The Giants offense got back on track by scoring 6 runs and let the pitching do it's thing. The result was an expected, but much needed W over their likely easiest interleague opponent. BTW, it looks like the Giants have a legitimate middle of the order to go with a legitimate top of the order. Good times! Key lines:
Aubrey Huff- 3 for 4, 2B, HR(11). Huff Baby!!! A .305/.396/.541 line is one no middle of the order hitter would be ashamed of. If there are any doubters left, look up his season line for 2008. More than that, Huff is having the time of his life. He absolutely loves being on this team. Said it's the best thing that's ever happened to him in baseball, or something to that effect. Most Bochy critics tend to focus only on his in-game management and his supposed hatred of young players(although there is a wealth of evidence that he gives young players as much or more chances as any manager, especially of a contending team). What they don't focus on is the player's attitudes which appears to make a difference in on-field performance.
Juan Uribe- 2 for 3, 2B, HR(11), BB. Another guy who seems to be having the time of his life. Man I don't know what his problem was in ChiTown, but he's been nothing but wonderful here in SF. Not the first player you would think of as a cleanup hitter, but look at this line: .289/.355/.500 with the 11 HR's! Again, if you are a doubter, look up his line from last year's full season and remember he was considerably better than that in the second half.
Tim Lincecum- 6 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 10 K's. ERA= 3.11. Not quite vintage Timmy, but pretty darn close.
Brian Wilson- 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, Save(18). Wilson is becoming a throwback to the days of Goose Gossage, Greg "Moon Man" Minton and Gary Lavelle when a closer would come into the game in the 7'th or 8'th inning and bring it on home, not that I expect him to be entering any games in the 7'th inning any time soon, but you'd have to think about it in a must win, last day of the season or 7'th game of a playoff or WS type situation. Brian Wilson is a stud!! Speaking of which.....what's with him learing at that girl in the stands in that "There's Magic Inside" TV ad?
With the W, the Giants kept pace with the Dodgers, one game back, who beat Cincy 6-2. The Dodgers moved into first place in the NL West by 0.5 games as the Padres lost to Toronto and Ricky Romero 7-1. Thank goodness the Giants don't have to face Romero this weekend! The Rockies and D'backs both lost as they remain in 4'th and 5'th place respectively.
The Giants now go on the road to Toronto and Houston. Not sure why they are playing Houston so often, but I'm not complaining. Toronto will be a big challenge. Thank God we have the heart of our rotation going in that one. Toronto might just be the most underrated team in baseball right now. They just have the misfortune of playing in the toughest division in baseball. The Giants will be doing well to avoid getting swept there. They should continue to own Houston so anything less than 3-3 on the road trip will be a disappointment.
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in regards to the comment about if the pickups of freddie, uribe, huff and burrell are balancing the book out on sabean....im waiting till august
ReplyDeletei like huff....the guy has been out there saying this is the most fun he has had since his rookie year...and hes playing like it
freddie is solid...i was wrong...he has learned very quickly how to hit in the west
burrell for the price is ok...but its still wait and see on him
i dont like that they are still pushing derosa...the guy needs surgery, he wont help the team the way he is
i have no clue what they are gonna do with rentawreck...or if they even should...who gets taken out of the lineup...and platooning the if really isnt that great an option
something is still out of whack in timmy's mechanics...its weird seeing him like this
concerned a bit about the pen...its not like they have been overworked
and because of that, im worried sabean is gonna make one of those wacky midseason trades for an aging arm that ends up hurting more than helping
btw, who got sent down? went to baggs and the chron..they didnt give a name
im figuring it was downs...he isnt gonna get much playing time up here...and the bench isnt the place for him
Redoing a failed surgery is never an option you want to go rushing into. On the other hand, if that's what it's destined to end up as, I would think it's better to do it sooner to allow more time for healing and rehab before next season.
ReplyDeleteDowns was, indeed, the player sent down to make room for Renteria, bacci.
ReplyDeleteAnd I agree that the bullpen is getting a bit worrisome. I almost hope for a blowout, so we can get Affeldt back in there with no pressure, just to see where he stands now. Are we sure he's not still feeling some lingering after-effects?
otoh, it sure is nice to have Huff and Uribe batting 3-4 in the lineup. I foresee Posey eventually occupying the #3 slot, but for now Huff and Uribe belong where they are now.
I would still prefer Bowker to Burrell in LF, but I realize that's not the choice that Bochy perceives: he's choosing Burrell over Rowand. Which is the better choice, mostly. But I really wish we had auditioned John Bowker properly last year.
DRB--Great comments on Huff and Uribe...Two excellent off-season moves by Sabean..To go along with very good signings or re-signings of Sanchez, Torres, Casillia, Mota...and maybe even Burrel a few weeks ago (way too early to tell)..Yes, alot of the good is balanced by the moronic signings of DeRosa and Molina btu Sabean has the Giants in a very good position...
ReplyDeleteBut, of course, so many refuse to give him any credit becasue of their hatred, past moves (i.e., Rowamd, Renteria, etc.) and the fact that "he has screwed up before and will again"..All of that may be true but, objectively, he still deserves some creidt right now..
SteveVA
The reason they are waiting on DeRosa is because he's actually having two problems, the botched surgery plus the tingling/numb feeling. The Giants don't want him to get the surgery only to find out that the symptoms are not related and then they have to go in again to operate. So they are trying to find a reason for the other symptom before they operate and find out they have to operate again.
ReplyDeleteBut as noted, the time is running out for recovery from the re-do, so it looks like they might just have to do it and hope it works out.
Once again, thanks for the great comments everybody!
ReplyDelete