Mason Black had a rough first inning exacerbated by a throwing error by Tyler Fitzgerald and the Giants never recovered in a game that illustrated the talent gap between the two teams. Key Lines:
Michael Conforto DH- 1for 4, HR(16). BA= .230. Conforto drove in the Giants only run with a HR in the 6'th inning. He had two hits in yesterday's game but is still hitting just .231 over his last 7 games and .192 over his last 15. Very disappointing season for Conforto who almost surely won't be back next season.
Grant McCray CF- 2 for 3. BA= .246. Some signs of life from a bat that's been struggling over his last 15 games.
Mason Black RHP- 4.2 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 6 K's. ERA= 7.50. Black gave up the 3-spot in the first inning but settled down to allow just 1 more over the next 3.2 IP. A wild throw by Fitz as runners were advancing after a flyout to RF allowed 2 runs to score. They might have scored anyway because Manny Machado followed with a HR, but maybe Black was temporarily distracted by the wild error? It's been an up and down season for Black but He seems like a guy who could still be in the mix for a role next season. He has options so could start at AAA for depth.
Logan Webb RHP takes the mound tomorrow evening facing Dylan Cease RHP.
Churn Watch:
Kyle Harrison LHP was placed on the IL with shoulder inflammation. Austin Warren RHP was recalled from AAA Sacramento.
As mentioned before, isn't hard to believe the 2023 Padres with their talent ranked near the bottom of the league in every offensive category involving clutch hitting and hitting in RISP. Manny Machado was terrible in those situations according to my friend who's a padre fan. Ironically Bob Melvin managed that team too. There is hope that the Giants can improve in that area next year if they work on it and maybe add a couple of hitters who are contact hitters whoi put the ball in play more
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned by Doc, Giants opponent pitcher today is Dylan Cease, who is SD's co-Ace with Michael King who pitched effectively yesterday.
ReplyDeleteAs mentioned by LG, the Padres are real this year.
They are 4 games back of LA and have a credible chance to catch them with 3 games remaining head-to-head. SD owns the tie breaker being 7-3 against them now, so they only need a tie.
The schedule favors LA: they close with 9 of their last 12 games against Miami and Colorado sandwiched around 3 with SD at home.
With 20 games left, the Giants schedule could be a train wreck: they are behind, in record, every team they play. All their opponents have records above .500, the softest is St Louis to end the season. At this point, finishing 77-85 would be "positive"! Ouch.
If the season ended to day, the Giants would draft #11 next July. They have an opportunity to move up into top 10 territory.
DeleteAt this juncture why is Conforto on the team, let alone in the lineup?
ReplyDeleteMakes no sense to me either Jim. He has been DHing often, lately too. I guess he really is off the team, but, we don’t have anyone else that bats left handed to DH? Marco Luciano needs to sink or swim while playing defensively too.
DeleteMarty Lurie had a great idea on his morning show that I totally agree with regarding hiring another front office person who is a baseball person known for talent evaluation that can help FZ with trades and free agent signings. He mentioned Billy Owen's who is with the A"s whose name came up when they were looking for a GM earlier. I remember former GM Al Rosen leaned on Bob Kennedy (Terry ^s dad )to help with trades decisions. Did Sabean lean on guys like Dick Tidrow? I think ownership should make it a mandate for FZ to hire a baseball person who is a good talent evaluator since it looks like they're keeping him around.
ReplyDeleteI assume that is what Pete Putila is for. I am not a big fan of ownership placing mandates on POBO's or GM's as to who they hire and fire. In general those kinds of working relationships can't be forced. If ownership feels like FZ needs a certain type of advisor and FZ doesn't feel the need to hire one on his own, then ownership should simply let FZ go and hire someone who has a more inclusive managing style.
DeleteThose are great points Doc. Even Brian Sabean left his front office advisory role with the Giants saying he was bored with what he was doing. Kinda sad in a way but you can't force those kind of working relationships. But it was concerning.. I also thought about the time when Brian Sabean hired John Barr as scouting director, which is a different work relationship but I think it was ownership driven. Good hire since his 1st pick was Buster Posey!
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