Cubs SP Jon Lester, who is generally quite tough on the Giants, fell ill prior to the game and was replaced by Tyler Chatwood who is generally quite tough on the Giants. That, and a letdown performance by the Giants resulted in a loss to close out a 5-2 homestand. Key Lines:
Steven Vogt C- 3 for 4, 2 2B. BA= .275. Vogt's double in the 3'rd inning drove in Austin Slater for the Giants lone run of the game.
Donovan Solano 2B- 2 for 4. BA= .336. Solano tried to get something going with 2 outs on the 9'th inning. PH Alex Dickerson followed with another single to bring the tying run to the plate in Brandon Belt who lined out to end the game. While Solano is no sure bet to continue to outproduce Joe Panik at the plate, there is currently little justification for him to not be the full time starter at 2B.
Tyler Beede RHP- 5.2 IP, 10 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 7 K's. ERA= 4.85. The K/BB looked good but Baez, Bryant and Almora all looked like they knew what was coming when they teed off on FB's and sent the into the LF bleachers. It didn't help that all 3 gofer balls were middle-in at the belt.
Drew Pomeranz LHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 5.83. Pomeranz has been sensational out of the bullpen which might make Watson or Smith expendable or maybe make Pomeranz a trade candidate himself.
Sam Coonrod RHP- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K. ERA= 1.50. Coonrod has been electric out of the pen while riding the Sacramento shuttle.
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The Loss dropped the Giants 3 games behind he surging Cardinals for the 2'nd Wild Card playoff spot and 4 games behind the Nationals for the first. A 3-game deficit may be the buy-sell tipping point for Farhan Zaidi as the Trade Deadline bears down.
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The Giants get a day off tomorrow before hitting the road for 9 games that will take them through the trade deadline. Interestingly, they will be in Philadelphia on July 30 and 31. Jeff Samardzija will try to do better than his last start on Friday agains the Padres facing lefty Joey Lucchesi.
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Baseball can be cruel: after an unsustainable start, the baseball gods took notice of Austin Slater and smote him good.
ReplyDeleteLast 38 PA: 4 for 31, 1 RBI, 14 punchouts, .129/.289/.194 -- although he did get one of the few hits yesterday as Belt, Sandoval, Crawford, Yaz, and Pillar went 0 for 18 with a couple walks and leaving 11 runners stranded.
Beede was a solo homer and an out from a very shakey
QS, the 'pen was Great Again, but there was no magic wondoo in a dull afternoon highlighed by the launching of a Giant Swan in the Cove!
Minnesota better get themselves off the snide: Cleveland has picked up 5 games on them in less than two weeks -- can't envy Twins situation if they have to go wild card route through 2 very good division winners.
ReplyDeleteOTOH, they have a stacked system with FIVE of MLB's Top 100 (7, 11, 48, 91, & 97) and some hotshots below that. Maybe with all that, they can say we'll be Great for years to come, but baseball doesn't always work out like that -- if you can you better WIN NOW. One-stop shopping in San Francisco could solve all their biggest problems if they make an offer the Giants can't refuse.
The lack of hitting is wearing the bullpen down - team had to go 13 innings for failure to bunt or get a hit the other day. That 16 inning Met game etc? Yeah yeoman bullpen work but they can not earn a WC spot if the woeful hitting from the SS/2B slot continues.
ReplyDeleteI think Doc's 3 games out of the WC sounds spot on. Bumgarner may not move for a host of reasons, most simply because no team freaks out enough to trade for a 2 month rental. But Watson and Smith are different stories. Sandoval, maybe, but given his time in Boston, he may be seen as a bad risk if he's not wearing a Giants uniform.
ReplyDeleteIt's interesting to consider how Bumgarner's no-trade list (reportedly, Braves, Red Sox, Cubs, Astros, Brewers, Yankees, Phillies, Cards) might come into play. What if a trade is set up with one of those teams and he decides to exercise it, saying he wants to stay and try to win with the Giants and Bochy?
ReplyDeleteThe repercussions could be either or both positive and negative. If he nixes and the Giants get into the playoffs, then he's a hero (unless they resent not getting the other players in a proposed deal). If he nixes, the Giants fall short, and management and players resent it, then he's a goat (unless he gets a pass for loyalty).
Zaidi may not be the only one who decides the direction the Giants take, Bum might be forced to make a decision for the team as well.