Giants Outscore The Cardinals and Pujols 13-to-3 In First Two Games In St.Louis posted by Michael McGauley

  We are officially halfway through the season, and I'm trying not to get too excited about these Giants.  However, if the last three games are any indication of where this team is going, there's reason for optimism.  San Francisco improved to 42-and-34 with last night's 6-to-3 win in St. Louis, and find themselves only six games behind the Dodgers in the National League West.  The Giants also lead the Cards and the Rockies for the wild card.  Double up the numbers, and the Giants are on pace for 84 wins, which is a heck-of-a-lot better that last year's 72-and-90 performance.  I don't want to get too greedy and think play-offs, but, on second thought, YES I DO WANT TO GET VERY GREEDY.  I know, I know, there's a lot of baseball left to be played.      Following last Saturday's implosion in Milwaukee, the Giants have outscored their opponents 20-to-3 over the last three games, including Sunday's 7-to-0 drilling of the Brew Crew, and Monday's 10-to-0 beat down of the Cards.  And, despite two Albert Pujols homeruns last night, the starting pitching has been flawless.  Randy Johnson pitched well enough to win, improving to 8-and-5, capturing career victory #303. But anytime a starter gets six runs, he should win!  At this point in his career, with win #300 under his belt, multiple Cy Young awards and a World Series title, RJ is thriving as a mentor between Lincecum and Cain in the rotation.  How much fun is it to watch those two potential all-stars go back-and-forth!  Cain takes the bContinue reading "Giants Outscore The Cardinals and ..."

"Should He Stay or Should He Go?" posted by Michael McGauley

 I'm confused.  No, not about this whole blogging concept which is quite new to me.  I'm confused about my favorite Giants' lefty Jonathan Sanchez (just kidding of course).  Is he going to ultimately remain a starter?  Can he someday harness his control?  Is he better suited as a reliever?  Does he still have any trade value with only a month to go before the trade deadline?  

 As a starting pitcher, Sanchez, at times, can be dominate.  However, I would better define him as terribly inconsistent with a tremendous upside.  I've seen him go through a team's line-up with ease over the first few innings, and then suddenly "lose it" in the middle innings. Harnessing that "stuff" and having it translate into wins seems a baffling formula for the Giants.  What will it take to light a fire under this kid's butt?  We just may have stumbled upon an answer in Milwaukee over the weekend.

 Sunday was the first time this season that a sixth starting pitcher took a turn in the rotation.  Ryan Sadowski looked poised, and tossed six solid innings, reminding me of a young-looking John Burkett.  He got the win, allowing only four hits and three walks while striking out two.  Yes he got the run support as the team avoided a sweep, but the question I kept asking myself  - "What does this mean for Sanchez?"  Well, if anyone hung around for the very end of a 7-to-0 victory, they saw the lefty enter the game as a reliever in the 9th inning and just blaze guys.  The line on Sanchez:  One inning pitched, no hits, NO WALKS, and three strikeouts!  Yes, dominant!  Is his future in the bullpen?  Would it be better to limit his pitch count before he gets into trouble?

Rampant Steroid Use Brings Up Issue of Morality in Baseball posted by Chris Strickland

These days, going to a baseball game isn't what it used to be. Seldom will a pitcher throw into the 7th inning; the score is usually 7-6 or 10-9; and your favorite slugger is likely to hit one, if not two balls, out of the park. The game is shamelessly jacked up on HGH, and its obvious. The best hitter (Bonds) and pitcher (Clemens) of our generation used it, and more players are getting busted by the day (A-Rod, Manny). However, most fans don't care. They still go to the ballpark. That's because baseball, and pro sports in general, is merely another form of entertainment.

It's like seeing your favorite comedian perform stoned. You know he's on something, but you look past it, eagerly waiting for that one hilarious joke that'll make the bumbling and stumbling worthwhile. I saw Darryl Hammond do stand-up in New York some years ago, and although he was tanked (I'm talking, TANKED. He could barely walk up to the stage.), he still did a spot-on Bill Clinton impression. It's the same with sports - even if fans didn't approve of Bonds' off-the-field behavior, they still got out of their seats when he took one deep. The bottom line is, America just wants to be entertained.

Colin Cowherd said the other day we can't be moralists when it comes to baseball. He's right. We aren't going to catch every single steroid user. That's impossible, like Operation Iraqi Freedom. Since we can't catch them all, we might as well stop trying. If Bud Selig and George Mitchell continue this "we can do it" nonsense, there will be no star players left in the game, period.

And yes, I mean EVERY STAR PLAYER. It's naive to think Manny and A-Rod are juicing, yet the other guys at their level, who are constantly striving to compete with them, aren't. The one player who I can safely say isn't juicing is Ryan Theriot of the Chicago Cubs. He's thin and French. The guy plays by hustling. He's old-school. Besides "The Riot," everyone else is injecting their buddy in the buttocks.

The ZenMaster, Barry Zito, is BACK!!! posted by Anuj Chatterjee

One win after six starts but walking of the mound to standing ovation in the last three home starts, Barry Zito is earning his Giants uniform and his $126 million dollar contract. Zito is winning the fans over with his attitude and string of quality starts. May be I am jumping on the bandwagon a bit too soon, but you can’t help but notice that Zito has his swagger and confidence back from his Oakland A's days. He has canceled out all the distractions (Paris Hilton) and concentrated on his pitching mechanics and his point of release. In his previous three starts he has given up 4 runs (all of which were in two starts vs. dodgers) and has gone 6+ innings.

Giants’ fans have been waiting for a glimpse of what made the Zito the 2002 Cy Young Winner, and they are finally getting it. His fastball still need a few more mph on it for him to sustain his quality starts, but his 12-6 curveball is in strong form and his location and command will getting him out of a jam more often then not. Zito did pitch the same way to end his season 1 and 2 with the giants. He was good in the last month or two before the season ended. But this season he decide that he is going to start early this year and Giants fans are glad he did.


His first two starts of the season were the Zito that Giants fan were getting used to and not in a good way. The notion here we go again went through everybody’s mind. But just when we thought that time was running out for Zito to show up and pitch like a $126 million pitcher. Guess what he finally showed up. With stellar performance in the next 4 starts, 3 no discussions which the team rally to win, and with his first win of the season under his belt, he is pitching like an Ace he was signed to be.
Continue reading "The ZenMaster, Barry Zito, is BACK!!!"

San Francisco ends month at .500 posted by Tom Ontis

After their disastrous start of 2-7, the San Francisco Giants have not only ended the month with a 10-10 .500 record, but have taken every series that they have played: Two series (4 games) against Arizona, 2 games against San Diego and two of three from the hated Dodgers, including a 9-4 win Wednesday evening at ATT Park...Couple of things you might never ever see at a ballpark again as long as you live: The pitcher batting 8th and Juan Pierre bringing up the rear, AND, AND Bengie Molina knocking a triple of the centerfield wall!  Molina is becoming the heart and soul of the Giants.  He has been recognized the past two seasons with the Willie Mac Award, voted by players and coaches as the most inspirational player on the club.  Looks like he is the leader for a third award.  The award is named for great Giants slugger Willie McCovey, who played most of his career with the Giants and was and is a fan favorite...Wind was blowing all three nights, but didn't effect this longtime fan that much.  Had to take a jacket OFF on Monday night, cause I got too warm...Three beginning Friday evening with Colorado and then a road trip that begins with the Cubs at Wrigley beginning  Monday evening...I've been to five games this year, have seen Lincecum start three times and Barry Zito start twice.  We expect a lot from Lincecum, who now stands at 2nd in the National League with 44 K's.  Zito, who has been a major disappointment since signing with the Giants three winters back, has ptiched well, though he does not yet have a win this year...GiveContinue reading "San Francisco ends month at .500"

Dodgers at Giants, Top of the Ninth posted by J Russell Mikkelsen

Dodgers up, ready to lose, facing Wilson.

Fred Lewis makes a half-hearted attempt to make a great play. Either go all out or don't. He only gave about 75% and decided last second that he could actually make the catch on that line drive to left. He dives, misses and it gets by him. Pinch hitter Mark Loretta gets a double from a single.

Now Lewis is playing too far in and the next ball is a foot over his glove. Another double and a run scores. Rowand came over and gave Fred an earful. Fred didn't seem to take it well. Get 7 seasons under your belt, THEN you can question your centerfielder, not before.

Broken bat groundball gets out number one. A hard grounder straight to Uribe gets out number two. Fans are on their feet. Manny hits a chopper to short and it's over. A faster runner might have made it. Rowand runs off the field with a huge smile slapping five all the way to the dugout. Fred Lewis has a different look on his face. That rookie may need a pick me up before next game. 

DODGERS 4 GIANTS 9

Giants take the series and the Dodgers can take a hike!

Dodgers at Giants, Bottom of the Eighth posted by J Russell Mikkelsen

Giants up, facing Scott Elbert who gets one strike out and is pulled for Guillermo Mota.

Edgar Renteria smacks the first pitch toward the hole at short, but it was too slow and Furcal picked it up too deep. Not even close. Uribe hits one to dead center that I was sure would be no problem for Pierre. But he couldn't get there. I wonder if the wind didn't knock that one down. Two on, one out.

Bengie is ready to make this one a joke but I think he's too tired to get a hit here, to be honest. He looked tired after his homer and that was about an hour ago now. No he is not! Base hit line drive to dead center. Renteria makes it home without a play. Uribe makes it all the way to third. Still only one out.

Rowand just got knocked in the head! No, nevemind. I thought it nailed him, but no. It missed by a hair but bounced off the glove of Ausmus rather. Bengie moves over to second. NOW they hit him. Square on the back. Boo's galore. Mota is a batter late. Bengie's the one with four RBI's today, genius. Rowand is only 1 for 4 with a run.

Uribe gets his first RBI on a slow grounder to short. Two away.

Nate gets the free pass to get to Burriss. This makes perfect sense because Nate is a singles hitter. He's got the talent to be a career .300 hitter, and so far in his short, short career, he is.

Burriss is a switch hitter but I don't see the point. He's batting .430-something from the right and .087 from the left. If you can't do better than that, give up the switch. Eddie Murray you are not. Every pitch to Burriss so far has been a fastball. Time to start looking for that pitch, Emmanuel. 

Dodgers at Giants, Top of the Eighth posted by J Russell Mikkelsen

Dodgers up, facing Timmy!

Two pitches and two hits. It may be time to yank 'im. Bullpen only just wakes up after three more pitches.

That change up hadn't been touched all game. He was fooling Furcal with it too until that last one. The bat broke into 4 different pieces but the ball fell soflty inside of the left field line for a double as it spun into the giants bullpen area. One run scores. 

Manny faces off against Tim. The majors' best hitter and pitcher. Runners on second and third with no out. Walks him.

Lincecum still gets to walk off to a standing ovation. Let's hope he doesn't end up with 4 runs on his record for this game. He deserves better.

Jeremy Affeldt steps in and immediately induces a 5-3 double play. Uribe, at third, caught the ball on top of thirdbase and guns it two first. One run scores but two are gone. A worthwhile trade. Lincecum is on his feet, loving it.

Affeldt is throwing a killer curveball that is scaring Loney. But he's not throwing it much and the next batter, Brad Ausmus (in earlier for Martin) hits an RBI bloop single. Lincecum is not loving it. And here comes Brian Wilson.

Right down the pipe doesn't look as fat at 98mph; called strike two. Popped into the stands... NO! Uribe caught it! I almost missed it because I was so sure it was out of play. Great catch. Inning over.

DODGERS 3 GIANTS 7

I miss writing that zero already.

Dodgers at Giants, Bottom of the Seventh posted by J Russell Mikkelsen

Giants up, facing Scott Elbert.

Molina uppercuts the first pitch he sees sky high and that baby is GONE! Triple and a homer for Bengie. I'd say that's a good day for him, eh? That's his 17th RBI this season. Not too shabby.

Two straight two outs hits on the ground up the middle. Those are good looking hits. Let's get one more. Well... Timmy struck out, but, I think I can forgive him for it.

DODGERS 0 GIANTS 7

Dodgers at Giants, Bottom of the Sixth posted by J Russell Mikkelsen

Aaaaaaaaaand we're back. Just in time to see the first pitch of the inning!

Burriss' check swing makes contact for what effectively is a bunt. But, not ready to run, Burriss is easily thrown out. Lewis shows a good eye by working a walk from a 1-2 count and Renteria rewards him with a solid cut. You could tell by the sound of the crack that that was going to be a hit. Stand up RBI double. I like the way these Giants are hitting!

Uribe strikes out, of course, on two ugly swings, leaving Edgar stranded.

DODGERS 0 GIANTS 6