After their terrible first series to open the season, the San Francisco Giants have met every challenge that has been thrown at them. They split a two game series in San Diego and they have taken two out of every three games since then. I know a lot of fans are disappointed that they haven't swept any teams (they should have swept the D-backs) but if they keep winning 2 out of every 3 games, then they are on pace for a 108 win season.
The series against the Rockies was absolutely as big of a series as you can get this early in the season. The Rockies were rolling over the competition and had a nice lead over the Giants coming into the series. To take 2 out of those 3 games, in Colorado no less, reminds the baseball world that the path to the World Series still runs through San Francisco.
That brings us to the series starting today.
The Giants and Braves meet for the first time since their NLDS series last October. Atlanta is struggling a little bit with a 4-6 record over their last 10 games and an 8-12 record overall. I wouldn't put all that much stock in their record because I still think this team is at least as good as last season and I doubt that they will finish the season below .500.
The Giants, as I mentioned before, are rolling right now. Despite this stupid schedule that had them in Colorado Wednesday, home for 3 games starting today, and then in Pittsburgh on Tuesday. I think they are set up to have a good series with Bumgarner going today and then Timmy, and Dirty going on Saturday and Sunday.
I also think that today's start is going to be the one where we see the Madbum of last season. Remember, he had a rough beginning to last season and it ended with him twirling a shutout in the World Series. Plus, I think his last start against, Arizona was a big deal. He gave up the four early runs and then stayed in to shut the Dbacks down. I really am glad that Boch left him in there to clean up his own mess.
I want to just say one last thing about Brandon Belt. I think that the Giants handled the situation about as good as they could have handled it. His season last year, plus his spring this year earned him a shot at sticking with the big club. Whether it was because of Ross' injury or not. The bottom line is he didn't hit well enough to stick, small sample size or not. If he had been hitting .280 or had 3 or 4 HRs, then Darren Ford would be in Fresno right now. Also, if Aaron Rowand hadn't got off to such a hot start, then Belt may still be around. The bottom line is, the only way to know for sure if a guy is ready for the bigs is to let him play in the bigs. Sure, in a perfect world, you want to get the guy 100 or so ABs. But this world isn't perfect and the Giants gave him all the opportunity that they could. They can't afford to let the guy hit .180 for much longer and it really would be mishandling him to have him sit on the bench. Now, he goes to Fresno where he can work out the kinks in his swing and he already has all the lessons he learned from the big boys. It's all just a part of a young player's development. This kid isn't Buster Posey. Those kind of guys are once in a generation type players. He is gonna have to take a little more time to develop like 90% of big leaguers.
Showing posts with label colorado Rockies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label colorado Rockies. Show all posts
Friday, April 22, 2011
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Big Game Cain shuts down the Rockies
Matt Cain took a no-hitter into the 8th inning Vs. the Colorado Rockies. Jay Payton legged out an infield hit to break up the no-hitter and Melvin Mora hit a 2 run homer to account for all the scoring that the Rockies would do.
Cain finished the game for his 12th career complete game and effectively knocked the Rockies out of the post season.
Big Game Cain was officially born today. This was the biggest game that Cain has pitched in so far in his career. never before had Cain ever been in a race this close this late in the season. Considering that Rockies pounded out 17 hits last night and won the game with a dramatic double in the 10th they could have easily used that momentum from last night and turned this game into a laugher.
But Matt came through when the Giants needed him the most.
Cain's next big test will come next weekend against San Diego on the second to last game of the season. He could be potentially pitching the pennant clinching game so he will need to bring his big game stuff once again.
At the time I am writing this the Padres are down 6-2 to the Cincinnati Reds so hopefully the Giants will be no worse than tied after tomorrow's day off.
*Update*
The Reds ponded the Padres 12-2 so the Giants are once again in sole possession of first. The Padres play the Cubs in San Diego so hopefully the Cubs can win one of those games. It sure looks like it's gonna come down to the final weekend in San Diego
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Giants Historic run comes to an end
ROCKIES 10 - GIANTS 9
I don't think that anybody is surprised that the Giants historic run of allowing 3 runs or less finally came to an end in Coors Field of all places. It was bound to happen somewhere and at sometime. You just hoped that the offense would step up and carry the team to victory.
The offense did step up in a big way. They pounded out 15 hits, Hit four homers, and scored 9 runs.
Unfortunately, the pitching regressed towards the mean in a big way tonight.
The Rockies hammered the Giants for 17 hits and 10 runs. They were led by Troy Tulowitski who has been an absolute beast in September. Tulo pounded out 4 hits and 5 RBIs including the Rockies lone homerun. I know a lot of people are criticizing Bochy for pitching to Tulo in the 8th and the 10th but the way this game was going it was hard to give away free baserunners no matter who was in the box. If there is anything I would be critical of would be pitching to Tulo in the 10th since his run would have been worthless anyway. I'm not sure what Boch was thinking there but it would be interesting to hear.
It was one of those Coors field games. Maybe the Rockies just decided to put all of their juiced balls in play figuring they could outhit the Giants anyway.
I want to end this blog by congratulating the Giants pitching staff. Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, Madison Bumgarner, Sergio Romo, Santiago Casilla, Chris Ray, Javier Lopez, Guillermo Mota, Ramon Ramirez, Dan Runzler, Jeremy Affeldt, and Brian Wilson. You guys were a part of the most dominant stretch of pitching in Major League history. 18 straight games with three runs or less allowed. Only the 1917 Chicago White Sox had a longer streak, 20 games, but that was during the dead ball era, it wasn't during a pennant race, and they never played a single game in Coors Field.
Congratulations guys!
Now go win the West!
I don't think that anybody is surprised that the Giants historic run of allowing 3 runs or less finally came to an end in Coors Field of all places. It was bound to happen somewhere and at sometime. You just hoped that the offense would step up and carry the team to victory.
The offense did step up in a big way. They pounded out 15 hits, Hit four homers, and scored 9 runs.
Unfortunately, the pitching regressed towards the mean in a big way tonight.
The Rockies hammered the Giants for 17 hits and 10 runs. They were led by Troy Tulowitski who has been an absolute beast in September. Tulo pounded out 4 hits and 5 RBIs including the Rockies lone homerun. I know a lot of people are criticizing Bochy for pitching to Tulo in the 8th and the 10th but the way this game was going it was hard to give away free baserunners no matter who was in the box. If there is anything I would be critical of would be pitching to Tulo in the 10th since his run would have been worthless anyway. I'm not sure what Boch was thinking there but it would be interesting to hear.
It was one of those Coors field games. Maybe the Rockies just decided to put all of their juiced balls in play figuring they could outhit the Giants anyway.
I want to end this blog by congratulating the Giants pitching staff. Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito, Matt Cain, Jonathan Sanchez, Madison Bumgarner, Sergio Romo, Santiago Casilla, Chris Ray, Javier Lopez, Guillermo Mota, Ramon Ramirez, Dan Runzler, Jeremy Affeldt, and Brian Wilson. You guys were a part of the most dominant stretch of pitching in Major League history. 18 straight games with three runs or less allowed. Only the 1917 Chicago White Sox had a longer streak, 20 games, but that was during the dead ball era, it wasn't during a pennant race, and they never played a single game in Coors Field.
Congratulations guys!
Now go win the West!
Friday, September 24, 2010
Giants do just enough to beat the Rockies
GIANTS 2 - ROCKIES 1
The San Francisco Giants offense is like that guy at work who does just enough to get by. You all know that guy, the one who gets to work at 8:01 and leaves at 4:55. The guy who never volunteers for anything and then just barely gets things done when they are assigned to him. But then he loves to take all the credit when the boss is looking. Heck you might even be that guy (or girl)!
The Giants offense is definitely that guy.
After scoring 13 runs last night, the Giants were held to 3 hits and 2 runs. Both of which came on Pat "The Bat" Burrell's 2 run homerun in the seventh. Other than that, the Giants were looking as if they were just going to roll over and lose 1-0. Hell, the Giants didn't even get their first hit until the 5th inning.
But they did just barely outhit the Rockies 3-2 and they just barely outscored the Rockies 2-1 so they did just do enough to get by.
The reason the offense was able to just get by was because of the continued pitching dominance. Tim Lincecum showed why he is the reigning 2-time Cy Young award winner by going 8 strong innings and striking out 9. He allowed one run, 2 hits, and didn't allow a hit until the 6th inning.
The Freak's amazing performance extended the Giants string of pitching dominance. They have now gone 18 straight games allowing 2 runs or less and 22 straight allowing 4 runs or less. A string of 2 runs or less has not reached that many games since the 1917 Chicago White Sox strung together 20 straight. For the record, 1917 was in the dead ball era!
Brian Wilson came in in the 9th to close out a great game and preserve what has to be the most amazing string of pitching performances by any single staff in history.
I would love to see the offense score more runs and really work to get noticed. but with pitching like the Giants have right now, they don't need that much offense.
The fans need it though.
*Update*
I love how Burrell just put his head down and walked to first after he hit his homer which was an absolute bomb. Watch it here.
The Giants offense is definitely that guy.
After scoring 13 runs last night, the Giants were held to 3 hits and 2 runs. Both of which came on Pat "The Bat" Burrell's 2 run homerun in the seventh. Other than that, the Giants were looking as if they were just going to roll over and lose 1-0. Hell, the Giants didn't even get their first hit until the 5th inning.
But they did just barely outhit the Rockies 3-2 and they just barely outscored the Rockies 2-1 so they did just do enough to get by.
The reason the offense was able to just get by was because of the continued pitching dominance. Tim Lincecum showed why he is the reigning 2-time Cy Young award winner by going 8 strong innings and striking out 9. He allowed one run, 2 hits, and didn't allow a hit until the 6th inning.
The Freak's amazing performance extended the Giants string of pitching dominance. They have now gone 18 straight games allowing 2 runs or less and 22 straight allowing 4 runs or less. A string of 2 runs or less has not reached that many games since the 1917 Chicago White Sox strung together 20 straight. For the record, 1917 was in the dead ball era!
Brian Wilson came in in the 9th to close out a great game and preserve what has to be the most amazing string of pitching performances by any single staff in history.
I would love to see the offense score more runs and really work to get noticed. but with pitching like the Giants have right now, they don't need that much offense.
The fans need it though.
*Update*
I love how Burrell just put his head down and walked to first after he hit his homer which was an absolute bomb. Watch it here.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Lincecum outduels Jimenez. Suddenly the world feels like a better place!
GIANTS 2 - ROCKIES 1
That's right Tim Lincecum outdueled the 2010 Cy Young front runner.
Boy that feels good to say.
In case you were under a rock last night here is his line from last night:
IP H R ER BB K HR ERA
| 8.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 3.68 |
Isn't it beautiful?
Yes it was vintage Lincecum last night. The only mistake he made all night was to Carlos Gonzalez who blasted his 30th homer of the season, can you imagine where the A's would be right now if they had this guy and Anre Eithier still instead of having both of them terrorizing the Giants in the NL West? People say that Brian Sabean can't make good trades.
Back to Lincecum. Whatever he did to fix his delivery, stop tipping his pitches, or throwing strikes. It worked. Nobody knows what Tim did because all of the beat writers wanted to talk to Darren Ford who, while he did score the winning run, didn't do much more than be in the right place at the right time. Lincecum's 9 strikeouts were the most that Timmy has had in a game since July 30th and his 8 IP were the most since July 25th.
It's not like he all of the sudden just got better. Sure he was knocked around a bit in August and he lost his last 5 decisions, but his last start did give some glimmers of hope. In that game, against Arizona, Timmy gave up 4 runs in 6.0 IP and struck out 6. He did give up that massive bomb to Adam LaRoche that prompted the tipping pitches question. He also gave up 4 walks. That game, while not great by any means showed an improvement over the last few outings Lincecum had.
I'm sure there are some Giants fans that are upset about the Giant offense last night. While the offense is still a concern, I just don't think there is much more they could of done against Ubaldo Jimenez. The guy had only given up 130 hits in 176.1 IP coming into last night's game. He was routinely throwing the ball at 99 MPH and the fact that the Giants were able to get anything at all off the guy is really a testament to this team.
September call-ups:
The Giants are really giving us a glimpse into the future! They called up...... Dan Runzler and Edgar Renteria? now they did call up an actual minor leaguer in Darren Ford but that seems to be a mistake since they didn't call up anybody else. No Brandon Belt, No Brett Pill, No Connor Gillaspie, No Eric Hacker, No Thomas Neal. No minor leaguers other than Ford.
Now since the AAA season doesn't end til Monday the Giants could just be waiting until then and then they will bring up some more guys. But right now it looks like Belt will be headed straight to the AFL. This move, if true, makes no sense at all. Some have argued that it's better for him to continue to develop as a hitter rather than sit on the bench in September.
That notion is garbage.
Buster Posey did just fine after spending most of last September on the bench. Plus, the Giants have the opportunity to get Belt some exposure to a pennant race without having to rely on him to carry the team. He can soak all of this September baseball up and the Arizona Fall League will still be there when the season is over.
I hope the Giants realize this.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Torres, Posey, and Bumgarner lead Giants to victory
So the Giants continued two of their trends last night.
First, they kept pace with last season and won to bring their record to 73-60 which matches lastseason's record after 133 games. Although they were 5.5 games back as opposed to 4 back like they are now!
Second they continued their trend of making bad pitchers, last night it was Esmil Rogers who was sporting an ERA of 5.66 coming in, look like Cy Young.
Things were looking grim. The Giants managed 4 frickin hits and 2 runs off of Rogers over 6 innings. Melvin Mora tied the game in the 8th with an opposite field homerun to right field off of Jeremy Affeldt, who continued his streak of allowing a run every time he makes an appearance, spoiling a great effort from Madison Bumgarner.
As I was sitting in my nutrition class and learning about how Lipids contribute to heart disease, I was checking my phone and wondering how much the 2010 San Francisco Giants have contributed to heart disease in the Bay Area. I was seriously getting angry and I wasn't even watching the game!
Then Andres Torres hit his 310 foot homerun into the rightfield stands and the Giants were on their way to victory! Buster Posey capped off the scoring with a 2 run opposite field double later in the inning to make sure that no broken bat triples coupled with a throwing error would send the Giants fans home with frowns on their faces.
Tonight's game features Ubaldo Jimenez throwing for the Rockies against our Timmy boy. It would seem that the schedule from last year is a scary thing to go by since the Giants dropped game 134 with Timmy on the mound. But don't fret Giants faithful because the Rockies have failed to win a series on the road since June 28-30!
Belt watch:
Brandon Belt was 1 for 2 last night with a 3 run homer and 3 walks for Fresno in their 7-6 loss to Salt Lake City.
Since a quick check of the calender reveals that it is September 1st, please allow me to be the first to welcome Mr. Belt to the Big Leagues!
Monday, August 30, 2010
Giants literally throw the game away
Is it possible to hate the team that you love?
I guess it is because I hate the Giants right now. After doing all that they could to give the game away to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday, the Giants found a way to give a game to the Colorado Rockies.
Not every Giant was trying to give the game away. Jonathan Sanchez threw 8 innings of shutout ball, I'm not counting the run in the 9th as earned even though the official scorer did, walked Dexter Fowler to lead off the 9th and was replaced by Brian Wilson.
Let's analyze this right here. Johnny No-No had thrown 108 pitches and, after getting ahead 0-2 to Fowler, he suddenly lost his command throwing 4 wide ones. Bochy was absolutely right in pulling Sanchez at this point and bringing in Wilson. Sure Wilson threw 30 pitches yesterday but Wilson was good for an inning tonight.
Wilson got Carlos Gonzalez to line out to Cody Ross....At least, that's what everyone thought. Ross played Gonzalez's liner into a triple and to make matters worse, Freddy Sanchez sent the relay throw into the Giants' dugout allowing Gonzalez to score.
Game over.
I have 2 complaints about this game.
First:
Why wasn't Nate Schierholtz manning rightfield? The only reason, that I can see, that he is even on the roster is as a late inning defensive replacement. Isn't that what you want in a late inning game? Boch, in his infinite wisdom, put Travis Ishikawa in at first base as a defensive replacement, which was absolutely the right move. Why not put in Nate? He would have thrown the ball all the way to third on the fly and we probably would be watching extra innings right now.
Second:
The Giants bats. It doesn't matter who they throw out there, how many runs they scored against the Reds, or how many runs they scored against the D-backs yesterday. This team has a tendency to just go in a top to bottom funk when it comes to hitting and it happens a LOT. Especially when Sanchez is on the mound and pitching well, look at the two 1-0 losses to the Padres that he took earlier this year. I'm not saying that they need to score 10 runs every night, I am just saying they need to score more than 1 or 2 runs a lot more.
The game recap on SFGiants.com is titled: Chance to gain ground slips by Giants. This is actually incorrect because the Giants have had 5 chances in a row to gain ground on the Padres and they are just 1-4 in those games.
Do these Giants really want to play in the postseason?
Following up on yesterday's post about the 2009 Giants and the 2010 team. It looks as if the 2010 Giants are trying to keep their record identical to last year's squad. Both teams own 72-60 records after 132 games. good thing is the 2009 Giants won game 133!
Down on the farm:
Brandon Belt 4-6, 2B, HR, 4 RBI
See you on Wednesday Mr. Belt. you can take that seat right next to Nate Schierholtz on the bench.
I guess it is because I hate the Giants right now. After doing all that they could to give the game away to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sunday, the Giants found a way to give a game to the Colorado Rockies.
Not every Giant was trying to give the game away. Jonathan Sanchez threw 8 innings of shutout ball, I'm not counting the run in the 9th as earned even though the official scorer did, walked Dexter Fowler to lead off the 9th and was replaced by Brian Wilson.
Let's analyze this right here. Johnny No-No had thrown 108 pitches and, after getting ahead 0-2 to Fowler, he suddenly lost his command throwing 4 wide ones. Bochy was absolutely right in pulling Sanchez at this point and bringing in Wilson. Sure Wilson threw 30 pitches yesterday but Wilson was good for an inning tonight.
Wilson got Carlos Gonzalez to line out to Cody Ross....At least, that's what everyone thought. Ross played Gonzalez's liner into a triple and to make matters worse, Freddy Sanchez sent the relay throw into the Giants' dugout allowing Gonzalez to score.
Game over.
I have 2 complaints about this game.
First:
Why wasn't Nate Schierholtz manning rightfield? The only reason, that I can see, that he is even on the roster is as a late inning defensive replacement. Isn't that what you want in a late inning game? Boch, in his infinite wisdom, put Travis Ishikawa in at first base as a defensive replacement, which was absolutely the right move. Why not put in Nate? He would have thrown the ball all the way to third on the fly and we probably would be watching extra innings right now.
Second:
The Giants bats. It doesn't matter who they throw out there, how many runs they scored against the Reds, or how many runs they scored against the D-backs yesterday. This team has a tendency to just go in a top to bottom funk when it comes to hitting and it happens a LOT. Especially when Sanchez is on the mound and pitching well, look at the two 1-0 losses to the Padres that he took earlier this year. I'm not saying that they need to score 10 runs every night, I am just saying they need to score more than 1 or 2 runs a lot more.
The game recap on SFGiants.com is titled: Chance to gain ground slips by Giants. This is actually incorrect because the Giants have had 5 chances in a row to gain ground on the Padres and they are just 1-4 in those games.
Do these Giants really want to play in the postseason?
Following up on yesterday's post about the 2009 Giants and the 2010 team. It looks as if the 2010 Giants are trying to keep their record identical to last year's squad. Both teams own 72-60 records after 132 games. good thing is the 2009 Giants won game 133!
Down on the farm:
Brandon Belt 4-6, 2B, HR, 4 RBI
See you on Wednesday Mr. Belt. you can take that seat right next to Nate Schierholtz on the bench.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
You win some you lose some
ROCKIES 6 - GIANTS 1
The game looked like it was a game that the Giants were destined to lose. Everyone who looked at this series and saw that Ubaldo Jimenez was pitching chalked the game up as a loss for the men in orange and black. Most were predicting a split of the series and it looked like the Giants believed them.
The Giants managed 4 hits, one run, and 9 strikeouts against the former NL Cy Young frontrunner. Not an impressive line at all. Well not if you are a Giants fan that is.
But at the end of the day it just seemed like the Giants were flat which I guess they are allowed to be every 2 out of 10 games or so.
The only really disappointing development today was Madison Bumgarner's performance. Not that he was especially terrible today but he looked pretty hittable. The Rockies got 9 hits off him in 4 innings but he worked himself out of a jam or two to limit the damage to only four runs. The reason why this is disappointing is that Bumgarner may be on the verge of becoming fatigued. He is about 10 innings away from equaling his career high of 141 2/3 IP.
But it could have just been another flat performance on a day full of flat performances by the Giants. But it is worth keeping an eye on.
I kinda feel flat writing this post today....
Links of the day:
Congratulations to Buster Posey for winning both the NL Rookie of the month and NL Player of the month awards. It kinda seems redundant to give both awards to the same guy but since it's a Giant and not some other loser I'm not complaining!
The game looked like it was a game that the Giants were destined to lose. Everyone who looked at this series and saw that Ubaldo Jimenez was pitching chalked the game up as a loss for the men in orange and black. Most were predicting a split of the series and it looked like the Giants believed them.The Giants managed 4 hits, one run, and 9 strikeouts against the former NL Cy Young frontrunner. Not an impressive line at all. Well not if you are a Giants fan that is.
But at the end of the day it just seemed like the Giants were flat which I guess they are allowed to be every 2 out of 10 games or so.
The only really disappointing development today was Madison Bumgarner's performance. Not that he was especially terrible today but he looked pretty hittable. The Rockies got 9 hits off him in 4 innings but he worked himself out of a jam or two to limit the damage to only four runs. The reason why this is disappointing is that Bumgarner may be on the verge of becoming fatigued. He is about 10 innings away from equaling his career high of 141 2/3 IP.
But it could have just been another flat performance on a day full of flat performances by the Giants. But it is worth keeping an eye on.
I kinda feel flat writing this post today....
Links of the day:
Congratulations to Buster Posey for winning both the NL Rookie of the month and NL Player of the month awards. It kinda seems redundant to give both awards to the same guy but since it's a Giant and not some other loser I'm not complaining!
The G-men break out the Whoopin Sticks!
GIANTS 10 - ROCKIES 0
A 10-0 shutout in Colorado? Where do we begin?
There were so many contributors last night. 7 Giants had multi-hit games, Juan Uribe came off the bench to get an RBI, and the Giants clubbed 3 homeruns!
But for me the player of the game is Jonathan Sanchez.
Coming off a series against the Cubs in which they scored 31 runs, had a record 11 straight hits in one inning, and ran their win streak to 4 in a row. It would have been an understatement to say that the Rockies offense was hot.
Jonathan Sanchez woke up at 2PM Tuesday afternoon after sleeping off the effects of a fever he suffered from on Monday If he showed up and pitched say 6 innings it would be understandable.
Well pitch 6 innings he did. Through those 6 innings he struck out 9, allowed only 3 hits, and it wouldn't be a Jonathan Sanchez start if he didn't allow the 4 walks that he did.
7 of Sanchez's strikeouts all came in a row. Which is pretty amazing in and of itself but it becomes even more impressive when you realize that 7 Ks in a row is a franchise record held by the Hall of Famer Juan Marichal set 46 years ago!
I know a lot of people were clamoring for the Giants to pick up a bat at the deadline at the expense of Dirty Sanchez. Give credit to Sanchez, he responded by showing the Giants exactly what they would be missing if they gave him up. This is the second time that the lefty has placed himself in the Giants record books in the last 2 years. Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jason Schmidt, John Burkett, Bill Swift, Shawn Estes, Mike Krukow, and countless other Giants pitchers have pitched for the team in the last 46 years and they haven't done the things that Sanchez has done.
Another thing to consider about Sanchez. He is our 4th starter. 4th starters are usually inconsistent. They usually can win or lose on any given day. They usually aren't capable of dominance the way that Sanchez is capable of.
Sanchez's record is 8-6, his ERA is good for 18th in the NL, His 136 strikeouts are good for 10th in the NL, and his 9.56 K/9 is good for 2nd in the NL.
How do you replace that in the rotation? Not only that, how do you replace anybody in the Giants rotation when you consider the next best option after the guys that they have in their currently is Todd Wellemeyer.
Also, what do the Giants do when they have to limit the amount of innings that Madison Bumgarner throws later this season if Sanchez is gone? Bring up another minor leaguer? I'm sorry but this is one move that the Giants didn't make that made sense.
A 10-0 shutout in Colorado? Where do we begin?
There were so many contributors last night. 7 Giants had multi-hit games, Juan Uribe came off the bench to get an RBI, and the Giants clubbed 3 homeruns!
But for me the player of the game is Jonathan Sanchez.
Coming off a series against the Cubs in which they scored 31 runs, had a record 11 straight hits in one inning, and ran their win streak to 4 in a row. It would have been an understatement to say that the Rockies offense was hot.
Jonathan Sanchez woke up at 2PM Tuesday afternoon after sleeping off the effects of a fever he suffered from on Monday If he showed up and pitched say 6 innings it would be understandable.
Well pitch 6 innings he did. Through those 6 innings he struck out 9, allowed only 3 hits, and it wouldn't be a Jonathan Sanchez start if he didn't allow the 4 walks that he did.
7 of Sanchez's strikeouts all came in a row. Which is pretty amazing in and of itself but it becomes even more impressive when you realize that 7 Ks in a row is a franchise record held by the Hall of Famer Juan Marichal set 46 years ago!
I know a lot of people were clamoring for the Giants to pick up a bat at the deadline at the expense of Dirty Sanchez. Give credit to Sanchez, he responded by showing the Giants exactly what they would be missing if they gave him up. This is the second time that the lefty has placed himself in the Giants record books in the last 2 years. Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain, Jason Schmidt, John Burkett, Bill Swift, Shawn Estes, Mike Krukow, and countless other Giants pitchers have pitched for the team in the last 46 years and they haven't done the things that Sanchez has done.
Another thing to consider about Sanchez. He is our 4th starter. 4th starters are usually inconsistent. They usually can win or lose on any given day. They usually aren't capable of dominance the way that Sanchez is capable of.
Sanchez's record is 8-6, his ERA is good for 18th in the NL, His 136 strikeouts are good for 10th in the NL, and his 9.56 K/9 is good for 2nd in the NL.
How do you replace that in the rotation? Not only that, how do you replace anybody in the Giants rotation when you consider the next best option after the guys that they have in their currently is Todd Wellemeyer.
Also, what do the Giants do when they have to limit the amount of innings that Madison Bumgarner throws later this season if Sanchez is gone? Bring up another minor leaguer? I'm sorry but this is one move that the Giants didn't make that made sense.
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Should the Giants be buyers or sellers?
ROCKIES 6 - GIANTS 3
The Giants have lost their 7th game in a row. They are now in 4th place, 6.5 games back of the first place Padres. They have not scored more than 3 runs in 7 straight games.
Will a bat really help this team or should they be going for prospects?
I have heard some folks out there say that this season is lost and that the Giants should just blow it up and get prospects for their bigger pieces. Namely Huff, Uribe, and Burrell. This sounds good in theory because you would have to believe that the Giants are not going to win another game this season.
Well the fact is they are going to win another game this season. They have played pretty good baseball and despite losing 7 in a row they are still a game over .500.
If you trade for prospects that means that you don't think that the Giants will be able to win next year. Which also happens to be the last season that the Giants rotation will probably have Cain, Lincecum, Sanchez, and Bumgarner all together. With pay raises and pending salary arbitration the Giants starting 5 alone has the potential to command contracts approaching $100 million alone in 2012.
If you think the Giants can afford that, then you are crazy.
They would be lucky to get some prospects that are going to be ready next season no matter how good they ultimately turn out to be. While Huff and Uribe are good players they will still not garner a whole lot of major league ready talent. So you trade away two of your potential team leader for next season (potential because neither of them are signed past this season) and decide that you are shooting for 2012.
A trade for a bat, Prince Fielder for instance, would instantly give this lineup some sort of presence. The batters in front of him would all get more pitches to hit and the guys behind him would be batting with runners on more often. the team would be a totally different animal. They would be able to take advantage of the current group of young pitchers that they have and Fielder has a contract that is valid through next season.
Plus McDonald's in the bay area would start to do a ton more business:
Nate, Bowker watch:
Nate came in to run for Burrell in the 6th. He had an assist in the outfield and went 0 for 1.
Nate pinch running for Burrell in the 6th makes you wonder about Bochy. At that point it's only 4-3 and you decide that you are going to pinch run for your cleanup hitter? So either Bochy has no sense as a manager, He has little faith in Pat Burrell, Burrell is hurt, or he suddenly has a lot of faith in Nate Schierholtz. I'll let you decide.
John Bowker went 0 for 5 in a Grizzlies 4-3 loss to Sacramento. The Grizzlies are in a bit of a slump themselves having lost 4 games in a row.
The Giants have lost their 7th game in a row. They are now in 4th place, 6.5 games back of the first place Padres. They have not scored more than 3 runs in 7 straight games.
Will a bat really help this team or should they be going for prospects?
I have heard some folks out there say that this season is lost and that the Giants should just blow it up and get prospects for their bigger pieces. Namely Huff, Uribe, and Burrell. This sounds good in theory because you would have to believe that the Giants are not going to win another game this season.
Well the fact is they are going to win another game this season. They have played pretty good baseball and despite losing 7 in a row they are still a game over .500.
If you trade for prospects that means that you don't think that the Giants will be able to win next year. Which also happens to be the last season that the Giants rotation will probably have Cain, Lincecum, Sanchez, and Bumgarner all together. With pay raises and pending salary arbitration the Giants starting 5 alone has the potential to command contracts approaching $100 million alone in 2012.
If you think the Giants can afford that, then you are crazy.
They would be lucky to get some prospects that are going to be ready next season no matter how good they ultimately turn out to be. While Huff and Uribe are good players they will still not garner a whole lot of major league ready talent. So you trade away two of your potential team leader for next season (potential because neither of them are signed past this season) and decide that you are shooting for 2012.
A trade for a bat, Prince Fielder for instance, would instantly give this lineup some sort of presence. The batters in front of him would all get more pitches to hit and the guys behind him would be batting with runners on more often. the team would be a totally different animal. They would be able to take advantage of the current group of young pitchers that they have and Fielder has a contract that is valid through next season.
Plus McDonald's in the bay area would start to do a ton more business:
Nate, Bowker watch:
Nate came in to run for Burrell in the 6th. He had an assist in the outfield and went 0 for 1.
Nate pinch running for Burrell in the 6th makes you wonder about Bochy. At that point it's only 4-3 and you decide that you are going to pinch run for your cleanup hitter? So either Bochy has no sense as a manager, He has little faith in Pat Burrell, Burrell is hurt, or he suddenly has a lot of faith in Nate Schierholtz. I'll let you decide.
John Bowker went 0 for 5 in a Grizzlies 4-3 loss to Sacramento. The Grizzlies are in a bit of a slump themselves having lost 4 games in a row.
Friday, July 2, 2010
At least they scored 3 runs
ROCKIES 7 - GIANTS 3
About 2 weeks ago, this team was looking promising. They were scoring runs, pitching well, and winning games.
Then they went to Toronto.
The Giants haven't won a series since they played the Orioles back on June 14-16. Since that time they are 3 - 10 and they have now lost 3 in a row. The offense scored 3 runs for the first time in 6 games but the pitching staff gave up 7 runs.
The result was another loss.
The only real positive from this game is that the Giants future was on display and performed well. Buster Posey was the only Giant to get more than one hit, including his second homer, and Madison Bumgarner threw 7 decent innings. They seemed to be the only 2 Giants who decided to show up to play.
More fallout from the Molina trade.
The PTBNL turns out to be minor league pitcher Michael Main. He is a mid level pitcher who has had a few issues recently but throws hard and possibly projects to the bullpen. It really makes this a good deal for the Giants. It was actually a good deal for both teams since that Rangers had almost zero production from their catchers and the Giants lineup couldn't afford the non-production from Molina.
Molina was a good Giant. Up until this season, he was solid offensively and really shaped and molded our excellent staff. He will be missed.
What is wrong with the pitchers?
A lot of what is wrong with the starters can be boiled down to a slump.
I think a lot of what ails them is actually related to the offensive struggles.
You always hear baseball pitchers say that it's not necessarily pitch count that matters but how many high stress pitches a pitcher throws. Usually high stress pitches come from situations where the game is close and every pitch the pitcher makes can lose the game so a pitcher has got to be almost perfect with each pitch.
Almost every pitch a Giants starter has thrown can classify as a high stress pitch.
The Giants staff is usually pitching with one or two runs of support and each pitch they throw has the potential to lose the game for them. They are constantly under pressure to be perfect or lose. The Giants haven't even scored more than 3 runs since June 25th so there hasn't been one instance where a pitcher has had a 2 or 3 run lead since at least then.
With all the stress on the staff, slumps like this are inevitable. They are inevitable anyway, but when the offense can't score enough runs to pick up Barry Zito who battles and battles and only gives up 2 runs, it is disastrous for a team and that starter.
The bottom line is the Giants need more offense.
The only rumor on the search for more offense is that the Giants want Jonathan Sanchez and Thomas Neal for Prince Fielder. The Giants are balking at that deal and I can understand why. Who are they going to replace Sanchez in the rotation with? If they can figure out the answer to that question then I am all for the deal. right now the Giants can't afford to replace anybody in the starting rotation. Although a little offensive firepower makes the starters all look a little better. They also probably don't want to part with Neal.
Nate watch, Bowker watch, and prospect watch:
Nate got a start and went 1 for 4. Hopefully with some regular playing time he can start to hit with some authority. John Bowker went 0 for 2 for Fresno and lowered his average to a paltry .323. Lastly Brandon Belt the San Jose Giants first baseman was promoted to AA Richmond. Belt was batting a respectable .383 with 10 homeruns for San Jose so hopefully he can continue that success in Richmond.
About 2 weeks ago, this team was looking promising. They were scoring runs, pitching well, and winning games.
Then they went to Toronto.
The Giants haven't won a series since they played the Orioles back on June 14-16. Since that time they are 3 - 10 and they have now lost 3 in a row. The offense scored 3 runs for the first time in 6 games but the pitching staff gave up 7 runs.
The result was another loss.
The only real positive from this game is that the Giants future was on display and performed well. Buster Posey was the only Giant to get more than one hit, including his second homer, and Madison Bumgarner threw 7 decent innings. They seemed to be the only 2 Giants who decided to show up to play.
More fallout from the Molina trade.
The PTBNL turns out to be minor league pitcher Michael Main. He is a mid level pitcher who has had a few issues recently but throws hard and possibly projects to the bullpen. It really makes this a good deal for the Giants. It was actually a good deal for both teams since that Rangers had almost zero production from their catchers and the Giants lineup couldn't afford the non-production from Molina.
Molina was a good Giant. Up until this season, he was solid offensively and really shaped and molded our excellent staff. He will be missed.
What is wrong with the pitchers?
A lot of what is wrong with the starters can be boiled down to a slump.
I think a lot of what ails them is actually related to the offensive struggles.
You always hear baseball pitchers say that it's not necessarily pitch count that matters but how many high stress pitches a pitcher throws. Usually high stress pitches come from situations where the game is close and every pitch the pitcher makes can lose the game so a pitcher has got to be almost perfect with each pitch.
Almost every pitch a Giants starter has thrown can classify as a high stress pitch.
The Giants staff is usually pitching with one or two runs of support and each pitch they throw has the potential to lose the game for them. They are constantly under pressure to be perfect or lose. The Giants haven't even scored more than 3 runs since June 25th so there hasn't been one instance where a pitcher has had a 2 or 3 run lead since at least then.
With all the stress on the staff, slumps like this are inevitable. They are inevitable anyway, but when the offense can't score enough runs to pick up Barry Zito who battles and battles and only gives up 2 runs, it is disastrous for a team and that starter.
The bottom line is the Giants need more offense.
The only rumor on the search for more offense is that the Giants want Jonathan Sanchez and Thomas Neal for Prince Fielder. The Giants are balking at that deal and I can understand why. Who are they going to replace Sanchez in the rotation with? If they can figure out the answer to that question then I am all for the deal. right now the Giants can't afford to replace anybody in the starting rotation. Although a little offensive firepower makes the starters all look a little better. They also probably don't want to part with Neal.
Nate watch, Bowker watch, and prospect watch:
Nate got a start and went 1 for 4. Hopefully with some regular playing time he can start to hit with some authority. John Bowker went 0 for 2 for Fresno and lowered his average to a paltry .323. Lastly Brandon Belt the San Jose Giants first baseman was promoted to AA Richmond. Belt was batting a respectable .383 with 10 homeruns for San Jose so hopefully he can continue that success in Richmond.
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