What was that team that beat the Dodgers last night? Never heard of them....wait, what? The Giants kept the pressure on the Dodgers behind another scintillating pitching performance by Trevor McDonald and pulled away in the later innings for an easy win. Key Lines:
Luis Arraez 2B- 2 for 6, R. BA= .311. This was Arraez' 14'th multi-hit game of the season. He's been held hitless in 9 games. He's been remarkably steady batting .323 in April and .333 so far in May.
Casey Schmitt 1B- 2 for 3, BB, HBP, SB(3), 3 R. BA= .294. Schmitt has also been remarkably steady batting .269 over his last 7 games, .309 over his last 15 and .307 over his last 30.
Rafael Devers DH- 2 for 3, HR(5), 2 BB, 3 R, 2 RBI. BA= .240. Devers got the Giants their first run with a solo HR in the second inning. He is batting .364 in May after batting just .196 in April.
Heliot Ramos LF- 2 for 4, 2B, BB, R, 2 RBI. BA= .278. Speaking of steady, Ramos is batting .310 over his last 7 games, .295 over his last 15 and .304 over his last 30.
Willy Adames SS- 2 for 5, 3 RBI. BA= .215. Adames came up with 2 outs and the bases loaded in the 7'th inning. I thought to myself, this would be a great time for him to step up and hit a grand slam home run. Adames did something smarter. He stayed within himself, went the other way and lined a 2-run single to RF. He came up with the bases loaded again in the 9'th and singled to left driving in another run.
Trevor McDonald RHP- 5.1 IP, 9 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K's, 9/0 GO/AO. ERA= 2.92. This line falls short of a Quality Start but McDonald got out of a no-out, bases-loaded, a run in jam in the 4'th with a GIDP and K. Tony Vitello let him go out for the 6'th despite a soaring pitch count. He allowed a lead off HR to the much-hated Max Muncy, got a ground out but gave up a single to Teoscar Hernandez. With the pitch count at 101, Vitello brought in Matt Gage who got out of the inning and pitched another scoreless frame in the 7'th.
Are you going to the SJ game tonight?
ReplyDeleteYes, with a couple of childhood friends, at least one of whom is a Dodger fan. But wow! Prices for box seats in the new stadium in Ontario are over 3X other regional minor league parks. I mean, part of the charm of going to minor league games is the affordability.
DeleteHow many of the games will you make?
DeleteYou can scout the entire Little Giant staff as well as getting close looks at Level, Maldinado, Bravo, Jatczak, Reynoso, et al!
And the future Bad Guys...
I saw two games in Rancho Cucamonga in April. I might go to a second one in Ontario to try to see Argenis Cayama pitch, but the ticket prices in Ontario are a significant deterrent. We now have four Cal League affiliates in SoCal and the Giants are coming down every month of the season so I am sure I will catch several more games before the end of the season. BTW, I will wear my trusty Matt Cain 43 shirt if any readers are there and want to come by and say hi.
DeleteRe: Minor League prices; I haven't been to a minor league game in while...But went to a San Jose game once with my daughter and said at the ticket window, jokingly, "Give me the best seat in the house." LOL
DeletePerson working there laughed and looked at available, then said, "Yeah, I have something for you." It turned out to be the open seating area just past the visitor's dugout down the left field line. Normally reserved for groups of, like 40-50 people, but we had it to ourselves that night. We were right on the fence, right next to the players. There was a 2-sided bar there too (open to our reserved area and the concourse). So, we kind of had our own bartender as well.
Anyway, I think they charged $40 for the both of us for the VIP experience. Can't imagine that happening anywhere but the minors.
Our ever prescient Doc forecasting in early February:
ReplyDelete"At this point, Landen Roupp looks like the presumptive 5'th starter in the rotation but it's highly likely the Giants will need more than 5 SP's over the course of the season and McDonald should be an early option when more are needed."
Okay, who's going to win The Preakness this weekend?
Adames sent two to the warning track last night, which may explain the RF approach with RISP. He doesn’t seem like a natural power hitter; he might be better off focusing on hitting and less on swinging from ghe heels.
ReplyDeleteGood stuff from McDonald, the relievers, and the usually weak lineup. DEVERS and ADAMES getting hot? Maybe Chapman can just hit the ball and join them? That's what Management counts on. OTOH, Chappy is what he is, a .225-.240 hitter with streaks.
ReplyDeleteSteveVA
When Adames and/or Devers get hot, how likely is it they'll fade again? Why not try to sell high and consider trading both when they're streaks at the plate are gaining steam?
ReplyDeleteGreat question and one I thought of last night. If Adames and Devers play up to their historic averages the rest of the way, this team still probably has a fighting chance to make the playoffs but recent history suggests there is another cold spell coming down the pike.
DeleteTrading any one of the big contracts will probably require the Giants to toss in money to offset the contract. Devers has about $300 million owed to him and Adames has about $150 million left. For another team to bite, it might require the Giants to toss in around a half of the balance.
DeleteI don't know that is true. Historically bad contracts are almost always tradable. What if one gets hot before the trade deadline and some team thinks they can catch lightning in a bottle and ride the hot streak to a World Series win? It's happened before.
DeleteDevers’ contract is going to be active until 2043 with $7.5 million per year paid from 2034-2043. If I’m alive, I will be 85 years old when the contract finally ends.
DeleteDEVER's historic average is soooo much higher than Adames..I don't know what happened up to a week ago but in my worthless opinion, you keep DEVERS and he will be the best bat in the Giants lineup for at least 3-4 years--I worry about almost every other spot (except ARRAEZ, but he's a goner) so much more.. WHy I think while they might have a "hot spell" most of the year will be cold and don't think they have a ghost of a chance at the POs..Just too many issues--SP, Bullpen, punchless OF(though Ramos has been hitting lately), inconsistent vets..The deadline should be interesting though!
ReplyDeletesteveVA