All righties

If the Giants opened the baseball season tomorrow their starting pitchers would all be right-handed. Is this a problem? Probably. But there is plenty of time to scrape up some scrappy southpaws before Spring Training, am I right? I am.

The word is that lefty starter Andrew Suarez is signing with a KBO club and that opened up a spot on the 40-man. The Giants promptly filled it with a right-hander, 30-year old Anthony DeSclafani, most recently of the Cincinnati Reds. The accent is on the "De" as in "DEE-scla-faw-nee" and he's been a 2.5+ WAR pitcher in the past. If he joins Shaun Anderson, Logan Webb, Johnny Cueto, and Kevin Gausman in the rotation that's five right-handers. That's a big "if" as Spring Training is a long way away!

The Giants also added righty reliever Matt Wisler, a 28-year old with big strikeout stuff. They also picked up an intriguing Rule V player from the Mets, RHP Dedniel Nunez. His A-ball numbers are 33 K in 22 IP (85 TBF) with only 3 BB.

Pitching, pitching, pitching. The Giants need lots of it, so let's keep the arms a-comin'!

--M.C.

The New Minor Leagues

When you and I say "baseball" we mean the game. The sport. The players. The parks. The lines on the field. The pitching, the fielding, the hitting. That sort of thing.

When MLB says "baseball" they mean "MLB." The © ™ $ sort of thing.

MLB, its monopoly status reinforced by the powers-that-be over the last 100 years, will now absorb the minor leagues, downsizing them in the process. Is that still a thing, "downsizing"? It sounds so 80s, I don't think they call it that anymore. "Slash-and-burn" seems better. Anyway, each of the 30 MLB clubs will get four minor league affiliates, one each at AAA, AA, Advanced-A, and A-level, meaning 120 total. Several dozen minor league franchises and some leagues will evaporate. MLB is the only game in town and you either join up or get left behind.

There really ought to be independent baseball. It would be good for the game. Imagine if a plucky startup league featured briskly played games with lots of balls in play, and contrasted that with the lumbering MLB pace and over-reliance on the long ball. It would be good for fans and the competition would force MLB to improve their product. But MLB is a protected monopoly, and it will do its very best to cease-and-desist your ass into submission if you do your own thing.

Frankly, that's un-American. Much of MLB is un-American, and it ought not to be. The draft is the most blatant insult to the basic liberty of citizens seeking to ply their trade. From that follows all the contractual nonsense that is nothing more than vestiges of the odious reserve clause. And the stifling of competition, when "the free market" is so fundamental to the American Mythos, goes beyond hypocrisy to apostasy. The business of sports in America is disturbingly at odds with its nauseous self-promotion.

One has to put on one's big-boy pants to stay sane. Contradiction is the adult state of life!

So, back to the news. The Giants, it seems, will retain their links to Sacramento at the AAA level and also to Richmond (VA) at the AA-level. The San Jose club will become A-level, dropping a notch, and the new Advanced-A team will be the Eugene Emeralds. There are no AA-leagues west of Texas, by the way. I'm sure everyone will say they are excited and look forward to the future and in the meantime there will be lawsuits and other wrangling going on but in the end the juggernaut will prevail.

Now if we can get MLB and MLBPA to hammer out a new agreement so we have the possibility of baseball in 2021 that would be a hopeful start. The pandemic will of course decide how things play out this spring, but I remain oddly optimistic. I'm not sure why I can rant about the ravenous excesses of capitalism in one paragraph and feel upbeat in another, I've no rational explanation. Perhaps I'm figuring 2021 will, just by the fact it is not 2020, be better!

Happy Holidays!

--M.C.

Finis

The 2020 baseball season ended last night with the Los Angeles Dodgers beating the Tampa Bay Rays by a score of 3-1 in Game Six of the World Series. LA takes the crown, four games to two. Manager Kevin Cash of the Rays will be answering the "why did you pull Blake Snell?" question for the rest of his baseball life, I suppose. The Dodgers celebration was tainted by a positive COVID-19 test on Justin Turner who had to be removed from the game. MLB had gone almost two months without incident, and the playoff bubble had appeared to work beautifully, so the news was a bit of a shock. The virus has a way of defeating the best laid plans, it seems.

The Rays were a spirited and determined opponent and their bunch of "no-names" made some noise on the big stage. Game Four was one of the most fun and interesting post-season games I've ever watched. In fact, it was a good, competitive contest overall and showcased some great baseball. This is a Giants site and I've no enthusiasm for a Dodgers win but I will say that is a very familiar team. I feel like I know every player on the roster! Not just from the regular-season games these last several years but from all the playoff exposure, too. Anyway, I have a lot of friends who root for the blue and I am happy for them. Watching your favorite team win the World Series is a great thing.

I'm not one to put an asterisk on a record or a season. MLB and the MLBPA sat down and figured out the rules for a 60-game season. The Dodgers and Rays dominated that format. MLB and MLBPA sat down again and hammered out a post-season schedule. The Dodgers and Rays dominated that format as well, with LA coming out on top. All a team can do is navigate with the road map they are given regardless if it looks like last year's map or not. The Dodgers are the legitimate champions of baseball.

--M.C.

Odds

The Dodgers are favorites, to no one's surprise. The moneyline at Vegas Insider says -200 on LA (bet $200 to win $100) and +175 on TB (bet $100 to win $175). In fractional odds that's 1/2 on the Dodgers and 7/4 on the Rays.

I think it will be a close contest. The Dodgers have the depth and star power and I think that gives them a slight edge. They are also the home team (they bat last in Games One, Two, Six, and Seven) and that is also a slight edge. The Rays will have to summon their inner David to beat the LA Goliath. Sometimes, when two teams are even on paper, one will get hot and blow out the other. I think it is more likely LA can do that to TB than the other way around. Then again, the Rays have defied everyone's expectations this year, perhaps they will be the ones with the big performances and pull off an upset.

Tyler Glasnow and Clayton Kershaw face off in Game One tonight at 5:11 Pacific.

--M.C.

116th World Series

The Dodgers edged the Braves 4-3 to take Game Seven of the NLCS and advance to the World Series to face the Rays. Check this out: Cody Bellinger, he of the game-winning homer, "popped" his shoulder celebrating! You really don't want to get injured that way, do you?

The games begin on Tuesday, 5:09 p.m. Pacific. The Dodgers will be the home team. The schedule will include the usual off-days between Games Two and Three and Games Five and Six. All the games will be played in Texas, at Globe Life Field in Arlington.

--M.C.

Rays prevail

The Tampa Bay Rays won the first three games in the American League Championship Series only to watch their opponents--the Houston Astros--win the next three contests and force a Game Seven. The Rays prevailed 4-2 tonight in San Diego to punch their ticket to the World Series. Meanwhile in Arlington the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had fallen behind two games to none and three games to one against the Atlanta Braves, eked out a 3-1 win this afternoon in Game Six (after a 7-3 win Friday in Game Five). They will play the deciding Game Seven of the National League Championship Series tomorrow at 5:15 Pacific. I figured both LCS matchups would be close so I'm not surprised that both went to seven games. I'm happy for the Rays as I like the way they run that team and I like to see a good process rewarded. I'm not a fan of either the Dodgers or the Braves so all I really want tomorrow is a good game. Game One of the World Series is scheduled for Tuesday.

--M.C.

5-0

The Rays pitching and fielding have stymied the Astros so far and they take a 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven ALCS. Game Four is at 5:40 PT. The vaunted Dodgers have looked quite ordinary and they find themselves trailing the sizzling Atlanta Braves 2-0 in the NLCS. Game Three is at 3:05 PT. I thought both series would be more evened-up at this point.

Schedule is here.

--M.C.

LCS

The American League Championship Series begins on Sunday. The Tampa Bay Rays will host the Houston Astros at San Diego's Petco Park. The Rays edged a powerful New York Yankees team and continue to play excellent baseball. They finished the season on an 8-2 run on the way to a 40-20 record, second only to the 43-17 Los Angeles Dodgers, and took the AL East by seven games over the Yanks. The Astros powered past the Oakland Athletics, a team they finished seven games behind in the the AL West.

The National League Championship Series begins on Monday. The Dodgers welcome the Atlanta Braves to the Texas Ranger's Globe Life Field. Both teams have won all five of their post-season games. The Braves have thrown four shutouts. The Braves won the NL East by four games over the Miami Marlins, the team they beat in the LDS. The Dodgers won the NL West by six games over the Padres, the team they beat in the LDS.

I was disappointed the A's didn't make it through, they have had a good club for some time now but have yet to break through to the the LCS or World Series. The Rays are a very interesting team, the way they move players around and put them in many different roles is really something. In 60 games they had 60 different lineups, and 12 different pitchers earned a save for them this season. I'm rooting for them to get to the Series.

--M.C.

LDS

With the first-round madness out of the way the field is set for the League Division Series. It is a best-of-five with no off-days. The ALDS starts Monday, the NLDS on Tuesday.

The ALDS pits the Houston Astros against the Oakland Athletics in Los Angeles, and the Tampa Bay Rays taking on the New York Yankees in San Diego.

The NLDS features the San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers battling in Arlington, with the Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins squaring off in Houston.

Here's the updated bracket:

 

You can see that there were three upsets: the Marlins beating the Cubs, the Yankees beating the Indians, and the Astros beating the Twins. In the other five matches the higher seed won.

Here's a cut-and-paste from MLB:

Here's the link to the broadcast information.

Enjoy!

--M.C.

Post-season

This was on the MLB homepage:

 

ESPN has the schedule:

 

Check the link for the rest of the games.

--M.C.

It's Over

SD 5  SF 4

The Giants were done after that bone-crushing loss in the final inning on Friday night. Yesterday they showed some spunk but not enough to challenge for a win, and today they fought back gamely but could not conjure up the victory they needed. They had some fine individual efforts over the last two days, but they did not have the team-wide x-factor they needed to finish strong, especially against a much more talented club. I had one goal for this team: improve. But, I had a yardstick: play .500 ball. They didn't measure up, but they certainly improved. I think FZ, Kap, and the players deserve a lot of credit for exceeding expectations and playing meaningful games until the bitter end.

And it was a bitter end. On Wednesday the Giants found themselves in an unexpected place: in charge of their post-season destiny. I didn't write much about the team's post-season chances because even at their highest point I considered them slim, and I viewed a seeding in the tournament as a bonus, not a goal. Alas, they really were close--they really did have a strong chance. In fact, all the other teams helped them out today--a win would have assured them a playoff spot! But that loss on Thursday set them back. Despite a great effort in the double-header on Friday they came out with another brutal defeat, a real shoulda-coulda-woulda kinda game. As I said at the top, I think that finished them.

The Giants had to play 26 games against three of the best teams in baseball this year, the A's, the Dodgers, and the Padres. They were 7-19 against them, a .269 percentage! They were 22-12 (.647) against the rest of their opponents and finish 29-31 or a .483 mark. That's better than 2019 (.475), 2018 (.451), and 2017 (.395) Those were full 162-game campaigns so I know it's not an entirely fair comparison, but I'm looking for improvement.

If you want to be a good team, you have to play better against other good teams, and that's an obvious goal for next year. But we'll talk about next season later. This season was weird, of course, but I'm really happy we got to have a season at all. Sports without fans in the stands is bizarre, but I'll enjoy the post-season even if I won't follow it too closely. I'll certainly watch the World Series.

I suspect lots of things will be different about baseball going forward. I suspect we'll have lots to talk about in the coming months. As always,

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

One More Chance

SD 6  SF 2

The Giants have one more game to play, one last chance to finish the season with 30 wins and a .500 record. After last night's brutal loss the team was perhaps a bit down and didn't play with the spark they needed. The lineup could not get anything going early on and when they finally did rally in the 8th they could not get the big hit. The Padres win for the seventh time in nine games against the Giants this season.

The team is clearly gassed. San Diego is flying high and rolling into the post-season as one of the top-seeded clubs. It is not a good matchup. That being said, Drew Smyly gets a chance tomorrow afternoon at 12:05 Pacific and the boys just might have one last fight in them. I'd like to see a nice nine-run outburst, wouldn't you?

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

p.s. Mike Yastrzemski gets the Willie Mac Award and I think it was an easy pick and certainly well-deserved.

Split

SF 5  SD 4

SD 6  SF 5

The Giants got a great start from Tyler Anderson in the first game and took a 5-1 lead into the final frame (the 7th!). The Padres rallied for three runs, aided by some poor umpiring, but Tony Watson hung on and saved a big win. Watson was charged with an error when he hit Manny Machado with a throw. Machado was not in the running lane and should have been out, but the umps missed it. In the end it didn't matter and the Giants were able to get it done. But plays like that should be reviewable, or at the very least the home plate umpire should be forced to get a second opinion--there's no excuse for that. They paint the lines on the damn field for a reason! The lineup did its damage in the 4th with homers from Mike Yastrzemski and Wilmer Flores.

In the second game the Giants were down 3-2 in the 6th but rallied behind a massive three-run homer from Wilmer Flores off Drew Pomeranz to take a 5-3 lead. Those were the only runs Pomeranz has allowed this season. Unfortunately the Padres once again rallied in bottom of the 7th for three runs, and this time it was enough to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. Sam Coonrod was the victim, giving up a three-run homer to Trent Grisham, adding another brutal loss to the season's tally. The Giants managed a split but it sure felt like they should have pulled off the sweep. Two things of note: the Padres were the home team in Game 2 as it was a make-up game from the postponement in San Diego, and Jeff Samardzija started for the Giants, likely his last appearance in orange-and-black.

29-29 with two games to play, Saturday at 6:15 p.m. and Sunday at 12:05 p.m. (PDT).

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

The one that got away

COL 5  SF 4 (11)

Feels like the Giants have suffered more than a few brutal losses in this strange, truncated season, and today was certainly one of those. You can't mess with the baseball gods. If you get chances and continue to blow them they will make you pay. The Giants had the matchup they wanted with Kevin Gausman against Chi Chi Gonzalez. They jumped on him for two runs in the 1st but it felt like it could have been four, and they added another in the 2nd that felt like it could have been three. Missed opportunities! The lineup should have chased Gonzalez but he hung around and kept the Giants to three runs in 5-1/3 IP. Meanwhile the Rockies kept harassing Gausman with long counts and plenty of singles and he finally departed after six with a 3-2 lead. The bullpen couldn't hold it and it was 4-3 Colorado in the 8th but Brandon Belt tied it with a homer. Finally, in the 10th, the Giants held the line and did not allow the magic runner to score, but could not get it done in the bottom half despite a splendid opportunity. In the 11th the Rockies scored and held the line against the Giants and that was that.

It was a big chance for the home squad but a determined opponent and the wrath of the baseball gods did them in. Doubleheader with the Padres tomorrow, first game at 4:10, the second at 7:10 p.m. Pacific.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Another clutch win

SF 7  COL 2

The Giants employed the opener tonight, using Caleb Baragar in the 1st inning, and he went 1-2-3, but gave up a double to start the 2nd. Then they used Logan Webb. He produced a serviceable 5-1/3, facing danger in every frame, but got the team into the 7th allowing only two runs. Power from an unlikely source--a three-run blast from Mauricio Dubon--had given the Giants the lead in 5th and they never looked back. They tacked on two more in the 8th and rode the 'pen to another big win. Tyler Rogers picked up the last two outs after Webb, Tony Watson handled the 8th, and Sam Selman finished it.

Brandon Belt's three hits brought his career total to 999 and his RBI in the 8th made it 1,000 for his career. Alex Dickerson also had three hits--he's slugging .606! Evan Longoria added a solo shot and walked twice, and added some sterling fielding at the hot corner. Steven Duggar rather than Jaylin Davis got the call-up and responded with an RBI hit in the 8th, driving in Joey Bart who had tripled. Duggar had a walk earlier and also caught the final out. I think his defense is part of the promotion, and Kap said his lefty bat was a factor.

The Giants have had a rough time with the Rockies this season, and the win tonight brings their record to four wins against five losses, so a win tomorrow can even up the series. Both Baggs and AmyG just tweeted that Kevin Gausman will start tomorrow afternoon, 12:45 Pacific.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Clutch win

SF 5  COL 2

Giants get back to .500 with some good pitching and timely hitting, a tried-and-true formula. This year's variation on that formula involves getting better matchups and we saw that tonight. Righty Austin Slater led off against southpaw Kyle Freeland and hit a homer, and struggling righty Joey Bart got an RBI double in the 5th off the same lefty. With the game at 2-2 in the 7th, lefty pinch-hitter Alex Dickerson launched a homer off righty reliever Jairo Diaz and lefty pinch-hitter Brandon Belt added a booming two-run double in the same frame and that set up the win. Tony Watson and Sam Coonrod got the last six outs. Drew Smyly started and was effective for 5-1/3, with Trevor Cahill, Jarlin Garcia, and Tyler Rogers bridging the gap. The Giants are 27-27 with six games remaining. They are averaging about five runs on both sides of the ball, scoring 272 and allowing 269 in the 54 games. They are 17-10 at home and of course they are 10-17 away.

A couple of nine-run games would be nice, don't you think? No starter announced for tonight's 6:45 contest but maybe Logan Webb could go on four days rest (he pitched Friday). Trevor Cahill faced only three batters last night so you'd think he could deliver some "bulk innings" in relief. We'll see.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C. 

 

p.s. FNG OF Luis Basabe had to leave the game in the 3rd when he tweaked his hamstring. FNG IF Daniel Robertson had to play in left field, and he got his first ever OF assist when he threw out Garrett Hampson in the 7th trying to stretch a single into a double. I like both of these players and hope they are part of the mix next spring.

That hurts

COL 7  SF 2

Johnny Cueto pitched one of his worst games ever and the Giants were shut down by German Marquez. They drop to 26-27 with the loss. There are three more to play against the Rockies and then four (Friday is a doubleheader) against the Padres to end the season.

Drew Smyly goes tonight (6:45 Pacific).

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

I was happy at nine

 SF 14  OAK 2

The Giants saved up all their runs for today and gave the Athletics a good pasting. This team really can pile it on and I'm not used to that. San Francisco certainly owed it to their Oakland neighbors as they had been on the opposite end of a streak of pastings, a streak finally snapped this afternoon. That ends the season series, a lopsided 1-5 in the six (three home, three away) games.

Tyler Anderson pitched well, giving up a couple of runs in the 6th with an 8-0 lead, certainly an encouraging performance from the lefty. The inning started with a rare error from first baseman Brandon Belt and the runs were unearned. Shaun Anderson, Caleb Baragar, and Wandy Peralta put together a scoreless 3-1/3 to finish things. The Giants were able to take advantage of a good start unlike yesterday when they squandered Kevin Gausman's excellent effort.

The big bopper was Brandon Crawford with a double and a homer, a grand slam that "broke the game open" as they like to say. Joey Bart got a day off (he needed it!) and Chadwick Tromp responded with three hits including a two-run homer. Darin Ruf, after two misplays in left field yesterday, bounced back with two hits and four runs batted in, one of the hits a two-run homer. There were lots of highlights!

The Rockies come to town tomorrow evening at 6:45 Pacific. Johnny Cueto, scratched from the start today, gets the call.

GO GIANTS!

--M.C.

Again?

See yesterday.

Tyler Anderson this afternoon.

--M.C.

Skunked

OAK 6  SF 0 

Logan Webb has some seriously nasty stuff but he had some serious command issues tonight and got predictably clobbered by the A's disciplined lineup. In the 1st inning Donovan Solano made a Little League error that led to a run but the three-run homer by Matt Olson in the 3rd made everyone forget about it. Meanwhile Chris Bassitt, after a strong campaign last year, is having his best season and he made the Giants lineup look punchless. The A's have a really good team and the Giants have a hard time against good teams. They have not won against Oakland yet this year. Even if they had won one of the two Trevor Gott meltdown games they would still be over-matched. Let's hope they play better this weekend!

Kevin Gausman tomorrow at 1:10.

Go Giants!

--M.C.