2010 World Series Game 3: TEX 4, SF 2

The Giants lost tonight, but that is not the main concern to take away from Game 3. They have Bumgarner going tomorrow against a weak pitcher, Tommy Hunter, and Lincecum in Game 5 (against Lee of course). All they really need is to win 1 game in Texas. They have a good chance of getting that done. Matt Cain on the mound in Game 6 would give the Giants a great chance to finish out the series. The real concern is if this series does go to a 7th game.

Jonathan Sanchez is scheduled for that start, and Sanchez just doesn't look good right now. He pitched fine in the final game of the season, dominated the Braves in Game 3 of the NLDS, and pitched well in Game 2 against the Phillies. Then there was Game 6 of the NLCS against Philadelphia, where he looked lost, and couldn't finish the 3rd inning. Tonight, he gave up more runs, but didn't look as bad as he did in Philly. Still, it was clear something wasn't right. It'd be wrong to write a good pitcher like him off just because of 2 poor starts, but after he left the game, a few issues came up that hadn't before.

Sanchez has apparently lost some measurable velocity on his fastball, and it is affecting the way he pitches. He seemed to recognize it during this start, and after some damage was done, he adjusted well, until Hamilton homered off him in the 5th. He was throwing more breaking balls, because the fastball just wasn't working, and he ended up hanging one to Hamilton. The speculation was that this loss of velocity is due to Sanchez's long season, and Dave Righetti all but confirmed the reality of this situation after the game. He's never pitched near 200 innings until 2010, and then you add in the playoff starts, and you could see how a young arm can get tired. And one thing is probably for sure: that arm isn't going to get much less tired for Game 7. So the question becomes: should Sanchez start Game 7? If the issue were simply about a couple bad starts, but nothing to do with fatigue or injury, I'd say absolutely yes. But we are dealing now with a fatigue problem, and a tired arm is a dangerous thing to rely on, especially in Game 7 of the World Series. But then the question becomes: who would start? The Giants don't have any relievers that are "starters" (Barry Zito could have been one), so we are left with the 2 other starters, Bumgarner and Lincecum. Cain is out of the question because he started the previous night. The most he might be able to provide in that game would be an inning or so of relieve.

The difficult part of this is that when trying to avoid making Sanchez throw, the other pitchers that are options could be facing the same problem, in a different way. Do we know that Lincecum can throw effectively with 2 days rest? 3 days isn't ideal for Bumgarner, but it is more realistic, but then you think of Bumgarner. He's far more inexperienced than Sanchez, and younger. What if he is getting tired too?

Hopefully, this simply won't be an issue. Hopefully, the Giants can win the series before it gets to Game 7. And if it does, hopefully Bochy and Righetti will have observed Sanchez to see that he is okay for a start. And in the case that he isn't, the Giants have options, although none are very attractive. Without time to think it over much, I'd say give Bumgarner the ball to start the game, but make anyone available, including Lincecum and Cain.

Pat Burrell looks horrible at the plate, but he should start tomorrow. The Giants simply don't have anyone that's going to do much better. Hopefully he can figure it out right away. I have little doubt he'll be moved down in the lineup, and Ross will move up to hit behind Posey. I also think that Ishikawa will get the start at 1st, and with Huff at DH.

2010 NLCS Game 6: SF 3, PHI 2

The Giants are going to the World Series! The Giants have won the Pennant! The San Francisco Giants are representing the National League in the World Series! I could say it over and over again in thousands of different ways and I wouldn't be able to stop smiling. Really, I don't think it has sunk in completely and as with every great, important game, it's really hard to type out everything I'm feeling. The Giants. In the World Series. Wow.

I'll probably talk about the season as a whole and how the Giants got here, but first I should go through this great game. Obviously, coming into today, the Giants were leading the series 3-2. The Phillies had to win if they wanted to keep going, and the Giants could clinch a World Series spot with a win. But Jonathan Sanchez got off to a very rough start. After getting the leadoff hitter out, Sanchez walked Placido Polanco and gave up an RBI double to Chase Utley. The Phillies led 1-0 already. Ryan Howard then singled, moving Utley to 3rd, and Jayson Werth's sacrifice fly put the Phillies up 2-0. Two runs doesn't seem terrible, but Sanchez didn't seem too comfortable and you felt like his stuff just wasn't Dirty tonight. The Giants countered with a fairly weird 3rd inning. After a Jonathan Sanchez single, Torres hit a deep flyball to center field. Shane Victorino attempted a basket style catch, but couldn't hold on and the Giants had runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs. Freddy Sanchez put down a bunt that I actually LIKED, so runners were then on 2nd and 3rd. Aubrey Huff singled up the middle, scoring Sanchez, but Torres was out at the plate. The next play was very weird and great. Buster Posey hit a very weak ball to third base so Polanco had to rush the throw and Ryan Howard couldn't hold on. Huff was able to score and the Giants tied the game, 2-2. However, the bottom of the 3rd deserves it's own paragraph.

Sanchez started off the inning by walking Polanco but it got interesting when he hit Chase Utley. You'll remember that Utley and Sanchez have history. Last year, Sanchez buzzed a pitch by Utley's head and Utley didn't like it. He took a step towards the mound and was visibly upset. All he could do to retaliate was hit a home run later in the at bat. This time, Utley wasn't angry but as he jogged to first base, he flipped the baseball to Sanchez. Sanchez didn't really like it and started yelling towards Utley, and Utley did the same. Both benches ended up clearing, which seemed pretty silly because Sanchez didn't intentionally hit him. It was unacceptable that Sanchez lost his composure, but Utley deserves some blame too. Who flips the ball to the mound like that? He did it in a really annoying, cocky kind of way and it was passive aggressive. I can actually understand why Sanchez would take that personally. Anyway, Sanchez was just too worked up and his stuff was pretty wild, so he was taken out after just 2 innings.

The rest of the game was locked at 2-2, until the 8th, when Juan Uribe hit an opposite field home run to give the Giants a 3-2 lead. Oh boy. 8th Inning Weirdness at it's finest.

What a great game. Let's talk about the bullpen. Jeremy Affeldt? He did not have a good season, but that doesn't matter because he relieved Sanchez early and pitched 2 great innings. Madison Bumgarner? He came put of the 'pen and also delivered 2 great, scoreless innings. Javier Lopez? He's more handsome than you. And he's a helluva lefty. He pitched in every single game of this series, solely to shut down Utley and Howard, which he did. What a guy. Tim Lincecum? He wasn't too sharp, but I appreciate the effort, coming out of the bullpen after having pitched 2 days ago! And Brian Wilson? Well, he made sure that we were tortured until the very end, striking out Ryan Howard on an absolutely PERFECT pitch to win the pennant.

And Juan Uribe gets his own paragraph. This guy gets so much criticism, and a lot of it is justified, because he strikes out a lot and doesn't get on base a lot, but wow, he has some huge hits. Remember his homer off Broxton in LA? If you thought that was big, it was nothing compared to his shot tonight. With one swing, he will be remembered in Giants history forever. Beautiful.

It's been a great season and a great ride. Let's make it a historic season by winning 4 more games. I am so ready. The Giants are going to the 2010 World Series.

2010 NLCS Game 2: PHI 6, SF 1

Jonathan Sanchez pitched very well in Game 2, especially considering what he faced. The strike zone was terribly inconsistent and the defense by the Giants was painful to watch. The results were good, and could have been a lot better if those factors hadn't been in play. Sanchez a year ago would have fallen apart in the face of that; tonight, he limited damage in a potentially explosive 1st inning, and got stronger throughout the game. But none of it mattered, because the Giants (sans Cody Ross) simply could not hit Roy Oswalt. Looking at the game now, you had to figure it would be hard for the Giants offense to score against both Oswalt and Halladay. It's simply not likely for two great pitchers to give up many runs to a weak offense in back to back days.

Andres Torres struck out 4 times tonight. This is an issue. But what is to be done? He hasn't been the same since his appendix operation, and he was probably already going cold before that. In the playoffs, he has been pretty terrible at the plate; a few balls have been hit hard and caught for outs, but for the most part he just can't make contact at all. The thought of Aaron Rowand taking his spot scares me, but I wouldn't hate it if it was just for one game, to see what happens. But we have to remember something: Torres might look awful at the plate right now, but he is still a Gold glove caliber centerfielder, playing with an immobile left fielder. He still has value, and more than just a little. The best thing that could happen would be a change of approach, where he tries to go for contact more and use his speed. But who knows if a 32 year old career minor leaguer is capable of making an adjustment like that.

Cody Ross was the only true offensive force tonight, hitting his 3rd HR of the series. He just missed a 4th later in the game as well. It'll be fun to see what he can do against Hamels, a lefty who he has crushed, on Tuesday.

Even though Jeremy Affeldt struck out Ryan Howard in the 7th inning with runners on, I thought it was a strange move. Here was Ryan Howard, the powerful hitter who just can't hit lefties much, and Bochy leaves Lopez in the bullpen. What was he waiting for? Anyway, after Howard struck out, they intentionally walked Jayson Werth to get to Jimmy Rollins. And Rollins did something he's barely done all year: hit. The game was over after his bases clearing double. The Giants would get some baserunners on, but they really had no shot. They can be very happy with the 1 win they got in Philly: they now have 3 in SF, and 3 very winnable games. I will say, I'm looking forward to tomorrow when I can watch baseball without the nerves. Cliff Lee and his undefinable K/BB ratio, at Yankee Stadium? Sounds good to me.

Oh, and Raul Ibanez looks terrible at the plate. Just miserable.

Should the Giants Make Any Roster Changes for the NLCS?

Actually, the Giants have already made one change.

Today we learned that after Tim Lincecum pitches game 1 of the series, Jonathan Sanchez will be pitching Game 2 and Matt Cain will go for Game 3. Cain is still a better pitcher than Sanchez, but I see the reasoning behind the move. In his only start of the year in Philadelphia, Sanchez was rather brilliant. In 8 innings he allowed just 2 hits and 1 ER with 2 BB and 7 Ks. The Phillies' ballpark is also very small, and Sanchez does give up fewer flyballs than Cain, even though the difference isn't huge. The Phillies lineup has a lot of left-handed hitters too. Ryan Howard, one of Philly's best hitters, is significantly worse facing left-handed pitching and has always had trouble against Sanchez (3-for-14, 7 Ks). However, Sanchez does allow more baserunners and is generally more erratic. I don't really have a problem with the move, but I guess after all of these great starts, I'm waiting for bad Sanchez to come back. Cain is more consistent and I generally have much more confidence in him than Sanchez.

As for the rest of the pitching staff, it doesn't look like anything will change. I will not back down on my stance that Zito should be on the roster, but I realize the fight is over. In a 7 game series a long reliever is even more important and Guillermo Mota wasn't even used in the NLDS. I don't see the harm in having Zito, just in case. But the Giants, like many fans, don't seem to think Zito can effectively pitch out of the bullpen. It's okay, I'm over it.

It is also unlikely that any changes will made for position players even though the offense was atrocious against Atlanta. I guess there's not much they can do besides playing better. When Jose Guillen was originally left off the roster, it seemed like it was because he wasn't healthy, but the situation still seemed a little unclear to me. Would Guillen have made the roster if he was healthy or was it because the Giants wanted someone more versatile on defense? I think a healthy Guillen would have made it. We haven't heard anything about Guillen's health, so I assume he's still hurting. If healthy, I still think he's a better option than Rowand, particularly since Rowand was just used as a pinch-hitter, not a defensive replacement in the NLDS.

So.....I guess this post just told you that Cain and Sanchez switched spots in the rotation, which you probably already knew. Oh well. Keep an eye out for NLCS Pitching and Offense Previews in the next couple of days.

2010 NLDS Game 3: SF 3, ATL 2

The San Francisco Giants showed tonight that they can rally back just as well as the Atlanta Braves, with a little help and a few errahs. Through 7, the star of the game was Jonathan Sanchez, who exceeded all possible expectations for his playoff debut. I was worried last night that Sanchez just might not be able to handle the pressure of a playoff game on the road. As good as he has been, he isn't Cain or Lincecum. But Sanchez was more than able to handle it. He was superb, striking out 11 Braves in 7.1 innings of work, allowing only 2 hits (and none till Tim Hudson's 6th inning single) and most importantly, only 1 walk. With Barry Zito being dropped from the rotation and NLDS roster, the Giants asked for Sanchez to be something of a third ace, and he delivered. The Giants held a 1-0 lead after 7 1/2 innings. They had made Tim Hudson work, but only had the one run to show for it, hitting dismally with runners in scoring position.

It looked like maybe 1 was gonna have to be enough, as happened in Game 1. But as we said before, Sanchez, at his best, still isn't Lincecum, so Bruce Bochy couldn't keep him on the mound forever. With 1 out and a runner on in the 8th inning, it appeared Bobby Cox was going to have Troy Glaus pinch hit. Bochy brought in Sergio Romo, and Cox promptly pulled back Glaus in favor of left handed hitting Eric Hinske. Hinske, after falling behind in the count, got a hanging changeup and homered just left of the foul pole in right field, to give the Braves a 2-1 lead. This was a crushing blow. The question is, did Bruce Bochy make a mistake?

Well, maybe. Although I think it would have been ridiculous for Bochy to not let Romo pitch simply because of a bad outing on Friday, facing Hinske wasn't a great matchup at all. But would Jonathan Sanchez against Troy Glaus have been safer? I don't know. And when Romo was brought in, and Hinske was announced, there was no way to fix it. Romo had to face him. It was hard to watch Bochy get out managed there by Bobby Cox, but I can't honestly say how I'd have done it differently. And you'll see soon, that Cox using Glaus AND Hinske in that 8th inning did not help him later.

Because the Giants would not be put away. Travis Ishikawa worked a walk with 1 out in the 9th. Andres Torres struck out on a very questionable pitch. Then Freddy Sanchez singled up the middle. The Giants had hope. And Aubrey Huff, the best hitter all year, but slumping badly so far in the series, reached out and pulled a ball into right field that Jason Heyward just couldn't quite get to. Ishikawa scored and the game was tied. Then Buster Posey came up, and he too reached for a pitch, hitting it somewhat hard towards 2nd baseman Brooks Conrad. And Conrad, the poor guy, did what he had been doing all game. He fucked it up. He let the ball go under his glove. The Giants took the lead with 2 outs in the top of the 9th, a completely improbable happening.

Bochy went to his closer, Brian Wilson, to get the final 3 outs against the heart of the Braves order. Wilson struck out Jason Heyward on a very low outside fastball. Heyward had reason to complain, but then again so did Andres Torres in the top of the inning. Derrek Lee, who just is not a scary hitter anymore, popped up. Brian McCann, the one big threat in the Braves lineup, singled on a groundball that Freddy Sanchez ranged to get to, but couldn't handle. The Braves would have had Matt Diaz coming up, but he was replaced for defense in the top of the inning by Nate McClouth. Perhaps if Bobby Cox hadn't used two of his powerful pinch hitters in the 8th inning, the weak hitting McClouth could have been replaced. But he had to bat, and grounded out to end the game. It looked like the Giants couldn't lose Friday's game, but they managed to. After Hinske's Turner shaking HR in the 8th, there seemed to be no way for the Giants, who had been quiet with the bats all day, to win this game. But they managed to.

This means Madison Bumgarner will pitch tomorrow instead of Tim Lincecum. It's the right move. Considering it is not an elimination game, there is no reason to pitch Lincecum on short rest. In the case that he is tired and the Giants lose, they have to win Game 5 without him. Instead, they go with a very competent pitcher, Bumgarner, and try to win. And if they don't, they have Lincecum fully rested on Tuesday at AT&T for Game 5.

SF 3, SD 0: NL West Champs

It is done. The Giants, in the 162nd game of the year, have won the National League West division and are on their way to the playoffs. Seven years of misery and torture are finally over!

In many ways, I feel like this is a hard recap to write because I'm so uncontrollably excited, I don't really know what to say. We all figured that going into this weekend, needing just 1 game to go the playoffs, there was no way it wouldn't happen. But on Friday in game 1 of the series, we saw our best pitcher this year struggle while our offense could only score when it was too late. On Saturday, the much maligned Barry Zito was terrible, not even lasting 4 innings in his most important start of the year. But on Sunday, Jonathan Sanchez got it done and he was magnificent. Yes, this game was a classic Giants game: great pitching and just enough offense. It's fitting that the Giants would make us go through the torture til the very end.

Jonathan Sanchez's great start was huge and he more than likely pitched himself into the playoff rotation today. We don't know if the Giants are going to go with a 3 or 4 man rotation in the first round, but I don't think it matters. Up until yesterday's game, I thought the 3-man rotation would be Lincecum-Cain-Zito and the 4th starter would be a toss up between Sanchez and Bumgarner. But after seeing Sanchez come in and completely shut down the Padres' momentum today, he is the Giants' 3rd starter. Today he pitched 5 innings, allowing 3 H, 5 BB and striking out 5. Most importantly, he didn't allow a run. And we can't talk about the pitching without talking about the bullpen. That combination of Casilla, Ramirez, Lopez, Romo, and Wilson is pretty damn solid. It's going to be a huge weapon in the postseason.

Sanchez helped his own cause in the 3rd with a stand-up triple off of Mat Latos. Two batters later, Freddy Sanchez hit a groundball up the middle, scoring Sanchez. Immediately afterwards, Aubrey Huff drove a ball into the left-center gap, scoring the other Sanchez. It was a pretty big deal that the Giants finally scored first because it relieved some of the pressure. Figures that it took our pitcher to finally get something going. Buster Posey added an insurance run on a solo homer in the 8th, and everything else was taken care of.

Like I said, I don't feel like I can completely capture the greatness of the game. So I suggest that you go watch the game again, look at the celebration pictures, and watch Brian Wilson strike out Will Venable to end the game. Watching the swing and miss and seeing the whole team hop out of the dugout while Buster Posey runs to the mound to congratulate Brian Wilson should give you chills. It's amazing and hopefully it only gets better.

There are still plenty of questions that remain. Who is the 4th starter? What is the 25-man playoff roster going to look like? I'm sure we'll have a couple posts in the next few days addressing those issues. Just enjoy this feeling for the next 3 days. Game 1 is on TBS at 6:37 PM on Thursday. I already can't wait.

Oh, and Mat Latos is now on the Hate List. Haha.

SF 4, ARI 2: Isn't This Fun?

Tonight's game didn't look so hot at first. Jonathan Sanchez started the game by walking the first batter on 4 pitchers and walked 4 Diamondbacks in the first 2 innings. His control was obviously terrible, but worst of all, he was missing high in the zone. Giants fans everywhere were calling for his head, but yours truly believed in Dirty the whole time and in the end, he made me look good. In 6 innings, he allowed just 2 runs. It may not have been pretty but all that matters is that he minimized the damage. People remain remarkably impatient with a guy who has a 3.15 ERA and tonight became the 4th Giants lefty to have 200 K's in a season. Sounds pretty okay to me for a 4th starter.

Andres Torres got the scoring started with a leadoff triple in the 3rd, scoring on a Mike Fontenot RBI single. The big hit that really seemed to turn around the game was Juan Uribe's home run an inning later that tied the game 2-2. It was a bomb hit into the left field stands that really got the crowd going. In the 6th, pinch-hitter Nate Schierholtz brought home Pablo Sandoval on an RBI single, giving the Giants the lead. An insurance run was added in the 7th on a Pat Burrell RBI single. Insurance runs are always nice and fluffy.

The Padres lost tonight and the Giants now lead the division by 2 games. As I mentioned before, the crowd was really into this game. Everybody knew the implications and what was at stake. It felt like the playoffs and it was great. For a few years now, late September games haven't really mattered for the Giants and I'm glad that's over. This is really, really fun.

CHC 2, SF 0: BLAHHHHHHHHHHHH

Jonathan Sanchez good, not great. Offense sucked majorly. Read the post below this. It's nice. BOOM. Done.

SF 10, LA 2: Diiiiiiiiirrrrrrrrtttyyyyyyyyy

Wow, that was pretty great.

Not only did Jonathan Sanchez give up just 4 H, 1 ER and strike out 12 Dodgers, he didn't walk a single batter. He was just beautiful. It's the kind of beauty that's impossible to stop thinking about. Just thinking about how beautiful he is makes me smile. When I think of him, nothing in the world can bother me. Thinking of him makes me feel like I'm in the middle of an open field dancing and playing with flowers and butterflies. You know what it is that Jonathan and I have? It's love. Congratulations Mr. Sanchez, you will be who I'm thinking about when I go to sleep tonight. What?

Now that I've expressed my love for a man over the worldwide web for billions of people to see, I'll talk about something else. Actually, no. Sanchez lived up to his nickname tonight, Dirty Sanchez. The nickname is so obvious and simple, but it's perfect. The Giants are in first place. He can be absolutely nasty and starts like tonight show how valuable he is. If you read this blog a lot, you probably know that I'm in favor of trading him for a bat. But he is too valuable to give up for anything. The Giants are in first place. A 27 year old left-handed pitcher with a 3.21 ERA and a 9.3 K/9 is only worth giving up for a legitimate middle of the order hitter. If you can't get that, you keep him. It's just a bonus that he happens to be frickin' beautiful!

The pitching wasn't the only bright spot tonight. The Giants found themselves down by a run after half an inning because of a double and a throwing error by Juan Uribe, but that didn't scare the offense. The Giants are in first place. In the bottom half of the 1st, Aubrey Huff tripled and Buster Posey promptly brought him in with an RBI double. Then in the 3rd, with 2 runners on Aubrey Huff blasted a 3-run shot over the right field wall. I bet you can't guess what awesome thing I'm going to say next, though. The Giants are in first place. The next batter, Buster Posey, also blasted a home run, this one into the left field bleachers to give the Giants a 5-1 lead. It was the Aubrey and Buster Show! Against the Dodgers. With the division lead on the line. Epic. The Giants are in first place. There was also a Jose Guillen homer and a couple more RBI hits and the Giants ended up with 10 runs. Against the Dodgers. With the division lead on the line. Epic.

Edgar Renteria went 4-for-5. Say hello to your new leadoff hitter!

The Giants are in first place.

SF 1, SD 0: First Place? Yup.

Hey, I don't care how it's done, as long as it's done. And tonight it was done. And when it was done I was happy. Done.

That was weird. Maybe it's not an unfamiliar type of game for Giants fans because that's how it goes against the Padres. With the exception of last night, usually we can't score against them or maybe we're able to squeeze out a run or two. And it figures that after Jonathan Sanchez lost a game in which he allowed just 1 hit earlier this year, the Giants would win a game where Sanchez walked 7 batters and threw as many balls as strikes. I guess it all evens out.

The player of the game has got to be Nate Schierholtz. With 1 out in the 7th inning, Aubrey Huff was on 3rd and Schierholtz had come in to pinch-run for Jose Guillen at 1st. Juan Uribe decided to hit what would've been a double play grounder to 2nd, but Nate slid aggressively into the bag, and the throw was late to first. Aubrey Huff scored to give the Giants a 1-0 lead, and that was all they'd need. Not always pretty, but I'll take it.

I don't like to complain when we, but something needs to be asked. Why the hell did Wilson swing the bat in the 9th?? He should've struck out and let Torres attempt to drive the runners in. I don't understand letting a pitcher, especially a reliever, bat in that situation when insurance runs are needed. We're lucky it didn't cost us. And why did Uribe feel the need to wrap is hand around the catcher's leg as he was crossing home?? That was a bizarre play.

WE ARE TIED FOR THE DIVISION LEAD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ahem. I'm pretty sure a late night FJM Friday post is in the works. I don't want to make any promises, but I think it's happening. You'll want to read it because Scott Ostler wrote a pretty ridiculous thing for the Chronicle today.

It's A Slow Day

It's cold and overcast here and I'm basically using that as an excuse for me not being able to come up with something to write about today. So, I thought I'd throw out a question for you guys.

Barry Zito is starting tonight, and as the rotation has started to heat up in September, Zito is the lone starter who has not found his groove. As a result, there seems to be a lot of negativity and hate surrounding Zito. I'm not saying it's unwarranted hate, he hasn't looked good for over a month now, but a thought came into my mind.

When the Giants make the playoffs, and if they go with a 3-man playoff rotation, who are your 3 guys?

This is NOT if the season ended today. By the end of the season, when the playoffs come around, which 3 guys do you want starting for the Giants? I think it's an interesting question because despite Zito's struggles, both heads of 8thInningWeirdness would go with Lincecum, Cain, and Zito. But I have a feeling that many of you would choose Bumgarner, maybe Sanchez over Zito.

I think Lincecum and Cain are locks for everybody. If you don't have both of them in your lineup, I would really like you to explain yourself. So, the focus is on the 3rd starter. Personally, I go with Zito because of his postseason experience and because I still think he'll be our 3rd best option. Sanchez is the most erratic of all the Giants starters and by the time the playoffs roll around, Bumgarner might be worn out.

Anyway, leave your 3-man rotation in the comments section and explain why you chose those guys.

SF 3, LA 0: Uhh, Sanchy, Uhh...

I'd heard of Jonathan Sanchez's perfectly shaped and groomed eyebrows before, but it wasn't until tonight that I actually saw the abominations. It's a good thing he pitched one of the best games of his career tonight, because if he hadn't I would probably use this whole recap to question something of his. Go forth, Jonathan, pluck thine eyebrow hairs out, as long as you keep throwing strikes.

Sanchez has gone longer than 7 innings, but he's probably never pitched a bigger game than tonight. Against the Dodgers, in LA, on national tv, in the middle of a September pennant race. And what did he bring? 7 inning, 3 hits, 9 K's, and only ONE WALK. After a perfect 1st inning, it looked like he was starting to lose it in the 2nd when he walked Casey Blake and hit James Loney. But a beautifully turned double play from Juan Uribe got him out of the inning, and from that point he dominated. He only left after the 7th because his pitch count was up to 112, and there was no reason to send him back out. Sergio Romo and Brian Wilson both had perfect innings to close out the game.

The reason Sanchez could comfortably leave the game was because Juan Uribe brought the power again tonight. The Giants already had a 1-0 lead thanks to a sac fly by Sandoval that scored Posey. In the 7th inning, Juan Uribe, who had already been intentionally walked twice, came up with a runner on and flipped a HR into the left field seats. We are used to see Uribe's HRs get driven out, like last night, but this power display was all hands, as he was off balance a bit and didn't get his lower body into the swing. That HR pretty much sealed the deal, as it just didn't seem like the reeling Dodgers would come back from a 3 run deficit. And they never even got close to threatening it. The Giants now go to Arizona, a place they seem to always hit well (although everyone hits well there pretty much). Maybe they could have the division lead BEFORE they visit San Diego for a crucial 4 game series.

The Good From Last Night

Okay, last night's game was terrible. The Giants blew a lead against a team that is slowly creeping up behind them in the standings and they failed to capitalize on a night when both the Wild Card and division leaders lost. Maybe that flyball was a freak play and every outfielder would have charged in to get it. Fine, I think I can buy that. But Freddy Sanchez's terrible bounce pass to 3rd base gave up the lead, and none of it would've mattered if the Giants scored more than one pathetic run. The game was lost yesterday because of bad defense and bad offense. However, last night's game was a good sign for one reason, though. The pitching. For once, I'm going to be optimistic.

The pitching struggles in August have been well-documented. During this month, they've had a 4.65 ERA, good for 3rd worst in the NL. Pretty surprising that our pitching, and not the offense, is costing us down the stretch. Obviously this team is carried by the pitching staff, so they won't be going anywhere near the playoffs if the staff doesn't get back on track. But yesterday, Jonathan Sanchez, the most erratic of all the Giants' starting pitchers, pitched a gem. And the day before, Matt Cain had a quality start. Two back-to-back quality starts from the staff is an extremely welcome sight. Cain has been pretty great all season, but if guys like Sanchez, Zito and Lincecum can get back to their early season dominance, this team's going to be hard to beat. You can tell all of the starters feed off of each other. If everyone's pitching well, no one wants to be the one to break the streak. Like I said a couple of days ago, it just takes a couple of good starts in a row for the staff to get back on track.

I'm willing to bet that last night's game was an anomaly. Our defense is in a pretty bad spell right now, committing 11 errors in the last 5 games. That is terrible and they are not a terrible defensive team. (Jose Guillen is pretty bad though. Despite last night's misplay, Cody Ross is definitely the best option out there.) They aren't great, having below average guys at 3B, SS, and LF, but they don't make too many errors and they're not 11 errors in 5 games bad. Also, the offense should be able to score more often than not. With Sandoval and Sanchez getting hot the lineup now has Torres, Sanchez, Huff, Burrell, Posey, and Sandoval all hitting well. That's not a bad lineup at all. But the key to winning is still the pitching and if last night was any indication, the pitching could be close to regaining form. Maybe the Giants can finally combine good pitching, good hitting, and better defense at the same time. This team needs a run, a July type streak, to get to the playoffs and if that's going to happen, the starters need to get hot.

COL 2, SF 1: August is the Cruellest Month

What a shock that the most crushing defeat of the season would come against the Colorado Rockies. Surprised I didn't hear Kuip uttering "This is not good, folks...". The Giants had a beautifully pitched game, a disastrous 9th inning, and, forgotten in all of this, a horrible day at the plate. What will be talked about below might never have happened if the Giants could have scored a few runs. 1 extra base hit. 4 RISP. 3 double plays. So it goes for the Giants...

A lot happened in that 9th inning, so before we dissect it all, let's appreciate the gem that Jonathan Sanchez pitched tonight. 8+ innings, 5 hits and 2 walks, with 6 K's. He was fantastic. It was the fourth start he'd made it through 8 innings, each time giving up 1 ER or less. He's not near perfect, but damn can he dominate sometimes. One of those starts was quite recent, August 19th in Philadelphia. As he would in this game, Bruce Bochy decided to let Sanchez go out for the 9th inning, in a 5-0 game. Sanchez allowed a single, and was promptly taken out of the game.

I think I'll try to second guess Bochy and defend him on his decision to let Sanchez go out for the final inning. Should he have surmised, from past experience, that Sanchez just isn't cut out for the 9th inning, and that sending him out in a 1-0 game was especially dangerous? Maybe. On the other hand, Sanchez had been dominant all night, and Brian Wilson had thrown 30+ pitches yesterday. I don't think I can disagree with Bochy taking Jonathan out after the walk to Fowler. After getting ahead 0-2, he missed BADLY multiple times. He looked terrible suddenly.

Apparently the broken bat on Carlos Gonzalez's flyball fooled Cody Ross. Whatever. Still gotta make the catch. He had trouble with another flyball later in the inning that turned into another triple. Right field at AT&T Park is apparently tricky to play, and it is tricking Cody Ross. Still, no excuses. Makes you appreciate Randy Winn all of a sudden.

There, of course, was a 2nd part of that play that got screwed up. The Giants looked to have a legitimate shot at getting Carlos Gonzalez at 3rd base. Instead, Freddy Sanchez bounce passed the baseball over to Pablo Sandoval, and it went into the dugout, allowing CarGo to score. Shocking. Like I said, Freddy Sanchez just can't field and hit at the same time. Apparently Wilson may not have been backing up the play, but I haven't been able to verify that. My MLB app refuses to play the Gonzalez "triple". Who knew smart phones understood and practiced mercy?

SF 16, CIN 5: The Bats Will Not Sleep!

Tonight, the Giants won 16-5. Yes, 16-5. There is a whole lot of parade raining I could do right here. I could talk about how the obscenely hot weather has had at least SOME effect on flyballs at AT&T in these past 2 games. I could mention that Jonathan Sanchez was not pretty today at all. Most of all, I could mention that just because a hitter has two straight 4 hit games does not mean he has earned the right to hit 2nd again. But all of that later. Especially the Freddy Sanchez situation. We will go DEEP into that on Friday. Logic will prevail, I promise. But for now, let's just enjoy this amazing offensive outpouring from a below average offensive team.

Freddy Sanchez has had quite a series. He has 8 hits so far, including a very impressive HR tonight. Good to see. Like I said, the conversation surrounding him is complicated and full of illogical thought patterns, so for now, congratulations, Freddy. I DO hope you stay hot for a long stretch of the season.

More power from Pablo Sandoval. This is a good thing. Slugging percentage is up to .416. We've already asserted that he's back. Is he REALLY back? Maybe...

Cody Ross was the one who started it all off for the Giants with a 2 out base hit in the 1st inning. He's got a kind of Ryan Braun swagger in the batter's box. I'd hate him if he wasn't a Giant. But he is, so I love him.

Left handed hitters should be ashamed for complaining about AT&T Park after what Buster Posey has been doing. He's hitting HRs to right center in places Adam LaRoche can only dream of. Juan Uribe and Andres Torres also had multi-hit games, and the Giants as a team had 18. I'm expecting 21 runs tomorrow.

Game Recap: SF 5, PHI 2

What was THAT?

That seems to happen a lot. First a terrible looking Giants lineup is announced. Giants fans everywhere plunge into a deep depression. Probably the worst Giants starter (even though he's still good) is pitching at a time when none of our starters are pitching well. Great Depression. Then, that terrible lineup plays well. That Giants starter pitches better than any Giants starter has in awhile. The Giants win. WHAT?

As I said, the offense did play pretty well. They got it started in the 1st inning, when a Buster Posey double scored Freddy Sanchez, and a pair of singles from Jose Guillen and Juan Uribe scored 2 more. At that point, I was worried Jonathan Sanchez would give up the lead because he has a tendency to be inconsistent and as I said the starting pitching has not been good lately, but not tonight. Another RBI double from Posey in the 3rd and a solo home run from Pablo Sandoval gave the Giants a 5-0 that they'd hold onto for most of the night.

Sanchez pitched 8+ innings and allowed just 2 hits. Pretty impressive. Sanchez allowed a line drive single to the first batter in the 9th, and then proceeded to throw 2 pitches that weren't close to strikes to the next batter he faced and Bochy pulled him out. I know Sanchez has a tendency to all of a sudden lose his control, but he was at just 97 pitches and I'm not sure why he wasn't given more of a chance to get the complete game shutout. Nevertheless, it's always good to see a great Sanchez start. He gets so much hate from Giants fans, but starts like tonight show that he is extremely valuable as a No. 4 starter and he doesn't get enough respect.

Aubrey Huff had the night off, which I have no problem with, as he's been struggling lately. So did Andres Torres. I also have no problem with keeping Torres fresh and giving him a break, but the only problem is that any time Torres doesn't play, Aaron Rowand leads off. That is by far the most terrible part of the terrible lineup. The fact that Bruce Bochy thinks Rowand's the next best option to leadoff after Torres shows that Bochy still doesn't understand baseball. And even though the terrible lineup played well, Aaron Rowand had nothing to do with it. Well, that catch he made was pretty nice, but I'm confident Torres would've made it too. I'm going to give him no credit for the win tonight.

Tomorrow the Giants face the Cardinals who are now led by the powerful Pedro Feliz. Should be a tough series. Hopefully tonight is the start of the starting pitching getting back on track.

Game Recap: SD 3, SF 2

Before beginning my fragmented, poorly thought out recap that will only touch on a few things from tonight (and do so in a very unsatisfactory manner), I have to mention the douche chills I am getting from the Mat Latos picture on the front page of the MLB section on ESPN.com. Since I hate everyone and want them to suffer as I have, here it is:


Just try and sleep tonight after one look at this tool. He's pitching tomorrow, by the way.

Tonight I want to talk about small ball. People will say that the Giants could have won tonight if they had properly played small ball. The 2nd inning comes to mind. Juan Uribe and Aaron Rowand both singled, and pitcher Jonathan Sanchez came up. He tried to bunt, and failed, causing Juan Uribe to be out at 3rd. Then Aaron Rowand was picked off of 2nd base. Within minutes, the Giants had gone from 2 men on and nobody out to 1 man on 1st and 2 out.

The bunt makes sense. It's actually the only situation where bunting makes sense, with 2 men on and the pitcher up. But why was Aaron Rowand running? He does not run well, and it was the 2nd inning. Is the 2nd inning the time for a team to play for 1 run? It's not that the Giants played small ball incorrectly, it's that they played it at all. Small ball is terrible. I really have nothing more to say about it. It sucks. Always play for the 3 run home run. Long live Earl Weaver.

I think Pablo Sandoval is really hurting this team at 3rd base. I worry that he can't even play 1st adequately. But I also worry about the mental aspect of his game. Today's rundown of Adrian Gonzalez between 3rd and home was a great example. It should have been executed like a normal rundown, back and forth until the out is made, because it will be made. Instead, Sandoval got the ball and decided it to dive for the tag. He barely got it, but in the process fell flat on his face and remained on the ground for what seemed like 5 minutes, allowing the other baserunner and batter to move to 3rd and 2nd. Awful mistake. Pablo may hustle, but he doesn't think quick enough when he's out there. It's like his batting. He feels such an immediate need to do everything, that he ends up hurting the team by not playing carefully. The Giants don't need to play small, they need to play smart.

PART OF PLAYING SMART IS NOT HITTING POSSIBLY YOUR WORST BATTER 2ND. I AM TALKING TO YOU BRUCE BOCHY AND I WON'T STOP SAYING THIS TILL THE LINEUP IS CORRECTED. THE EVIL, MORONIC, PERVERTED BASEBALL TRADITION OF GIVING YOUR BEST HITTERS LESS AT BATS ENDS TODAY. TORRES POSEY HUFF BURRELL. 1-4. IS THERE ANYBODY OUT THERE?

Game Recap: ATL 6, SF 3

There's not really much to say about this game. When Jonathan Sanchez isn't on, Buster Posey sits, and Aubrey Huff goes 0-4, it's hard to see the Giants winning. Sanchez was shaky from the 1st inning, and left after 4 innings after giving up 4 runs. The Giants scattered their 7 hits (Freddy Sanchez's single was fraudulent). Torres, Uribe, and Ishikawa were the only ones to really hit the ball hard, Ishikawa getting his 3rd HR of the season.

Todd Wellemeyer did not look good at all in his return. He gave up four hits and didn't get an out. But Santiago Casilla looked strong, going 2 innings, giving up only one hit.

Freddy Sanchez, the 6 million dollar man, was hitting 7th today. It was good to see him finally out of the 2-spot, but his replacement, Pablo Sandoval, didn't make much more sense. I don't like this practice of placing a very mediocre hitter in between Andres Torres and Aubrey Huff. My suggestion: load the lineup towards the top. Go with Torres, Posey, Huff, Burrell, Uribe, Ishikawa as your 1-6. Or something similar.

Interesting quote from Jonathan Sanchez after today's game. Sanchez said "We are going to make the playoffs...San Diego has been winning series all year...But we're going to play San Diego now and we're going to beat them 3 times. If we get to 1st place, we're not going to look back." I have no problem with this. I actually like to hear it from a guy who is often perceived as being too quiet and accused of looking uninterested on the mound. Sanchez has good reason to think that he'd do well against San Diego this Friday; this season he has a 2.57 ERA and .714 WHIP against the Padres.

Game Recap: SF 10,000,000 COL 0

When we look back at the amazing, unlikely, and heroic career of Brett Favre, we are reminded that even the most improbable of dreams can come true. In light of the reports today of Brett's surprising and somewhat premature retirement today from the National Football League, we at 8thInningWeirdness thought it was finally time to show you the side of Brett that so few know. What is that side, you ask? It's not Brett the quintessential quarterback, but Brett the son, brother, and father. So now, the story of how a scrawny kid from Kiln, Mississippi made it all the way to the Super Bowl and beyond, but never forgot where he came from.

When Irvin and Bonita Favre learned that they would be having a 2nd child...

I'm sure by now everyone is screaming "We get the joke, Reza, get on with it!" Okay, here's the recap.

The Giants could still really benefit from acquiring another bat via the waiver wire, but today was a great day for everyone in the lineup not named Edgar. I wonder when Renteria will don the costume of Tom O'Bedlam (King Lear, anybody? Anybody?) The Giants did their best Freddy Sanchez impersonation in the 1st inning, scoring 4 runs with singles and walks. Freddy Sanchez himself hit a flyball to left, which turned into his 12th extra base hit of the season when God helped it get over the wall. Pat Burrell and Andres Torres also homered. All starters other than Renteria and pitcher Jonathan Sanchez had 2 or more hits, with the Giants totaling 19 hits and 10 runs. It was a good day.

Jonathan Sanchez tied a franchise record by striking out 7 Rockies hitters in a row. The other Giant to do it? Juan Marichal of course. And while Sanchez was very good tonight, he only went 6 innings, so let's stop it with all the "would have been a mistake to trade him" nonsense. If the right offer had been out there (not Jose Bautista), it would have been perfectly justifiable to trade Jonathan Sanchez. The Giants will probably not add a bat to this offense, and we'll see how it goes. Just don't let one night in Denver make you think we're all set for October.

Game Recap: SF 7, ARI 4

The sleeping Giant awoke from his light slumber, as Aubrey Huff hit two HR's, raising his season total to 19. But the big hit in the game came in the 7th inning, when the best leadoff hitter in the NL, Andres Torres hit a booming triple that gave the Giants the Giants a 6-4 lead, a huge momentum change after the bullpen gave up the lead in the bottom of the 6th. In the top of the 9th, the Huff-Torres tandem gave the Giants an extra run, when Torres hit a double that was scored an error, and Huff singled him in. That, and a couple of Travis Ishikawa hits, accounted for pretty much all the offense tonight. Congratulations, Giants. You managed to survive without Posey in the lineup.

Jonathan Sanchez ended up only with one earned run in 5 innings, but this was not a pretty start. Sure, he struck out 10, but also walked 5 while giving up 4 hits, and was constantly in trouble. Santiago Casilla was no better, giving up the Giants' 3-1 lead. Chris Ray was able to get out of the 6th inning, and Sergio Romo, while a little shaky, didn't give up any runs. Brian Wilson got another 4 out save to end the game.

During the game tonight, we learned from Henry Schulman that the Giants may have been very close to acquiring David DeJesus before he injured himself. This potential deal apparently didn't involve Jonathan Sanchez. Knowing that, I have to say I'm a little disappointed that DeJesus got hurt. For some unproven minor league outfielders, it would have been really nice to have DeJesus replace Freddy Sanchez as the Number 2 hitter in the lineup. Looks like now the Giants are going to focus on strengthening their bullpen before the deadline.

Lastly, I'll say without shame that I was overjoyed when Miguel Montero cluelessly threw Kelly Johnson's "cycle ball" into the stands. He must understand, deep down in his unconscious, how silly the cycle is.