Saturday, June 30, 2012

Game Wrap 6/30/2012: Reds 2 Giants 1

Just my opinion, but this game was decided by the home plate umpire.  He had what we call a fluid strike zone all game but on balance, squeezed Zito in the middle innings and gave Latos a much more generous strike zone, one that Latos did not need as he did have very good stuff.  Key Lines:

Barry Zito- 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 6 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.84.  Zito had a QS despite losing control of the strike zone in the middle innings.  A big part of that was the ump's creative strike zones.  I guess he thought the game was boring with the same old K zone inning after inning so he decided to make it more interesting by changing it up from inning to inning and batter to batter, or even pitch to pitch.

Brad Penny- 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.  Penny's FB sat at 90-91 MPH but he had impeccable command.  He's not going to K a lot of batters, never has, so he's not going to be your closer, but he can eat innings like crazy and is very nice SP insurance.  Another nice dumpster dive pickup for Sabes.

Mat Latos(Reds)- 9 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 4.42.  Pay no attention to Latos' ERA.  He pitches in a bandbox for a home park and he had K'd 13 batters in a CG 4 hitter his previous start.

Dodgers and D'Backs are playing late afternoon games and both trail 2-0 as of this writing, so the impact of this game on the standings remains to be seen.

Ryan Vogelsong tries to be the stopper against Bronson Arroyo tomorrow afternoon.

PS:  D'Backs deficit has grown to 8-0 and the Dodgers to 5-0 vs Johan Santana.  Good chance NL West standings remain the same tonight.

Down on the Farm: 6/29/2012

AAA  Reno Aces bombed the Fresno Grizzlies 11-3:

Brock Bond(3B)- 3 for 5, 2B.  BA= .323.
Francisco Peguero(CF)- 3 for 5, 2B, 3B(9), Assist(home).  BA= .268.
Conor Gillaspie(1B)- 2 for 4, 3B.  BA= .326.
Dan Runzler(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 7.71.

Pegs is hitting .400 over his last 10 games and .342 for the month of June and playing CF to boot.

AA  Reading Phillies edged the Richmond Flying Squirrels 4-3:

Tommy Joseph(C)- 1 for 4, HR(4).  BA= .250.
Gary Brown(CF)- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .262.

High A  Lake Elsinore Storm pounded the San Jose Giants 12-3:

Adam Duvall(3B)- 2 for 3, 2B, SF.  BA= .258.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .278.
Alex Burg(LF)- 3 for 4, 2 2B.  BA= .256.
Stephen Harrold(RHP)- 3.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K's. ERA= 6.46.

Low A  Savannah Sand Gnats stung the Augusta Greenjackets 6-2:

Kyle Crick(RHP)- 2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.70.
Andrew Berger(RHP)- 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 4.50.

Berger is a 24 yo drafted by the D'Backs out of Lehigh in 2010.  Picked up by the Giants last year.  I believe this is his best appearance as a pro by a large margin.

Short Season  Everett Aquasox topped the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 7-5:

Joseph Rapp(1B)- 1 for 5, HR(2).  BA= .292.
Andrew Cain(RF)- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .217.
Dashenko Ricardo(C)- 2 for 3, 3B, SF.  BA= .344.
Mason McVay(LHP)- 2.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K. ERA= 1.23
Keith Bilodeau(RHP)- 2.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.13.

Rookie AZL  Giants out hit the Padres 8-7:

Randy Ortiz(CF)- 2 for 4, BB.   BA= .345.
Travious Relaford(SS)- 2 for 5.  BA= .333.
Jonathan Jones(1B)- 1 for 3, HR(1), 2 HBP.  BA= .188.
Gabriel Cornier(C)- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .429.
Shilo McCall(LF)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .294.
Bryce Bandilla(LHP)- 4 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.00.
Chris Fern(LHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, Save(1).  ERA= 0.00.

Good to see Shilo McCall off to a strong start.  Hey, a Travious Relaford sighting!  Ortiz looks like another promising prospect out of the Giants inactive international effort.

DSL  Phillies pounded the Gaints 10-4:

Angel Villalona(DH)- 1 for 2, 3 BB.  BA= .420.
Alejandro Flores(RHP)- 5 IP, 8 H 5 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 1.65.

Game Wrap 6/29/2012: Reds 5 Giants 1

Reds shortstop Zack Cozart ended all sorts of streaks when he sent Matt Cain's first pitch of the game over the left field wall.  It was all over but the shouting long before the first out of the game was recorded.  I'm not going to say Matt Cain and the Giants were flat, but let's just say that when the intensity level reaches what it was the night before. well, that's pretty much unsustainable for anybody.  Key Lines:

Pablo Sandoval- 2 for 3, 2B, HR(6), BB.  BA= .313.  Pablo appears to be all the way back from his injury and is looking noticeably thinner than when he first came back.

7 other Giants hitters had 1 hit apiece, unfortunately very few in the same inning.

Matt Cain- 6.2 IP, 11 H, 5 R, 1 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 2.53.  The Reds hitters kind of acted like they knew something about Cain and went after him aggressively with Cozart's leadoff blow setting the tone.  From the pitching line, it looks like Cain might have been BABIPed, but most of the hits were squared up and driven.

The Dodgers lost to the Mets 9-0 to stay 1 game back of the NL West leading Giants, however, the Dangerous D'Backs pounded the BrewCrew 9-3 and are now lurking just 4 games behind the leaders.

Barry Zito takes the mound facing Mat Latos in game 3 of the series in a Saturday afternoon game.

Friday, June 29, 2012

Down on the Farm: 6/28/2012

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies defeated the Reno Aces 11-8:

Brock Bond(2B)- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .314.
Conor Gillaspie(3B)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .323.
Francisco Peguero(CF)- 2 for 4, HBP.  BA= .262.
Brett Pill(1B)- 3 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .298.
Nick Noonan(SS)- 1 for 4, BB, SB(6).  BA= .296.
Charlie Culberson(PH)- 1 for 1, HR(7).  BA= .268.

Every position player in the lineup got at least 1 hit.  Culby channeled Mike Ivie and hit a PH Grand Slam HR.

AA  Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Reading Phillies 5-2:

Russell Mitchell(RF)- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .274.
Ryan Cavan(2B)- 2 for 4.  BA= .237.
Ehire Adrianza(SS)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .195.
Chris Gloor(LHP)- 4 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, GO/AO= 7/1.  ERA= 2.65.
Brett Bochy(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, Save(9).  ERA= 1.54.

Gloor gets the start and is successful getting ground balls although overall he's been more of a flyball pitcher.

High A  San Jose Giants out hit the Lake Elsinore Storm 9-6:

Adam Duvall(3B)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .254.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 2 for 5, HR(10).  BA= .274.
Alex Burg(LF)- 2 for 4, HR(7).  BA= .240.
Luke Anders(DH)- 3 for 4, 2 2B.  BA= .291.
Seth Rosin(RHP)- 4 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 4.46.
Phil McCormick(LHP)- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.45.
Jose Valdez(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, Save(4).  ERA= 3.00.
Rico Noel(CF, Storm)- 3 for 4, 2B, BB, 2 SB(55).  BA= .307.

Burg is hitting .364/.450/.758 over his last 10 games and .314/.373/.686 for the month of June.  Rosin moves to starter and has a successful first game with dominant K/9 and K/BB.  Ricky reaches double digit HR's.  It's fun to check in on players I liked before they were drafted.  I thought the Padres got a steal in Rico Noel in round 5 the same year in 2010, the same year the Giants drafted Gary Brown in round 1.  Noel has struggled and he's still a level lower than Brown, but those are good numbers and I could see Noel playing CF and leading off for the Padres in the future.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets out last the Asheville Tourists 6-5 in 12 innings:

Tomlinson(.233) and Payne(.297) had 2 hits each.
The Greenjackets stole 8 bases in the game including 2 each from Joe Staley and Elliott Blair.
Chris Marlowe(RHP)- 4.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 8 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.43.
Kyle Vazquez(RHP)- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 6.14.
Cody Hall(RHP)- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 1.65.

Marlowe's control seems to be regressing.  Dominant outings for both Vazquez and Hall.  Greenjacket pitchers struck out 18 Tourists in the game.

Short Season  Everett Aquasox topped the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 6-4:

Chuckie Jones(CF)- 1 for 1, 2 BB, SF, assist.  BA= .238.
Joseph Rapp(1B)- 4 for 5, 2B, HR(1).  BA= .302.
Kendry Flores(RHP)- 5 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.69.

Rookie AZL  Giants were idle.

DSL  Giants-Phillies box score is still not up.

Great article about Kyle Crick on BA(subscriber only).  The part I liked the most is it sounds like Matt Cain has taken a big time interest in the kid and is already mentoring him.  Great story about Madison Bumgarner told by Giants pitching coordinator Bert Bradley.  Seems that when Bummy was in Augusta, Bradley ordered him to throw more changeups regardless of the results.  Bum went out the next inning and threw 18 straight changeups and struck out the side.  When he got back to the bench he asked Bradley if he threw enough changeups!  LOL!  Man, that Bumgarner can be one ornery dude.  I love it!

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Game Wrap 6/28/2012: Giants 5 Reds 0

Madison Bumgarner pitched a complete game 1 hit shutout of a very good hitting Reds team.  In the process he set a record for blowing snot rockets.....oh yeah, helped the Giants pitching staff set a couple of other records too:   1. First time in franchise history to pitch 4 consecutive shutouts.  2.  Most consecutive scoreless innings in SF Giants history, 36.  This Giants team might just set a record for setting records!  Oh, and the Dodgers lost so the Giants take over sole possession of first place in the NL West!  Key Lines:

Gregor Blanco- 1 for 3, 3B, HBP.  BA= .259.  Blanco raises the shark fin holding his open hand up on top of his helmet and how soon before we start seeing helmets with shark fins on top for sale in the Giants Dugout Store?

Melky Cabrera- 2 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .355.  Not much more to say about Melky that hasn't already been said.  He's hit machine and he even drew a couple of walks tonight.  Oh, and BTW, haters.  As Kruk and Kuip mentioned in the TV broadcast, this team has become very patient at the plate.  They drew a total of 6 BB's tonight.

Madison Bumgarner- 9 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 2.85.  Masterful job by Bumgarner dominating a very good Reds lineup.  The lone hit was not a fluke, it was a solid bouncer up the middle, but nothing else even hinted of being a hit.  I'm not sure Bumgarner's performance wasn't more dominating than Cain's perfecto.  Cain had the 14 K's, that's true, but he also had a ball get miraculously blown back into the park by an invisible wind and a sensational catch on the warning track in CF to save a triple.  Nothing like that was required to preserve the shutout in this one.

As above, the Giants take over sole possession of first place in the NL West, 1 game up on the Dodgers who lost to the Mets 3-2.  The D'Backs topped the Braves 3-2 to remain 5 games off the pace.

Matt Cain has a chance to really stretch out this historic scoreless streak tomorrow facing Mike Leake.

Is it a great time to be a Giants fan or what?  Go Giants!!

Down on the Farm: 6/27/2012

AAA  Reno Aces defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 6-3:

Chris Dominguez(LF)- 2 for 3, HR(1). BA= .233.
Yusmeiro Petit(RHP)- 5 IP, 11 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 3.25.
Brad Penny(RHP)- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 5.40.

Hard to believe this is Dominguez' first HR.  Penny's second 2 inning appearance in a row.  Giants have a decision to make.  It would seem to come down to a choice between Penny and Loux.

AA Reading Phillies beat the Richmond Flying Squirrels 7-4:

Mark Minicozzi(1B)- 2 for 4, HR(4), BB.  BA= .301.
Ryan Cavan(2B)- 1 for 4, HR(8).  BA= .233.

High A  Stockton Ports held off a late rally by the San Jose Giants to win 8-7:

Ryan Lollis(RF)- 2 for 5.  BA= .302.
Joe Panik(SS)- 2 for 5.  BA= .268.
Adam Duvall(3B)- 1 for 5, HR(13).  BA= .251.
Chris Wilson(RHP)- 3.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.34.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets smothered the Asheville Tourists 12-5:

Jesus Galindo(CF)- 2 for 3, BB, HBP, SB(22).  BA= .211.
Ben Thomas(1B)- 2 for 5, HR(3).  BA= .262.
Jose Flores(3B)- 2 for 5, 2B, HR(1).  BA= .282.
Jeff Arnold(C)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .257.
Shawn Payne(LF)- 1 for 4, BB, 2 SB(26).  BA= .294.
Clayton Blackburn(RHP)- 6 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 3.15.

Short Season  Eugene Emeralds topped the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 8-4:

Matthew Duffy(SS)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .273.
Rafael Rodriguez(DH)- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .333.
Dashenko Ricardo(C)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .310.
Brennan Metzger(LF)- 0 for 2, BB, 2 HBP.  BA= .320.

Rookie AZL  Giants crushed the Brewers 9-2:

Randy Ortiz(CF)- 2 for 2, 2 BB, 2 SB.  BA= .320.
Hector Mercedes(DH)- 2 for 4.  BA= .360.
Ryan Honeycutt(C)- 1 for 4, HR(1).  BA= .400.
Boof Bonser(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 0.00.
Brandon Allen(RHP)- 4.1 IP, 2 H 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.23.

Boof Bonser is starting a rehab assignment.  Allen inherited 3 runners from DeJesus and did not allow any to score.

DSL  Pirates2 edged the Giants 5-4:

Nicoll Parra(CF)- 1 for 4, BB, SB(11).  BA= .243.
Carlos Valdez(RF)- 2 for 3, HR(2), BB, SB(3).  BA= .284.

Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Game Wrap 6/27/2012: Giants 3 Bums 0

Tim Lincecum and two Giants relievers completed a series sweep of the Dodgers.  So epic and complete was this beatdown of the Hated Ones, it was the first 3 game series shutout by the Giants against any team since 1954 and the first ever against the Dodgers!  The fact that the Dodgers came in with a 3 game division lead makes it all the more satisfying and significant.  I have a friend at work who is the eternally optimistic Dodger fan and he is in complete shock.  I have to say I came into this series with major reservations about the pitching matchups.  Man, maybe I should express those kinds of reservations before every series!  I have been an avid Giants fan for a long time and I cannot remember a more complete beatdown in a more important series, ever!  Key Lines:

Ryan Theriot- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .273  Theriot continues to provide solid production from the 2 hole as well as good D.  No need to hurry back, Freddy!

Melky Cabrera- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .351.  Just another ho-hum game for Melky.

Angel Pagan- 1 for 3, BB, SB(14).  BA= .295.  Pagan drove in the second run of the third inning with a bases-loaded walk and drove in the insurance run with a single.

Brandon Crawford- 3 for 4, 3B.  BA= .233.  Alas, hittting in the 8 hole means a lot of your offensive effort goes for naught.  It will be interesting to see if this game pushes his WAR up a notch.

Tim Lincecum- 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 5.60.  Hopefully, Timmy has finally turned a corner here.  The Giants are going to need  a strong second half from him.  BTW, not to take anything away from what the
Giants pitchers have just accomplished, but that Dodger lineup is pretty bad!

Sergio Romo- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(4).  ERA= 0.83.  Romo is making the case to be at least a co-closer.

The Win pulled the Giants into a tie for first place in the NL West with the Dodgers.  The D'Backs lost to the Braves so they remain 5 games behind the co-leaders.  Who cares about the Wild Card race?

The Giants now begin a 4 game series against the Cincinnati Reds who always seem to give them a tough time.  Madison Bumgarner faces Johnny Cueto in game 1.

Down on the Farm 6/26/2012

AAA  Tucson Padres out hit the Fresno Grizzlies 9-8:

Francisco Peguero(CF)- 2 for 5.  BA= .259.
Jackson Williams(C)- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .276.
Conor Gillaspie(3B)- 1 for 4, HR(8), BB.  BA= .326.
Craig Whitaker(RHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 6.89.
Heath Hembree(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.13.

Pegs is hitting .413 over his last 10.  Free Jackson Williams!

AA  Reading Phillies smacked the Richmond Flying Squirrels 10-2:

Gary Brown(CF)- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .261.

High A San Jose Giants topped Stockton Ports 6-2:

Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 1 for 4, HR(9).  BA= .272.
Alex Burg(LF)- 3 for 4, HR(6).  BA= .229.
Luke Anders(DH)- 1 for 1, HR(5), 2 BB.  BA= .280.
Bobby Haney(2B)- 2 for 3.  BA= .351.
Taylor Rogers(RHP)- 7 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 5 K's. ERA= 4.24.
Josh Osich(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.98.
Jose Valdez(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 3.09.

Low A  Asheville Tourists slapped the Augusta Greenjackets 8-1:

Shawn Payne(LF)- 2 for 4, HR(3).  BA= .295.
Paul Davis(RHP)- 6 IP, 10 H, 6 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 4.06.

Short Season  Eugene Emeralds quieted the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 6-1:

Rafael Rodriguez(LF)- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .341.
Mason McVay(LHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 1.80.
Ian Gardeck(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.00.

Rookie AZL Giants beat the Reds 11-9:

Not as much to note here as you would think from the score. The Giants were helped by 6 walks and 6 errors.  Jason Forjet pitched a scoreless 9'th for his 2'nd Save.

DSL  Giants edged the Pirates 5-4:

Angel Villalona(1B)- 3 for 4, HR(2), BB.  BA= .475.
Royel Astacio(3B)- 2 for 3, HR(2), 2 BB.  BA= .391.
Keury Mella(RHP)- 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.92.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Game Wrap 6/26/2012: Giants 2 Dodgers 0

Ryan Vogelsong, once again, went head-to-head with the Dodgers' ace and one of the most deadly of Giants nemeses over the last couple of seasons and came away a winner.   Key Lines:

Melky Cabrera- 1 for 3, HR(7), 2 BB.  BA= .352.  Melky was again in the thick of it for the Giants offense putting the first run on the board with a dinger off Kershaw.

Buster Posey- 2 for 4.  BA= .298.  Buster's two outs were scorched as he slammed one off Kershaw's back that Kershaw recovered from in time to field it and throw him out.  The other was scalded down the 3B line and speared by Herrera who then turned a DP.

Ryan Vogelsong- 7 IP, 7 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.23.  Vogelsong now has two pitching duel wins against a true ace on his resume.  I'm really not sure how you keep Vogey off the All-Star team but I guess there are a lot of deserving pitchers.  Oh, and I have a new nickname for Ryan Vogelsong:  True Warrior Spirit!

Jeremy Affeldt- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.48.  Affeldt cruised through the 8'th.

Santiago Casilla- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, Save(21).  ERA= 2.70.  After walking Abreu with one out, Casilla gave up a hard hit ball to, who else, Hairston that I thought might split the left-center gap, but Pagan used his speed nicely to track it down

The win leaves the Giants just 1 game out of first place in the NL West.  The D'Backs lost to the Braves 8-1 so they remain 5 games behind the Dodgers.  The Giants lead the Cardinals by 2 games for the top Wild Card spot.

Tim Lincecum tries for the sweep against Chad "Baggy Pants" Billingsley in an afternoon game tomorrow.

Monday, June 25, 2012

Down on the Farm 6/25/2012

AAA  Tucson Padres defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 9-6:

Skyler Stromsmoe(RF)- 3 for 4, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .272.
Francisco Peguero(CF)- 4 for 4.  BA= .257.
Nick Noonan(SS)- 2 for 5.  BA= .300.
Charlie Culberson(2B)- 2 for 5, HR(6).  BA= .264.

Pegs is hitting .400 over his last 10 games.  He has at least a 10 game hit streak with 5 multi-hit games in that span.

New Britain Rock Cats downed the Richmond Flying Squirrels 6-2:

Gary Brown(CF)- 2 for 3, 2B, HBP.  BA= .261.
Tommy Joseph(C)- 2 for 3, 2B.  BA= .255.
Chris Heston(RHP)- 5 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 1.68.

Brown now has 6 multi-hit games in a row with a 9 game hit streak. He is hitting .386 over his last 10 games with 5 SB and 1 CS.

High A  Stockton Ports crushed the San Jose Giants 15-4:

Alex Burg(LF)- 2 for 4, 2B, HR(5).  BA= .211.
Luke Anders(DH)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .275.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets edged the Asheville Tourists 3-2:

Shawn Payne(LF)- 2 for 4, 3B.  BA= .291.
Garrett Buechele(3B)- 4 for 4.  BA= .315.
Brett Krill(RF)- 2 for 4, SB(1).  BA= .244.
Edwin Escobar(LHP)- 7 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 3.50.
Jacob Dunnington(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.25.
Cody Hall(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, Save(13).  ERA= 1.78.

Gotta say, Mike Caldwell seems to be doing a bangup job as pitching coach in Augusta this year.  Escobar's numbers have looked stronger with each successive start.

Short Season  Eugene Emeralds topped the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 10-7:

Brennan Metzger(DH)- 2 for 5, 2B. BA= .348.
Rafael Rodriguez(LF)- 3 for 5, 3B, HR(1).  BA= .351.
Mike Merganthaler(RF)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .313.
Chris Johnson(RHP)- 3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 3.18.
Matthew Graham(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 1.93.

RafRod is off to a rousing start. Let's see if he's turned a corner and can keep it going.

Rookie AZL  Rangers blanked the Giants 4-0:

Shilo McCall(LF)- 0 for 1, 2 BB, SB(2).  BA= .222.
Mark Christman(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB 3 K's. ERA= 0.00.
Kelvin Marte(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.
Jacob Smith(RHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Someone was asking about Marte a few days ago. Looks like he's in a rehab stint here.

DSL  Giants out hit the Nationals 11-7:

Nicoll Parra(CF)- 0 for 1, 4 BB.  BA= .246.
Rando Moreno(RF)- 1 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .261.
Royel Astacio(1B-3B)- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .377.
Hengerber Medina(SS)- 2 for 5.  BA= .500.
Richard Rodriguez(2B)- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .206.
Carlos Alvarado(RHP, 22 yo)- 3.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.46.

The Giants have several promising lookking position prospects in the DSL this year which is a welcome change from most previous seasons.

Game Wrap 6/25/2012: Giants 8 Bums 0

The Giants offense got some favorable bounces early and took full advantage while Barry Zito got some favorable bounces and some balls hit right at fielders and pitched 7 innings of shutout ball as the Giants threw down in game 1 of their key 3 game series with the Dodgers at AT&T Park.  Key Lines:

Gregor Blanco- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .259.  Blanco has been struggling a bit so it was good to see the leadoff guy get on base 3 times.  Strangely that did not produce any Runs or RBI's.

Melky Cabrera- 2 for 5.  BA= .351.  Melky had been quiet for a couple of games.  Good to see him getting base hits again.

Angel Pagan- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .299.  Pagan and the Giants got a huge break in the first inning when his bounder hit the 1B bag and bounced high in the air over Juan Rivera's head for a double to drive in a run and set up Pablo's 2 run double.

Pablo Sandoval- 3 for 3, 2 2B, SF.  Pablo seemed to have his timing and stroke back tonight.  One double was roped down the RF line and the other was a high liner that caromed off the very top of the RF wall missing a HR by inches.

Hector Sanchez- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .282.  Despite some pressure from fans and some in the press, Bochy made the right call to stick to his scheduled catcher rotation.  The Giants are going to need Buster to have fresh legs for any kind of stretch run.  Way too early to panic and over-use him now.  Besides, The Hector is not exactly running up the white flag out there.  A scare moment when Hector turned his head to field a pitch that looked like it was diving down and in but was fouled back off the side of his hockey style helmet/mask and sent plastic shards flying.  Hector appeared to have some pain in the left ear and jaw.  Hate to think what might have happened had he been wearing a conventional mask.  Vin Scully couldn't figure out how it hit him in the ear, but the slo-mo replays clearly showed it hitting the side of the mask and shards flying. It probably felt like an extremely hard football head slap which I understand is not a lot of fun to be on the receiving end of.

Barry Zito- 7 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 4.00.  Zito walked several leadoff batters and looked like the wheels could come off at any moment but with some BABIP luck and a big lead, he cruised to the QS and W.  This was a huge win as the pitching matchups for this series did not appear to be at all favorable to the Giants and I thought a sweep by the Dodgers was a real possibility going in.  That ain't gonna happen now!

George Kontos- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 1.29.  I was thinking Kontos should finish the game, but Bochy probably wants to have him available tomorrow too, if need be.

Nate Eovaldi(Dodgers)- 5 IP, 10 H, 8 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.04.  Eovaldi got some bad breaks early and his inexperience showed as he couldn't figure out how to stop the bleeding.  Make no mistake, the Giants need to make hay while the sun shines with this kid because he has top of the rotation stuff and should be a good one as he gains experience.

With the win, the Giants move to 2 games behind the NL West leading Dodgers.  The Dangerous D'Backs did not play and are now lurking 5 games back.  The Giants hold a 2 game lead in the race for the top Wild Card playoff spot over the Braves and Pirates.

Ryan Vogelsong, the true Warrior Spirit takes his gameface to the mound against Clayton Kershaw tomorrow evening.  Did you know that Vogey has  lower ERA than Kershaw going in?

Go Giants!  Beat LA!

Down on the Farm: 6/24/2012

AAA  Tucson Padres defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 7-5:

Conor Gillaspie(1B)- 2 for 2, 3 BB.  BA= .329.
Francisco Peguero(CF)- 2 for 5.  BA= .247.
Charlie Culberson(2B)- 2 for 5, 3B.  BA= .261.
Skyler Stromsmoe(SS)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .259.
Brad Penny(RHP)- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 7.71.
Dan Runzler(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 6.00.

Pegs is hitting .311 with a .467 SLG% over his last 10 games.  His OBP in that span is lower than his BA.  Still haven't quite figured out how that's possible, but it is.  Penny has an opt out clause coming up so Giants are gonna have to fish or cut bait with him.  Shane Loux's performance of late may be the opening they need.  Penny's stuff has reportedly looked better than his results, but that's been true of him for a long time.

AA  New Britain Rock Cats beat the Richmond Flying Squirrels 7-3:

Gary Brown(CF)- 2 for 5, HR(3).  BA= .257.
Juan Perez(RF)- 2 for 4, HR(5).  BA= .293.
Russell Mitchell(LF)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .269.

Brown has an 8 game hit streak with 5 consecutive multi-hit games.  He is hitting .354/.392/.479 over his last 10 games.

High A  Visalia Rawhide topped the San Jose Giants 6-5:

Chris Lofton(CF)- 2 for 5.  BA= .262.
Joe Panik(DH)- 2 for 3, 2 BB, SB(4, home).  BA= .271.
Ryan Lollis(RF)- 3 for 4, 2B, HR(4).  BA= .311.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .277.
Ryan Bradley(LHP)- 6.1 IP, 10 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 4.02.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets edged the Savannah Sand Gnats 2-1:

Brett Krill(RF)- 4 for 4, 3B.  BA= .239.
Adalberto Mejia(LHP)- 6 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 4.95.
Kyle Vazquez(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K's, Save(4). ERA= 8.44.

6 innings of no-hit ball for Mejia who has a line of 3-1, 1.82, 29.2 IP, 7 BB, 26 K's. over his last 10 appearances.  In two starts since re-joining the rotation, he has allowed just 1 run in 10 IP with 4 BB, and 12 K's.  In Blacburn, Crick and Mejia, the Giants have 3 pitchers dominating their level at under age 20.  A 4'th starter for Augusta, Edwin Escobar is 20 yo.  Krill is hitting .333/.355/.500 over his last 10 games.

Short Season  Yakima Bears blanked the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 2-0:

Dashenko Ricardo(C)- 3 for 3, 2B.  BA= .333.
Mario Rodriquez(LHP)- 5 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.90.

Rookie AZL  Giants came from behind to out hit the Angels 10-9:

Randy Ortiz(CF)- 3 for 5, 3B, SB(3).  BA= .316.
Hector Mercedes(RF)- 3 for 5, 2B, 3B.   BA= .462.
Cristian Paulino(2B)- 2 for 4, Sac, SB(2).  BA= .250.
Shilo McCall(LF)- 2 for 4, 2B, SB(1).  BA= .250.
Bryce Bandilla(LHP)- 3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.80.
Brandon Farley(RHP)- 1.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 3.86.
Chris Fern(LHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K's.  ERA= 0.00.
Jason Forjet(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(1).  ERA= 0.00.

Ortiz put up good numbers in the DSL last year.  This is Mercedes' age 20 season.  He put up sub .200 BA's the last 2 years in the DSL.  Nice size at 6'3", 188 lbs.  Maybe the Giants saw something that the numbers don't tell you?  McCall gets his first professional hits.  Bandilla has just one BB in 5 IP since re-starting his season with the Baby Giants.

DSL  Giants were idle as usual on Sundays.

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Game Wrap 7/24/2012: A's 4 Giants 2

A couple of days ago, I referred to Santiago Casilla as "the man."  That was obviously a big mistake because he hasn't been able to pitch a clean inning since.  Today, he gave up a 3 run walk-off HR to Derek Norris to turn a 2-1 Giants lead into a 4-2 loss.  Key Lines:

Ryan Theriot- 2 for 4.  BA= .270.

Buster Posey- 1 for 3, HR(10), BB.  BA= .295.  After Buster's 2 run dinger in the first, the Giants offense went to sleep against AJ Griffin pitching his first MLB game as they mustered just 3 more hits the rest of the game.

Matt Cain- 7 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 2.27.  Cainer didn't quite have his best stuff and had to battle at times, but he should have won this one with acceptable offensive and bullpen support.

Santiago Casilla- 0.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  Strange inning for Casilla.  He got two 3-pitch K's against LH batters but didn't seem comfortable pitching to the RH batters.  Romo was warming up in the bullpen in the 9'th.  Is Casilla suddenly walking on thin ice?

AJ Griffin(A's)-  6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.00.  Griffin seems like the prototypical A's pitcher right out of the Joe Blanton mold.  He probably won't ever be an ace, but will probably rack up a lot of innings as a #3,4 starter type for many years.

The Dodgers lost to the Angels 5-3 so the Giants stay 3 games behind the NL West leaders.

The Giants begin a 3 game series at home against the LA Hated Ones tomorrow evening with Barry Zito facing Nate Eovaldi.  With Ryan Vogelsong facing Clayton Kershaw in game 2, the pitching matchups would seem to heavily favor the Dodgers in this series, but hey, there's a reason why they play the games, right?

Down on the Farm: 6/23/2012

AAA  Fresno Giants defeated the Tucson Padres 4-3:

Conor Gillaspie(1B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .322.
Francisco Peguero(CF)- 1 for 3, SF.  BA= .244.
Brett Pill(LF)- 2 for 3, 2 HR(2), BB.  BA= .350.
Jason Stevenson(LHP)- 5.2 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 4.55.
Heath Hembree(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K, Save(13).  ERA= 4.28.

AA  New Britain Rock Cats knocked down the Richmond Flying Squirrels 6-1:

Gary Brown(CF)- 2 for 4, 2B. BA= .254.
Chris Gloor(LHP)- 3.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.97.
Edwin Quirarte(RHP)- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 3.80.

High A  Visalia Rawhide beat the San Jose Giants 5-3:

Ryan Lollis(RF)- 1 for 3, HR(3), BB.  BA= .304.
Andrew Susac(C)- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .240.
Justin Schumer(RHP)- 0.2 IP, 1 H, 3 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.73.
Seth Rosin(RHP)- 3.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 4.73.
Drew Bowlin(RHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.70.

Short outing for Schumer.  I did not see any mention of injury in the game report on the SJ website.  Rosin was dominant in his innings as was Drew Bowlin.  Rosin seems to run hot and cold.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets blanked the Savannah Sand Gnats 1-0:

Shawn Payne(LF)- 1 for 3, 3B, BB.  BA= .286.
Ben Thomas(1B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .263.
Kyle Crick(RHP)- 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 2.79.

Crick now has 18 consecutive scoreless frames over 3 starts.

Short Season  Salem-Keizer Volcanoes topped the Yakima Bears 5-3:

Kentrell Hill(CF)- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .227.
Matthew Duffy(SS)- 1 for 3, 2B, BB, HBP.  BA= .281.
Chuckie Jones(DH)- 2 for 5, SB(1).  BA= .290.
Joseph Rapp(1B)- 2 for 4.  BA= .240.
Rafael Rodriguez(LF)- 1 for 4, SB(3).  BA= .321.
Andrew Cain(RF)- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .296.
Kendry Flores(RHP)- 6 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.64.
Joe Biagini(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.
Tyler Mizenko(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(3).  ERA= 0.00.

I mentioned this in the comments section of yesterday's Down on the Farm:  Mark Trumbo hit .220 at the same age in Low A ball in 2006 as RafRod is now.  It would take him 5 more years to reach the major leagues and he's a beast now.  Not saying RafRod is going to be Mark Trumbo, but I am saying it's way, way too early to give up on him.  Chuckie Jones continues his solid start for S-K.  Flores is repeating the level but is still just 20 yo.

Rookie AZL  Giants were idle.

DSL  Giants downed the Nationals 7-3:

Carlos Valdez(LF, 18 yo)- 3 for 4, 3B.  BA= .262.
Alejandro Flores(RHP, 18 yo)- 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R,1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 1.21.

Valdez is hitting .351/.415/.595 over his last 10 games.

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Game Wrap 7/23/2012: Giants 9 A's 8

The Giants and A's would seem like two unlikely teams to hook up in a slugfest, but that's just what happened today out at the Oakland Coliseum as the Giants brought back torture in the 9'th inning finally ending it when Jemile Weeks popped up with 2 outs and the bases loaded.  Key Lines:

Buster Posey- 2 for 3, HR(9), 2 BB.  BA= .294.  Buster is on a pace for about 20 HR's.  I think if we were all asked at the beginning of the season if we would take a .290+ BA with 20 HR's and good health from Buster this year, we'd all have said, "heck yeah!"

Pablo Sandoval- 2 for 5. BA= .308.  Pablo is keeping his BA up, but not getting any power, which is kind of expected after wrist surgery.

Brandon Belt- 2 for 3, HR(4), 2 BB.  BA= .273.  Right now, Belt is bringing back memories of his minor league performances which is what got people all excited about him in the first place.  His history is that once he gets comfortable at a level, he doesn't look back.

Madison Bumgarner- 6 IP, 11 H, 4 R, 1 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 3.10.  Bumgarner kind of got knocked around in this one.  He was able to limit the damage and the offense picked him up only to be almost let down by the bullpen.

The Dodgers beat the Angels 3-1 in Anaheim to remain 3 games ahead of the second place Giants.  The Mets lost so the Giants have a 1 game lead for the top Wild Card playoff spot.

Matt Cain tries for the series sweep tomorrow facing Brandon McCarthy who might have a strong case to be considered the A's ace right now.

Down on the Farm: 6/22/2012

AAA  Sacramento River Cats defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 2-1 in 12 innings:

Jackson Williams(C)- 2 for 4, BB. BA= .271.
Yusmeiro Petit(RHP)- 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 2.92.
Dan Runzler(LHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 9.00.

Another dominant start for Petit who seems to have finally figured something out.  Free Jackson Williams!

AA  New Britain Rock Cats out hit Richmond Flying Squirrels 9-8:

Gary Brown(CF)- 2 for 4, BB, 2 SB(21).  BA= .251.
Mark Minicozzi(DH)- 3 for 4, 2B, HR(3).  BA= .316.

Brownie is hitting .347 over his last 10 games. This was his 3'rd multi-hit game in a row and 6'th in his last 10 games.

High A  San Jose Giants whipped the Visalia Rawhide 7-2:

Joe Panik(SS)- 3 for 4, HR(4), BB.  BA= .271.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 3 for 5, 2B, HR(8).  BA= .281.
Bobby Haney(2B)- 2 for 5.  BA= .361.
Chris Lofton(CF)- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .259.
Andrew Susac(C)- 0 for 2, 3 BB, SB(1).  BA= .239.
Jack Snodgrass(LHP)- 5.2 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.47.
Josh Osich(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.13.

I would think both Panik and Ricky would be candidates for BA's next Hotsheet.  Ricky is hitting .385/.429/.718 over his last 10 games while Panik has an 11 game hit streak with a .405/.447/.690 line over his last 10.  Lofton is hitting .314/.351/.457 in his last 10 games.

Low A  Savannah Sand Gnats downed the Augusta Greenjackets 5-1:

Jesus Galindo(CF)- 0 for 4, 2 SB(19).  BA= .205.
Ben Thomas(DH)- 3 for 4.  BA= .260.
Brett Krill(RF)- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .225.

Krill is hitting .344/.364/.594 over his last 10 games.

Short Season  Yakima Bears topped the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 4-2:

Joseph Rapp(1B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .190.
Rafael Rodriguez(RF)- 3 for 3, 2B, Sac.  BA= .333.

Rookie AZL  Angels edged the Giants 7-6 in 11 innings:

Ryan Honeycutt(C)- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .500.
Brandon Allen(RHP)- 3 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 3.00.
Emmanuel DeJesus(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.
Jason Forjet(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

DSL  Giants beat the D'Back/Reds 4-2:

Carlos Valdez(LF)- 1 for 3, 2B.  BA= .228.
Eber Guzman(RHP)- 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.65.

Valdez turned 18 today.  He's a 6 figure bonus baby and is hitting .306/.366/.500 over his last 10 games.

Friday, June 22, 2012

Game Wrap 7/22/2012: Giants 5 A's 4

Tim Lincecum had a Quality Start, but not before giving up a 3 spot in the first inning.  It appeared that those 3 runs would be all the A's needed to continue their Coliseum winning streak against the Giants, but Ryan Cook, the A's closer, couldn't find the strike zone and the Giants took advantage mounting a 4 run rally in the top of the ninth and held on for the 5-4 win.  Key Lines:

Gregor Blanco- 2 for 4, BB, 3 SB(12).  BA= .259.  Blanco had been in a slump, but broke out of it tonight.  Still, a PO/CS off 2B almost contributed to a loss.

Brandon Belt- 1 for 2, 2B, BB, HBP, SB(4).   BA= .265.  Belt had the big blow in the ninth inning with a tailing liner down the LF line that got past LF Colin Cowgill for 2 RBI's with the trailing runner, Pablo Sandoval, running through Tim Flannery's stop sign.  The play was in front of Sandoval, so it's OK for him to go if he thinks he can make it, but if you run through a stop sign, you better make it!  Back to Belt.  I used to love looking at his lines in the minors because they were always so busy.  This is a busy line!

Hector Sanchez- 2 for 4.  BA= .271.  Has Hector now become the Timmy Whisperer?  Stay tuned.

Tim Lincecum- 6 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 6.07.  There was one play in the terrrible first inning that could have stopped the bleeding.  Bases loaded, Belt fields a GB, appears to step on first and throw home.  The runner beat the throw and oh, by the way, Belt failed to actually step on first base so everybody was safe.  Timmy settled down after that and ended up with the QS.

The Dodgers lost to the Angels 8-5 so the Giants gain a full game and are now just 3 games behind the NL West leaders.  The Giants are tied with the Mets for the top Wild Card playoff spot.

Madison Bumgarner takes to mound tomorrow afternoon facing Tyson Ross.

Thursday, June 21, 2012

Down on the Farm: 6/21/2012

AAA  Sacramento River Cats blanked the Fresno Grizzlies 6-0:

Skyler Stromsomoe(CF)- 3 for 4, 2 SB.  BA= .267.
Craig Whitaker(RHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 8.53.
Brad Penny(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 10.38.
Jean Machi(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.94.

AA  Richmond Flying Squirrels defeated the Trenton Thunder 7-2:

Gary Brown- 3 for 6, 2B, SB(19).  BA= .247.
Juan Perez(RF)- 3 for 5.  BA= .290.
Mark Minicozzi(1B)- 3 for 4, SF.  BA= .283.
Mike Kickham(LHP)- 5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 6 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 2.82.

Brownie has 5 hits in his last two games and is hitting an even .300 over his last 10.  Kickham was effectively wild.

High A  San Jose Giants crushed the Visalia Rawhide 11-1:

Joe Panik(SS)- 3 for 5, HR(3).  BA= .264.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 2 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .274.
Jarrett Parker(LF)- 1 for 4, HR(7), BB.  BA= .264.
Bobby Haney(2B)- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .359.
Chris Lofton(CF)- 3 for 4, 2B, HR(3).  BA= .254.
Taylor Rogers(RHP)- 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 4.38.
Mitchell Beacom(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.50.
Drew Bowlin(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.18.

Several hot hitters in San Jose:  Panik has at least a 10 game hit streak and is hitting .405 over his last 10 games.  Ricky is hitting .316 over his last 10 games.  Parker is hitting .424 over his last 10 games and .400 for the month of June so far.  Lofton is hitting .306 over his last 10 games.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets out hit the Savannah Sand Gnats 9-8:

Jose Flores(3B)- 3 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .308.
Jose Cuevas(2B)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .233.
Jeff Arnold(C)- 3 for 4.  BA= .273.
Brett Krill(RF)- 2 for 4.  BA= .215.
Clayton Blackburn(RHP)- 6 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 3.17.
Cody Hall(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(11).  ERA= 1.93.

Blackburn pitched shutout ball for 5 innings before running into trouble in the 6'th.  His K and BB numbers were still dominant.

Short Season  Salem Keizer Volcanoes topped the Yakima Bears 6-4:

Matthew Duffy(SS)- 2 for 5, SB(2).  BA= .292.
Chuckie Jones(CF)- 2 for 3, 2B, 2 BB. BA= .318.
Andrew Cain(RF)- 2 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .350.
Joan Gregorio(RHP)- 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.75.
Mason McVay(LHP)- 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.00.
Tyler Mizenko(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K, Save(2).  ERA= 0.00.

Gotta be cautiously optimistic about Chuckie's start.  Andrew Cain is off to a hot start to his pro career.

Rookie AZL  D'Backs beat the Giants 4-2:

Randy Ortiz(CF)- 2 for 4, 2 SB(2).  BA= .333.
Hector Mercedes(RF)- 1 for 4, 2 SB(2).  BA= .286.
Jonathan Jones(1B)- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .286.
Luis Angeles(RHP)- 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.00.
Jacob Smith(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Ortiz is 19 yo.  He had a promising performance last year in the DSL.  Jones is a big kid, 20 yo drafted last year out of Canada.  Hit .235/.350/.412 in 17 AB last year in the AZL.  Angeles is 22 yo.  Graduated from the DSL last year but had a rough greeting in the US with a 7.43 ERA in the AZL.  Smith was a 48'th round draft pick in 2011.  This was his professional debut.

DSL  Giants downed the D'Backs/Reds 9-7:

Marco Guzman(2B)- 1 for 3, 2B, BB, HBP.  BA= .211.
Carlos Valdez(RF-LF)- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .222.
Anthony Gomez(3B)- 1 for 2, 2B, BB, HBP.  BA= .296.
Juan Nova(RHP)- 5.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 6 K's. ERA= 0.44.

Guzman, Valdez and Gomez are all 17 yo.  Nova is 21 yo.

Down on the Farm: 6/20/2012

AAA  Sacramento River Cats defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 10-7:

Conor Gillaspie(3B)- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .327.
Todd Linden(RF)- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .279.
Jackson Williams(C)- 2 for 4, 2 HR(7).  BA= .264.
Brad Penny(RHP)- 1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 13.50.
Heath Hembree(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.44.

Penny might need a few more innings before he's ready.  Free Jackson Williams!

AA  Richmond Flying Squirrels downed the Trenton Thunder 7-5:

Gary Brown(CF)- 2 for 6.  BA= .242.
Tommy Joseph(C)- 1 for 3, SF.  BA= .248.
Johnny Monell(C)- 2 for 2, 2B.  BA= .206.
Juan Perez(RHP)- 2 for 6, 2B.  BA= .283.
Chris Heston(RHP)- 5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 0 BB, 10 K's.  ERA= 1.36.
Brett Bochy(RHP)- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's. ERA= 1.62.

Heston had a dominant start by K and BB criteria.

High A  Cal League was idle for the last day of their A-S break.

Low A  SAL was idle for the last day of their A-S break.

Short Season  Yakima Bears mauled the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 8-2:

Matt Duffy(SS)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .263.
Joseph Rapp(1B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .143.
Andrew Cain(RF)- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .333.
Ryan Jones(2B)- 1 for 3, SF.  BA= .235.

Rookie AZL
Cubs topped the Giants 3-1:

Bryce Bandilla(LHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.
Jose Reyes(RHP)- 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Any time I see a line with more K's than IP, I take notice.  Reyes is 21 yo and spent the last 2 years in the DSL.

DSL  Giants blanked Yankees1 9-0:

Angel Villalona(1B)- 4 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .520.
Carlos Valdez(LF, 18 yo on 6/22)- 1 for 4, HR(1), BB.  BA= .196.
Julio Pena(RF, 19 yo)- 1 for 5, HR(3).  BA= .322.
Hengerber Medina(2B, 17 yo)- 3 for 3, BB, SB(1).  BA= .800.
Keury Mella(RHP, 18.10 yo)- 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 3.20.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Game Wrap 6/20/2012: Angels 6 Giants 0

I'll make this short and sweet(or bitter depending on your taste).  Ryan Vogelsong pitched a Quality Start. No one else showed up to play for the Giants.  End of story.

The Dodgers lost to the A's 4-1 so the Giants remain 4.5 games behind the NL West leaders.  The Mets topped the Orioles 4-3 to pull into a tie for the top Wild Card playoff spot with the Giants.

The Giants have tomorrow off before starting a 3 game series against the A's in Oakland.  At least the Giants can enjoy home cooking for this series even though it's an Away series.

Hot Tip: Tim Lincecum: Bad Luck or Bad Pitches?

Dave Cameron wandered little ways off the sabermetric reservation on Monday, 6/18/2012, over on Fangraphs with an article looking at Tim Lincecum's struggles from a statistical standpoint.  Giants pitchers in general, and Matt Cain in particular have long been a source of interest and exasperation to the sabers due to an apparent ability to sustain better ERA results than their normalized stats, FIP and xFIP would indicate is possible.  Now Timmy is presenting the opposite statistical phenomenon and it's starting to cause a stir.

As we all know, the season is rapidly closing in on the half way point and Timmy's ERA is still a very ugly 6+.  At the same time, his FIP and xFIP are a much more attractive 3.87 and 3.82.  Since these two derived statistics are based on normalizing parameters that are generally believed to be subject much more to random statistical variatition, luck if you will, the obvious conclusion is that Timmy has simply had a prolonged stretch of bad luck that will turn around any day now.  He's become the classic fantasy Buy Low candidate.

The only problem with that analysis, as Dave Cameron points out, is that it flies in the face of what we have all observed from watching Timmy turn in one rough start after another.  He hasn't pitched well!  We've all seen the inability to find the strike zone, the walked batters, the capitulation with meatball pitches down the middle that get hammered.  Dave Cameron has apparently seen it too and wavers from the sabermetric party line by saying maybe what we have been calling "luck" is more a statistical variation in execution rather than random events that occur after the ball is struck by the bat.

Predictably, the sabermetric faithful struck back later in the comments insisting that outliers like this are completely consistent with Defense Independent Pitching Statistics(DIPS) theory, which basically says balls in play are out of the control of the pitcher.  From there it kind of degenerates into a bad luck/bad pitches, yes it is/no it isn't, tastes great/less filling argument.

In fact, there is a very good explanation for the statistical phenomena that is Timmy right now that accepts his bad pitching as a fact, yet stays true to the theory behind FIP/xFIP.  FIP and xFIP rely on normalizing certain statistics like BABIP, LOB% and HR/FB to league averages on the theory that if you get a large enough sample size, those parameters will regress to league average and you will then have a pitcher's true talent performance.

What we have all observed with Timmy is that he tends to do fine as long as the bases are empty and he can work out of the windup.  As soon as he allows a runner to reach base, especially if there are less than 2 outs in the inning, his mechanics while pitching from the stretch fall apart and he gives up hits and runs in bunches.  Since Timmy's struggles are not evenly distributed throughout the game, and are clustered around when he pitches from the stretch, his LOB% goes WAY down.  The hits and walks he gives up start a cascade that makes them come in bunches increasing the probability that any give runner will end up scoring.  It only takes that happening 3 times a game for an ERA to go from 3.00 to 6.00.

Will Timmy eventually regress to his career averages or at least league averages in these "random" statistical parameters?  Probably, but not until he straightens out whatever is going wrong mechanically when he has to pitch out of the stretch.

Down on the Farm: 6/19/2012

AAA  Sacramento River Cats defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 5-2:

Brett Pill(1B)- 2 for 3, 2B, HBP.  BA= .419.
Dan Runzler(LHP)- 1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 18.00.

AA  Trenton Thunder edged the Richmond Flying Squirrels 3-2:

Gary Brown(CF)- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .240.
Juan Perez(RF)- 2 for 4.  BA= .282.

High A  Carolina League All-Stars crushed the Cal League All-Stars 9-1:

Jack Snodgrass(LHP)- 1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 0 K.   Snodgrass was the only representative of the San Jose Giants.

Low A  SAL North topped the SAL South 3-2 in the SAL All-Star game:

Cody Hall(RHP)- 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  Hall was the lone representative from the Augusta Greenjackets. No Clayton Blackburn?

Short Season  Salem-Keizer Volcanoes topped the Boise Hawks 4-1:

Chuckie Jones(DH)- 2 for 3, SF.  BA= .333.
Andrew Cain(RF)- 1 for 4, 2 OF Assists(both at 3B).  BA= .333.
Mario Rodriguez(LHP)- 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K, GO/AO= 9/2.  ERA= 0.00.
Tyler Mizenko(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save()1).  ERA= 0.00.

Cain is one of several sleepers with tremendous upside taken late in the draft.  He put his throwing tool on display tonight.  Can't really go wrong with that last name either.  Rodriguez is a 23 yo who has been in the organization since 2006. He pitched for Augusta last season.  He may be rehabbing an injury here.

DSL  Giants beat Yankees1 12-6 in a game shortened to 8 innings:

Nicoll Parra(CF)- 1 for 3, 2B, 3 BB.  BA= .267.
Rando Moreno(SS)- 3 for 4, 2 BB, SB(8).  BA= .278.
Angel Villalona(1B)- 3 for 5.  BA= .450.
Royel Astacio(3B)- 3 for 5, BB.  BA= .413.
Hengerberger Medina(2B)- 1 for 2, 3 BB.  BA= .500.

This is the first time we've seen Medina's name in a box score and what a name it is!  He's 17 yo so probably a recent signee.

Game Wrap 6/19/2012: Angels 12 Giants 5

It had been so long since we had a good old fashioned Barry Zito torching, I had almost forgotten what it felt like.  The Angels did not waste much time reminding me as they came out of the gate hitting one frozen rope after another and basically didn't stop the whole game.  The difference this game and this season is I actually thought the Giants offense still had a chance to make it a game as late as the top of the 8'th inning and kept watching, off and on, of course. A line drive or hard ground ball a few inches higher or a bit to the left or right and hey, this would have been a game!  Key Lines:

Melky Cabrera- 3 for 5, 2B.  BA= .369.  Melky reached 100 basehits in fewer AB's than any Giant in history, another Willie Mays record broken.

Joaquin Arias-3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .255.  Arias has 5 hits in his last 2 games and is hitting .333 over his last 10.

Barry Zito- 3.1 IP, 9 H, 8 R, 3 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.35.  No silver lining to this one.  Just a good old fashioned Barry Zito butt kicking.  His games have been slowly deteriorating for awhile now.  Hate to say it, but we could be in for more of these.

George Kontos- 2.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 1.59.  Kontos allowed all 3 of the runners he inherited from Zito score, not that Zito wouldn't have allowed them to score himself, but still.  After that, Kontos settled down and at one point struck out 4 batters in a row with a nasty slider.

Clay Hensley- 1.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 3.67.   Hensley has now allowed runs in 5 consecutive games.  I would say he is fit only for mop up duty right now.  Well, I guess this WAS mop up duty!  Might as well get it all out in one game, huh?

Mike Trout(Angels)- 4 for 4, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .337.  Mike Trout is for real, folks.  Let's just say I'm very glad he doesn't play in the National League, let alone the NL West, unless it was for the Giants of course.  Then I'd be happy to have him.

Albert Pujols(Angels)  2 for 3, HR(11), 2 BB.  BA= .258.  Great hitter, for sure, but I wanted to throw up while the Angels TV broadcasters were raving about his D on balls he basically didn't have to move his glove for.  Yeah, they were hit hard, but they were also right at him.

Mark Trumbo(Angels)- 3 for 5, 3B.  BA= .326.  I took Trumbo forever to work his way through the Angels farm system, but man, what a beast he has turned into!

The A's shut out the Dodgers 3-0 behind Brandon McCarthy so the Giants remain 4.5 games behind the NL West leaders despite losing this one.  The Giants lead the Mets by 1 game for the top Wild Card playoff spot.

Ryan Vogelsong goes up against another opposing ace taking on Jered Weaver in the series finale tonight.

Monday, June 18, 2012

Down on the Farm: 6/18/2012

All 4 full season teams were idle today.

Short Season  Boise Hawks defeated the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 6-4:

Brennan Metzger(LF)- 2 for 6, 2B.  BA= .545.
Chuckie Jones(CF)- 2 for 5, 2B, HR(1).  BA= .250.
Kendry Flores(RHP)- 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.00.
Mason McVey(LHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.
Franklin Noel(LHP)- 3 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 0.00.

Volcanoes made 4 errors plus 2 PB's by Eberle.  Flores has been around awhile but is still just 20 yo.  Noel makes his U.S. debut after laboring for 5 seasons in the DSL.

DSL  Mets pounded the Giants 13-7:

Nicoll Parra(CF)- 1 for 2, 2 BB, 3 SB(9).  BA= .262.

Game Wrap 6/18/2012: Giants 5 Angels 3

The Giants returned to Angels' Stadium for the first time since the 2002 World Series and won the opening game of their interleague series with the Halos behind a stubborn performance by Matt Cain and a scintillating performance by the bullpen.  Key Lines:

Ryan Theriot- 3 for 5.  BA= .275.  Theriot has 6 hits in his last 2 games after a mini-slump that lasted about a week.

Melky Cabrera- 3 for 5.  BA= .364.  Melky leads all of MLB with 98 hits.  He's done that in 64 games.

Brandon Belt- 2 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .261.  Belt extends his hit streak to 7 games in which he is hitting .454 with an OBP of .586.

Brandon Crawford- 1 for 4, 3B.  BA= .232.  Crawford is getting very good AB's.  He had a great one yesterday against Felix Hernandez in which he saw about 12 pitches, worked the count to 3-2 and drove a single up the middle.  Tonight he drove a triple into the corner to drive in 2.

Joaquin Arias- 2 for 4.  BA= .242.

Matt Cain- 5 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 4 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.34.  Cainer had to battle tonight but was able to limit the damage in innings that could have been disastrous.  The offense gave him enough for the W to run his record to 9-2.

Bullpen- 4 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  4 perfect innings from the bullpen, and man, I am not missing BWeezy's torture one bit.  Casilla is the man!

Jerome Williams(Angels)- 3.1 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.46.  I thought Jerome looked a bit glassy eyed on TV.  He was taken to a local hospital with shortness of breath after coming out of the game and reportedly is being observed overnight.

Dodgers were idle so the Giants gain a game to 4.5 off the pace of the NL West leaders.  They lead the Mets by 2 games for the final Wild Card playoff spot.

Barry Zito takes the mound tomorrow night against CJ Wilson.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Down on the Farm: 6/17/2012

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies defeated the Salt Lake City Bees 4-2:

Francisco Peguero(CF)- 3 for 5, 2B, HR(5).  BA= .245.
Conor Gillaspie(PH-DH)- 1 for 1, HR(7).  BA= .330.
Jackson Williams(C)- 2 for 4.  BA= .257.
Jason Stevenson(LHP)- 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 5.32.
Brad Penny(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 11.57.
Heath Hembree(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K's, Save(12).  ERA= 4.26.

Peggy is hitting .318/.362/.455 over his last 10 games.  This is Penny's second consecutive scoreless outing.  Gotta think he's coming up soon.

AA  Richmond Flying Squirrels edged the Portand Sea Dogs 5-4:

Gary Brown(CF)- 1 for 4, 2 SB(18).  BA= .240.
Russell Mitchell(1B)- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .276.
Andy Reichard(RHP)- 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 4.55.
Tom Vessella(LHP)- 2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.61.

High A  Cal League was idle today and will continue to be idle for the next 3 days for the Cal League All-Star Game.

Low A  Greenville Drive topped the Augusta Greenjackets 4-3:

Jose Flores(2B)- 2 for 4, SB(1). BA= .283.
Shawn Payne(LF)- 1 for 3, BB, SB(23).  BA= .298.
Jose Cuevas(3B)- 2 for 3, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .228.
Jeff Arnold(C)- 2 for 4.  BA= .250.
Paul Davis(RHP)- 3 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.20.
Derek Law(RHP)- 3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 2.17.

Law took the loss in this one, but pitched well continuing to put up dominant K numbers.

Short Season  Salem-Keizer Volcanoes downed the Boise Hawks 4-3:

Mike Merganthaler(RF)- 2 for 5.  BA= .400.
Chuckie Jones(CF)- 1 for 2, 3 BB.  BA= .143.
Bryan Nicholson(1B)- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .286.
Raymundo Montero(RHP)- 5 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.60.
Jorge Bucardo(RHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.
Ian Gardeck(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.

Good to see Jorge Bucardo's name in a box score again.  Gardeck is a hard throwing college reliever with control issues. It's just one inning but he seemed to have it under control in this one. Maybe the Giants already tweaked something?

DSL Giants are idle as usual on Sundays.

Game Wrap 6/17/2012: Mariners 2 Giants 1

Madison Bumgarner went head to head with Felix Hernandez and outpitched him, but the Giants could not come up with the big hit and lost the bullpen game in the bottom of the 9'th inning.  Key Lines:

Buster Posey- 2 for 4.  BA= .297.  Bochy pulled Buster, who was the DH in this game, for a PR after a one out single to RF.  When you consider the probabilities of a single runner scoring from 1B with 1 out, I don't think that was the right move.  Nate replaced him as the DH and came up later with the bases loaded and grounded out.  Nate has been hot and was in there against a RHP, but Posey is arguably the Giants best hitter.  We'll never know if he could have executed the needed base hit in that situation where Nate did not.

Brandon Belt- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .250.  Belt now has a 6 game hitting streak going.

Madison Bumgarner- 8 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.92.  Bumgarner conserved pitches a bit better than Feliz and lasted one more inning.  At one point he retired 18 consecutive batters.  Alas, it was all for naught.

The Dodgers came from behind once more to edge the ChiSox 2-1 in 10 innings so the Giants once again fall 5 games off the pace in the NL West.  They remain a game ahead of the Braves for the top Wild Card position.

The Giants now travel to SoCal to take on the LA Angels of Anaheim or of Albert Pujols or whatever.  Matt Cain makes his first start since the perfecto in game 1 facing a former Giant hope for the future, Jerome Williams.

Down on the Farm: 6/16/2012

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies edged the Salt Lake City Bees 2-1:

Francisco Peguero(CF)- 2 for 4.  BA= .238.
Yumeiro Petit(RHP)- 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 8 K's.  ERA= 3.06.

Frankie Pegs hitting .295 over his last 10 and .281 in June.  Seems like there must be a team somewhere who could afford to give Petit another try now that the Giants seem to have fixed him.

AA  Richmond Flying Squirrels topped the Portland Sea Dogs 3-1:

Gary Brown(CF)- 2 for 4.  BA= .240.
Ryan Cavan(2B)- 2 for 3, HR(6), SB(3).  BA= .249.
Ari Ronick(LHP)- 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 8.66.
Brett Bochy(RHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K's, Save(8).  ERA= 1.72.

Brownie has had 3 multi-hit games out of his last 4 but is hitting just .244 over his last 10 and .220 for the month of June.  Cavan is hitting .344 with 3 HR and a SLG%= .719 over his last 10 games.  This was, by far, Ronick's best appearance of the season and his first start.

High A  San Jose Giants cracked the Modesto Nuts 3-2:

Ryan Lollis(RF)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .310.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .272.
Alex Burg(LF)- 1 for 2, 2B, 2 BB.  BA= .212.
Dan Runzler(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K's.  ERA= 6.00.
Jose Valdez(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, Save(3).  ERA= 2.70.

I continue to be a fan of Jose Valdez. If you've never seen him on a mound, he's just an enormous physical presence.  Don't give up on him!

Low A  Greenville Drive pounded the Augusta Greenjackets 9-2:

Jesus Galindo(CF)- 2 for 4, 3B, BB, SB(16).  BA= .222.
Biagini(RHP)- 5.2 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 4 ER, 5 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 7.41.
Cody Hall(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.01.

Biagini has 36 K's in 34 IP, but also has 29 BB.  I'm guessing the Giants see a pitcher with prototypical size and good stuff who just needs to harness it.

Short Season  Salem-Keizer Volcanoes smothered the Boise Hawks 7-4:

Brennan Metzger(LF)- 2 for 3, 2 HBP.  BA- .750.
Michael Merganthaler(RF)- 2 for 5, 3B.  BA= .400.
Rafael Rodriguez(DH)- 3 for 4, 2B, SB(1).  BA= .500.
Andrew Cain(CF)- 2 for 3, SB(1).  BA= .500.
Matthew Duffy(SS)- 2 for 4, SB(1).  BA= .222.
Joan Gregorio(RHP)- 6 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 7 K's. ERA= 3.00.
Keith Bilodeau(RHP)- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.

Different lineup than opening day with several new draftees making good showings.  Strong secondary stats for Gregorio.

DSL  Giants lost to the Mets 5-1:

Angel Villalona(1B)- 2 for 3, 2B, 2 HBP.  BA= .455.

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Game Wrap 6/16/2012: Mariners 7 Giants 4

Same song next verse....it's gettting to be a broken record for Tim Lincecum, or Groundhog Day.  You get the picture.  Timmy gave up two dingers in the first inning.  The offense fought back and staked him to a 4-2 lead in the 4'th inning, but it wouldn't last long as Timmy coughed up the lead and Jeremy Affeldt let it get farther in the rearview mirror in the 6'th.  Key Lines:

Ryan Theriot- 3 for 5, 2 SB(6).  BA= .263.  Riot had been slumping for about a week but broke out of it tonight.

Brandon Belt- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .248.  Belt has a 5 game hit streak in which he is hitting .412.

Brandon Crawford- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .231.  Crawford is hitting .276.

Tim Lincecum- 5 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 6 K.  ERA= 6.19.  Not much more to say here.  This has sadly become a familiar line and familiar story for Timmy this year.  Very disconcerting.

George Kontos- 2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.00.  Kontos pitches well in mop-up time.

Fortunately, the Dodgers lost to the ChiSox 5-4 so the Giants stay 4 games behind the NL West leaders.  The Braves also lost so the Giants also maintain a 1.5 game lead for the first Wild Card spot.

Madison Bumgarner goes against Felix Hernandez in the final game of the series tomorrow afternoon.

Down on the Farm: 6/15/2012

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies defeated the Salt Lake City Bees 8-5:

Francisco Peguero(CF)- 2 for 5, 3B.  BA= .234.
Brett Pill(1B)- 3 for 5, 2B, 3B.  BA= .438.
Brock Bond(DH)- 4 for 4, BB.  BA= .360.
Jackson Williams(C)- 1 for 5, HR(5).  BA= .250.
Dominguez, Culberson and Linden got 2 hits each.
Heath Hembree(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(11).  ERA= 4.44.

AA  Portland Sea Dogs downed the Richmond Flying Squirrels 4-2:

Really nothing to see here.

High A  Modesto Nuts beat the San Jose Giants 6-4:

Joe Panik(SS)- 1 for 4, 3B.  BA= .258.
Adam Duvall(3B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .271.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 2 for 4.  BA= .272.
Seth Rosin(RHP)- 2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA=5.28.
Josh Osich(LHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 2.31.

Panik is hitting .302/.340/.465 over his last 10 games.  Ricky Oropesa is hitting .368/.429/.684 over his last 10 games.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets edged the Greenville Drive 2-1:

Shawn Payne(LF)- 3 for 4, SB(22).  BA= .304.
Jeff Arnold(C)- 1 for 3, HR(1).  BA= .237.
Edwin Escobar(LHP)- 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 10 K's.  ERA= 3.77.
Paul Davis(RHP)- 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 4.29.
Kyle Vazquez(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, Save(3).  ERA= 2.08.

Vazquez appears to have taken over closing duties for Augusta.  Escobar is quietly putting together a nice season for Augusta and he's still just 20 yo.

Short Season  Salem-Keizer Volcanoes outlasted the Boise Hawks 3-2 in 12 innings:

Kentrell Hill(LF-RF)- 2 for 6.  BA= .333.
Michael Mergenthaler(DH)- 2 for 5.  BA= .400.
Dashenko Ricardo(C)- 1 for 4, 2B.  BA= .250
Lorenzo Mendoza(RHP)- 7 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.29.
Keith Bilodeau(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 0.00.
Tyler Mizenko(RHP)- 3 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.
Matthew Graham(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

Ricardo moves back behind the plate after trying to become a pitcher.  Mendoza is a holdover from last season.  He doesn't turn 21 until August making him still one of the younger players in the league.

DSL  Giants blanked the Cubs2 7-0:

Miguel Gomez(C, 19.6 yo)- 3 for 5.  BA= .310.
Angel Villalona(1B, 21.10 yo)- 2 for 4.  BA= .375.
Anthony Gomez(3B, 17.7 yo)- 1 for 2, HR(2).  BA= .333.
Juan Nova(RHP, 19.8 yo)- 5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 2 K's.  ERA- 0.00.
Diomedes Mateo(LHP, 21.5 yo)- 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 3.09.

Gomez is the guy to keep an eye on in this group.

Friday, June 15, 2012

Game Wrap 6/15/2012: Giants 4 Mariners 2

The Giants got another gritty performance from Ryan Vogelsong and just enough offense to bring home the win in the opening game of the interleague series with the Seattle Mariners in Safeco Field.  Key Lines:

Gregor Blanco- 2 for 5.  BA= .278.  Blanco's job is to get on base twice a game. He did his job tonight.

Melky Cabrera- 2 for 4, HR(6).  BA= .365.  Melky just keeps on rolling.  It's quite a feat to hit one out of Safeco. It was a typical Melky line drive shot to left-center. Not sure anyone can hit a ball harder than that.  What looked like 2 insurance runs ended up being the difference in the game,  insurance runs that ended up getting used.

Buster Posey- 1 for 4, HR(8).  BA= .293.  You had to feel good about the game as soon as Buster hit it out to lead off the second inning.

Brandon Belt- 2 for 4, 2B.  Belt's double was pulled smartly to the RF corner.  Belt is on such a roll against LHP's that he might not be looking forward to facing RHP's!  He's hitting an even .300 over his last 10 games with 5 K's and 5 BB's.

Nate Schierholtz- 1 for 1.  BA= .265.  I would think Nate will be the DH the next two games with the Giants facing RHP's.  Nate is not bad against LHP's so you could make a case for him being the DH tonight too.

Ryan Vogelsong- 7 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 6 K's.  ERA= 2.29.  Vogey's performance was better than the line looks as he took a shutout into the 8'th inning.  Bochy might have left him in too long, but he also might have played it differently if he didn't have the 4 run lead.

Santiago Casilla- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(18).  ERA= 1.37.  Casilla has really grown as a pitcher since assuming the closer role.  He mixes his pitches beautifully and executes them very well plus he has great stuff to work with.

The Dodgers won another 1 run game 7-6 over the ChiSox so the Giants remain 4 games behind the NL West leaders in second place.  They maintain a 1.5 game lead over the Braves for the top Wild Card playoff spot.

Tim Lincecum takes the mound in his hometown tomorrow facing Kevin Millwood.  Have to say it sure sounds like Timmy would love to play for the Mariners.

Thursday, June 14, 2012

Down on the Farm: 6/14/2012

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies defeated the Salt Lake City Bees 8-5:

Skyler Stromsmoe(RF)- 2 for 5, 2B, SB(9).  BA= .262.
Conor Gillaspie(3B)- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .331.
Nick Noonan(SS)- 2 for 5.  BA= .308.
Charlie Culberson(2B)- 2 for 3, 3B, BB.  BA= .258.
Chris Dominguez(LF)- 3 for 4, 2 2B, SB(1).  BA= .245.
Brad Penny(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K's.  ERA= 20.25.
Jean Machi(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB 2 K's, Save(6).  ERA= 4.23.

Stromsmoe leads off in Christian's absence.  Penny's appearance went better than the first one.

AA  Richmond Flying Squirrels outlasted the New Hampshire Fisher Cats 3-2 in 13 innings:

Gary Brown(CF)- 2 for 7.  BA= .239.
Daniel Mayora(3B)- 3 for 6.  BA= .298.
Juan Perez(RF)- 2 for 5, 2 2B, Sac.  BA= .279.
Ryan Cavan(2B)- 2 for 5, HR(5).  BA= .243.
Mike Kickham(LHP)- 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 2.92.

Another strong start for Kickham.  Brownie has 5 hits in his last 2 games.  Cavan has HR's in his last 2 games and 3 in his last 10.

High A  San Jose Giants topped the Modesto Nuts 6-5:

Ryan Lollis(CF)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .307.
Adam Duvall(DH)- 1 for 4, HR(12).  BA= .267.
Alex Burg(LF)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .204.
Danny Sandbrink(RHP)- 5 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.10.
Jose Valdez(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's, Save(2).  ERA= 2.78.

Don't write off Valdez who appears to be the current closer for San Jose.

Low A  Game 1   Augusta Greenjackets scored 4 runs in the bottom of the 7'th to pull out a narrow win over the Greenville Drive 4-3:

Shawn Payne(DH)- 1 for 2, 2B, BB, SB(20).  BA= .287.
Kelby Tomlinson(SS)- 0 for 2, 2 BB, SB(20).  BA= .238.
Garrett Buechele(3B)- 2 for 3.  BA= .301.
Kevin Couture(RHP)- 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.45.
Jacob Dunnington(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 4.50.

Game 2  Augusta Greenjackets downed the Greenville Drive 6-1:

Jesus Galindo(CF)- 0 for 2, BB, SB(15).  BA= .209.
Kelby Tomlinson(SS)- 1 for 3, SB(21).  BA= .240.
Shawn Payne(LF)- 2 for 3, SB(21).  BA= .293.
Jose Cuevas(2B)- 2 for 3, 2B.  BA= .225.
Adalberto Mejia(LHP)- 4 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 5.73.
Derek Law(RHP)- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.10.
Cody Hall(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.11.

Mejia gets his first start since early in the season.  He has a 2.05 ERA over his last 10 appearances for 26.1 IP.  He has 24 K's and 5 BB's in that span.  He turns 19 yo in 1 week.  Law continues to put up dominant numbers out of the bullpen.

DSL  Cubs pounded the Giants 9-4:

Nicoll Parra(CF)- 2 for 5.  BA= .258.
Angel Villalona(1B)- 1 for 4.  BA= .250.
Royel Astacio(DH)- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .429.
Julio Pena(RF)- 1 for 4, HR(2).  BA= .368.

An Angel V sighting!

Short Season ball starts tomorrow night. S-K roster is up on their website.  Most of the 2012 draftees are on it as well as several holdovers.  Not sure how everybody is going to get PT.

AZL does not start until June 20. Rosters not up yet.

Game Wrap 6/14/2012: Astros 6 Giants 3

The buzz and euphoria from Matt Cain's Perfect Game had not even begun to die down when the Giants took the field again to close out their 3 game series with the Astros, so it was not too surprising that everybody was a little flat-footed for this one.  Key Lines:

Pablo Sandoval- 2 for 4.  BA= .316.  Pablo now has 5 hits in his last 2 games.

Hector Sanchez- 1 for 3, SF.  BA= .274.  Hector hit another scorcher to the right side with on outs in the 9'th and Pablo on first base.  The ball almost took out Pablo and was knocked down by Downs who picked it up and had an easy path to a DP.  A perfect example of the luck of the BABIP.

Brandon Belt- 1 for 4, HR(3).  BA= .238.  Belt now has 3 HR in his last 3 games, all against LHP's.  Go figure, but it's sure nice to have the big guy hitting 'em out.  This one went clear into McCovey Cove and I don't think he came anywhere close to getting all of it.

Barry Zito- 5 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.61.  Zito got what appeared to be a bad call from the ump on what should have been a called strike 3.  Instead it led to 3 straight walks followed by a grand slam HR from JD Martinez.  Aside from that brief lapse, Zito pitched pretty good.  That's 2 games where he's pitched pretty good and still given up some runs though.  Stay tuned.

The Dodgers were idle today so the Giants lose 0.5 games in the standings to 4 games behind the NL West leaders.

The Giants now embark on a 9 games road trip to 3 AL cities although the last one will be close to home in Oakland.  Ryan Vogelsong takes the mound in Seattle facing Justin Vargas, another LHP.

Aubrey Huff is headed to the DL after spraining his knee trying to hurdle the dugout railing to join the Matt Cain Perfect Game celebration.  It appears Justin Christian will get the well-deserved call.  It's unclear how much playing time is available for Christian once he gets here though.

Down on the Farm: 6/13/2012

AAA  Sacramento River Cats defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 6-1:

Brett Pill(1B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .435.

AA  Richmond Flying Squirrels edged the New Hampshire Fisher Cats 6-5 in 11 innings:

Gary Brown(CF)- 3 for 6.  BA= .238.
Tommy Joseph(C)- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .263.
Russell Mitchell(3B-1B)- 1 for 2, 2B, 3 BB.  BA= .308.
Ryan Cavan(2B)- 2 for 4, HR(4), BB.  BA= .239.
Chris Heston(RHP)- 7 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K's, GO/AO= 9/2.  ERA= 1.00.

Maybe this game gets Brownie off the schneid?  Tommy Joseph is having a steady season.  Chris Heston continues his fine pitching.

High A  San Jose Giants downed the Inland Empire 66'ers 7-1(I attended this game, thus missing most of Matt Cain's Perfect Game):

Ryan Lollis(RF)- 2 for 5.  BA= .304.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 0 for 4, BB.  BA= .268.
Ydwin Villegas(2B)- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .250.
Justin Schumer(RHP)- 8 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 4 K's, GO/AO= 11/6.  ERA= 4.66.
Jose Valdez(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K.  ERA= 2.87.

Ricky started a nice DP from the first base position.  Villegas has superior defensive skills at 2B if he can ever hit a lick.  He was the hitting star tonight.  I was more impressed by Schumer than I expected.  He really established a fastball that topped out at 92 MPH on the stadium gun which seemed to be reasonably accurate this time.  I saw some nice sharp breaking balls and a solid changeup too.  Don't give up on Valdez who is a tremendous physical presence on the mound. His FB was 92-94 MPH with a sharp breaking ball that he threw for strikes.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets topped the Rome Braves 2-1:

Kyle Crick(RHP)- 5 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 K's, GO/AO= 7-2.  ERA= 3.12.
Steven Neff(LHP)- 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 3.25.

Crick not as dominant as his last start, but still effective.

DSL  Phillies pounded the Giants 14-7:

Rando Moreno(SS, 20 yo)- 2 for 5, 2 SB(7).  BA= .289.
Carlos Valdez(OF, 17.11 yo)- 3 for 5, 2B, SB(2).  BA= .242.
Royel Astacio(3B, 18.8 yo)- 2 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .406.
Julio Pena(RF, 19.6 yo)- 3 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .382.
Moises Mesa(LF, 21.2 yo)- 2 for 4, HR(1).  BA= .385.
Anthony Gomez(DH, 17.7 yo)- 3 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .385.

Offensive breakout for the DSL Giants.  The 17 yo's are probably the best prospects of the bunch.  I think Valdez and Gomes received 6 figure bonuses as did Astacio.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Game Wrap 6/13/2012: Giants 10 Astros 0; Matt Cain Pitches a Perfect Game!

There have been many special nights at AT&T Park since it opened in 2000.  Tonight ranks right up there with the best as Matt Cain pitched the first perfect game in the entire history of the Giants franchise backed by an unusual outpouring of run support and the usual tremendous defense that the Giants have become known for.  Key Lines:

Gregor Blanco- 2 for 5, HR(4), BA= .280.  Blanco also made a sensational catch in CF, that's right, CF coming all the way over from his RF position running at full speed with his back to the ball, he laid out at the last second to bring it in landing on the dirt of the warning track.  Blanco has been nothing short of miraculous since joining this team.  If you didn't see him in the interview with Matt and Buster after the game, you really missed something special.  The guy has a smile that just won't stop.  You can tell he loves the game and is loving every minute that he has to play it.

Ryan Theriot- 2 for 4.  BA= .260.  I think Theriot has nailed down the 2B/2 hole position for the forseeable future.  

Melky Cabrera- 2 for 5, HR(5).  BA= .367.  Every time I think Cabrera is cooling off, he comes up with a game like this.  Sign Melky!

Buster Posey- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .294.  Buster called a perfect game!  

Pablo Sandoval- 3 for 4, 2B.  Pablo broke out of his mini-slump after returning from the DL.  Woo-hoo! Watch out for this offense!

Brandon Belt- 2 for 3, HR(2), BB.  BA= .238.  Speaking of watching out for this offense.....!  Belt is heating up!!

Matthew Thomas Cain- 9 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 14 K's.  ERA= 2.18.  My eyes misted over a bit as I typed his name.  I can't say this game was a surprise.  I think every one of us has believed Matt Cain has the ability to pitch a no-hitter and even a perfect game almost since the day he broke into the major leagues.  He's taken several into the 7'th inning.  He's pitches several 1 hitters.  I believe we are now witnessing the prime of Matt Cain's career, or maybe we aren't!  He is still getting better, after all. His current line stands at 8-2, 2.18, 95 IP, 16 BBB, 96 Ks'!   I expect to see an article on Fangraphs tomorrow explaining why his xFIP proves he is going to regress or else scratching their heads about why he just keeps getting better rather than regressing.  Ha!  Take THAT Fangraphs!

The Giants record now stands at 36-27.  The Dodgers lost to the Angels 2-1 allowing the Giants to move up to a 3.5 game deficit in second place in the NL West.  They now lead Atlanta by 2 games for the top Wild Card playoff spot.  

Barry Zito tries for the sweep of the 'Stros tomorrow afternoon facing Wandy Rodriguez.  

I believe there is a growing feeling among Giants fans that this is a special team.  With Pablo Sandoval back and Brandon Belt finally heating up, it has the capability of becoming an offensive force to back up the already sensational pitching.  Tim Lincecum is the final missing piece to a dominant team and I think that's going to happen too.

More than it being a special team, I feel like we are in the midst of a special era of Giants baseball that could go on for several more years if not  more than a decade.  Just think about that for awhile.

Oh, and one last thing.  Just 3 words:

Matthew Thomas Cain!

Hot Tip: Juan Marichal's Pitching Mechanics

Sickels, for some reason, is posting a series of pitching videos looking at pitching mechanics of HOF pitchers over on Minor League Ball.  Started yesterday with Bob Feller and I thought it was just a one time whim.  Today he put up Don Drysdale and Juan Marichal.

I post this because I still think Juan Marichal is just about the most amazing pitcher in the entire history of baseball,  let alone the best I've ever seen.  I read recently that the leg kick was added late in his development to help him deliver the ball over-the-top.  Juan was well known to deliver the ball from just about any angle, but his natural delivery was more low 3/4 or sidearm and he wanted to deliver it straight over the top most of the time.  The leg kick helped him do that.

I'm not sure he slid off the mound after every pitch like that though.  I've never seen that before and I don't remember any discussion about it, but back in the day, there was never any real discussion of pitching mechanics like there is today.

Anyway, check it out, everybody.  The site is linked over on the left:  Minor League Ball.

Down on the Farm: 6/12/2012

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies outlasted the Sacramento River Cats 8-7 in 13 innings:

Justin Christian(CF)- 3 for 6, 2B, BB, SB(10).  BA= .366.
Brett Pill(1B)- 3 for 7, 2B.  BA= .421.
Nick Noonan(SS)- 5 for 7, 2 2B.  BA= .312.
Jackson Williams(C)- 4 for 5, 2 2B.  BA= .252.
Erick Threets(LHP, River Cats)- 3 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.74.

Yesterday I read an article somewhere about AAAA players who need to be freed.  Christian was not on the list. He should have been.  Will we need to start a  Free Jackson Williams movement soon?  Remember Erick Threets? Hardest thrower I've ever seen when he was with San Jose Giants.  He's 30 yo now.  Just about the right age for the Giants to bring him back!

AA  Richmond Flying Squirrels topped the New Hampshire Fisher Cats 3-2:

Gary Brown(CF)- 1 for 4, SB(16).  BA= .232.
Tommy Joseph(C)- 2 for 4.  BA= .259.
Ehire Adrianza(SS)- 2 for 4, HR(1).  BA= .187.
Andy Reichard(RHP)- 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 4.56.

High A  San Jose Giants crushed the Inland Empire 66'ers 14-2:

Ryan Lollis(RF)- 4 for 6, 2B.  BA= .302.
Joe Panik(SS)- 2 for 4, 2 BB.  BA= .258.
Adam Duvall(3B)- 3 for 6, 2B.  BA= .268.
Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 1 for 5, 3B, BB.  BA= .273.
Andrew Susac(C)- 2 for 5, HBP.  BA= .248.
Jarrett Parker(LF)- 2 for 2, 2B, BB.  BA= .264.
Chris Lofton(CF)- 2 for 5, SB(13).  BA= .246.
Taylor Rogers(RHP)- 7 IP, 9 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 5 K, GO/AO= 11/5.
Josh Osich(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 2.53.

Too much good stuff!  Parker left the game for a PR.  Injury?  I still have high hopes for Osich.  Hope he can stay healthy.

Low A  Game 1  Augusta Greenjackets defeated the Rome Braves 5-1:

Brett Krill(RF)- 1 for 3, 3B.  BA= .226.
Clayton Blackburn(RHP)- 6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 K's, GO/AO= 12/1.  ERA= 2.88.

Not much more to say about Blackburn.  He seems to have mastered this level.  2 ER in his last 4 starts over 28.1 IP.  36 K's against just 4 BB's in his last 5 starts over 35.1 IP.  4 ER in those 5 starts for an ERA of just slightly over 1.00.

Game 2  Rome Braves edged the Augusta Greenjackets 4-3:

Jose Cuevas(2B)- 2 for 3, 3 SB(10).  BA= .222.
Joseph Staley(C)- 2 for 2, BB, SB(2).  BA= .287.
Chris Marlowe(RHP)- 5 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.06.

DSL  Giants downed the Phillies 3-1:

Nicoll Parra(CF, 17.10 yo)- 0 for 3, BB, SB(6).  BA= .231.
Royel Astacio(DH, 18.8 yo)- 3 for 4, 2B.  BA= .407.
Carlos Valdez(LF, 17.11 yo)- 2 for 4, 3B.  BA= .179.
Alejandro Flores(RHP, 18.8 yo)- 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.89.

PS:  The article about AAAA players who need to be freed is called the Brian Mazone(remember him?) All-Stars and it's on Beyond the Boxscore linked to the left.

Game Wrap 6/12/2012: Giants 6 Astros 3

Madison Bumgarner put on a show for yet another roaring sellout crowd at AT&T Park, and Brandon Belt hist his first HR of the year in one of the more entertaining games of the season so far.  Key Lines:

Melky Cabrera- 2 for 4.  BA= .366.  They were both bloopers, but they're still hits in the stat line.

Nate Schierholtz- 2 for 2, BB, HBP.  BA= .261.  Nate gets on base 4 times and suddenly Bruce Bochy has a good problem on his hands. It all turned around in 1 AB for Nate against the LHP Robbie Ross in the Texas series.  Up to that point, he looked as lost as any batter in baseball.  He gave Ross a battle and as he fouled off one pitch after another, you could see his confidence growing in front of your eyes. He finished off that AB with a single and he's been hot ever since.  Not saying the stat guys are wrong, but you can't measure whatever happened there in a stat line.

Brandon Belt- 1 for 3, HR(1), BB.  BA= .227.  On the other hand, this is not a problem!  The HR was on another of those funny looking truncated swings, but you could tell it was well hit immediately.  One of the outs was a screamer down the 1B line that was stabbed by Scott Downs who easily doubled Nate off 1B.  Belt seems to be coming around and wouldn't that be huge for this lineup?

Brandon Crawford- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .226.  Crawford made his 11'th error costing Bumgarner an unearned run, but he still has a + fielding rating by UZR.  He needs just a tad more bat to move up the WAR rankings.  He's kind of stuck on 0.3 for awhile.

Madison Bumgarner-  1 for 3, HR(1).  BA= .125.  Bumgarner has been hitting bombs in batting practice for awhile now.  Shawn Estes called the HR tonight in the pre-game show.  Bum definitely has the strength to get 'em out and he doesn't let himself get cheated at the plate so we may see some more.  He definitely just raised the bar for the other pitchers for whom hitting seems to have become a fierce competition.  Oh man, too much good stuff!

Madison Bumgarner- 7.2 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 12 K's.  ERA= 3.08.  Bumgarner has put up double digit K's in 3 of his last 5 starts.  He had just 7 K's in his first 3 starts against 5 BB's in 17.1 IP. Since then, over his last 10 games, his pitching line is 6-3, 2.94, 70.1 IP, 13 BB, 67 K's.  That's a K/BB of >5 and includes his inexplicable 4 BB game in his last start.  In the 3 double digit K games, he has 33 K's against just 1 BB.  Do the Giants have 3 starters worthy of being All-Stars?

The Dodgers rallied late once again to beat the Angels 5-2 so the Giants remain 5 games behind the NL West leaders in second place.   The Giants lead Atlanta for the top Wild Card spot by 1 game.

Matt Cain goes against lefty JA Happ in game 2 tonight.

Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Down on the Farm: 6/11/2010

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies defeated the Sacramento River Cats 3-2:

Conor Gillaspie(3B)- 1 for 2, HR(6), 2 BB.  BA= .337.
Francisco Peguero(RF)- 2 for 3, BB.  BA= .237.
Yusmeiro Petit(RHP)- 6 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 3.19.
Jean Machi(RHP)- 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.74.
Heath Hembree(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 0 K, Save(10).  ERA= 4.84.

I believe this is the third game in a row in which Frankie Pegs has drawn a walk.  This was Petit's weakest start in awhile and it was still pretty good.  Machi's line for his last 10 appearances is 0-1, 2.70, 10 IP, 1 BB, 9 K's with a GO/AO= 2.33.

AA  Eastern League was idle.

High A  Inland Empire 66'ers out hit the San Jose Giants 12-8:

I attended this game, so will go into a bit more detail here.

Ryan Lollis( RF)- 3 for 6, 2B.  BA= .292.

Joe Panik(SS)- 2 for 6, 2B.  BA= .254.  Panik's first 2 AB's didn't look too good as he popped up to 3B and grounded into a DP.  His next two AB's were much better as he hit solid line drives for a double in the right-center gap and the deep single to RF.  He bobbled one fairly routine grounder to SS.  I couldn't get much of a read on his range at SS but my initial reaction is it is average at best.

Adam Duvall(3B)- 1 for 3, BB, HBP.  BA= .262.  Duvall got picked off 2B by the catcher in the middle of a rally.  He also whiffed on a bounding ball down the 3B line but was not charged with an error.  He did start a DP on defense.

Ricky Oropesa(1B)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .274.  Ricky flied out to left-center in his first AB on a Brandon Belt swing.  He struck out swinging in his second AB after working back from an 0-2 count to 3-2.  Third AB was an RBI single pulled through the hole on the right side.  I thought the 4'th AB was most impressive.  He as facing a sidewinding LHP, worked the count to 3-2 and then singled up the middle with 2 outs and the bases loaded.

Dan Burkhart(C)- 2 for 5.  BA= .262.

Bobby Haney(2B)- 2 for 5, 2B. BA= .386.  Haney looks really small out there.  He's very wiry.  Looked like he was playing with the most intensity of anyone out there.

Dan Runzler(LHP)- 1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K's.  ERA=9.00.  The stadium radar gun wasn't working but I saw some high velocity pitches.

Jack Snodgrass(LHP)- 3 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 3 BB, 1 K, GO/AO= 6-1.  ERA= 3.50.  Snodgrass had a delayed start due to Runzler's rehab appearance.  He appeared to have average velocity with sink, a sharp breaking ball with pretty good depth and a nice changeup.  He pitched 3 scoreless frames but got pounded in the 5'th.

Mitchell Beacom(LHP)- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.  Beacom is huge.  The radar gun was working intermittantly late in the game.  It recorded pitches of 85 and 86 MPH which I would estimate to be accurate.  I had read somewhere that he is a sidearmer, but he looked more like a short armer to me.  Maybe a low 3/4 delivery.  He kind of stops his delivery with his arm back in an L shape just before bringing it forward with some effort right at the release point.

Seth Rosin- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 5.33.  My daughter was getting cold so we left before Rosin made his appearance.

The Ballpark in San Berdoo is now San Manuel Park(they've got their name on everything out here in the Inland Empire).  The park was well maintained but attendance was very light.  On the way to the game I asked my wife how much she wanted to bet we would hear YMCA.  She laughed and said We'd probably hear We Will Rock You too.  Sure enough!  I mean, can't they play ANYTHING else at minor league games?

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets vs Rome Braves was postponed.

DSL  Giants edged the Pirates2 8-7:

Nicoll Parra(CF, 17.10 yo)- 0 for 3, 2 BB, SB(5).  BA= .261.
Royel Astacio(1B, 18.8 yo)- 1 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .348.
Julio Pena(RF, 19.6 yo)- 4 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .346.
Carlos Valdez( LF, 17.11 yo)- 1 for 3.  BA= .125.
Anthony Gomez(3B, 17.7 yo)- 1 for 2, BB.  BA= .250.
Luis Castillo(RHP, 19.6 yo)- 4.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 6.30.

Shankbone has an excellent rundown of the draft in a Fanpost over on McCovey Chronicles.  He attempts to quantify the draft by a weighted scoring system that I think makes a lot of sense in concept.  It's still subject to subjectivity in the individual scores for each pick.  I thought most of his scores were very reasonable, even generous at times.  I do have to say he lost me with the argument that drafting an unsignable local HS pick would be preferable to drafting the college senior who was picked and didn't seem so bad to me.  Of course, the Giants did just that with Pick 37 and 40 which I'm still wondering about.  Personally, I'd give those picks zeros and the college senior one at least a 2, but like I've said before, any arguments about Day 3 are just tempests in a teapot.  Anyway, be sure to go check it out for yourself in the Fanpost section of MCC.

Sunday, June 10, 2012

Hot Tip: New Name and Address for MLB Draft Guide

Matt Grabusky has renamed his MLB draft oriented website and renamed it Big League Futures. Find the link over on the left under My Favorite Websites.  I hope you will support Matt and his great work and visit the new site often.