Brandon Crawford and Giants fans celebrated his extraordinary career as the longest tenured shortstop in Giants history and winner of 2 World Series Championship rings. Oh! And a ballgame was played. A 5-spot by the Dodgers in the 6'th inning was too much for the Giants to overcome as they marked their eighth consecutive game scoring 2 runs or less. Key Lines:
Brandon Crawford SS- 0 for 4. BA= .194. Tough season for Crawford at what appears to be the end of a career he can be proud of. He sure is acting like this is the end. His 4 kids took turns throwing the first pitch. Gotta say, the lefty girl already has quite an throwing arm! Crawford has not committed to whether he will retire or not. That is his decision to make. As a fan, I would like to see him retire. He does not have anything left to prove. He can be proud he played his entire career with the team he grew up rooting for and for playing a major role in 2 of the 3 World Series Championships. He may be the most forever of the forever Giants. I would love to see him have a role in the organization whenever he's ready for that.
Casey Schmitt 3B- 1 for 3, 2 HR(5). BA= .206. A whirlwind season for Casey Schmitt who started the season in AAA and tore it up, had a resounding start to his MLB career then hit a wall after pitchers discovered they didn't have to pitch him in the strike zone. There were a couple of ups and downs but it did seem like he made some progress in his approach late in the season. The two homers send him off on a big positive note.
Kyle Harrison LHP- 5 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 4 K's, 3 HBP. ERA= 4.15. A bit of a walk on the wild side for Harrison but no hits allowed against one of the elite lineups in MLB. I saw 3 quality pitches from him: FB, breaking ball and changeup. Just needs to refine the command. Hopefully this is a springboard to starting next season in the rotation. If the Giants trade him this offseason they better get a heckuva young hitter in return.
Ross Stripling RHP- 3.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 5.36. By his own admission, Stripling has not pitched well enough to opt out of his modest second and final year of his contract. He finishes this season on a positive note. Hopefully he can figure out what went wrong in the offseason and be better next year.
So, another season of Game Wraps comes to a close. I may take a day off here and there but we have plenty to write about and discuss in the offseason. The end-of-season press conference should be a hoot. What are your odds FZ will be part of that?
DrB, I have no idea if the Chicago would be willing to trade him, but what to you think a trade for Luis Robert Jr would look like? I'm thinking Kyle Harrison, Luis Matos and maybe a wild card player who has talent but hasn't had success in the bigs like Ramos or Bart. Robert Jr is under team control for another 4 years. 24:$12.5M, 25:$15M, 26:$20M club option ($2M buyout). 27:$20M club option ($2M buyout)
ReplyDeleteRobert Jr is a super athletic player. I doubt that a cost- controlled player of his caliber would be available but the White Sox seem to be in a transition phase of their own. Looking at Robert's K/BB, it seems like FZ would have t to temporarily suppress his analytical impulsed to trade for him.
DeleteThank you Doc for the great work on your blog.. I enjoy reading your insights on the Giants and their minor league system. Don't know how you do it but keep up the great work!
ReplyDeleteFarhan is the first Giant to fire their manager since 1985. That’s all you need to know. Not the right guy for the job. He had his dream manager is Kap and it obviously didn’t work out and now Farhan is desperately feeling the heat. This can’t be good for Giants fans
ReplyDeleteWhen a POBO has to fire the Manager he hired with 3 games left in the season, that is definitely a failure on his part too and should be accounted for in ownership's end-of-season evaluation. Of course, since ownership hired the POBO, it becomes a failure on their part too.
Deletemy concerns about zaidi is that he gives paraag marathe vibes by overruling the manager. paraag used to do the same thing by overruling the 49ers coaches before jed york hired shanahan and lynch.
DeleteI don't think Farhan overruled Kap on anything significant because they were in lockstep. I see them as a package deal and an concerned that any replacement that represents significant change will be difficult for Farhan to work with and more likely to overrule.
DeleteAgree. with LG. Your blog is one of the first sites I go to after Giants games. Thanks for all you do. With changes ahead it should be an interesting offseason.
ReplyDeleteDerald Cook
Thank you again. Always insightful, usually spot on!
ReplyDeleteShould be an interesting offseason.
My bet is that Farhan makes the press conference. 2/1.
Thanks for another great season or reporting. I started reading your blog in undergrad when I had time to watch the games and was interested in the farm system. During medical school and residency, when I didnt have time to watch, it would always be my first read of the day and the only way I stayed up to date.
ReplyDeleteIt was a crappy season, but we know who our catcher is going forward and lots of young talented players that will only be getting better.
Thank you for sharing that. I really appreciate it. The one bright spot I see and it is not insignificant is I think the farm system took a big step forward this season. Particularly encouraging is the large and strong cohort of young international prospects in the complexes. That is a huge development for the long term health of the organization.
DeleteI echo the others sentiment Doc!
ReplyDeleteGreat work!
Richard in Winnipeg
Thanks again for another fantastic season -- I have been reading I believe since 2011. This is where I come for the best discussion on the Giants. Cheers to another year Doc.
ReplyDelete- Fan
I also share the same sentiments as others. You blog and insights are top notch. It is also the first place I visit every morning. Thanks for the the great work Doc!!
ReplyDeleteBeen reading your posts almost daily for what must be around 20 years. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteYes, I agree wholeheartedly with the other comments. I don't even bother with the other Giants blogs any more because they are filled with readers sniping at each other, commenters who try to hijack the blog with their own agendas, and lurkers who are obviously not Giants fans. I appreciate how Dr. B runs a tight ship here- either you are a passionate and knowledgeable Giants fan who abides by the rules or Dr. B will call you out. Ha ha, a thought just occurred to me... that's just what the Giants need... Dr. B for the next Giants manager!
ReplyDeleteHa ha! I would be a terrible manager but thank you for the kind words. Yep, my attitude is it's my blog and if you want to rant about the exact same thing everyday or push your own agenda or hijack the blog, you have every right to start your own blog. My basic rule is the Jim Rome Rule: Have a take, don't ****, even though Jim Rome himself never actually employed that rule. My interpretation of what that means is if the comment does not contribute to a rational evidence-based analytical discussion, it's not going to get posted.
DeleteThanks for the blog.
DeleteYou make baseball better.
Hey team! I am overwhelmed by the supportive comments. Yes, keeping up the blog is hard work. It can be hard as hell to write a game wrap on yet another pathetic, soul crushing loss but in the end, it is one of the most rewarding thing I've done in my life. It's a labor of love. I don't do it for money. You may notice I don't take advertisements. I do it to express myself and I hope it gives all of you an opportunity to express yourselves in constructive and insightful ways. Thanks to all of you for reading and contributing.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if you know the size and scope of your readership, but count me in as an expat Bay Area native now in Australia who reads your blog every day. Cheers and many thanks 🙏
ReplyDeleteThank you. I have in inkling because Blogspot provides data regarding number of visits per day and what country they come from. Not surprisingly readership tends to wax and wane in a direct relationship to team success. I know for sure that people who work in the organization and player family members have been readers and I suspect some players too. I have some circumstantial evidence that people fairly high up in the organization are readers. Again, that's all gratifying but I write to express myself, not to please or attract them. If folks find it worthwhile reading that's a huge bonus.
DeleteThanks for another great season of Giants insights. This year, your posts and the informed discussions were often more interesting than even the game highlights! The start of a perfect day here in Japan is DrB, then Baggarly, then a game, which usually starts around 10am. Thanks Doc!
ReplyDeleteThe best for anything Giants, by far. Your work and insight is greatly appreciated and trusted over other sources. Really appreciate your management of comments. On other sites, it's t-minus before the whole thread devolves into a dumpster fire of anger and irrational division. Thanks for keeping it fun.
ReplyDeleteRob in Vancouver
Yes Doctor B, ( what does B stand for), anyway you put so much effort into the blog. like to think you are a brilliant doctor as well and the blog is just a little sideline?
ReplyDeleteGoes way back to the days of the sfgiants.com message board when I had the screen name bldrngblk or something like that. Even I have forgotten the exact spelling.
DeleteI'll add my thanks for Dr. B and this awesome blog. I haven't posted in like 3-4 years but still read it every day. The only Giant connected site I visit. Keep saying I'm gonna post again (yeah, that's a threat)..maybe soon..I go to a lot of Flying Squirrel games and could probably add a little someday....A lot of players with small sample sizes this year as players were moving up and down the minors like crazy--as well as a lot of injuries..Not optimum for anybody... Same with the kids being yanked in and out of SF as well as getting platooned (both on Kapler/Farhan). Not the way kids really develop..On the bright side, many have seen what they need to work on to be a better MLBer........Anyways, thanks again DrB and all who contribute!!!!
ReplyDelete