Yankees. It's one thing to be the richest, most successful team. It's another to be constantly shoved down the throats of every baseball fan in America. Hey Bud, fans of other teams don't like the Yankees. Casual fans don't, either. The rest of the world is praying fervently that the Tigers send them packing. Look, we know that Steinbrenner, Inc. is on your speed dial and that you seek permission from them before you wipe your own ass, but maybe in the future you can be a little less obvious about it.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Survival!

The Giants found a way to win tonight. They worked some road magic and kept the Reds champagne on ice. I am still not sure what happened, but Scott Rolen couldn't cleanly handle a ground ball from Joaquin Arias and Buster Posey crossed the plate with the go-ahead run in the 10th and the LDS heads to Game Four. It was a crazy ending to an agonizing game. Once again Cincinnati's starter overwhelmed the Giants lineup, this time Homer Bailey didn't give up a hit until the 6th (Marco Scutaro) and struck out ten in his seven innings. Sean Marshall and Aroldis Chapman mowed down the next six with three strikeouts, and even losing pitcher Jonathan Broxton struck out the side! It was an impressive display of offensive futility by the good guys, but it somehow worked out. Ryan Vogelsong was headed for a meltdown in the 1st but got a little help from Brandon Phillips who tried to take third after a stealing second on a ball that got away from Buster. He was thrown out and it turned out to be a big play. Two hits, a walk, and a run later and the Reds had 1-0 lead. That was it, though, as Vogie settled down and put up four zeroes, giving him the best start so far in the series for the Giants. They tied it up without a hit in the 3rd when Gregor Blanco was hit by a pitch to open the inning. He scored after a walk to Brandon Crawford, a sacrifice bunt by Vogie, and a sacrifice fly by Angel Pagan. It went to extras 1-1 mostly due to some fine bullpen work. Jeremy Affeldt threw an impressive 6th and 7th, Santiago Casilla got three outs in the 8th while scaring the crap out of us, and Sergio Romo got three harmless fly balls in the 9th to preserve the tie. It was a game more reminiscent of the 2009-2011 torture teams and not the run-scoring crew that blew away the rest of the West in 2012.

But the 10th! Craziness was everywhere. Buster and Hunter Pence opened the inning with singles, but that's not the whole story. Pence tweaked his calf on a swing and limped around for a while before getting back in the box. We were told later it was just a cramp, but at the time it looked like he might have to come out. The Giants had already used everyone except Hector Sanchez. Boch pinch-hit with Aubrey Huff in the 6th in Vogie's spot, used righties Xavier Nady and Ryan Theriot against the lefty Marshall (that's when Arias entered the game as well), so the only bat left was the backup catcher. Pence then singled on a ball I thought was a double play off the bat. He had tried to bunt earlier but looked bad so perhaps Bochy said "ah hell, swing away." It paid off, but he was obviously gimpy going down the line and had little chance of scoring on anything but a home run. Brandon Belt was not asked to sacrifice, a little surprising given the situation, and unfortunately whiffed. Nady followed with another whiff, and it looked like the decision not to bunt would fuel second-guessing for an entire off-season. In the post-game interview, Boch said he had not asked Belt to bunt all year, liked the lefty matchup against Broxton, and didn't like the lack of speed on the bases. I don't usually quibble with the manager's decisions these days, he's proved to me over the years that he's smart and knows his guys. Hey, it all worked out, so no grumbling allowed. Reds catcher Ryan Hanigan let a ball get past him and the runners moved up 90 feet, then Arias hit a chopper to third that Rolen could get on the first grab and it was enough for him to beat it out and bring in the run. Sergio Romo was the next batter. Dusty Baker elected not to walk Arias after the passed ball and force Boch to use his last hitter. Romo struck out comically--he looks like a bearded Little Leaguer when he holds a bat--but that was another great move that paid off. Sergio had it going on in the bottom of the 10th and retired the final three easily to nail down the win.

The Giants got three hits. They struck out 16 times. Their starter threw 30 pitches in the 1st inning and immediately put the team behind. They were 0-5 with runners in scoring position. They used Xavier Nady in left field.

And they won the game.

The Giants live to fight on. Another game. This time I'll miss it. The 1:00 p.m. start time (PDT) stinks--I'll be working and out in the field. I might catch the tail end on my way home. Here's hoping they keep finding a way to win.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

It's all about the pitching

Baseball-Reference measures pitching using ERA+, which compares the league average ERA to a team or individual ERA. Thus, an ERA+ of 120 roughly means that the league is 20% worse (gives up 20% more earned runs per nine innings) than the pitcher or staff. FanGraphs uses ERA-, which flips the fraction over and compares an individual or team ERA to the league average. Thus, an ERA- of 80 would indicate a pitcher or staff that is 20% better (allows 20% fewer earned runs per nine) than the league. In both cases, a score of 100 would indicate unity, or league average. Both stats claim to have a park factor in the final result that adjusts for, say, playing in Fenway vs. Petco. Both are handy thumbnails for evaluating pitchers and pitching staffs.

I made a graph of the Giants team ERA+ and ERA- for the seasons 2009-2012. I treated the interim numbers for 2012 the same as the full-season numbers, just to get a quick snapshot of how the current guys compare. Madison Bumgarner actually made his debut in 2009, throwing ten innings over four games (one start). Tim Lincecum was the star of that squad, and both Matt Cain and Barry Zito had 33 starts apiece. Brian Wilson, Sergio Romo, Jeremy Affeldt, and Brad Penny were also on that staff. In 2010, The Bumbino had 18 starts and supplanted Barry-Z on the post-season roster. Santiago Casilla, Guillermo Mota, and Javier Lopez joined the fun. Last year Ryan Vogelsong emerged and Jonathan Sanchez pitched his last game as a Giant. Take a look:

As a team, the Giants ERA+ for 2009-20012 goes 120, 117, 110, and 97. That's 1st, 1st, 3rd, and 10th in the NL. Their ERA- goes 86, 85, 86, and 93, good for 2nd, 1st, 2nd, and 5th. I don't know why B-R rates the Giants so poorly compared to FanGraphs, but I suspect it has to do with the mysterious "park factors." Regardless, it is clear the staff is not as elite as it once was. We all know the culprit, of course, but Tim Lincecum gets some help from his bullpen, too. The loss of both Willie and WillyMo certainly hurt. The Giants are blessed with excellent starters and a talented relief corps. But team-wide they are much more prone to giving up runs than in the previous three seasons. Another way to look at this is to just take raw "runs allowed" numbers and compare them to the league average "runs allowed." The RA/lgRA ratio should be 1.00 for a "league average" team, eh?

2009: 611 RA, NL average 727; RA/lgRA 0.84

2010: 583 RA, NL average 705; RA/lgRA 0.83

2011: 578 RA, NL average 673; RA/lgRA 0.86

2012: 346 RA, NL average 368; RA/lgRA 0.94

No surprises, really. We know the staff is giving up more runs this year. The question is, will this trend toward average-ness continue? And will that hurt the team's chances? If the answer to the second question is "yes" (and I think it is) then we have to hope the answer to the first question is "no" (and I think it is). The Giants will find a fresh arm or two for the 'pen, and the laggards and slackers will pick it up. This I believe. Random events (injuries, for example) can derail the best-laid plans, so we'll just ignore them, OK?

The Second Half is upon us! I feared the Baseball Gods would punish Giants fans for stuffing the ASG ballot box, instead they blessed us for it. Let us hope they continue to bless the rest of the season. Perform your ablutions and make your sacrifices, my friends, the dark forces must be propitiated!

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

At the Break

In 2009, the Giants were 49-39 (.557) at the All-Star Break, but slumped a bit in the second half (39-35, .527) to finish in 3rd place, seven out, with an 88-74 record (.543). In 2010, they were two games worse at 47-41 (.534), but turned on the jets after that (45-29, .608) on the way to an NL West title (92-70, .568). They went 11-4 (.714) in the post-season to grab the crown. Last year there were 92 games before the Break, and the Giants racked up 52 wins against only 40 losses (.565). Unfortunately they stumbled badly the rest of the way (34-36, .486) and finished in second place, eight games out (86-76, .531). At 46-40 so far this season, they are tied with the Mets and the Cardinals for the sixth-best record in the NL. The Nationals, Pirates, Reds, Braves, and Dodgers are better, and the latter two by a mere half game. In the AL, only the Yankees, Rangers, Angels, and White Sox are playing above the Giants .535 pace. You have to think that a cumulative regular-season record of 312-260 (.545) since that breakout year in 2009 is pretty damn good, and ought to be the envy of many franchises. The club has not had a run like this since those 1997-2004 teams that averaged 92 wins per year and made four playoff appearances and won a pennant. Overall, including a 12-16 post-season record, they played .567 ball, which edges out the current club's .550 overall percentage.

Historical perspective is good in baseball. You have to take the long view in this game, because daily and weekly results can drive you mad. The Giants rode a streak of 36 scoreless innings to the top of the division only to blow it all with a wretched 2-7 stretch immediately after that. A 17-11 June with only 96 runs allowed loses a little luster when the team gives up 48 in the the first week of July. So let's get back to the long view. If they are indeed a .550 team, then we should expect 42 more wins which would only net them 88 overall. It might be enough to win the West, but it is not exactly promising. If they can play .600 ball the rest of the way, that would mean 46 more wins and 92 overall. I like that. 92-70 worked out well for San Francisco in 2010, and it would likely be enough to grab a playoff spot in 2012. Either way it doesn't look like the current .535 is going to cut it. Even if you think the Dodgers are pretenders and the Diamondbacks won't right the ship in time, the Giants will still have to separate themselves from the pack, and the only way to do that is to win lots more games. Ninety wins is usually a good target, that's 44 more, or a .579 pace the rest of the way. There are 17 games left in July, 29 in August, 27 in September, and three in October. Of the remaining 76 games, 39 are at home. The Giants are 26-16 (.619) at AT&T Park and 20-24 (.455) on the road. Those 37 away games loom large, especially since they finish the season with three in San Diego and three in LA. Let's shoot for 20-17 (.541) and 24-15 (.615) at the very least, shall we?

No matter how you slice it, it is going to be a close call, unless of course Tim Lincecum suddenly reverts back to The Franchise and runs out a dozen killer starts. I think he will find himself, but it won't be like flipping a switch. When you are in a deep hole you don't get out in one leap. It takes a lot of scrabbling first. So the rest of the team will have to do as well as they are already doing, and some other guys are going to have to improve. I pick Jeremy Affeldt and Javier Lopez, the highly-paid lefty specialists who are pitching like generic relievers so far. Gregor Blanco and Angel Pagan could stand to get their collective mojo back, and a bench guy like Nate Schierholtz could step it up, too. The Giants are last in the NL in pinch-hits with 15, for example. They need someone who can come in late and contribute with the stick. And the recurring power shortage (51 HR, tied with LA for last in the league, and 215 XBH, next-to-last with LA at 207) needs to be addressed. Perhaps the All-Star third baseman can get his big bat going again. With Freddy Sanchez out for the year, Ryan Theriot becomes hugely important. I really wish Bochy would not bat him second as his .632 OPS will not cut it there. That's too many PAs for a weak bat, I don't care how good he is at the hit-and-run or "moving the runner over" or any other dink-ball bullshit. Melky Cabrera can do everything The Riot can do and do it a hell of a lot better, so I say move M.C. to that spot and everyone else up one more notch. How about Buster Posey or Pablo Sandoval guaranteed an at-bat in the first inning of every game? Doesn't that sound good? Get the best hitters up sooner and more often and the team will score more. But I think that's a vain hope. Ol' Boch does a hell of a job with the pitching staff and with player attitude and morale, the two things a manager has to do properly. We are lucky to have him. But lineup construction is a weak point (how about Brandon Belt, .358 OBP, hitting second?), and even though the improvement may be marginal, this team needs every run they can squeeze out.

The 2012 Giants are in a good spot. They can legitimately call themselves contenders. They've managed to survive a historic collapse by their most valuable player. As long as the starters remain healthy and productive they will stay in the thick of it. Some shoring up of the bullpen may be inevitable, but I think we should be confident that The Brian Trust can find another arm, as that's their forte. A little lineup help would be good, too, but that's tricky. Mostly, they'll have to rely on the guys they have. Perhaps youngsters like The Brandons and Hector Sanchez will chip in a little more down the stretch. Mostly, though, the team needs Timmy. Even with a wide-open division, with no clearly dominant team, the Giants can't afford to throw away starts. The two other teams in the race have been hurt with key injuries (Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, Daniel Hudson, Stephen Drew, Joe Saunders) and have some guys under-performing (Justin Upton, James Loney), and that's been a boon to the Giants. We all know how hard it is to win when your guys are on the DL.

Ever since Atlee Hammaker gave up a grand slam to Fred Lynn in the 1983 All-Star Game, I get the heebee-jeebees when a Giants pitcher gets the ball. I shouldn't, I know, but I do. That was another one of those deeply scarring events. I'm obviously happy for Matt Cain, and he is certainly deserving of the starting honor. Not only that, he's NOT Atlee, and will do just fine against the AL. Need proof? Check this out. And there have been successful Giants All-Star pitchers since then (Jason Schmidt and Brian Wilson come to mind, and Timmy survived his start, if I remember). Mets fans have a beef about R.A. Dickey, to be sure, but they owe Tony LaRussa their wrath, not the Giants. I'm convinced he picked Cain because everyone expected him to pick Dickey, and we know how Tony loves to be contrary. Let's hope the NL wins eh?

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Tim Time

It's Tim Time in the pennant race. The Giants are getting world-class starts from Matt Cain, Madison Bumgarner, and Ryan Vogelsong, and even an occasional boost from Barry Zito. But The Freak has not been the same guy in 2012, and after 14 starts (two of them with Game Scores over 60), people are losing patience. Me, I refuse to panic or believe he's "done." This is one of the greatest players in club history. Name the other Giants pitcher with two Cy Young Awards. What? There isn't one? List all those other SF pitchers with four post-season wins and a World Series ring. What? There aren't any? Gosh, this guy's pretty good. Yeah, he's been stinking it up so far, but shit happens. It's how you respond to shit that makes you what you are, not the fact that shit happens. Tim is an ultra-competitive, brilliant and talented athlete. What makes these guys champions is their confidence in themselves. Their self-belief. Big Time Timmy Jim is still inside that guy with no. 55 on his back. He will be The Franchise again. It may be an ugly and painful journey, but what hero's quest is without hardship? He will find his way back. That I believe. As fans, we owe him a little faith. He led us to the Promised Land! He found the milk and honey after all those years of second-bests, also-rans, and booby prizes! No time to turn our backs on him now. (Not to mention the fact that the team won't win anything without him.) So I'm ready for some Tim Time, how about you?

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

The good, the bad, and the ugly (plus some weird)

The good: Giants go 4-11 with RISP.

The bad: they score only two runs. (That's what happens when you get only one extra-base hit, and that was leading off an inning. I swear the Giants must practice infield hits.)

The ugly: Barry Zito and his SEVEN walks. And more fielding lapses.

Giants survived Da Beezy's nonsense with some good relief work by the rooks and The Ancient One, but an inability to mount a threat or get a big hit ultimately doomed them. Ten hits, nine singles (three of the infield type), two measly fucking runs. Giants have allowed 11 hits and five runs in 19 innings and have two losses to show for it. That's great team pitching going to waste once again because of nostalgia for a 2011 offense-like product (you can't call 570 runs a real offense). What happened to the new and improved 2012 lineup? All these guys have to do is BE AVERAGE. The NL slash line is .249/.315/.386 and the Giants are .259/.310/.405 which is damn average, thank you very much. But they only have 93 RS (NL ave 100) and 89 RBI (NL ave 95). That ain't gonna work. And don't waste my time with dink-ball, the Giants are 13-21 in SB. Spare us the extra outs, please. This team has to do two things: (1) catch the fucking ball and make the fucking plays, and (2) get extra-base hits with men on base. The arms are there, it's arma virumque cano here at RMC, all day every day, with Matt Cain as Aeneas and me as goddamn Vergil.

Here's the weird: the Giants have the fewest batter strikeouts in the NL (138) and the fourth-fewest batter walks (62). The Giants make a lot of contact and put a lot of balls in play. They don't call Sir Meulens "Bam-Bam" for nothing, eh?

Oh, did I forget the injury to Pablo Sandoval? That helps.

--M.C.

Read this

post by Grant Brisbee at McCovey Chronicles.

--M.C.

If it's not too dear . . .

So the Giants threw money at Jeremy Affeldt and Javier Lopez. Like that worries you? The Giants may be the worst team in the league at allocating costs for all we know. And you know what it means? Nothing. The Giants believe in left-handed pitching. Hell,they believe in all pitching. Old pitching, young pitching, homegrown pitching, free-agent pitching, used-to-be-a-shortstop pitching, you know, pitching. So the Giants spent money on pitching, so get used to it. You want to know the Giants offensive plans for next year? Pablo Sandoval, Buster Posey, and you pick 'em. I pick Brandon Belt. That's it. So get used to lots of pitching.

Speaking of the whole world getting waaaaayyy too expensive, it will now cost me $210 to sponsor Matt Cain's Baseball-Reference page! Yikes. It used to be something like $20. Oh, what to do?

--M.C.

The Fat Lady is done singing

After the sixth game of this lively but bizarre Series, I thought a lot about our own Game Six. I couldn't sleep for several weeks after that debacle, and spent most of the off-season trying to come up with a newer, wiser, more mature relationship with the Giants and baseball in general. I failed. When the team was in first place for all of 2003 and yet again failed in the playoffs, I once again wallowed in despair. I won't enumerate the ups and downs of the following seasons, we know them all too well. Then 2010 happened. Then I gained that newer, wiser, and more mature relationship with baseball and the Giants. I know, it's damn shallow of me to only grow up after I get what I want. But it's the truth. And as desperately as I want the Giants to win another one, I think I can handle it if they don't. Think about it--you only have a 1-in-30 chance every season of getting the Big Prize. You should be happy if your team wins a title once every three decades. Even if you believe that only, say, half of the MLB teams in any season have a legitimate shot at glory, that still means a mere 1-in-15 chance. That's one World Series title every 15 years. I'll be 65 in the 2025 season. The St. Louis Cardinals have been to the Fall Classic THREE TIMES in the last EIGHT SEASONS. They've got two wins (2006 and 2011) and one loss (2004). That's a hell of a run. They lost the Series when they won 105 games and won the Series when they won 83 games and won again when they were the Wild Card. Go figure. They are the the best franchise in National League history with 18 flags and 11 rings since 1900. Frankly, I'd rather see someone else. Enough of them already. It's not that they didn't deserve it--last time I checked if you win 11 post-season games they declare you the champs. And they did that. Fair and square. So "Congrats" to the Redbirds. But at this point I'd like to see every other club who has never won, even if I dislike them, to win a title. The feeling that we all shared last season was so marvelous that I genuinely wished it upon all baseball fans. So forgive me if I feel bad for the Rangers. They had a great shot at glory and pissed it away. They spat in the eye of the baseball gods and paid the price. A younger, crasser version of me would have gone "HA-Haw!" like Nelson on the Simpsons. But I'm not like that any more. Older and wiser? I'm not so sure. Older and tired-er, maybe!

Baseball is the only sport that has ever caused me to be philosophical. I used to watch lots of other games and I used to get passionate about the outcomes. Now I don't care. I enjoy following crazy shit like rugby and cricket and whatnot, but my involvement is purely recreational. Baseball is different. My devotion to the game and in particular to the fate of the Giants is quite unlike any other hobby, avocation, or passion that I pursue. It is close to a religious experience for me, a distinctly un-religious person. That is, I enmesh myself in ritual and have strict codes of conduct. I interpret the events on a non-local level. I embrace mystery and random fluctuation. I view "reality" as 162 stops on a rosary that I finger day and night. I pray for deliverance--to what I don't know, and for what reason I can't be sure. And now it is over. The Fat Lady has sung.

I can't wait for Spring Training.


GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Game of My Life

Thanks to the nice folks at Skyhorse Publishing** I was treated to a review copy Matt Johanson's Game of My Life: San Francisco Giants. Originally published in 2007, the new edition now includes vignettes from the 2010 championship season. Each chapter focuses on a particular player and their most memorable game in orange-and-black. It starts with Orlando Cepeda's debut in 1958--which was also the first Giants game in San Francisco--and ends with Brian Wilson's save in Game Five of the 2010 World Series. Along the way the reader is treated to terrific stories from the likes of "Dirty Al" Gallagher, Tito Fuentes (a childhood favorite of mine), Dan Gladden, Robby Thompson, Darren Lewis, Kirk Rueter, Rich Aurilia, and many other fan favorites and interesting characters. I particularly enjoyed reliving Bob Brenly's "greatest Humm-Baby performance of all time" game (9/14/86) since I was in attendance with much of my regular Candlestick posse (you know who you are). Frank Gunther, one of the crew, actually caught Brenly's game-winning homer when it bounced up to our seats in Section 30 in the LF bleachers. I will also never forget Mike Krukow's complete game victory over the St. Louis Cardinals in Game Four of the 1987 NLCS. We were lucky enough to have scored tickets in Section 2, right behind home plate. After Jeffrey Leonard's improbable, wind-aided home run that gave the Giants the lead my buddy Ron (yes, that Ron) was so excited he started beating on me and I collapsed to the concrete in a fetal position. Never was getting the wind knocked out of me so worth it! Giants fans will recognize many of the great moments: Will Clark's big hit off Mitch Williams to win the pennant in 1989, Brian Johnson's homer in extras to beat the Dodgers in 1997 (and Rod Beck's miraculous pitching in the same game), Kenny Lofton's hit in 2002 to send the team to the Series, and Jonathan Sanchez' no-hitter against the Padres in 2009. Players from the obscure Brian Dallimore to all-time great Willie Mays share their anecdotes, making Game of My Life a must-read for Giants fans. Mr. Johanson has done an excellent job assembling all the stories and adding his own take on the colorful history of the many who've worn the Giants uniform. He's also--like me--a California public high school teacher! That's extra credit, for sure.

--M.C.



**Game of My Life is published by their subsidiary Sports Publishing.

Thank goodness for the little things

At least the Giants had the good grace to collapse early enough in the second-half of the season so that we weren't on pins-and-needles until the bitter end. My gosh, the epic face plants by the Atlanta Braves and Boston Red Sox will be talked about for years. The Tampa Bay Rays and the St. Louis Cardinals overcame the largest deficits in playoff history! The Sox had the Orioles down to their final strike with no one on base and lost. The Rays were down 7-0 and won. The Phillies came back in the 9th to tie the Braves and won in extras while the Cards got a shutout from their ace. If the Giants had put us through a September like that (Sox 7-20, Braves 9-18) we'd have gone insane. The Braves lost their last five games! The Sox lost their last eight series! I suppose nothing will ever be worse than watching the Giants lose Game Six in 2002--that still gives me the heebee-jeebees. But the Braves were 8-1/2 games ahead and the Sox were nine up at the start of the month. Imagine if that had been the Giants!

Giants go 11-7 in their final inning which included an eight-game winning streak and a four-game losing streak. The season goes 10-8, 10-8, 9-9, 10-8, 11-7, 11-7, 6-12, 8-10, and 11-7 for a grand total of 86-76. They out-perform their Pythagorean record of 80-82 because Bruce Bochy is a genius or they got to play Colorado (13-5) and San Diego (12-6) a lot. Either reason works for me. The Giants scored 570 runs--total--in 162 games which is one of the "little things" I was talking about (3.52 rpg). Man, that's some feeble offense. The 1985 (62-100) Giants scored 556 runs. The only other seasons that were worse since the team moved west were 1994 (504) and 1981 (427). Those "seasons" only lasted 115 and 111 games apiece. Last year's offensive juggernaut rolled out 697 runs! What mashers!

The 2011 club misses the playoff by four lousy games (Cards finish 90-72) despite the horrible hitting. FOUR GAMES! Just for fun, pick out your four favorite games that they "shoulda won." I'll start. How about Tim Lincecum's four losses to Clayton Kershaw?

Your turn.

--M.C.

MadNumbers

Madison Bumgarner

Stat--NL rank

ERA 3.21--11th
WHIP 1.21--19th
IP 204-2/3--17th
QS 23--T7th
AGS 56--10th
K/9 8.29--12th
K/BB 4.15--6th

FanGraphs has not updated their site to include last night but MadBum was 4th in the NL in FIP (2.73) behind Roy Halladay (2.20), Clayton Kershaw (2.47) and Cliff Lee (2.60). He's 5th (5.3) in WAR. I expect he'll pass Matt Cain (5.4) and finish 4th in that category. I'm not up to speed on the saber-stats tERA and SIERA but our boy is 7th in both. I figure they must be excellent metrics. He was 0-6 at one point this season and 2-9 at another. He finished 13-13, tied for the team lead in wins. He's a beast no matter how you measure it!

Eric Surkamp goes today instead of Cain. The rookies--Brandon Belt, Brandon Crawford, and Conor Gillaspie--shined last night. Let's hope the young lefty keeps that going. No matter what happens today the Giants will finish at least four games up on LA and at least 10 games over .500. Like I said before, not bad for the worst offense in baseball.

--M.C.

The Never-Ending Vogel-Story

A crisp and efficient Ryan Vogelsong mowed down his favorite club to pitch against (4-0, 0.96 ERA vs. Colorado) and the Giants secured second place with their 85th win. The 34-year old righty goes to arbitration after this season and is a free agent in 2013. He leads the team in ERA (2.71, 4th in the NL) and is tied for the team-high in victories with 13. Not a bad place to be when you go to the bargaining table. FanGraphs rates his season at 2.6 WAR, just behind Shaun Marcum (2.7) and just ahead of Derek Lowe (2.5) for the 23rd spot in the league. The Giants have three guys in the top ten: Matt Cain (5.4, 4th), Madison Bumgarner (5.3, 5th), and Tim Lincecum (4.6, 10th). Only the Phillies can boast better with the 1st, 3rd, and 6th spots. Voglesong is also 21st in the NL in FIP, 22nd in Quality Starts, 10th in Average Game Score, and 23rd in WHIP. Not bad for a fourth or fifth starter.

MadBum goes tonight. He will likely top 200 IP for the season. If Cain goes Wednesday afternoon as scheduled he will likely reach his career high in innings as well.

The Giant wasted one hell of a lot of good pitching this season.

--M.C.

Kinda Wimpy Tim

Perhaps I'm being rather over critical, but I'm a little peeved at how Tim Lincecum (13-14, YUCK) lost control of, and then, lost the game.  No big deal since the game was meaningless, but it was a chance for us to regain some dignity.  Yeah right, like that was going to happen this year.

Specifically, I'm disappointed that Tim let the beaning of Justin Upton get to him.  I know it is scary when the helmet is involved and people go down in a heap. And I'm not saying he deserved to get plugged, but Upton crowds the plate and getting hit is part of his game.  I believe that was #18 this year which ranks him third.  Yet it really rattled Tim. Lincecum admitted that it effected his approach for the rest of his mediocre outing.  Anybody else think that is sort of lame for "big time" MLB pitcher?  I know Timmeh isn't Bob Gibson, but we sure could have used some grit from our "ace."

I guess this is a poor time to assess the complicated 2011 Tim Lincecum season. What with me being so pissy and all.  We may have wait until I've regained some composure...how does February sound?

Well, that's a relief

I was getting tired of running out the string on the seemingly endless and highly improbable playoff scenarios. It is now mercifully over. Arizona put us all out our collective misery last night with a 3-1 win that looked a lot like the kinds of wins the Giants got last season. Bully for them. They won fair and square. I'm not a sour grapes sort of fellow (anymore, that is, middle age has its benefits) and have no problem saying "congratulations" to the new NL West champions. A lot of things went wrong in the 2011 title defense. Buster. More DL. Still more DL. Belt-gate. RISP-death. You name it, it happened. At the same time, the pitching was awesome and the Panda re-emerged from hibernation. It would be nice if the team could win a few ballgames before the end. Score a few runs. Not get Cained again. We'll see. As I type this, the Braves are losing. Please win. 'Cold turkey' is the best way to get clean, isn't it?

Sharpen your offseason digital pencils, mates. We'll have to get things figured out for 2012, eh? No hurry, though. I'm tired and I'm going to take a break.

--M.C.

Keepin' up appearances

It was one of those painful lessons you had to learn as a kid. You know, you'd be pissed off at some kid stuff or at your parents or somesuch and yet you had to bottle it all up inside and comb your fucking hair and button your goddamn shirt and still smile and shake hands and say "fine" and "good" and "thank you" and all the rest of the polite shite that was expected of you when all you really wanted to do was kick someone or break something and tell the world to "eat shit and die." Remember? That's what this feels like. The Giants are done. Don't talk to me about the Wild Card. Four games out with six to play? Yeah, I believe it is possible for both St. Louis and Atlanta to take a massive double-dump and give the club and opening. Here's the rub, though--the Giants would still have to win a shitload of games. You could have a sumo wrestler-sized offensive line who could open a hole you could slide a Winnebago through and hand the goddamn ball to this team and they'd fall down after a two-yard gain and then get penalized for illegal motion. You see? I'm resorting to fecking football metaphors! It's over. The fat lady hasn't sung--yet--but she will, and the sooner the better from where I'm sitting. I said all those nice things about MadBum and he looked like crap. That's OK, I'm sticking by what I wrote. He's going to open some eyes next year.

They moved up Cain to tonight's game.

--M.C.

Seven games to go

The Giants earned their ninth win over the Dodgers last night and can secure the season series with a win today. The D-backs also won and their magic number is down to two. They'll only need to win one game this weekend to clinch the West (they are off today). I heard some talk that Matt Cain would get moved up to pitch Friday night in Phoenix, but the website still says it is Eric Surkamp. If so, perhaps Ol' Boch is offering him up as the sacrificial lamb so Kirk & Co. can get the dog-piling and champagne-spilling over with ASAP. That's OK by me. All that's left for the Giants is a long, long shot at the Wild Card (3-1/2 back), but we've all stuck our forks in them already, so I can live with dropping the pretense. They had a nice run and earned back some respectability. With two more wins they can guarantee themselves second place. Not bad for the worst offense in baseball.

If Cain pitches Friday, he'll get the last start of the year on Wednesday at home against the Rockies. If he goes Saturday, he'll be done, and the rookie will get the call for game 162. We know what Matt can do, perhaps it is best to give the youngster another real-time audition before next spring. Tim Lincecum gets his final start of the year on Sunday. Ryan Vogelsong, who looks a little ragged and run-down at this point, would then get the Monday game at home. 172-2/3 IP is his career high, so I'm not surprised he's gassed. All the better to prep him for a full season in 2012. Madison Bumgarner goes today, and gets his last start on Tuesday at home. That will be 33 starts and over 200 IP for the super southpaw.

GO GIANTS! BEAT LA!

--M.C.