For the second game in a row, the Giants offense fought back from a deficit and even took the lead in the 8'th inning only to blow the lead and the game in extra-innings. Key Lines:
Andrew McCutchen RF- 1 for 5, HR(10). BA= .259. It looked like Cutch would hit the game-winning HR when he went deep of Yusmeiro Petit in the 8'th inning, but it was not to be as Mark Melancon blew the Save in the bottom of the inning.
Austin Slater LF- 3 for 4, 2B. BA= .326. OK, now remind me why Austin Slater is sitting most of the time again? Free Austin Slater!
Pablo Sandoval PH- 1 for 1, 2B. BA= .254. The Giants finally got to Lou Trivino and it was Pabs PH 2-run double that was the big blow.
Alen Hanson PH/2B- 1 for 2, SB(5). Kelby Tomlinson started the game agains the lefty Sean Manaea. Hanson PH for him against the RH monster, Trivino, and delivered a run-scoring single to cap off the 3-run rally in the 7'th inning.
Johnny Cueto RHP- 7 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 3 K's, GO/AO= 8/3, 3 HR. ERA= 2.76. Kind of a mixed bag here. Kudos for going 7 innings and sparing the bullpen, but not exactly a dominant performance.
Mark Melancon RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 1 K. ERA= 2.65. Nope, not ready to close out games just yet!
Jeurys Familia RHP(A's)- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K. ERA= 2.74. Can't say I'd want Jeurys Familia in a Giants uniform, but here's the point: The A's bullpen has been arguably the strongest part of their team this season so what to they do? They get out ahead of the Trade Deadline and make it even stronger. That was the difference in this ballgame, right there.
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The NL West leading Dodger destroyed the Brewers 11-2 so the Giants fall 5 games out of the lead with the Loss. The D'Backs topped the Rockies 6-1 to move back into 2'nd place, but remained 1.5 games behind the Dodgers. The Rockies are in 3'rd place, 2 games behind.
The Wild Card picture isn't much better with the Giants 4.5 games behind with 5 teams ahead of them for the final spot.
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The Giants get Monday off before starting an interleague series in Seattle on Tuesday with Andrew Suarez facing James Paxton.
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I have to agree with Covechatter here. If the Giants are going to be buyers at the trade deadline, they better get their rear in gear and get something done. Also agree that it's tough to figure out what they need and what will make a difference. A mashing LF, #3 SP and dominant reliever would be on my wish list. I think they need to fill at least 2 of those 3 to be serious playoff contenders.
It is probably not realistic to think they will accomplish that and stay below the CBT threshold. If they think they have a serious shot, then they probably need to blow past the threshold and figure they will build from within in the future.
If they aren't willing to do that, they should probably try to get some prospects for the likes of Andrew McCutchen, Derek Holland, Sam Dyson, Will Smith and Tony Watson. If they can move a bad contract or two by selling off any and all prospects not named Joey Bart, Heliot Ramos or Marco Luciano, then get that done too!
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Bochy stayed away from using Morontha and Dyson today due to over usage. Then it frustrated me thinking the reason they are short of right handed relief help is Stricklands bonehead injury. I've been concerned about the bullpen all season since the starters haven't been consistently able to pitch deep into games. Yet they rank 8th among MLB bullpens with a 3.58 era. They might be a strength of this team. I agree its hard to pinpoint what they need. I've been disappointed with their offense especially on the road. This doesn't give the pitching much margin for error. I think they should get another starting pitcher due to Samardja being hurt most of the season. I agree they need to get something done soon.
ReplyDeleteLG
I favor no big deadline trades that deplete the Farm. Trade high priced vets like McCutchen or Dysen, Cuteo or Shark if there are any takers. If they fall further behind tree Hundley too.
ReplyDeleteOnly way they move Cueto or Shark without eating the whole contract is to include prospects.
Deletei think the giants are sellers at this point. the odds are becoming more stacked against the giants making the postseason and i think this team could be out of gas.
ReplyDeleteChances are so slim, the AL is so good, don't chase rainbows: go with Longoria, Panik, Strickland, Williamson and Cutch and plus a few lucky choices left in Sac (Rogers, Anderson, Kelly, Stratton) and the ROOKIES, this is not really the year to limp into the playoffs without shutdown pitching.
ReplyDeleteStay out of CBT hell, the chances are slim and none -- don't throw good prospects after bad contracts
Agree that AL has truly elite teams now - foolish to think a re-tooled Giants team can compete with that let alone stronger NL teams.
DeleteI advocate a mini-rebuild around the promotion of Joey Bart - let's say Bart can be a MLB producer by 2020. By then Shaw should be ripe and Slater or Duggar or Williamson producing as regulars.
I like that idea too. Set the OF as you say, get something for Cutch this year, let Pence retire. Gorkys #4. What about SP rotation going forward? DR and AS for sure - assume Stratton will be back - keep Bum and/or Cueto or cash them in now? Holland and Blach useful - Samardjiza needs to pitch one strong game and then SELL him. Back end bullpen pieces for the future - Rogers, Black, Fernandez, Moronta -- might be able to sell Dyson even if it's just to get someone to take Samardjiza or Melancon as a salary dump.
DeleteBullpen: Giants' bullpen is #6 in MLB in fWAR, #8 in ERA and #5 in FIP. The A's bullpen is #9, #7 and #15 respectively. Basically the tale I think I see is that the Giants' poor defense (#26 now and has risen recently from as low as #31) for much of the year has held the Giants bullpen and starting pitching stats back somewhat while the A's excellent defense (#7) compared to the Giants has helped them.
ReplyDeleteSo, I'll take our bullpen over thiers every day of the week and twice during double-headers... I think their bullpen has a far greater chance of regression than ours. Even if Melancon did blow it yesterday.
Buyers & Sellers: I'd sell. I just don't see this team as having enough pieces to be a contender. I think you could get a 'try to catch lightning in the bottle' return on McCutchen & Dyson. Possibly Cueto. I doubt we could trade Samardzija.
This is a time for making tough decisions. The Giants have had great success with the "the whole is greater than the sum of its' parts" approach to winning World Series titles. The Giants have a great culture, and a fantastic fan base. However, sometimes there is real wisdom is accepting the reality that you can only win with a flawed roster so often. This is not to say the Giants are the 98 loss team they were last year. In fact, I think you could argue the Giants weren't really a 98 loss team, they just happened to have the bad fortune of losing 98 games.
ReplyDeleteOn the surface, it feels so commendable to just go for it. To heck with the odds, let's show the world we can defy gravity one more time. It sounds heroic, and it is surely the "safe" play. It's just not very smart. Failing to acknowledge the talent shortage throughout the organization now, will set the Giants back significantly and extend the time required to rebuild by at least a couple years.
The Giants have some nice pieces that would bring back several 2nd tier and 3rd tier prospects in return. Will Smith, Tony Watson, Todd Hundley, Andrew McCutchen, Sam Dyson and Derek Holland are all guys that would generate phone calls if they were to be made available. But, it shouldn't end there. As unthinkable as it might be for some, the Giants should attempt to ascertain what the market would be for Bumgarner, Posey and Belt.
This is not about giving up, this is about addressing the realities that Giants are going to have to deal with at some point very soon. This Giants team is not championship caliber, Madison Bumgarner's post season excellence notwithstanding. The Giants fanbase has been treated to three World Series championships this decade. I had to struggle through five decades to get to the 2010 trophy. I think that Giants fans smarter, and more loyal than ownership gives them credit for. A well executed plan that brings a boatload of exciting young talent into the organization and is well marketed would
embraced.
I just hope the Giants have the strength and wisdom to do it. Otherwise, it's going to take a very long time before the Giants are able to achieve serious contender status again.
The Nationals are 5 games and 6 teams out of the playoffs. They need a catcher, they need another starter, they need a closer, and they need a leader.
ReplyDeleteThey could get all from the Giants and unload some 1-year contracts to pay big money.
With Bumgarner, Posey, and any of Smith, Watson, and Dyson, Nats would be formidable for at least 2years, maybe more. If the Giants are looking at 2020-21, it won't necessarily come back to bite them.
What does Washington have?
#5 MLB prospect Victor Robles, OF.
#61 MLB Carter Kieboom, SS
And some good arms
Blockbuster SELL-OFF -- at least it would be exciting to analyze for a while
DeleteBryan Murphy @ McCoveyChron Jul 23, 2018:
ReplyDeleteAlex Pavlovic posted an interview with President and CEO Larry Baer about the team’s plans a week out from the trade deadline.
Baer eliminated one possibility:
“Selling is just something that hasn’t been done by us, so I don’t foresee it,” he said.
So much for this discussion.
On with Patch & Pray...
Well, they did trade Nunez a year ago, but yeah, I think I've been saying all along the Giants are not goin to sell at all unless the fall hopelessly out of it and even then it will be limited to players whose contracts expire at the end of the season.
DeletePersonally, I think if they aren't going to be major buyers, they should be looking to get what they can for the expiring contracts. I'm not holding my breath, though.
DeleteNunez wasn't one of their "own" -- didn't have a loyal SF following.
DeleteI think the guys that came through their system, made it TO the Giants, have a special place.
Didn't help Matt Williams, though.
The Giants have several potential trade chips they could "sell" starting with Andrew McCutchen and still not touch the "homegrown core".
DeleteMatt Williams trade was close to 25 years ago.