MadBeast!!

Madison Bumgarner has certainly delivered since getting the call-up. Three starts: 22 IP, 17 H, 8 R, 5 BB, 15 SO against Boston, Colorado, and Milwaukee, all potent-hitting clubs. Tonight he racked up a Game Score of 78 by throwing EIGHT shutout innings! MadBeast even clubbed an RBI-single in the top of the 8th inning. Before I get too excited about a young pitcher, I always remind myself that Ed Halicki once threw a no-hitter, and I thought he was the Second Coming. Of course, I was in high school at the time and had none of the veteran savvy wisdom I now possess. Nonetheless, in a dismal stretch of Giants baseball, Madison Bumgarner has been a bright spot.

For the second straight night, the Brewers botched an inning-ending double play ball and the Giants capitalized with a heap o'runs. This time it was veteran Craig Counsell who made an errant throw, saving Pablo Sandoval from ignominy. I like playing the Brewers. Let's see if we can get the schedule changed so we can play them some more. In fact, let's just stay in the NL Central (17-7 record) the rest of the way, OK?

The Franchise goes tomorrow. His last two starts have been troubling: 9 IP, 14 H, 8 R, 7 BB, 8 SO against Boston and Colorado. Is it just normal variation? The usual ups and downs that every pitcher goes through? Or is Tim's Missing Mojo the sign of something else? Fatigue? Injury? This guy has shouldered not only a huge workload but the enormous expectations of the organization and the fan base. It's a lot, even for an exceptional talent like Tim. The baseball season is a long, hard slog--a war of attrition. Let's hope our No. 1 guy gets his groove back soon. So far, Milwaukee seems like the place to do it.

--M.C.

Brewers play like Giants, lose game

The Giants found a squad to beat in Milwaukee. It took until the 7th inning, and it took a spot of good luck, but the lads put together a rally to break the 1-1 tie and win the game. Hits by Buster Posey and Travis Ishikawa opened the inning, and Edgar Renteria botched a bunt for the first out, but Andres Torres walked. Freddy Sanchez then hit a double play ball right at Alcides Escobar but the young shortstop booted it--everyone was safe and a run scored. Aubrey Huff got his third hit of the day, driving in two with a single. The Giants smelled a win. Pat Burrell's fly ball moved FSanchez to third and he scored on a wild pitch. It was 5-1 when all was said and done. Buster added a nice opposite-field solo shot in the 8th to make it 6-1, and that's how it ended. The Giants caught a break with the blown DP, but to their credit, they took advantage of it. Jonathan Sanchez wasn't sharp (6 walks), but he didn't crumble either, and pitched out of a few sticky spots to keep the game close. It feels good to think that it's the other guys who are rueing missed opportunities for a change. The Brewers wasted a good start from David Bush (Game Score 61), couldn't get a big hit (0-12 w/ RISP), and made a crucial error. Giants fans know that sort of ball doesn't win you many games.

MadBum tomorrow!

--M.C.

Giants play 1-2/3 games, lose only 1

Matt Cain's evil twin (Loki Cain) replaced the real Matt Cain in his last two starts. Today, the The Real Matt Cain showed up and stamped-out a standardized CainStart™: 7 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 6 SO, Game Score 55, ND. That ND was courtesy of a lovely bit of ball by the Giants in the 8th when Matt was still on the hook for a loss. Olympic Nate leads off with a homer. Funny chap, this Nate, every time I give up on him he does something flashy. Then Andres Torres gets a ground ball inside-the-park-homerun! Talk about flashy! Suddenly it is 3-2 and everyone is feeling good. Freddy Sanchez grounds out (1-7 with 2 K, ouch!), but Aubrey Huff works a walk. Huff then breaks up a Panda DP-ball with a good slide at second. Buster Posey gets a hit to move Sandoval to third, and then is inexplicably replaced by pinch-runner Eli Whiteside. (You had to think "extra innings" at that point--taking Buster out seemed pointless.) Travis Ishikawa ties it up with a single up the middle. Edgar Renteria grounded out to end the rally.

That was unfortunately it for the Giants. The Rockies completed the mercy-killing in the 15th inning with Dexter Fowler. That guy had 10 hits (3 3B) and 7 walks in the series--he was on base 7 times today with 3 hits (1 3B) and 4 walks. In the fourth game, the fourth run by the home team ended it on the Fourth of July. At the numerical halfway-point in the season, the San Francisco side finds itself in fourth place with a 41-40 record.

Enjoy the rest of your Fourth. Time for me to fire up the bar-be-cue.

Happy Independence Day.

--M.C.

You score 11 runs, good things happen

The daily agony is over. The long-term, lingering pain remains, of course. But the acute crisis is over, and there's some relief in that. Travis Ishikawa's grand slam should have been the big blow, and when Colorado re-took the lead I was despondent. Seven runs off Ubaldo Jimenez, and all for naught! But the lads rallied impressively with Olympic Nate getting a huge triple and Andres Torres driving him in to tie it, then Freddy Sanchez getting a hit, a Torres steal of 3rd, and the Panda showing some plate discipline to get the sac-fly RBI that put us ahead. A sweet sequence, indeed. Aubrey Huff's blast in the 9th turned out to be the killer blow and more than enough for Wilson to nail the save.

A desperately-needed win comes from the most unlikely source--the offense. Our starter gives up six runs and we win by pounding on one of the best pitchers in the game. Giants baseball: not just torture, but a bizarre and inscrutable torture.

Matt Cain goes tomorrow, and his last two starts have been ugly. If he can right the ship grind out a quality start we could leave Denver with a split, which would be huge. Maybe the bats will still be hot against Jason Hammel. Every little bit helps, you know?

Have a great Fourth, everyone. Happy Independence Day!

GO GIANTS!!

--M.C.

Hittable Tim

With every loss this week it feels like a journey through hell. The seven rings of Bochy's Inferno, if you will. Tonight's special new horror is particularly heinous and potentially devastating to the cause: a hittable Tim Lincecum.

Tim's performance may not seem too bad at first glance : 6 innings, 9 hits, 4 runs, 4 walks, and 4 strikeouts. However, a couple important details give evidence that it may have been one of his worst outings yet. First, the nine hits allowed are a season high and four of them were for extra bases. Even a feeble Lincecum gives up hits, but not usually BIG hits. Second, Tim was given the lead TWICE and each time promptly returned it. Nothing ace-like about Tim tonight. His velocity may have been a little better but his poise, command and aggressiveness were all AWOL. Again.

Is our journey over yet? What new horrors await?

MadBummer

Young Madison Bumgarner pitched well but was let down by his fielders, his hitters, and his bullpen. The Rockies extended the Giants losing streak to five games. Let's hope Tim "Back-to-back Cy Young Winner" Lincecum can return to his dominating ways tomorrow, because none of our other weapons seem to be working. At least we got to see Buster Posey catch an entire game, and he delivered lots of excitement with two hits including an opposite-field homer. He also failed to make a tough putout at home, and I've no doubt the media Molinistas will insist it was an obvious lack of veteran savvy clutchness. Be that as it may, I'll take a Buster battery every time. This fellow is only going to get better, and we are damn lucky to have him. Bad luck for MadBum tonight, but that's nothing new for Giants pitchers. Go have a chat with Matt Cain--who also made his debut at the tender age of 20--he'll fill you in.

--M.C.

p.s. Now that we started this "cut the dead weight loose" thing, is there a shortstop in the organization somewhere we can plug in for Edgar Renteria? Can we trade him for one? I'm feeling like Tyrone Power in that old movie Abandon Ship! where he plays god and tosses overboard all the old, sick, and weak people in an overcrowded lifeboat in order to save the others. We want to save this team from drowning, we have to be ruthless here! Check out the D-Backs (there but for the grace of god, etc. etc.)--they are a-hackin' and a-hewin', but at this point they have little choice. Maybe they'll sell one of their three shortstops cheap.

Contenders or pretenders?

Seems I'm not the only one that thinks the Giants should be buyers at this point in the season.

Read the article.

Discuss.

--M.C.