Whether it was the law of averages catching up or fatigue from a ridiculously long day or both, the winning streak came to an end in Game 2 of the doubleheader. The Giants made some loud outs and played some sloppy baseball which all contributed to the loss. Key Lines:
Norichika Aoki- 1 for 4. BA= .288. Aoki's single should have driven in 2 runs, but a sloppy slide by McGehee as the trailing runner got him thrown out at the plate for the final out of the inning and took away an opportunity for Aoki to score from 2B on a possible subsequent hit.
Brandon Crawford- 1 for 4, 2B. BA= .301. Crawford had a couple of line outs as did Brandon Belt, who ended the game 0 for 3 with a BB. Crawford should get a rest today, but I'll bet he talks himself into the lineup again.
Gregor Blanco- 2 for 4. BA= .270. Blanco is a talented player and might be the best 4'th OF in all of baseball, but he can make some really bad decisions on the field. He tagged up at 2B on a long flyball out to CF which did not appreciably increase his chances of scoring on a base hit, then came in standing up and got thrown out for the 3'rd out of the inning. Maybe Roberto Kelly gave the slide sign too late or maybe Blanco didn't see it or maybe Kelly assumed Blanco would be sliding? In his postgame comments, Bochy put the blame squarely on Blanco, both for running and for not sliding.
Casey McGehee- 2 for 4. BA= .200. Good to see 2 hits from McGehee, but when he slid home with what looked like the tying run, he was initially called safe by the ump, but kept his front foot in the air and the replay clearly showed him being tagged out before his left knee hit the plate.
Yusmeiro Petit- 6 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 3.86. Petit did a decent job as a spot starter. I mean, going 6 innings in that ballpark is a feat in itself for any pitcher and I don't think Petit had gone longer than 3 innings prior. Add in the interminable waiting through 2 rain delays and he did his job. It might have turned out better had the Giants been successful in turning a 3-6-3 DP just prior to the HR. I'm not sure if Belt double clutched on the first throw because he had to wait for someone to cover the 2B bag, or if it was just a hesitation, but if he had been able to unload the throw immediately, they would have gotten the runner on the return throw. Just one more example of how little things can make a huge difference in a game. Fortunately, the Giants have done way more of those little things right than wrong over the past 5 seasons.
The doubleheader split dropped the Giants 0.5 games further behind the NL West leading Dodgers who blanked the Pathetic Padres 2-0. The Giants deficit is now 2 games. They trail the Cubs, who beat the D'Backs 9-6, by percentage points in the race for the first Wild Card playoff spot, and they lead the slumping Mets for the second spot by 1 game.
Tim Hudson tries to pitch another great game in Coors Field after breaking the spell in his last start. He will face Chad Bettis who was a second round draft pick a few years ago, but has struggle to break into the majors. Bettis' last start was a QS, though.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Dunno, it's been a long time since I played baseball, but one hand stop sign and a finger pointing at third tells me to hold on the base and not make a turn, two hands slapping at the ground was sign to hit the dirt. Do you think Boch also had a talk behind doors with Kelly? MC Gehee DFA'd WOW, was always rooting for him and wish him the best, now is you big chance Duffman!
ReplyDeleteI don't know what you saw, but I clearly saw Kelly with both hands down. Just don't know if he gave the signal soon enough.
DeleteGiants DFA McGehee
ReplyDeleteGo Matt Duffy
I feel somber about the Casey Mc Gehee situation. It's unlike Brandon Hicks because we traded for Casey. Like when Pablo slumped you knew he was going to bust out of it. I felt Casey would soon come through. So, after a 8 game winning streak I hope players will continue to move forward. Ishikawa could also be let go and now this is an emotion period. Time for another Bochy/Pence speech of positivity. That being said, now would be a good time to lock Crawford up to a long term contract. Put some positive vibes back on Giants side. What Crawford means to the Giants is like Draymond Green means to the Warriors!
ReplyDeleteWell, Duffy was the guy who had options, but he's played so well, they just couldn't send him out. Just couldn't. That left McGehee vs Arias. Arias has more versatility and has been on a couple of championship teams, so he stays. Giants take care of their own and Arias is clearly more of their own than McGehee. What happens now with Ishikawa? This move was made to keep Strickland until at least June 4 when the Giants next have a day off.
DeleteLike Justin Love, I feel somber (the perfect adjective here) about McGehee. Still, I suspect that he never would have broken out of his slump as long as Duffy was playing so well, so that McG had to be coming to the plate with a sense of anxious pressure. As he very graciously said to Duffy, he was himself on the other side of such a battle, when he took Bill Hall's job away with Milwaukee, so he knew how precarious it is to keep a coveted position. Once he was sharing the starts with Duffy, his chances of keeping his job shrank. I hope he goes to Sacramento and re establishes himself with a fresh start.
DeleteI'd also say that I think the Giants would be well served by trading for Adrian Beltre, if and only if he comes as cheaply as the writer for Grantland (where this idea was explored at length) believes, letting Duffy take the place of Arias, but of course with a lot more playing time, to relieve Crawford, aging Beltre, and Panik regularly.
Gotta wonder if both Casey and the Giants would have been better off if he had just gone on the DL until his knee was completely healed. A lot of games it just looked like he was in a lot of pain and didn't really want to be out there.
DeleteI haven't read much about any Beltre trade ideas, but I would have to think Texas would want some high value prospects in return unless they are just dumping salary and then you have payroll issues to consider.
Well, there goes our emergency catcher!!! J/K
DeleteFrom what I understand, I think there is a good chance he stays with the Giants in the minors. I can't see him being traded or a team picking him up. I can see him accepting the minor league assignment though to keep his contract in place. I don't think that is a bad thing as it might give him a chance to get healthy and be a useful piece later.
If not, what about Juan Uribe? He would be cheaper to acquire than Beltre and might catch lightening here again. Either way, I think the Giants are going to get some veteran depth at third besides Arias.
Billy Baseball
Oh, and we all have to be amazed at what Matt Duffy has accomplished, and credit to Shankbone for seeing the possibilities when the Giants made Duffy a low round draft pick out of Long Beach St.
Deletei agree with doc, made absolutely no sense when casey was kept of the dl
Deleteas for casey accepting a stint in the minors....why would he?
giants have to pay him, no matter what
giants are hoping that no one picks him up....but there are more then one team with injury issues that could take a flier on him...and all they would be out is league min
as far as i can see, the giants will also be forced to dfa travis on monday....
and man, the mlb should just shutter coors and move the team....that place is a total joke
bacci
Most likely no team will want to pick up McGehee's salary. If he clears waivers and opts out of a minor league assignment, he loses his salary. At least that's the explanation on Extra Baggs. I'm guessing we'll be seeing Casey's name in the Sacramento River Cats boxscores. I guess Duvall would move to first base?
DeleteBTW, Blake Miller is back in the lineup in Richmond. What happens to Rando Moreno who played so well in Miller's absence? Giants seem to have emerging logjams at every level.
the chron explains it better. i have to say that baggs has lost a step since returning to the merc
Deletehttp://www.sfgate.com/giants/article/Giants-Splash-McGehee-designated-for-assignment-6284238.php
if casey clears waivers, he can go anywhere he wants and the giants still have to pay him
so what team wouldnt want to pick him up for league min?
bacci
John Laser had an interesting take today on Kelby Tomlinson. He said that Kelby was "doing what Matt Duffy did last year only better at this point in the season." Does Tomlinson go to Sacto soon?
DeleteWhen asked in the pre-game interview today if Kelby could "help the big league team right now or later if needed," Ken Joyce answered, "No doubt."
Moreno is certainly taking advantage of his opportunities. He's a fun guy to watch.
I don't know, Bacc. Maybe teams that don't want a guy who grounds into about 1 DP per game and looks like being on the field is the last place in the world he wants to be? I mean, how many teams are there out there for whom Casey McGehee would be an upgrade on what they already have at 3B?
DeleteNot sure who John Laser is, but I'm not sure I buy all that. For starters, this is Kelby's second time around at Richmond while last year was Duffy's first. Secondly, if he is performing better than Duffy at the same stage of the season, it can't be by much as Duffy pretty much killed it all season.
DeleteNot saying I don't like Kelby Tomlinson, but there's reasons why Matt Duffy is the starting 3B for the Giants and Tomlinson is still in AA.
So, I read the Chronicle piece on McGehee. He will almost certainly clear waivers as a claiming team would have to pay his full remaining salary. If he does clear waivers, he can either accept assignment or declare himself a FA. The Giants have to pay him either way. If he declares himself a FA and another team signs him, they only have to pay him the league minimum salary which would be deducted from what the Giants owe him, I believe.
DeleteI don't think it's a slam dunk that he will declare himself a FA nor that he will be signed if he does. His best bet may be to accept assignment and hope the situation changes at the MLB level giving him a chance to come back with the Giants later in the season, hopefully after he is fully healthy.
My bad. John Laser has been the radio guy for the Squirrels for the last 6 years I believe. He's had an eye on virtually every pitch and every play. He gets to see things that box scores can't tell you. Ken Joyce is the hitting coach. He's been around awhile as well.
DeleteWell, I respect their opinions and I Kelby Tomlinson is having a good season, make that two seasons! On the other hand, to say what he is doing is better than what Matt Duffy did last year seems like a bit of a stretch to me.
DeleteGiants DF > Casey Mc name Duffy the man at 3rd !! Wow!
ReplyDeleteGood for the Duff Man.
Richard in Winnipeg
IMHO, there is no reason for the Giants to do anything about 3b. There might be better 3b types, but none of them are available. Duffy is a .300 hitter with above average defense. I would also think he's young enough that even his arm strength could improve with a good off season program. With him and Panik, and Posey under contract, plenty of room to sign Crawford and even Belt. Given allt he "experts", pretty amazing that we have a completely home grown infield, 3 of our 5 starters are home grown and have a ton of guys in the system for depth at starter and reliever.
ReplyDeleteMy only concern is caring a 12 man position group, with 2 OFs (when Belt can play OF in a pinch). I would prefer we go back to 13 and carry two infielders. And while I get Travis is a hero, I'd prefer EA over Travis. I'm still worried about Crawford (and Panik and now Duffy) wearing down. We need to keep those guys healthy. Give EA a chance.
Happy holiday all.