Down on the Farm: 6/30/2021

AA:

 Luis Amaya LHP- 3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 4.82.

Amaya has 30 K's in 18.2 IP.  He needs to bring down his nearly 1 walk/IP(14).  

High A:

Will Wilson SS- 2 for 5, HR(10).  BA= .258.

Armani Smith LF- 2 for 4, 2 HR(3).  BA= .340.

Seth Corry LHP- 5 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 6 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 4.79.

Jasier Herrera RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 4.74.

After his BA hit a nadir of .244 on June 27, Will Wilson is 5 for 10.  The HR today completes a 2-game cycle.  I think we can say Armani Smith has serious helium as a prospect.

Low A:

Marco Luciano SS- 1 for 2, HR(13), 2 BB.  BA= .281.

Brett Auerbach C- 3 for 4.  BA= .342.

Kyle Harrison LHP- 5 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.24.

Randy Rodriguez RHP- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.88.

Marco Luciano is 5 for 10 over his last 3 games.  All 5 have been XBH's with 4 HR's.  Randy Rodriguez has 37 K's against 13 BB's in 25 IP.

For some reason, milb.com posts Complex League boxscores in an separate location from the Organizational scores.  I'm thinking the DSL scores are in yet another location if we get them at all.  Grrr!!!  I'll do the best I can to keep up with them and post important highlights here.  Complex leagues were idle today.

Game Wrap 6/29/2021: Dodgers 3 Giants 1

 Same song second verse.....The Dodgers once again jumped out to an early lead and the Giants just weren't able to catch up.  Game Notes:

It's quite warm and unusually humid for SoCal which may have factored into this game as Kevin Gausman RHP struggled with his control and kept wiping his hand as if to try and dry it off.  He ended up with 5 IP but gave up an uncharacteristic 5 BB's with only 4 K's.  That was not going to get it done against an opponent like Walker Buehler RHP who also allowed 3 hits but over 6 IP with only 1 BB and 7 K's.  

Not much else to say about this game except The Churn keeps on churning and the injuries just keep coming.  Mike Yastrzemski OF sat this one out with a leg contusion from the foul ball yesterday.  That gave Mike Tauchman OF the start in RF.  He made another highlight reel catch on a Cody Bellinger OF drive but wouldn't you know, he was slow getting up after the catch and left the game 2 innings later.

Mauricio Dubon OF/IF was optioned to AAA Sacramento.  He was replaced by Thairo Estrada IF who appeared as a PH for Gausman in the 6'th inning and flied out to RF.

Aaannnnd....Gregory Santos RHP was suspended for 80 games for using a substance.

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So, this was a rough two game series for the Giants who may have reached their lowest point since the 3 game destruction at the hands of the Dodgers in their first series of the year in Oracle Park back in May.  This was the Giants third loss in a row, something they have mostly avoided this season. The good news is they are still lead the Dodgers in the NL West by 1.5 games and still own the best record in MLB.

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The Giants now get a much needed day off for the short travel trip to Phoenix, AZ before starting a weekend series against the D'Backs.  Johnny Cueto RHP tries to build on his last excellent Start and tries to be the Stopper for the Giants in game one on Friday night against TBD.

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Down on the Farm:

AAA:

Braden Bishop RF- 2 for 4, HR(3), BB.  BA= .339.

Jaylin Davis CF- 3 for 5, HR(7).  BA= .316.

Arismendy Alcantara SS- 3 for 5, HR(6).  BA= .299.

High A:

Will Wilson SS- 3 for 5, 2B, 3B.  BA= .254.

Armani Smith LF- 2 for 5, 2B, SB(2).  BA= .326.

Logan Wyatt 1B- 2 for 3, BB. BA= .237.

Tyler Fitzgerald 2B- 1 for 2, 2 BB, SB(6).  BA= .266.

Tyler Fitzgerald is hitting .318 for the month of June after hitting just .205 in May.

Low A:

Carter Williams RF- 1 for 4, HR(1), BB.  BA= .323.

Marco Luciano SS- 3 for 5, 2B, 2 HR(12).  BA= .278.

Wil Jensen RHP- 4.2 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 2.91.

Ivan Armstrong RHP- 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.63.

Austin Reich RHP- 2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.73.

Huge game for Marco Luciano who also hits his 3'rd HR in 2 games.

Game Wrap 6/28/2021: Dodgers 3 Giants 2

 The Giants outhit the Dodgers 11-5 but were outhomered 3-2, which is pretty much the game right there.  Game Notes:

Giants fans frustrations with this game are not assuaged by an increasingly familiar pattern of the Dodgers jumping on their SP for B2B HR's to lead off their half of the first inning.  The Giants have come back from some of those awful starts, but you have to think that is probably not going to happen when your opponent is Trevor Bauer RHP and the Dodgers.  

3 of Anthony DeSclafani RHP's 4 worst starts of the season have come against the Dodgers.  He made a nice recovery from the two HR's to lead off the Dodgers first inning but the damage was done.  Those two early pitches cost him the game.

Lamonte Wade Jr 1B was not intimidated by Trevor Bauer and his antics.  Wade led off the game with a hard single and took Bauer deep for the Gaints first run in the 3'rd inning.  He was later awarded first base when a replay showed the pitch grazed his jersey as it went by.

Brandon Crawford SS hit a looong HR for his 17'th of the season and the Giants other run of the night.

Wilmer Flores 3B went 4 for 4 but did not figure in the scoring.  It was that kind of a night.  Flores' leg is clearly not right.  We can pretty much forget about him taking the extra base.

Mike Yastrzemski RF left the game early after fouling one off his shin.  That is painful just to think about and YtY appeared to be in as much pain as we can imagine.  X-rays were reported as negative for a fracture.

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The Loss cut the Giants lead over the Dodgers to 2.5 games in the NL West. 

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Kevin Gausman RHP tries for a series split tonight vs Walker Buehler RHP.

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Down on the Farm:

AAA:

Thairo Estrada LF- 3 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .385.

Jason Vosler 2B- 4 for 5, 2B, HR(5).  BA= .247.

Matt Frisbee RHP- 5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 6.57.

Game Wrap 6/27/2021: A's 6 Giants 2

The Giants gave a languid performance in their series finale agains the A's in a game that was not as close as the final score might make you think.  Game Notes:

There is really very little to say about this game.  Historically the Giants tend to struggle against pitchers they have not previously faced and against soft tossers.  Cole Irvin LHP had both factors going for him and became only the third SP to complete 7 innings against the Giants this season and the second to complete 8.   

Giants SP, Sammy Long LHP, did not pitch badly while overcoming a rocky first inning to get the game into the 6'th.  As weak as the Giants bats were against Irvin, it would have been tough to win this game no matter how well he pitched.

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The Dodgers and Padres both won so the Loss cut the Giants lead in the NL West to 3.5 games over the Dodgers and 4.5 over the Padres.  The Giants maintain the best record in MLB.

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The Giants travel south for a two game series against the division rival Dodgers tomorrow evening with Anthony DeSclafani RHP facing the hated Trevor Bauer RHP.

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Logan Webb RHP threw a 20 pitch simulated game and is expected to start a rehab assignment from shoulder soreness soon.  No new news on Brandon Belt 1B but he is not expected to have a short stay on the IL.

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Down on the Farm: 

AAA:

Jaylin Davis RF- 2 for 3, HR(6), BB.   BA= .292.

Jason Krizan 3B- 4 for 6, 2 HR(5).  BA= .339.

Chadwick Tromp C- 2 for 5, 2 HR(5).  BA= .266.

Tyler Beede RHP- 4 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 6.89.

Baby steps for Tyler Beede.  

AA:

David Villar 3B- 1 for 4, HR(10).  BA= .245.

Sandro Fabian RF- 1 for 4, HR(5).  BA= .273.

Caleb Kilian RHP- 5.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 2.62.

High A:

Tyler Fitzgerald 2B- 3 for 5, 2B, HR(7).  BA= .263.

Ricardo Genoves- 1 for 2, 3 BB.  BA= .500.

Sean Roby DH- 3 for 5, 2B, HR(5).  BA= .198.

Kai-Wei Teng RHP- 4.1 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.86.

Ricardo Genoves gets the promo from Low A SJ.

Low A:

Luis Matos CF- 2 for 4, SB(14).  BA= .299.

Marco Luciano SS- 1 for 3, HR(10), BB.  BA= .269.

Jairo Pomares RF- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .317.

Game Wrap 6/26/2021: Giants 6 A's 5(10 innings)

 Steven Duggar CF raced to home plate from first base on Curt Casali C's walk-off double in the 10'th inning to give the Giants their second win in a row over their cross-bay rivals.  Game Notes:

Lamonte Wade Jr 1B had a tremendous game at the top of the lineup reaching base 3 times in 5 PA's.  He homered in the 5'th inning with Steven Duggar on base to give the Giants their first lead of the game, 2-1.  His walk in the 7'th set up a 2-out rally that cut the A's lead to 4-3.  

Donovan Solano 2B tied the game with a HR in the 8'th inning and added another hit.

Steven Duggar was the other offensive hero as much with his speed as with the bat.  After scoring the Giants first run ahead of Wade Jr's HR, Duggar drove in designated runner Brandon Crawford SS from 2B in the 9'th before scoring the winning run himself.  Oh, and Duggar added a SB(6) for good measure.  And see if this sounds familiar:  Curt Casali struck out 4 times before hitting his game-winning double.

Alex Wood LHP seemed to be back in form with a line of 5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K's.  

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The Win maintained the Giants lead in the NL West at 4.5 games over the Dodgers with the Padres slipping to 5.5 games off the pace.  The Giants have won 5 games in a row and 10 of 11.

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Sammy Long LHP tries for the series sweeeep today facing Cole Irvin LHP.

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Sounds like Brandon Belt 1B has a medical opinion in hand that he needs surgery on his right knee as he is making the rounds for a second and third opinion.  I did not know this before, but MLB is reporting a prior microfracture surgery and all that does not sound good.  

Tommy La Stella IF has a fracture in his jammed thumb and will need at least 2 weeks before he resumes baseball activities.

Buster Posey C missed his 2'nd game in a row with back tightness.  Word is he may be ready today.  Hey!  The Giants are playing with house money right now. Why not hold him out one more day and make sure he is ready for the Dodgers?

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Down on the Farm:

AAA:

Braden Bishop RF- 2 for 4, HR(2), BB.  BA= .347.

Joey Bart C- 1 for 3, BB, HBP.  BA= .342.

Jason Krizan 1B- 3 for 5, 2B.  BA= .327.

AA:

Simon Whiteman SS- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .244.

David Villar 3B- 2 for 4, 2B, HR(9).  BA= .245.

Frankie Tostado 1B- 2 for 4, HR(5).  BA= .282.

Michael Plassmeyer LHP- 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 5.17.

RJ Dabovich RHP- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.86.

David Villar raised his BA from a nadir of .190 on June 15.  He is 16 for 38(.421) with 4 HR's since.  Frankie Tostado is 6 for 9 with 3 HR's in his last 2 games.

High A:

Conner Nurse RHP- 6.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 4.91.

Low A:

Carter Williams RF- 2 for 5.  BA= .333.

Alexander Canario CF- 2 for 4, 2B, SB(12).  BA= .243.

Fabian Pena C- 2 for 4, 2B, HR(1).  BA= .250.

Carson Ragsdale RHP- 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 4.17.

Game Wrap 6/25/2021: Giants 2 A's 0

Buster Posey C was a late scratch from the lineup due to back tightness so Curt Casali C waggled his Magic Fingers for Johnny Cueto RHP and two relievers to lead the Giants to their league leading 11'th shutout of the season(credit Pavs who says that's 3 more than the second team in the category).  Game Notes:

Cueto and Sean Manaea LHP hooked up in classic pitching duel with Manaea himself becoming the first baserunner of the game in the 3'rd inning with a double to RF.  The Giants got on the board first with the only run they needed in the 4'th inning on a double by Wilmer Flores 3B followed by a single by Brandon Crawford SS to drive in his 50'th RBI in the 75'th game of the season.

Casali gave Cueto an insurance run with a HR in the  7'th inning.  Tyler Rogers RHP and Jake McGee LHP pitched scoreless 8'th and 9'th innings with McGee earning his 15'th Save.

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The Win maintained the Giants lead in the NL West at 4.5 games over both the Dodgers and Padres.

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As expected, Brandon Belt 1B hit the IL with his knee injury which could keep him out a lot longer than the minimum 10 days.  LaMonte Wade Jr OF/1B was called back from AAA Sacramento to replace him.  Wade Jr may get to stay awhile because Tommy La Stella IF suffered a setback in his rehab assignment due to a jammed right thumb.  

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Alex Wood LHP tries to get his season back on track tonight facing Frankie Montas RHP.

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Down on the Farm:

AAA:

Braden Bishop CF- 2 for 5, 2B, SB(2).  BA= .340.

Thairo Estrada SS- 2 for 5.  BA= .378.

Joey Bart C- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .342.

Jason Krizan 3B- 4 for 5, 2B.  BA= .318.

Jaylin Davis LF- 2 for 4, HR(5), BB.  BA= .267.

Aaron Sanchez RHP- 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 9.82.

Gerson Garabito RHP- 3.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.09.

Trevor Hildenberger RHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.38.

AA:

Simon Whiteman SS- 3 for 5, SB(6).  BA= .220.

Sandro Fabian RF- 2 for 5.  BA= .267.

Frankie Tostado 1B- 4 for 5, 2B, 2 HR(4).  BA= .276.

Low A:

Brett Auerbach C- 3 for 4, SB(10).  BA= .333.

Ricardo Genoves 1B- 2 for 2, 2 2B, 3 BB.  BA= .338.

Casey Schmitt 3B- 2 for 4, 2B, SB(1).  BA= .225.

Marco Luciano SS- 1 for 5, 2B.  BA= .273.

Prelander Berroa RHP- 5 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 3.34.

Down on the Farm: 6/24/2021

AAA:

LaMonte Wade Jr.  LF/1B- 1 for 2, HR(3), BB.  BA= .244.

Thairo Estrada SS- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .378.

Drew Robinson PH- 1 for 1, HR(3).  BA= .154.

Scott Kazmir LHP- 6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 1.10.

Jay Jackson RHP- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Is LaMonte Wade Jr the callup if Brandon Belt hits the IL with his knee injury as expected?  Rehabbing Tommy La Stella IF DNP in this one.  He's not expected to be ready before the first week in July.  Scott Kazmir has pitched 10 scoreless innings over 2 starts since accepting outright assignment to Sacramento.  Kazmir has 9 K's and 3 BB's in that span.

AA:

Heliot Ramos CF- 0 for 4.  BA= .242.

Vince Fernandez LF- 1 for 4, HR(7).  BA= .185.

Sandro Fabian RF- 2 for 4, 2B, HR(4).  BA= .270.

Trent Toplikar RHP- 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 4.15.

Heliot Ramos may be hitting the EL Wall.  He's just 1 for 16 over his last 4 games with a drop of 20 pts on his BA.  His BA had been eroding from a peak of .314 on May 30.

High A:

Tyler Fitzgerald 2B- 3 for 5, HR(6).  BA= .257.

Brandon Martorano C- 4 for 4, 2 2B, SB(4).  BA= .338.

Seth Corry LHP- 4.2 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 4.95.

Fitzgerald is 6 for 13 with 2 HR's over his last 3 games.

Low A:

Carter Williams RF- 3 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .318.

Brett Auerbach 3B- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .317.

Jairo Pomares DH- 2 for 4, HR)3).  BA= .324.

Kyle Harrison LHP- 4.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 2.70.

Randy Rodriguez RHP- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 2.95.

Carter Williams was a UDFA last June.