by
Greek Giant
Tonight’s Game: Padres (42-55) Vs Giants (38-61) at Willie Mays Field, 1:05 PM
Dinelson Lamet (3-4, 6.40) Vs. Ty Blach (6-5, 4.36)
Usually Sundays are a chance for me to cook for my parents and maybe a few friends with the Giants game in the background. Today I am going full on BBQ: smoked ribs, smoked chicken, homemade mustard bbq sauce, collard greens, sweet potatoes, all made from scratch with my secret rub…
I’m going to wash it all down, or pre-wash it, with a Charleston:
- 3 parts firefly iced tea vodka
- 2 parts mineral water (sparkling)
- one half lemon fresh squeezed
- 5 pieces of mint muddled
Server in a high ball glass filled with ice and let the divine taste of South Carolina wash all over you…
This series the Giants have faced a pitcher named “Jhoulys”. Today they face a Padre starter named “Dinelson”. Baseball is weird.
Five Questions
- What is a Giants bucket hat?
- Is Dyson a part of the Giants future or a trade chip?
- Will someone please tell Hunter Pence he is bailing on every pitch?
- Will the Giants break 2.5 million in attendance this year?
- Is Gorkys Hernandez really hitting better, with a higher average than BB9?
Good start.
Breckeroni says Footy will remember this: Sidd Finch https://www.si.com/mlb/2014/10/15/curious-case-sidd-finch
If they had not named him Sidd Finch – they could have chosen today’s Padre starting pitcher:
Dinelson Lamet
He’s not bailing as much as pulling off the ball on his swing, partly because he uses such an awkward open stance.
Watch his feet; he hardly ever closes it when setting up.
This is Pence I’m talking about here in answer to your question, above, G.
Opine: I think he is right eye/back eye dominant thus the eye closest to the pitcher is worthless for Hunter in tracking the pitch. So he needs to awkwardly find a way to turn his head quickly so his one and only good tracking eye gets into the tracking lane.
Maybe the Giants Gomez is the long lost nephew of Ruben Gomez who pitched the opening day game at Seals Stadium – Giants – vs Dodgers 1958.
JD4SF was there but not sitting with me 😉
Breckeroni asks, ‘What did the Pads pay for Myers?’
On December 19, 2014, the Rays traded Myers, Ryan Hanigan and Jose Castillo to the San Diego Padres as part of a three-team transaction, in which the Padres traded Jake Bauers, Burch Smith, and René Rivera to the Rays, the Padres traded Joe Ross and Trea Turner to the Washington Nationals, and Washington traded Steven Souza and Travis Ott to Tampa Bay.
-Wiki-
Nats win
IRRC, Myers was a ROY, and looked like a franchise player. They were nuts to let him go. And the Pads pretty smart.
Who was playing 1st for Tampa?
Was it Loney?
Myers played RF as a rookie – he’s got a cannon.
Infielders for TB in 2013
• Tim Beckham
• Shelley Duncan
• Yunel Escobar
• Chris Gimenez
• James Loney
• Evan Longoria
• Ryan Roberts
• Ben Zobrist
2014
Infielders
• Yunel Escobar
• Cole Figueroa
• Logan Forsythe
• Nick Franklin
• James Loney
• Evan Longoria
• Sean Rodriguez
• Ben Zobrist
My Guy De Nard Sp_an
He and Nunez look good in their Late July Showcase Special
Parlez-Vous Francais is how “Denny” usually greets the ladys.
Who will wear jersey #9 in 2018?
Matt Williams
The Big Marine – hope he’s on the Giants ML coaching staff in 18.
That cocktail sounds fantastic. The whole meal does! Wish I could get to Florida in time for dinner!
Andrew Baggarly 9min ago:
Amazing. Wil Myers has hit HRs off SIX Giants pitchers this year. The list: Cueto, Neil Ramirez, Kontos, Moore, Strickland and now Blach.
This Home Run thing has gotten old.
Just wait until Sanchez comes up….
We used to have pitchers who didn’t give up Home Runs every game, didn’t we?
Surprisingly, the Giants pitching staff is only 22nd in MLB in giving up HRs, 112. The Reds have given up the most by a longshot, 168; tied for 2nd are the Orioles and Mariners at 148. So it could be worse…
It’s hurt by our HR +/=
Thanks for the perspective, 12xu. I guess I need to research how many HRs the Giants gave up in their glory years.
I was surprised that the Giants weren’t in the top 5 for HRs allowed. It seems like they give up 2 a game. IIRC, even in the glory years they were pretty high up in the league.
I’m very surprised. Thanks for looking up the stats!
He can hit.
New trend. Getting the Leadoff double home. I like it.
“I’m Joe Panik, and you’re watching San Francisco Giants baseball…”
So are you, Joe. So are you
And none of us is enjoying it very much at the moment. 🙁
That’s why they call it the big leagues – wonderful sell-out play vs average foot speed.
1. The helmet worn by Hunter Pence when he swings at sliders 2 feet outside
2. Near future
3. He’s hard of hearing, heading, thinking, adjusting
4. Yes
5. …and Crawford. He’s a legitimate 5th OF thrown into a starting role and doing fine
Kuiper: “Lament”… our Duane
Dinelson Lamet Sidd Finch
Five Questions
1. What is a Giants bucket hat?
A Giant Bucket Hat was invented by Willie Mays who was told by Satchel that guys would sit around the clubhouse and fire/spin cards off the top of the deck into a hat. Satchel said he once got 51 out of 52 in the hat. Mays changed the hat for a bucket.
2. Is Dyson a part of the Giants future or a trade chip?
*** Very much part of 2018
3. Will someone please tell Hunter Pence he is bailing on every pitch?
*** He knows it to the Nth degree and that is why he created the Hunter Pence Hitting Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6hCMKA9GBU
4. Will the Giants break 2.5 million in attendance this year?
*** Yes ***
5. Is Gorkys Hernandez really hitting better, with a higher average than BB9?
*** Stats lie – is his BA better currently? Yes. Is he more valuable? No
NOONIE !
Walmart saves the day.
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2016/07/how-a-guy-from-a-montana-trailer-park-upturned-150-years-of-biology/491702/
Doyers take Opie out of the game in Inning number three.
Ofrain pooping bricks.
Box score says he threw 21 pitches, 15 for strikes, taken out before start of 3rd. Back problems?
Why? Efrain’s got nothing to watch now
Precautionary …. maybe light headed.
Efrain jinxed him by trolling a Giants blog about how he’d rather watch a Ducking Fodger than his own team. #karma
More like he’s got nothing to troll with now.
AT&T Park will host the rugby world cup “sevens” (whatever that means) next year from July 20-22. 24 men’s and 16 women’s teams will play… what could possibly go wrong with the playing field during this tournament?
Good think Jeff Kent is long gone. He would give the FO an earfull about the condition of the field after an event.
That’s right, he used to voice his opinion about that. Still, a great Giant. Let’s hope that the audience at the James Taylor – Bonnie Raitt concert don’t start a mosh pit.
1/2 of them will be over
60 and will be lucky to stay awake for the entire event.
Ha-ha, true… not that there’s anything wrong with being over 60!
Renfo is a future Garvey like hitter. Blach made his pitch, Renfro dug it out.
Blash is a great promotional name for the Padres and MLB
Andy McCullough 10min ago:
Clayton Kershaw is out of the game after two innings. An explanation for his departure has not been provided.
Andy McCullough:
Kershaw left the dugout with one of the trainers. Not sure if he’s under the weather — there’s bronchitis going around — or what.
Raggs to the mound
three run deficit
Having flashbacks to that ugly game in Denver.
You’d think the Padres were the ’27 Yankees the way they’ve knocked our starters around this series. Every single one of our guys has been awful.
If we’re lucky, we can use the same title for the post-game blog you used this morning after last night’s game.
Positive thoughts…
Thank god 27 outs means we still have 18 chances for our hitters to fight back.
Funny how we make most teams look like the ’27 Yanks when they play us. BTW, thanks for your kind words in the previous post. I’m back home a thousand miles away after two awesome days at AT&T.
Sure you are, “Joe,” or can I call you “Larry”? You’re in your owner’s box at the park right this minute, aren’t you? 🙂
Ha. I wish.
All that happened on only 11 pitches
Astros lost 7-9 vs. Orioles.
Why would anyone upvote the Astros loss?
Manager AJ Hinch is a good dude.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A._J._Hinch
Entertaining game.
Yes, it was. Which is more than I can say for…
I used the Oriole/Astros game to divert my attention away from the G’s/Pads game.
I did too!
Don’t worry everyone.. The Giants have the Panda back! Lol
Can he pitch?!
Do I remember he can throw with either arm?
Yes, but how well?
Dunno the answer to that, we’re just funning around. In the same vein, we know he’s missing both hamate bones.
And to think, if it weren’t for Pablo, we (excluding DGG) would have never known there was a hamate bone.
What’s a hamate bone and is it as good as T-bone?
Some little bone in the hand, which you can break swinging a bat. maybe they are more fragile in Panda paws than Human’s? It is true enough that there’s no reason otherwise to have any idea about that bone.
Stanton broke one, too.
I knew what a hamate was but I’m just trying amuse myself while we try to dig out of a hole … again.
I think it’s in the palm of the hand. Baseball players can break it because they hold the bat with the knob in the palm, which they feel gives them a better whip action to the ball. Panda was warned about it but he never changed his grip (I’m sure other players have been warned too), and because he was a switch-hitter, he broke both.
Exactly. Sandoval was warned he could break one or both hamate bones but he never changed his grip. The Giants didn’t want to engage in unnecessary surgery and remove both hamate bones at once. Which is understandable, but underscores how stubborn Sandoval can be about making changes.
With both hands. Once threw the ball righthanded and it landed on the arcade from home plate at ATT and lefthanded he threw it in the cove from home plate.
The Giants have a lot of players with bad contests. Nunez is the one player who will get traded. We need to see the youngsters play to see what we have for the future.
Hey! You guys were supposed to get the Giants some runs while I was outside, not the other way around!
#WhatARivalry
There are times when Baggs’s snark just hits the spot, though…
https://twitter.com/extrabaggs/status/889229727394746368
Baggs is always good for something like that. I gotta find out if Baggs went out for Lacrosse or Crew at Northwestern U
That’s Our Guy, Baggs.
I want another Jeopardy go.
Funny. That would be a play happening in slow motion.
It just did.
Blash on first, line drive single to center, he doesn’t even slow down or look as he steams into 3B. Noodle arm Span strikes again.
Could be Nolan Arenado’s cousin – Dinelson Lamet
http://m.padres.mlb.com/player/659275/dinelson-lamet
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinelson_Lamet
Hits pitches like a baby panda IE Gomez
8 more ways to score from third base than second base.
Try Gomez in left?
Looking at the box, Belt has Myers licked with the glove, but who’d you rather have swinging the stick in the middle of the lineup?
#LoveCompingBeltWithOtherFirstSackers
So……….
Belt learns how to S/W hit over the winter
Again, not seeing how Myers is close to Belt. Their bats are close this year, but only because Belt is lower than normal.
Alex just posed a Game Update GIF: Bochy giving a sign and hanging his head.
LOL Must have been missed by a player
I think it was a sign for after the play. Bochy looks downcast.
I saw that live and thought the same thing. Long year, Skipper. Two more months. Buck up. Don’t. Finish. Last.
This one? https://twitter.com/PavlovicNBCS/status/889230810087346178
Thats a Bochy standard. He doesn’t look at Nevin or Bochy when giving signs.
Dinelson Lamet sounds like a fabric you make doilies out of.
My orthodontist once told my mom I had dinelson lamet
Gorks dedicated to TO
Flip a coin Umps
Pitchers all time best friend 1-6-3
More like it.
Andy McCullough 1min ago:
Clayton Kershaw left the game with “right low back tightness.”
That doesn’t sound good. Didn’t Kershaw go on the DL last year with back problems?
For most of the 2nd half of last season.
That’s what I thought.
McCullough just reported that the initial diagnosis last year was “lower back stiffness.”
That could encourage a push for another starter by the deadline. Whoever is pitching, they score runs. Austin Barnes with a 3 run shot.
He’ll be fine, just back tightness. He struck out the last batter he faced before walking off.
Some good news during this desultory game – I heard from our Amigo Alvise on facebox!
Bueno!!!
Now how about Vegas Giant Fan + Walter Guest ?
How’s his health?
Dunno – just a brief conversation about this Guardian article:
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/jul/23/venice-tempers-boil-over-tourist-high-season?CMP=share_btn_fb
Hope he is well.
Yes! Snorkel is back!
that other photo was really creepy.
It didn’t seem to match paul’s personality.
Michael J. Pollard is my evil twin.
The Heavenly Snorks!
The feline spirit of the Giants blog since…2010? Clue me in, Paul. Many years, that’s for sure!
Actually, 2012 – we didn’t know about G/E in 2010, and watched the games all alone. Thx for remembering him.
Snorks??? How could he ever be forgotten. That Paul guy will be forgotten before Snorks.
Thanks, Paul. It was an educated guess. Glad it was one of our WS years. Snorkel will never be forgotten.
The 108th Contarini ! or something like that!
All is good?
Tyson Blach needed a quick inning
T Blach 5.0 INN 5 R 63-40/TP’s/Strikeks
The thing about Tyson – even when he gives up a crooked # – he almost always rights the ship.
Strassburg taken out with five run lead.
JD Martinez still a no show.
E6
Bad baseball.
Speed kills
Ok enough already Hector
Phew.
Great fielding P.
Isn’t that twice that he’s had Blash K’d and didn’t get the call – then a hit?
Kershaw would have gotten the call.
Without a doubt.
1. Its a hat placed where Hunter Pence’s left foot usually lands when he swings
2. Future. They don’t need cash or a player to be named later
3. He knows but like your golf swing, he can’t help it
4. Maybe…but ask that same question next season. Could be a close call
5. Yes. Says more about BB9 than it does about Gorks
That was a nice looking swing on tough pitch by Gomez. So he can play 2B and 3B, eh?
Eh Yep.
Looks like he belongs too.
pretty much so, he has hit at every level in the minors like some of the other Giants (Duffy Panik) that have come up and hit well
What do ya give me for —- Carlos Rico Suave Asuaje
Like NO other stadium https://twitter.com/FlemmingDave/status/888907894162194432
Although Pet Co and PnC come in 2-3
Snorks will miss Eduardo.
Maybe not that much…
WOW BB9 did not swing at 0 and 0 for a change…
Since the power hitting Brandon Belts last game in which he hit a home run on July 2 14 games ago, he has 12 hits and a .216 average. while he has 21K’s and a 0.396 average striking out.
3 spot hitter on a 100 loss team, shouldn’t be a surprise.
But hey Giants fans love them some Belt.
How can that happen ?….. Noonie the play is RIGHT in front of you and Buster walking to home plate.
More bad baseball.
Because, at the bottom of things, they really don’t care. They don’t prepare mentally for the game and they aren’t mentally IN the game. Unless you think the Padres are putting more talent on the field.
He also wasn’t running hard on the pop up and only turned it one once the ball was dropped.
FP Santangelo and his son FP (the same) look more like brothers than father and son
https://twitter.com/carmenkiew/status/888835424340197376
Tampa Bays Skipper Kevin Cash should grab some post season award(s).
Crick the Wild Child Stallion (still)
I’m over my hactor-love – it was misguided.
Screw him and his sh**ty catching.
Upon careful reflection – I’ll take the Panda xmas peejay jersey over that pathetic bucket cachucha any day.
Also: Crick’s a keeper.
His stuff jumps!
Glad to see Crick make it to MLB and do relatively well.
Hopefully will be a good 6-8 inning rp next year.
Wonder if there is thought by FO and Crick of a return to starting?
I really think they should try him @ SP again. Could solve a huge problem.
And here – stretch him out! There’s absolutely no reason to bring in Gearrin here.
4-pitch walk. Awesome.
Agree. Crick should have pitched the 9th.
The bullpen is overused by Bochy in terms of warming up and appearances and then under used as far as length of appearances.
Just on average some rp are going to have a bad day.. Why take out a pitcher having a good day for a pitcher that may have a bad day? Why use 4 or 5 rp when 2 or 3 would suffice?
I get that some cases are situational regards to specific match ups or right or left or managing the batting order.
This is a flaw in Bochy’s managing strategy.
Glad to see him up here in MLB too. Thursday night, his FB was consistently 95/96. He had TJ surgery a couple years ago, right?
I don’t recall that Crick had surgery but that he was very wild and walked many hitters. I may remember wrong.
No, Crick hasn’t had TJ. Knock wood.
Was there a roster move made before the game? Why is Gillaspie playing for the SJ Giants?
Just kidding. Checked the wrong boxscore haha.
Belt, Craws and Pence all slumping at the same time. No Bueno.
Don’t think it’s a slump with Pence.
Easy with hit piece on Pence — question 3.
Willie Mays also stepped in the proverbial bucket, by design.
A lot of players in that era did — if you dove into the ball guys like Gibson could end your career.
The game grinds to a halt when Gearrin comes in.
Human Rain Delay ala Mike Hargrove and Nomar……….
What are the details of the 30 sec rule in the minors? When does the clock start? What happens if the batter doesn’t get in the box? Etc.
So what’s on Cory Gearrins’s pre pitch checklist as referenced by Kruk?
1. Look at 2nd base.
2.Look at Buster.
3. Scrunch up face.
4.Look at Buster.
5. Scratch something. Avoid areas frequented by Conor G.
You forgot multiple breathing exercises with breath-holding and a few minutes of alpha rhythm sedation.
Wow, Kenley Jansen just blew a save for the first time this year. Matt Adams with the 3-run bomb to tie up the game 4-4.
Just saw Dodgers have strong interest in Darvish
Yeah I saw that. Apparently Cubs and Dodgers scouted his last start vs the Rays
Can we dump Smarge and Moore on them?
If there’s something wrong with Kersh, they better get serious about getting reinforcements. Last time his back stiffened up, he missed 10 weeks.
Let’s tie it up here and go for 13!
More surprising item:
Andy Green lasted this long as Padre Skipper (looks like Sean Astin from Rudy) or Terry Collins is still with the Mets.
Green is doing better with a very low payroll roster, which includes three Rule 5 players, than Bochy is doing with one of the highest payrolls in baseball.
Red Sox promoted stud prospect Devers from AA – maybe they are out on Nunez 😐
Third sacker
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2017/07/red-sox-to-promote-rafael-devers.html
Maybe they saw his bone-headed base-running mistake today… or his bone-headed base-running mistake Thursday (stole 3rd but was tagged out when he overslid the bag). I like the guy, can hit, field and throw well but what’s up with the base-running?
Seriously. Notes taken.
Hopefully, for them, they get better results from him than from their bust-so-far phenom CF.
the Cuban Castillo?
The Baxley Bomber
Benintendi?
Sorry..yes .the Cuban Castillo
That was an epic Cuban bust! And I thought he’d be great in SF ! CF taken care of for 5 years!
WTF do I know!
Bochy really must be pained watching this shit show day after day. Giants have turned into a check cashers club who play without fight. Team is soft and the changes and moves can’t come soon enough.
He’s part of the problem.
The worst thing for fans is when they’re trailing by a run or 2 in the bottom of the 9th and the hitters are hacking at the 1st or 2nd pitch… I don’t know if it’s true but it conveys the image that they just want to go home early, don’t care about even trying or giving the appearance of trying. They should be trying to work the pitch to get into a favorable count or even draw a walk, it just looks better to the fans.
Grinding seems either forbidden or a lost skill.
Mrs. Crawnik might be on to something concerning the Dodgers after the AS break. They really haven’t fallen into a slump. Yet. It’s very hard to stay consistent for 162 games. Now, Kershaw has a lower stiff back, and Jansen blew his first save of the year. Very small sample size, but they’re due for a slump. Perhaps the Giants can oblige. Go Braves. Take 3 of 4 fron Dem Bums.
It would be extremely gratifying to see the Dodgers have a second-half collapse. The writing is on the wall for ’em.
Meh, they just walked off. Braves manager made a questionable decision to intentionally walk Bellinger to load the bases with only 1 out. Forsythe with the GW hit.
And now, Giants are officially 30.5 games out of first with 62 to play. Giants tragic number to be eliminated from division race is…33.
Won’t be long until they’re mathematically eliminated from contention. The positive spin on this would be that we’d get an early look at some of the young guys in the minors that have yet to make their debuts on the big stage.
Yeah. I hear this Pablo Sandoval kid has real potential.
You know, at this point, I don’t really care anymore. Let’s just see what he’s got.
Dbacks slumping. Rox had their slump. Comes around goes around.
Giants have entered their 2nd year of slump. Sad.
No worries about the Dodgers. They did just fine without Kershaw when he went on the DL last year.
Seriously. That didn’t phase them and he did look better in the playoffs last year than before. Maybe it’s all part of the plan.
That was last year.
Yeah, and…?
Have the Giants played exactly like last year?
That’s a false equivalency
How so?
The Dodgers will be fine for a week and a 1/2 to give Kershaw an opportunity to get better. The Jansen thing was going to eventually happen, he’s on top of his game.
Your so called slump won’t materialize.
Dodgers walked it off on Forsythe single. Losing Kershaw for extended period may be like losing Correa…
#FootyLikesToTrollBeltAndGiantsFans!
Hushup…
Why?
But he’s a ‘bro’, or once was?
Don’t worry everyone, Panda will be here soon!
Batting third and DHing for your San Jose Giants…
Guess where I am
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/4b4ab5b6427847228351997fdce63131fe35e1a811ba6c6868d3a8617e289058.jpg
Sitting on top of the Citgo sign?
Shot from a cannon? Looks like Baltimore.
That’s Fenway
Nice view of the graveyard.
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/b2ba51bdc4aa21b896d5545525688ea55b74f2005c8800f17a7a6b08f1c0937f.jpg
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/517385be4cfab26ddb8e6e4223d326b48781adbab0cbb9bd81bd73245e65d636.jpg
Whoa! Rad!!
Kershaw to the DL. Oooohh
They will win the div easily. That’s the prudent course of action for them
Being put on the DL right after the game speaks volumes about the severity of the injury. Might be worse than initially thought. I agree that they’ll win the division easily but that shouldn’t be their only goal this year.
I bet they won’t hesitate to add a starter now – and it’s less likely to be small potatoes. Gonna be a significant name.
Should be worth keeping an eye on.
Eyes wide shut!
Actually, I’m not really sure about that. He’s had this problem before. I think they are just being cautious
Could be but you never know when it’s related to his back. It’s almost like Steph Curry’s deal with ankle injuries. Could be an extended stint on the DL.
I have no evidence to disagree with you either
It would make sense to sideline him anyway. This just gives them cover. Plus they are the top manipulators of the DL.
No problem, it’s only July
Oh baby! CJ HInojosa 4 for 5 in Richmond win. Cory Taylor with a pretty solid 5 IP. Keep an eye on that one, could be 6th starter material next year. CJ could be backing up the SF infield in the not too distant future either.
They’re certainly not hurting for backup infielders.
It may make Joe Panik wonder where he’ll be moving. Likely not now, but maybe sometime next year.
Obviously you can’t just write Astros and Dodgers into the WS. Things can happen in the LDS and LCS. There could be a 2010,12, or 14 version of the Giants out there, just ready to buzzsaw their way to a parade. Boston? Cubs? Mariners? Pirates? Rays? Rockies? Who will it be?
All I know is, the countdown is on …
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_coVhkcXEA
These long stretches of awful that afflicts B Belt too often are frustrating. Today his rival 3-letter Wil hit a homer on a pitch outside the strike zone. I hope Belt noticed and becomes more aggressive.
I wonder if a ball player has a daily competition with his opposite number– did Belt say today that he wanted to be the best 1B today? I know that when the Giants play the Cardinals it always seems that Yadier ups his game.
Wonder if Belt’s wrist is good enough to field, but still undermining his hitting?
yes because Belt’s problem is he doesn’t try to be aggressive more often right?
So most players that suck must just not be trying hard enough. Guess talent or lack of has nothing to do with it.
How many of Bonds home runs were on pitches outside the strike zone?
Panda watch: 0-2, BA now down to .167. SJ Giants trail Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 5-0 after 4 innings. And Bryan Reynolds 0-2, now batting .311.
That’s classic…” now down to .167″… like 1 for 6?
Well, he did start out batting 1.000 after 1 AB last night. ; )
So he’s down .833?!?!?!?!? OMG!! Belt’s never seen his average drop .833 points I bet!
He’s about ready to join our hit Parade.
Cardinals vs Cubs a very good one on ESPN. 3-2 ballgame in the top of the 4th inning.
NO ONE loves the Cubs quite like ESPN
Ain’t that the truth…
Already preparing for them banging on us next Sunday night, as they simultaneously gush over the Dodgers. How badly has ESPN lost their way?
Bad enough that they’ve got serious financial trouble. The problem is that most of the time nothing of real sporting significance is happening. Therefore, most of ESPN’s air time is taken up with talking heads debating nonissues.
ESPN > tabloid trash.
What’s the worst to me is when they start some unsubstantiated story, then THEY promote it and wring it dry when it was created by them…
They are tanking in ratings, subscriptions, and are firing talent to try to balance the books at a record pace.
Do they still have those face-offs between Skip Baseless and Stephen A.S.?
Dunno…I only watch live sports on it, and only when forced by no other choice
Now it’s SAS and Max Kellerman. Same nonsense. Skip took his tired act to FOX, now working with Shannon Sharpe.
Radio only next Sunday!
How can that happen?
Dave Fleming might get the call. Usually does Giants games on ESPN. Usually.
No, it will be their usual Sunday night crew of Dan Schulman, Aaron Boone and Jessica Lopez.
Cubs now tied with struggling Brewcrew 🙁
Cubs now in first place two games up in the loss column
God, y’all should be down here in the desert right now. It’s pouring with 45 mph winds. I really love when monsoon season gets freaky down here.
But how hot is it? It’s 102 here in Sacramento.
Now that it’s pouring it’s only 79 degrees here. Those violent monsoon thunderstorms drop the temperature by 20 degrees in an instant.
Just be careful of the flash floods, if any.
Fortunately, we get Civil Defense Emergency notifications by phone down here.
The Atacama Desert? Palmdale?
Atacama Desert = Driest Place on Earth. Antofagasta, Chile gets a few tenths of an inch per year, all as dripping fog.
I lived in Calcutta for 4 years. How do you like 95% humidity and 100 degrees with monsoons?
what was Robert Plant thinking when he sang “sweet Calcutta rain” in The Song Remains the Same?
Now THOSE are some REAL monsoons. In Arizona it just means that instead of clear skies you get these gigantic thunderheads but most of the time nothing happens. Tonight, it actually did pour and was very windy. No thanks on that 100 degrees with 95% humidity. Sticky = Icky.
that does sound like fun. Monsoon season in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh doesn’t sound all that fun. Lots of humanity and disease comes to mind.
There’s no danger of cholera in Arizona. I don’t even like the population density in Phoenix much less India and Bangladesh.
Watch out for that Hanta virus though 😉
Hey, plague has been known to occur in Yosemite. In the end, the microbes win! And the cockroaches.
1. I have no idea.
2. Keep Dyson. I think we ease Crick into the 8th inning role but keep Dyson as the closer. He’s got great stuff.
3. Pence was swinging like a rusty gate on low/outside breakers back in 2012 with the Phils. Same old.
4. Yes.
5. Yes, Gorkys has a higher BA but he’s no long ball threat. Depends on what you mean by “better”.
Jeff Samardzija is racing Michael Phelps on Discovery Channel in 20 minutes
A nadir of stupid, gimmicky TV, for sure!
You mean, like, a footrace?
It’s Shark Week on Discovery Channel and there’s some dumb stunt of Phelps racing a great white shark
Reaching = ESPN Modus Operandi.
Baggarly writes that the Giants’ ownership is putting pressure on the front office to contend in 2018, which is unrealistic and exactly the kind of thing that will lead to short-sighted moves and get in the way of actually contending at some point in the future.
Easier said than done. Padres quietly putting together a club that’s maybe not going to be really great, but by next season could be .500, maybe. Colorado is going to be tough. Bud Black is an intense manager, and they’ve got players. AZ is a tweak or two away from being right there, and LA isn’t going away. It’s going to take a lot to contend next year. NL West is tough. Giants FO is going to have to be diligent and calculating with no room for mistakes.
Yup, the Giants no longer have the mental edge on these teams (as evidenced by Padres taking 3 of 4) and their talent is dwindling down. It just won’t be a quick fix, because they’re stuck with some bad contracts, injury-prone, declining players, and haven’t drafted well to this point. And the sooner ownership understands that, the quicker the turnaround will be. It’s not a matter of pressing the FO to do more; With their available resources, there’s not very many moves they can make for the betterment of the team.
I will say though that they can first start by buying out Matt Cain’s contract after the season and trading away guys on one-year contracts that may hold some value to other teams (i.e. Hundley to the Cubs)
Good pitching can cover up for a lot of the team’s deficiencies though, and it’ll really be a shot in the arm for them if the starting rotation could get back on track next season. The Bullpen is almost a near-lock to be a lot better next year than the pervious two seasons after they sort things out this season. I’m thinking Crick, Strick, Osich, Will Smith, Dyson, and Melancon will really lock things down for them next year and Albert Suarez can be the long man. It’ll really help if Law can rediscover 2016 pre-ASB form next season as well.
You have no idea what you will get from Smith after his injury.
Then ownership should eat some contracts and open the bank wide so that the team tries to buy their way…because otherwise there’s no other way.
In my opinion, contending means an entire new outfield, as well as added talent to pitching, bench and beyond
doesn’t it also mean determining why the core players have decided not to play the game as well as they can?
Yes that must be it. Every team that sucks, it’s because the players have decided to not play well.
Geesh don’t you realize lack of talent is just that.
You could be right..But it’s a much bigger stretch to believe the core of this team all lost their talent in theory prime playing years than there’s something mental going on. I see stupid baseball, lazy baseball, no adjustments and mental errors to back my feeling. But who knows?
Teams age it happens. You think the Phillies won their one ring because they “tried harder” and then proceeded to not be as good because lack of “trying”.
What happens as people age is that they see 30 yr olds as being in their prime when in truth there are plenty of professional athletes in any sport who are out of their sport by that age. Fans, specially those that never played a sport of any kind at a high level can’t grasp this. The Giants went into last season with one of the oldest lineups in MLB. To have a core all going into earlier 30s is not going into their prime as many think, it’s actually a point of worry, of collective regression.
What’s happening is no mystery since a few of us have pointed out the issues since 2013-14.
The Giants aren’t bad because of Bochy, lack of trying, laziness, whatever else the casual fan wants to blame it on. It’s a team with many players past their prime years, guys they consider core who really are not, and AAAA type players who are in the bigs only because the Giants put them on an MLB roster.
The team lacks real stars beyond Bum and Posey because they don’t have players that were top draft picks and “cant miss types”. And those guys are not on the team only waiting to develop and are not coming from a farm system consistently in the bottom 5 for the past 5 years.
The only real solution is to tank as the Red Six did between winning and draft young stars to go alone with old vets like Padroia. Only way.
So I say embrace the losing and home the FO doesn’t fuck it up come draft day.
They’re not going to buy their way into contention. They’re only going to do it buy acquiring young guys who will turn into players like Cain, Lincecum, Bumgarner and Posey.
Also, they’re not going to do it through trades, unless its trading quality veterans (they only have a few) for young talent. It would be a huge mistake to trade any of the small amount of young they do have. I don’t want to see Heliot Ramos or Luis Gonzalez Jr. get dealt for some 30 year-old that’s only going to help them be a little less awful.
How do you really go about DFA’ing Pence, Span, and Cain? Especially Pence and Cain.
Cain is done. He gets a $7.5MM buyout at the end of the year and he’s part of our history.
Pence and Span each with one more year (Span has a $4MM buyout end of 2018), and one of them must be traded now. We’ll get more for Span.
Move Pence to LF for 2018 and have a legit platoon partner with him. Maybe we’ll find one last jolt of the full throttle magic in 2018.
Thanks totalfan62 for understanding my question was real and not rhetorical. I had completely forgotten in this mess that Cain’s 5-year contract is over this year with the buyout. I had mistakenly thought the Giants were beholden to Cain for one more year.
I hope you’re right and the Giants will be able to trade for Span. If not, then Span should be easier to DFA than Pence. I don’t see how the Giants can DFA any player who contributed mightily to the Championship Teams. I’ve been thinking for awhile that Pence needs to be in a platoon next year for rest and to prevent injuries. It would be great to see Hunter working in partnership with a younger player, mentoring, and playing much better overall with the built-in rest a platoon will provide.
my comment is in relation to what Oracle is reporting the ownership is saying…they won’t do it. But, I’m telling them that if they are serious, that’s the only way
Dude they are 7th in payroll this year. They are a Span contract away from being 4th.
http://www.spotrac.com/mlb/payroll/
You can understand the quandary they are in. To be or not to be for a few years. They would really have to start all over at the top for a legitimate rebuild. New front office, new manager, new coaching staffs, new scouting department, new baseball philosophy. What worked from 2009-2014 isn’t going to work from 2016 to the end of history.
Yes. A quandary. A very deep quandary. And I’m starting to get the feeling Nevin may not be the shoe-in as Bochys heir apparent. He’s been pretty darn good as the current third base coach, but the internal issues go beyond the manager. A quandary indeed.
I think their record would be substantially different if they had the pitching staff of 2010 and 2012 and no the staff of 2016 and 2017.
Tickets in the Club Level would go for $20 bucks on Stubhub if they did all that. I’m good with that : )
Quite a Sunday write up by Baggs though. Myers out-homering four lineup fixtures at ATT this year. Yowzer. There’s still a comment section at the Merc. How about that?
The Giants’ ownership is in denial.
$190M payroll says otherwise. Maybe it was poor money spent but there are expectations.
Post of the Year
If that is true–ownership pressuring to compete–they are beyond delusional and out of touch with the realities of the marketplace.
The only quick fix would be to buy free agents. That means substantial increase in payroll for 4-5 years, and that has proven NOT to work. Plus those players will soon be in their 30s and likely in decline.
Rebuild the farm system. Sabean and Bochy retire. Analyze the market, recruit the best baseball mind available and empower the person you select to make the becesssry changes.
If not…we’re looking at 4-5 more years of 2017 Giants baseball.
Panda final line = 0 for 3. Geez louize, they got 1 hit by some Dodger prospect, Adam Bray, 33rd rounder in 2015 out of North Dakota State!
30.5 games back on the march to 50 games back. Making good progress.
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