Balky Tim

Damn, Tim's perfect season is over...

I am not the type to blame a loss on an umpire's call. After all, if the game is that close, any number of things must have contributed to the outcome. Obviously, in this case there is a whole boatload of baserunning gaffes (Winn, Lewis and Velez) and untimely hitting. Also, although Tim pitched ANOTHER solid outing, he did some of those things that we all knew might catch up to him: too many base runners. Tim kept us in the game and, if not for mid game replacement Chris Iannetta, he probably should have won. With our offense ( and tendency to make booboos), we will lose quite a few games just like last night. Well, maybe not EXACTLY like last night...

About that balk....

There was a balk. The umpire got the call right. He did it wrong - calling time first, then the balk - but I agree that there was a balk. It was, however, NOT TIM"S FAULT. Bengie Molina screwed the pooch. Rewatch the video. Molina "requests" time and springs up immediately, without waiting for the ump to grant it. Tim has to step off, BECAUSE HE HAS NO ONE TO THROW TO, and the umpire then called the balk. If Tim had not been in the full windup, this doesn't happen. Bengie must have forgot that there was a runner at third... a bonehead move by a savy veteran. All the ump's comments about Tim "flinching" is crap and just his way to cover the slop job he did.

You may not agree with my interpretation, but remember, if you argue about a balk, it is an automatic ejection (ask Bochy) so watch what you say!

5.1 4 0 0 5 3

"I was just a little erratic," Cain said. "I couldn't keep it honed in." (Chris Haft article)

108 pitches to 23 batters with 5 walks--yeah, I'd say "erratic" was about right. Matt was aggressive, but had trouble finishing guys, and was plagued by the same youthful inconsistency that we saw last year. I love watching the big lug throw, he's built like a linebacker and has that country boy look, I almost expect him to whip out a guitar and do some Trace Adkins covers between innings. But he's going to struggle to get wins if it takes 20 pitches an inning to get three guys out! Speaking of wins, how 'bout that? A WIN for M.C. was a long time coming, not since August 28th of last season. The bullpen picked him up this time--Chulk made a big contribution, much to my surprise, and the Walker-Wilson duo is shaping up the way we'd hoped this spring. Our vaunted "speed" offense worked to perfection, and our cagey vets got the timely RBI hits. My crystal ball told me that Matt was going to throw the season's first CG last night, but his 1st inning's labors dashed those hopes. (I dashed the crystal ball against the wall--no more of that crap.) You have to love the Crockies stinking up the NL West--defending league champs my arse! Only 30,000 in the yard last night. Funny how that doesn't hurt SFG Inc., I'm sure they've got their steady revenue stream intact. But it does hurt all the little guys--vendors and ushers and ticket takers and whatnot. You reduce attendance by 1/3, you reduce your hourly-wage workforce. I thought ballclubs were supposed to contribute to the community! And speaking of fractions, we are 1/6 of the way through the season. At 12-15, .444, we project to 72-90. That is well above expectations, no?


0900 update: BEYOND THE BOXSCORE discusses Jonathan Sanchez. Check it out.

Abused Tim?

Another wonderful job by our boy, Tim. He is clearly off to a tremendous start this year. All five starts are victories (half of our total!), nine more strikeouts to give him the league lead, each start has gone over 6 innings, and he has yet to give up more than two runs! Did anyone else notice how pumped up Tim was on the bench after he came out? The cameras caught him pumping his fists and spouting obscenties...just like the big boys. Definitely a quality victory against a good pitcher in a ballpark that owns us. Tim is truly beginning to look like that rare commodity: a power pitcher with some finesse. NOT ONLY THAT, we moved past the doggers and pudres into THIRD PLACE!! (Yes, I know looking at the standings is a little silly this year, but as long as LA sucks, I can't resist.)

So why do I have a queazy stomach this morning?

The answer is clearly and eloquently given by Chris at Bay City Ball (cool new logo). This season really is not about the standings or even that silly stat...what is it called?..a WIN. This season is all about the development of our youth, especially our pitchers. (And I guess what I really mean by development is"avoiding injury"...Can anyone give me an example of a pitcher that improved under Rag's watch??) We all need to make sure our priorities are straight. (And I guess by "we," I really mean Bochy and Sabean.) Lincecum had thrown 109 pitches and yet he returned to pitch the seventh, with no one warming up! Needless to say, he could not get out of that inning and needed a HUGE effort by Special Agent Jack. When the smoke cleared, Tim had hit a career high in pitches thrown (122). Yes, he is a "freak" but you still have to wonder. Don't forget the rain game that Tim didn't start but still won, that was clearly a risky way to use a pitcher. This is the same pitcher that got "shut down" early last year. What gives? Chris cites the fascinating PAP (pitcher abuse points) statistic, which places Tim fourth! (Notice the very impressive names at the top of that list.)

Am I worrying too much? Should I just sit back and enjoy? Or should I get mad? After all, I can not imagine a bigger disaster than an injured Lincecum or Cain. How important is pitch count?? Is Bochy doing the right thing with our golden youngster?

IS TIM REALLY BEING ABUSED???

7 5 1 1 3 7

Every Giant pulls for Matt Cain, who emerged with no decision but at least was spared another luckless defeat by Molina's homer. This was the 17th game since the beginning of last season in which the Giants scored no more than one run for Cain while he was on the mound. As is often the case, Cain pitched well enough to win, surrendering one run and five hits in seven innings. (Chris Haft article, emphasis mine)

Mr. Hard Luck had the story already written for him: Giant-killer Greg Maddux, an inept offense, and history to the 17th power. But thanks to Señor Clutch and a big, big jack in the 9th off Hoffman, Matt Cain was spared another "L." Sure, M.C. spent his post-game party time sucking brews and getting "N.D." tatooed on his chest, but damnit, 0-2 is way better than 0-3. Just ask Da Beezy.

I thought Matt looked wild--he seemed to miss a lot and by a lot. Three walks, 27 batters and 98 pitches was in stark contrast to the Master's zero, 25 and 75 in the same 7-inning span. But Matt looked real strong in the last two innings, getting guys to put balls in play rather than trying to fool them or blow them away. The Puds have almost as lousy an offense as ours, and they chased pitches out of the zone--that helped, too. The RBI hit by Giles in the 5th was off a fat ugly thing up around his eyes that he slashed at and just missed Eugenio Velez with. A DP right there would have been "just what the doctor ordered" but it didn't happen, and I despaired that the game was a done deal at that point. But the fat lady was still in the dressing room and El Gamerino Gordito saved the day with the last-gasp homer. At that point I was happy, and probably failed to appreciate the rest of the game's highlights: studly relief, clutch hits, and youthful verve and speed. Watching Burris streak around the bases was beautiful. The new fella, Captain Gomer, sorry, Gamer, seems to have found his stroke. Can't complain about 3 hits and an insurance run that proved decisive.

More Dirtbag Love

We all knew that PITCHf/x data was neat-o, and our own JCP has us looking at it when The Linkster takes the hill, but Chris at Bay City Ball has turned the tables a bit. Check out today's post about John Bowker. This time we see PITCHf/x from the batter's view, just like we do on Gameday. Excellent analysis of our young Dirtbag. Is he the FBOTF (First Baseman of the Future) we've been hoping and praying for?

My Heroes Have Always Been Dirtbags

Check out that lefthander with the no. 22! There's a real dirtbag for ya. Now don't go gettin' yer panties in a wad, the dirtbag moniker is a compliment for this fella. That's right, the Long Beach State University 49ers have a nickname for their baseball team: the Dirtbags. I'm thinkin' "dirtbag" is a hell of a lot better than "gamer." That's it, then. Dirtbags >> Gamers. Turns out there are quite a few Dirtbag-49ers in the bigs these days, perhaps the most famous being Crockie Troy Tulowitzki and TB Evan Longoria. Our Dirtbag has a .364/.400/.864 line so far in his very brief ML career. We all know he'll drop back down to, uh, earth, here pretty soon but you can't complain about what we've seen so far. RMC salutes our Sacramento boy, John Bowker. May he bring gritty dirtbaginess to our clubhouse by the shovelful.

Poetic Tim

The Arches of Doom.
Red Birds ready for the kill.
All hope rests with Tim.

Our team "needs" a win,
Big load on a tiny frame.
Bring on "The Franchise."

A lineup from hell.
What did I do to cause it?
Gad zukes, Ray bats fourth!?!

Double plays abound,
Aaron gets 2 RBI's.
The Gamer goes deep!!!

Trouble in the fourth-
Albert and Rick play the fool.
Tim sez "Swing, miss, sit."

Three up after six.
Timmy's new slider's da bomb.
Can he seal the deal?

No runs; best this year.
Seven innings once again.
Vintage Enchanter.

Yawn, another win.
One thing's for sure, my friend:

WE ARE NOT WORTHY!

(All responses are welcome, but poetic entries are strongly encouraged. I picked haiku because it is so easy and sometimes they come out great.)