Yep, you read the score right. The Giants got enormous offensive games from Hunter Pence and Brandon Belt and crushed the Dodgers at Chavez Ravine. Key Lines:
Gregor Blanco- 3 for 4, 2 BB. BA= .266. Let's not overlook Blanco getting on base 5 times out of the 2-hole. If he could only figure out how to avoid that yearly mid-season slump he goes into.....
Brandon Belt- 5 for 6, 2B, HR(16). BA= .289. 6 Ribeyes and 4 runs scored for The Belter. He might just be the second hottest hitter in baseball right now behind Hunter Pence.
Hunter Pence- 3 for 5, HR(23). BA= .293. The dinger as a Grand Slam to really put the game away at 12-1, although the Giants would go on to score 7 more runs after that. Anybody still think Pence isn't getting paid this offseason? How much do you think The Rev has added to his largesse just this month? $10 M? $20 M? More?
Tim Lincecum- 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 6 K's. ERA= 4.40. Well, he certainly got run support tonight. A QS on a warm night in LA.
Heath Hembree- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 0.00. Hembree may be winning a spot on next year's active roster with his September callup performance.
Ryan Vogelsong takes on Edinson Volquez in the series finale tomorrow afternoon.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Are we out of top 10 in the draft now?
ReplyDeleteHaven't checked, but probably. I only check in on that after a loss.
DeleteThe Giants are currently tied for 11th, which places them 12th for the season, plus the Mariners got the 11th pick due to their not signing last season, so they currently have the 13th pick. I'm OK with beating the Dodgers and winning the series, particularly setting a historical spanking of them in their own home while they were fighting hard to celebrate at home. The Giants are now out of the NL West cellar, which I'm hoping that they can finish above.
DeleteFear not, they are only 1.0 games behind 9th, 1.5 games behind 8th and 2.5 games out of the 7th spot, and there is plenty of time to get back there. I was hoping they would be facing the Yankees, who still is hoping to get into the wildcard spots, but they are facing the Mets first. But they are 4 losses behind, so they could be pretty much out by the time we face them.
Still, Mets have been playing around .500 lately, just like us, so they should give us a good go, and we'll be playing in their home, same with Yankees, where some players might feel some awe in the first game. I would also think that Steinbrenner will rally the troops to beat the former NY Giants to get some bragging rights.
Then we end at home, against Dodgers and Padres. Both has been playing about as good as us lately, both 20 and 30 games (Dodgers 17-13, Giants 16-14, Padres 15-15; Giants 11-9, Dodgers and Padres 10-10), so yes, the Dodgers are ending the season with a whimper, though so is everyone else too who are in the playoffs right now. Nats still trying to get in, but barring a complete collapse by a wildcard team, they are probably out of the playoffs.
So right now it looks like we'll end up .500 the rest of the games, 75-87, and that probably would keep us at 12th/13th, but it is the Yankees and Dodgers, so they could play us tough, and Alderson seems to hate the Giants, so he could also rally the troops too. And you never know, the teams ahead of us could start winning as well. So we will see.
Blanco should be our 4th OF next year, especially if Pence is back and we find a LF with some pop. His speed, defense, ability to play CF, and (mid-year slump notwithstanding) ability to get on base is nice to turn to every couple days or late in a game.
ReplyDeleteAs for the other offensive weapons, I think we're finding we may have a formidable 3,4,5,6 if Pence is brought back and Pablo maintains some semblance of conditioning this offseason. As bad as things have looked at times, we have a lot of pieces in place to be good. After getting Pence signed, figuring out our rotation will be key. Once that's settled, a tweak to the bullpen and figuring out who plays LF will round things out. And even if that LF isn't a marquee player, I think we can still have a solid offense. Belt's emergence has a lot to do with that.
Lucky
The more I think about it, the more I'm thinking that re-signing Pence is the only major move they need to make on the offensive side of the ball. I think Belt could play LF with Buster moving to 1B and The Hector taking over behind the plate. Lineup:
DeleteCF Pagan
2B Scutaro
LF Belt
1B Posey
RF Pence
3B Pablo
C Sanchez
SS Crawford
P
Reserves: Monell, Arias, Blanco, Adrianza, Perez
I think they have to overpay for Pence, if necessary.
On the pitching side, you have Cain and Bummy to start with. Go ahead make the QO to Timmy but hang tough on no more than 2 years. If he goes, there are plenty of FA options who will give them what Timmy had over the last 2 years for less $$. Go ahead and pick up Vogie's option, sign a relatively inexpensive FA as a backup plan. #5 starter is the winner of a Petit/Surkamp/Kickham competition.
I think you need to re-sign Lopez for his LOOGY goodness.
Bullpen:
Romo
Lopez
Casilla
Affeldt
Hembree
Machi
Petit/Kickham/Moscoso/Kontos/Rosario
After watching Hector come feet within another HR in the game right now, I just thought the same thing. That lineup, when healthy, could be pretty potent. I'm bummed we didn't get to see it in full force this year. I'd worry a bit about that bench, though.
DeleteLucky
They might sign a veteran C to back up Hector. Roger K, Pegs and Pill could be in the mix for Perez' spot or they could sign a low cost veteran option for the last bench slot.
DeleteDo not forget Gaudin, he certainly pitched well when asked.
DeleteI would rather give Pill the starting job at first in this scenario, let Hanchez prove himself in 2014 by starting more, with Posey playing first a lot in this scenario, and Pill sitting when Posey starts. You could also fit in monell into here to play first and catch too. That would be Hanchez, Monnell, Arias, adrianza, and Blanco on the bench, with Pill capable of some LF.
I am just worried about his defense, he missed a lot this season due to his injuries. Hanchez I think could use another year, plus I do not think Posey is quite ready to give up being starting catcher. And I would like to se what Pill could o with regular starts. And he is a great defensive firstbaseman, Snow said so before, best in system at that time.
To be clear I meant Hanchezs defense, he was viewed as having to develop more before the season and he missed a lot of MLB play this season, particularly blocking pitches in the dirt.
DeleteHector's ball blocking technique has improved greatly, but neither he, nor Posey (or Quiroz for that matter) are 100% sound on ball blocking. What worries me with Hector in regards to full time catching is the shoulder injury. Do those things ever really get back to 100%? Nevertheless, I agree with Dr.B, more of Hector and much less of Blanco and Torres should be an upgrade on the offensive side of the ball. As for Pill, I can't see handing him anything out of spring training. But that suggestion illustrates how much this team could use another legitimate bat on the roster, and that's after assuming Pence is signed.
DeletePeter
I just worry that the longer Posey stays behind the plate the more the Giants risk physically ruining a guy who they have invested an enormous amount of money in for a very long period of time. I want him out of there sooner rather than later. It seems to me that 1B and 3B are the two major options. If they want to trade Pablo to open up 3B for him, I'd be on board, but my first choice would be to move Belt to LF and Buster to first thus solving two problems with essentially one move.
DeleteI disagree. The team was fine scoring early in the season when everyone was healthy and playing. It was all the injuries that caused the offense to sputter, then they were in a bad dive that they could not get out of, because everyone was trying too hard.
DeleteI wouldn't mind getting another sure bat, of course, but the budget is getting pretty big and I don't think the owners are going to OK more spending. Plus, Belt is improved over where he was early season due to the tweaks. We should be good offensively in 2014.
About DrB's thoughts, I see your point, but I just don't see it happening without a better catcher in place to take over.
DeleteBut if the Giants do such a move, I would put Posey at 3B, shift Panda to 1B, place Belt in LF. I want Posey at 3B long-term, where his bat would still be superior for the position, instead of relatively ordinary at 1B.