Friday, April 11, 2014

Game Wrap 4/10/2014: D'Backs 6 Giants 5

This was a game the Giants should have won but let get mostly due to a big error by Pablo Sandoval that allowed the D'Backs to tie the game and win in extra innings after an earlier Giants comeback.  Key Lines:

Michael Morse- 2 for 4, 2 2B.  BA= .400.  Morse had 2 key doubles in this one and is quicky establishing himself as one of the most dangerous hitters in the lineup.

Brandon Crawford- 2 for 4, 2 2B.  BA= .300.  Crawford also played a key role in this one and is looking like he may make Brian Sabean's prediction of a breakout come true.  Long season, though.  Gotta stay healthy.

Buster Posey and Hunter Pence added 2 hits each with Pence contributing a double.

Ryan Vogelsong- 5 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 8.00.  I'll say this for Vogey:  He looked like he was on the ropes in the 3'rd inning, but pulled himself together and made it through 5 and made some very good pitches in the process.  Hopefully this is something to build on for future starts.

The loss leaves the Giants tied with the Dodgers atop the NL West with a 6-4 record.  The Rockies are 1 game back at 5-5 with the D'Backs and Padres bringing up the rear at 8-4 and 6-3 respectively.

The Rockies come to AT&T Park for the weekend with Madison Bumgarner taking the mound tonight facing lefty Jorge De La Rosa.

Around the League:

Josh Hamilton slid into first base headfirst and tore a ligament in hit thumb.  He's undergoing surgery and will likely miss half the season.

Looks like Jose Abreu is the real deal with 2 consecutive 2 HR games.  Giants has a look-see at him but go outbid but the ChiSox.  Of course, had they signed Abreu, Brandon Belt would have had to move to LF and they would not have signed Morse, so no reason to complain.

13 comments:

  1. Good morning Doc.

    Dbacks come in and take 2/3. Goldie & Trumbo look like very solid middle lineup combo. Plenty of holes elsewhere.

    Has your assessment of the Dbacks changed? Still a cellar dweller or maybe middle of pack?

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    1. After going 3-4 in 7 games against us, they have acquitted themselves not too badly. Maybe had we pitched around Goldie, things might have turned out a little better for us. It's a long season. We will see how they recover from the loss of Corbin.

      They need solid starting pitching.

      So do we.

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    2. D'Backs won these last two game because of crappy starting pitching by the Giants. I see no evidence that they have the pitching to hang in the NL West. Then again, the Giants might not either.

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  2. Sandoval's agent going to start sweating outkicking his coverage soon? Its like we've had a complete mini-Sandoval synopsis in the first 10 games. Big HR to win a game, some crazy solid defense when he's on his game to really help out, and then flipping it around some really bad fielding, and some poor hitting to start the season. As well as the complete uncertainty about his mercurial weight issues and having any clue if that's in the past.

    While the Giants were in on the Abreu bid, they are at a disadvantage because of the park. I don't see an agent greenlighting PacBell unless the money is crazy over the top. There was a lot of chatter on either side of the "will he hit" argument with Abreu. I'm sure a hitters park was a priority, as the guy has an "all bat" rep, and the AL for the DH option was most likely attractive as well. I'm OK with missing out on that.

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  3. What's the scoop on Duvall's defensive profile? Does he have range? I know he was air-mailing a number of throws last season, piling up errors, but that's a very fixable issue. Lead-for-hands and poor range are something that can't really be changed.

    Also - wow, Gary Brown.

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    1. I believe Duvall has average range at 3B. His big problems has always been sailing his throws. Giants have given him drills to work on and his errors went down from the high 20's to the high teens last year.

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  4. I know it was just one error in one game but when he made it I thought no way give this guy what he wants. Let some other team deal with his ups and downs for that kind of money. They need to put on the back of his jersey "Buyer Beware"

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  5. Drove down from Tacoma to catch my seasonal requisite in-person game at PacBell. No better stadium in the Senior circuit...perhaps only Fenway giving it a run overall (gotta love the Green Monster). And no public funding to boot!

    Quite a propos that it was "Farewell to the Stick" night. Spent my youth watching Wille & Stretch close out their Giant careers while Jack Clark & the Count started theirs.

    Exciting contest. Morse & Craw (or "BC" as some of my more intoxicated fellow bleacher denizens called him, because he's Hometown Messiah-like) played very well. Mountain Mike is a beast (cannot believe he pulled off being a 6'4" SS up in Safeco) but showed his defensive liabilities in the field. He also dogged it on a grounder to the left side...right after Captain Caveman beat out an infield squibbler. Hicks pulled a Bill Buckner that earned everyone's wrath, but hit well. Pablo cost us the game with his erratic overthrow, and couldn't close the deal with the bases juiced (although I though it was a quality at bat).

    Vogie looked like he was going to tank again, but manned up and persevered. But for me, the best play of the night was Buster's suicide squeeze bunt single in the 5th that scored Morse from 3B (at least I think it was Morse...been a long road trip). It was very cool. So was the home-to-first DP in the 7th.

    Campana and a couple of other AAAA types beat us. I'm not nearly as qualified as you all, but I think our pitchers all got BABIPed a bit last night. Truly was a Candlestick Night, complete with all the wind & errors and even the extra-innings loss. Didn't get a scarf (but I'm an old Airborne Ranger, so its probably best if I ever want to enter Valhalla...). They should have given out a Croix de Candlestick though!

    Ten, Twelve, Fourteen...Let's Get Another Ring!

    NWGiantsFan
    DtF!!!

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  6. Even when Vogelsong was at his best with us he rarely went deep into games. It was almost always a 5IP, 3-5k, 2-3BB, and 2-4ER kind of line. If he can build on this, great, if not, then I would take this line every fifth night.

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    1. I would NOT take Voggie's outing every time out. He put us in a 4-1 hole. Had AZ's starters been decent, that would have been game over. Against the Bums, bullpen, game over. You don't put your team in a hole every 5th game.

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    2. I feel like Vogey was giving the Giants 6-7 solid innings almost every time out during 2012. Didn't he have a long string of quality starts that year? I wouldn't feel too awful about a line like last night if I thought Lincecum could be a reliable #4. Not so sure about either of those guys at the moment though.

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    3. Yeah, 2011 and 2012, Vogey usually made it to the 7'th inning. Remember all those standing O's when he would come out of the game?

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