A home run that hit the left-field foul pole in the 9'th inning off the bat of Casey Schmitt was too little, too late to overcome a generally dispiriting performance by both pitchers and hitters. Key Lines:
Casey Schmitt DH- 3 for 4, HR(1), 2 R, 1 RBI. BA= .368. Mighty Casey continued his hot hitting. He now has a 5-game hit streak including three 3-hit games. He's not the guy I would have bet on to be the primary DH but it looks like that job is his for now.
Daniel Susac C- 1 for 3, RBI. BA= .636. Susac showed off his arm strength with a laser throw from his knees on strike-e out, throw-em out in the second inning. He later barely missed nailing Gunnar Henderson on a SB attempt.
Adrian Houser RHP- 4.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 3 K's, 7/2 GO/AO. ERA= 5.06. The Orioles mounted two, 2-run rallies after Houser retired the first two batters in the innings. On top of that, he had Pete Alonso 1B at a 1-2 count in the first inning before losing him to a walk only to have Samuel Basallo C take him deep to left-center on a hanging sinker. Houser seemed to settle down over the next 3 innings until the 5'th when he allowed a 2-out line-drive single to Henderson followed by a flyball single to RF that looked like Encarnacion got a late jump on and Jung Hoo Lee probably would have caught. Pete Alonso then doubled both runners home and that was it for Houser.
Cade Povich LHP- 6.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K's. ERA= 2.19. Povich is a soft-tossing lefty whose career ERA is over 5 but he took advantage of an aggressive approach by the Giants hitters and did not allow his first baserunner until Schmitt led off the 5'th with a single. He got 8 flyball outs on low-90's 4-seam fastballs which the Giants hitters could not get on top of enough to drive them. He kept them off balance with a slow curve and an occasional changeup.
The loss dropped the Giants record to 6-10, tied for last place in the NL West with the Rockies. They trail the Dodgers by 5.5 games and the third place D'Backs by 3.
The Giants have a travel day tomorrow before starting a series in Cincinnati on Tuesday with Robbie Ray LHP facing Brady Singer RHP.
One thing about a weak bullpen is that the guys you use when you are down late are usually really bad. If they were good they would be pitching in the 7th, 8th, or 9th with a lead instead of the below league average options we currently have. When the bottom of the bullpen barrel come in to pitch we have very little chance of coming back.
ReplyDeleteOur bats have shown some signs of life but then again we have seen this before and it isn’t sustainable. What we have seen in the past that works is bringing up a player or two from the minors that are hot and could add some energy to this lineup.
Will Brennan could replace Lee and Bericoto could get a few games in over Bader and Ramos as well. They need a spark and some players that are fighting for their jobs. I don’t think there is an answer for the bullpen just yet but maybe Blevins should be up and in these spots late in games. Not sure any of this really matters as this season is swirling around the toilet bowl…
Radio announcers were hinting today that the Orioles may have somehow hacked the ABS system and singled out Ward as being particularly good at it. Giants are not among the leaders in successful challenges either from hitter, pitcher, or catcher vantage points. Baltimore seems good at it. I'm wondering if this is something they should be paying attention to.
ReplyDeletegood point. should also pay attention to not giving up home runs to catchers batting .154. down 2-0 early and the Giants scratch back a run only to basically lose any hope of a comeback with that home run. -es
DeleteHappy to see Schmitt have a strong start to the season. Makes me wonder if he could force an arraez trade down the line when First and DH inevitably become occupied by Eldridge and Devers.
ReplyDeleteJoel Peguero could be joining the team in Cincy.
ReplyDeleteGiants tied for the worst record in the mlb and second worst run differential. that is all for now. -es
ReplyDeleteSeems like ABS is going to limit Patrick Bailey's defensive value even more than I anticipated. He better get his act together at the plate and start looking like at least a passable major league hitter soon or the murmurs for more Susac are going to turn into ditch Bailey chants.
ReplyDeleteAs catcher, Bailey is 5 for 12 in ABS challenges but supposedly, the 5 successes were impactful.
DeleteAfter the loss of a combined 3-hitter against the Reds, the giants have sole possession of last place in the National League until Colorado completes their loss to Houston, trailing in the 7th inning, then they will have to share this dubious distinction, although young Daniel Susac made a bid to tie it up with 2 outs in the 9th, but, alas, it was captured very close to the wall.
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