Black Monday Weekend Wrap: The Youth Movement Begins

May 22, 2023 | 2023 Season, Latest Post, Weekend Wrap | 0 comments

by
Johnny Black

Happy Monday, Giants fans! Why happy? Well, the Giants won on Sunday! Yay! But the context behind that win is what gives me hope and puts a little extra spring in my step on this fine morning. The Giants won with Casey Schmitt starting at third base and Patrick Bailey behind the plate. They beat the Marlins in an interesting back and forth game that was in doubt until the end.

The Giants peeled off a very cool 7-5 win to take two of three against the Miami Marlins that may end up being critical moment in the Zaidi era. That’s because Ryan Walker, making his MLB debut, got the win and Patrick Bailey hit his first MLB home run. That’s two milestones in one game and perhaps a sign of things to come for the Giants new Zaidi youth movement.

The Giants now stand at 22-24 and coming off a successful 5-1 homestand against two quality teams in the Phillies and Marlins. They have momentum as they head to Minnesota for a three-game series beginning tonight.

Yesterday’s Game

The Giants won with Casey Schmitt starting at third base and Patrick Bailey behind the plate. They beat the Marlins in an interesting back and forth game that was in doubt until the end. If you want see some seriously brilliant baseball smarts watch Patrick Bailey’s second career run batted in. Yes, his debut homer was sweet. But that second run driven in came on a sacrifice BUNT with the count 1-2 and runners on first and third. Bailey made excellent contact with the ball to get it by the Marlin pitcher near the first base line. It scored a crucial run.
But you all want to see this:

If you want see some seriously brilliant baseball smarts watch Patrick Bailey’s second career run batted in. Yes, his debut homer was sweet. But that second run driven in came on a sacrifice BUNT with the count 1-2 and runners on first and third. Bailey made excellent contact with the ball to get it by the Marlin pitcher near the first base line. It scored a crucial run in the back and forth game.

J. D. Davis had the big hit in the game, a two-run home run to deep center field to give the Giants a 4-2 lead, a lead they would not relinquish to a pesky Marlins team.


Davis can hit!

Mitch Haniger had two hits and a run driven in.

Alex Wood started the game and pitched 4 1/3 innings allowing six hits and four runs. He could not avoid big damage inflicted by the wood of Jorge Solar, a guy who oozes power with every swing. Soler hit a solo homer in the first inning to give the Marlins a lead. He also had three more hits and drove in three in all. Wood gave up another long ball but on this day the Giants offense came through.

Patrick Bailey is being hailed for his above average defensive skills behind the plate. He won the Minor League gold glove last season for a backstop. In watch him receive pitches and command the game you can see a kind of je ne sais quoi that great catchers all have. They make their pitchers better and their team better. Such catchers are major attributes if they hit a lick and a lick did Patrick hit yesterday.

Let’s not forget Ryan Walker! He won the game with a scoreless sixth inning and had 35 family members in attendance to boot!!!

Camilo Doval got his twelfth save and is on his way to a sensational splendiferous season. I hope he gets his rest because the Giants will need him down the road. He has pitched so much he probably does not even take his uniform off when he goes home after games.

Saturday’s Game

This game was a bummer, a 1-0 loss when Logan Webb pitched like a champ. Webb pitched six shutout innings and allowed four hits, two walks while recording seven strikeouts of the Marlins. The problem for the Giants was the Marlins pitching was a bit better on this night. They pushed a run across in the top of the eighth. The Giants, for their part, had a grand total of three hits.

The Wrap

This season suddenly feels a bit 2010-ish with the call up of youth and the improved play. I’m not saying Casey Schmitt or Patrick Bailey will approach Buster “Future Hall of Famer” greatness but I’m not saying they will not, either. You just never know but so far the Giants are winning much more since Schmitt joined the team and Bailey’s debut has been pretty decent too.

Remember all those comments about the Zaidi regime’s draft and development failures? I don’t either. I am sure GG and other “experts” on the TWG commentariat don’t recall their critiques. Well, lets’s be positive and say it’s nice to be proven wrong on this front. It now looks like that 2020 draft (Schmitt and Bailey) may end up being a very good and pivotal one for the Giants.

But, let’s keep cautious with the optimism and remember that Schmitt and Bailey have only played a handful of games.

Sometimes an infusion of young talent can be a kind of vitamin shot in the arm for a baseball team. It also means the Giants brass, Farhan Zaidi and CO. are getting a bit more aggressive with the way they are evaluating and utilizing their prospects. Could it have anything to do with the fact that Zaidi’s contract expires after this season and he has not been re-signed or extended?

Johnny Black wonders…

At any rate, I expect the Giants to make more call ups, particularly with the starting pitching. I expect Kyle Harrison and perhaps one or two more young prospect arms to get a shot at making the starting rotation. There is literally, nothing to risk with such a move when you consider how God-awful Manaea and Stripling have pitched. The Giants, even with a healthy Alex Wood (and that’s no sure thing) need to fill at least two spots in the rotation and get some stability early in games started by those spots in the rotation. The ripple effect would be very positive, particularly on the bullpen.

Let’s assume Bailey stabilizes the catching position and hits a lick. Same with Schmitt at third. That means there will be changes to the roster with players like J. D. Davis and Joey Bart, to name two, suddenly at a crossroads. I expect Davis to DH more, like he did Sunday. With Bart, again on the injured list with a gimpy groin, you may see a trade made with Joey sent packing for pitching.