Giants Finish Nightmarish 2017 Hopeful for 2018

At last, the torture that has been the San Francisco Giants' 2017 season has finally come to an end. Finishing the month of September as well as the final game of the season on October 1 with a record of 11-15, skipper Bruce Bochy saw his underachieving ball club fall to 64-98 on the year, some 40 games behind the first place Dodgers as they failed to log a single winning month all year. And though they were able to avoid the dubious 100-loss mark, the Giants still finished last in the National League West and finished tied with the Detroit Tigers for the worst overall record in all of baseball. But as forgettable as the season might have been while the negatives far outweighed the positives, there were plenty of heartfelt moments down the stretch including the retirements of two fan favorites and Giants postseason heroes -- Matt Cain and Ryan Vogelsong.

Despite not appearing for the Giants since 2015 and most recently playing for the Pittsburgh Pirates a season ago, 40-year old right-handed pitcher Ryan Vogelsong was signed to a one-day contract to officially retire as a Giant as he suited up one final time in a Giants uniform and was honored by throwing out the ceremonial first pitch prior to a 7-2 win against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Having played seven of his twelve Major League seasons with the same organization that drafted him in 1998, Vogelsong is best remembered for his breakthrough season in 2011 which saw him make the National League All-Star team as well as his postseason contributions most notably in 2012 when his 1.09 ERA in four starts helped the Giants win the World Series that year before helping them win it again in 2014.

As for Cain, the Giants saw their longest tenured player call it quits after 13 seasons in San Francisco, the longest for any player to remain exclusively with the franchise since moving from New York in 1958. Appropriately nicknamed "the horse", Cain, the owner of the only perfect game thrown in Giants franchise history, was integral in both championship runs in 2010 and 2012 before a mid-season injury in 2014 kept him out of action for the 2014 World Series. Ironically, the 34-year old righty would be, "Cained" one final time after tossing five shutout innings in his final start, a term appropriately used by Giants fans when a pitcher receives little to no run support during a well pitched game. With Cain departing with a 1-0 lead thru 5 innings, the Giants bullpen gave up the tying run in the following frame and then two more runs in the 9th inning to blow a 2-1 lead and eventually fall to the Padres, 3-2, giving Cain yet another no-decision. Finishing his career with an ERA of 3.68 and an overall record of 104 wins and 118 losses, few pitchers have suffered luck as bad as Cainer who should easily have 30 or so more career wins than losses as 109 of his 331 career starts have led to no-decisions. And like Vogelsong, Cain would exit to a thunderous ovation and hugs from his manager and teammates upon exiting the game.

Another starting pitcher who the Giants are hoping can mold into the next Matt Cain is former first-round pick Chris Stratton who emerged as one of the more surprising players for the Giants in 2017 and made his first career start in 2016 while filling in for an injured Matt Cain. The 27-year old righty is expected to at least be considered for San Francisco's fifth spot in the rotation next season barring any changes to the roster heading into the offseason after boasting a 4-4 record and an ERA of 3.68 in 10 starts. One question mark that rotation will face heading into 2018 will be whether or not it'll still feature starter Johnny Cueto who can opt out of the six-year, $130 Million contract he signed before last season. But after finishing 2017 with an 8-8 record and an ERA north of 4.50, a down year statistically to Cueto's standards, it's unlikely he'll find a better deal on the market than what he has on the table with the Giants. Giants brass hopes Cueto will join a 2018 rotation that will also feature ace Madison Bumgarner, Matt Moore who's 2018 team-option was picked up a week ago and strikeout specialist Jeff Samardizja.

Though Samardzija wouldn't necessarily finish his 2017 campaign the way he would've liked (9-15, 4.42 ERA), Shark did manage to register 207.2 innings pitched as well as 205 strikeouts and only 32 walks, the best strikeout to walk ratio in Giants franchise history at 6.41, besting than the previous mark of 6.17 shared by two Hall of Fame pitchers -- Christy Mathewson (1908) and Juan Marichal (1966). It would mark the second most strikeouts in a single season for Samardzija and third time he's finished above the 200 K plateau. Another impressive feat would be one accomplished by second baseman Joe Panik who dazzled in the month of September with a .375 batting average. During a three-game road trip in Denver, Panik would put on a show against the Rockies, collecting 12-hits in the series to set a franchise-record. Panik's historic series of going 12-for-15 (.800 avg) with 3 doubles, a home run, 5 RBI and an OPS of 2.000 helped increase his batting average to .288 on the year and also helped the Giants secure an 11-3 victory in the series-finale that snapped a 10-game losing streak at Coors Field. The Giants would face the Rockies just two weeks later in San Francisco where they would win both games to complete the short 2-game sweep while also stringing together their first 3-game winning streak since June 30-July 2.

Madison Bumgarner who put a damper on San Francisco's season early on after a dirt-biking accident led to the Giants ace spending nearly three months on the disabled-list, had his worst month of the season statistically due to a pair of sub-par starts in which he gave up 11 earned runs in 11 innings. However, after losing four straight decisions for the first time in his career, Bumgarner bounced back with consecutive solid starts including a gem in his final outing of the year to beat the Dodgers, 2-1 and finishing 4-9 on the year with an ERA of 3.32. But it would be MadBum's battery mate who had the best overall season for the Giants as Buster Posey led the club in batting average and finished tied for fourth in the National League and sixth overall with a .320 batting average. It would be the fifth season batting over .300 for Posey who shook off an early concussion after taking a pitch to the head in the Giants home-opener as the former NL MVP once again managed to put up solid numbers that helped him secure the starting nod in July's All-Star Game. A few other team leaders on offense included Brandon Crawford who led the team in RBI's for a second straight year with 77, Brandon Belt who had a team-high 18 home runs despite missing the final month and a half with a concussion and Eduardo Nunez who stole 18 bases with the Giants before being traded to Boston at July's trade deadline.

The power-less Giants once again finished at the bottom of the pack in home runs, slugging a league-low 128 long balls, 23 behind the next closest team (Pittsburgh Pirates). Oddly enough, the final at-bat of the season for the Giants would be a walk-off home run by Pablo Sandoval who's solo shot in the 9th inning of the season-finale gave the Giants a 5-4 victory over the Padres. But as joyful as the moment was, it was received with mixed reviews in the baseball world as the win surrendered the first overall pick in next year's MLB Draft to the Detroit Tigers, meaning the Giants will select second. Take it as you want it, it was a nice reminder of what its like to win a game, something the Giants did very little of in 2017 and something they hope to improve on heading into 2018. In need of bullpen help which is expecting a bounce back year from a healthy Mark Melancon and contributions from Wil Smith who was plagued by injury and lost for the season during Spring Training as well as an outfield power presence in the lineup, the Giants may be one of the more active teams come December's winter meetings.


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More Giants Struggles in Up & Down May

Following their dreadful month of April, the early part of May appeared to be a step in the right direction for the San Francisco Giants as they took two of three on the road against the archrival Dodgers in their first trip to Los Angeles this season. With one of those wins being a 4-3 victory against Dodger ace Clayton Kershaw in the series-opener, a 4-1 win in the rubber-match would help the Giants bookend the series with victories as the Giants claimed only their second series win of the season and their first on the road. The win would also be victory No. 1,800 in the illustrious career of manager Bruce Bochy, allowing him to etch his name into the record books as being only the ninth skipper in Major League history to reach that feat along with three World Series titles. And the other eight before him are all in the Hall of Fame, a place the 62-year old Bochy will likely join them someday.

With many great seasons under his belt, 2017 doesn't appear to be one of them as the rest of the road trip was one Bochy would rather forget about. With three games down along this road trip and six more to go, the Giants would pay a trip to Cincinnati where the Reds swept a three game series in which the Giants were outscored 31 to 5. As if the Giants couldn't wait to get out of the Queen City any faster, the team bus would break down on the way to the airport, adding insult to injury. It would likely be a bad omen of things to come as their next series against the New York Mets wasn't a whole lot better. After dropping the first two games at Citi Field, the Giants headed to the ninth inning in the series finale on the verge of being swept. Trailing 3-2 and set to face one of the league's best closers in Jaurys Familia, the Giants managed to pull a rabbit from their hat, rallying for 4 runs including a bases-clearing double by rookie Christian Arroyo to put the Giants ahead, 6-3. But the Mets wouldn't go down without a fight as the Giants would suffer a scare of their own, giving up a pair of runs before escaping with the 6-5 win. The comeback victory would snap a streak of 134 consecutive losses when trailing heading into the 9th inning.

Finishing the road trip 3-6, it was the first inning that proved to be trouble for the Giants in all six of their games in Cincy and New York which saw Giants starting pitchers allow at least one run in the opening inning, including a pair of 2- run first innings, one 3-run first inning and one 4-run first inning. One guy who didn't wanna leave New York's Citi Field was one Buster Posey who homered in three consecutive games for the third time in his career and the first time since June 2014. A return to AT&T Park for a 7-game homestand against the Reds and Dodgers would begin and end with losses, but would ultimately be a success as the Giants managed to win a pair of series consecutively for the first time in 2017, highlighted by a season-high 5-game winning streak after taking 3 of 4 from the Reds and 2 of 3 from Los Angeles. During their win streak, Giants pitching would allow a total of 11 runs, a night and day difference from the 3-game series at Cincinnati alone. The homestand would also feature the second longest game in AT&T Park history -- a 17-inning marathon that ended on a walk-off blast by Posey to beat the Reds, 3-2. It would be the third walk-off home run of Posey's career and his fourth homer in five games.

San Francisco's winning ways would continue in the first part of their following road trip as the Giants took 2 of 3 from the St. Louis Cardinals. Playing their best ball yet, a 6-4 win to open a 4-game series against the reigning World Champion Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field would give the Giants 9 wins in 12 games. Unfortunately, they would follow that up with four straight losses including each of the next three at Wrigley and the first of three at home against the Braves. Prior to a 2-run homer by outfielder Mac Williamson in the ninth inning of a 5-4 loss to the Cubs, the Giants stringed together a streak of 19 consecutive solo home runs, falling two shy of tying their own Major League record set in 2011. After winning the next two games against Atlanta, the Giants would host a 3-game series against the red-hot Washington Nationals who entered the series 30-19 and eight games ahead of first place in the NL East. As if the Giants didn't already have their hands full with one of the top teams in the National League, a benches-clearing brawl some three years in the making would take center stage in the series-opener.

Giants reliever Hunter Strickland who was taken deep not once but twice by Nats outfielder Bryce Harper in the 2014 NLDS where the two exchanged staredowns and a few words as Harper made it back to the dugout, made it very clear that he hadn't forgotten about Harper showing him up, despite the Giants eventually winning that series and going on to win their third World Series title in five years. And in their first meeting since then, Strickland would greet Harper with a 98mph fastball to the hip that Harper took exception to and charged the mound. With both players landing a punch before being separated or in Strickland's case carried off the field against his will by his own teammates, we would be treated to our first "basebrawl" of the 2017 MLB season. The fight would land both players suspensions as Strickland was hit with a 6-game suspension and Harper was hit with a 3-game suspension after having his initial suspension of 4-games reduced. Oddly enough, the two guys that would receive more damage than either Strickland or Harper were Jeff Samardzija and Michael Morse who collided head first when trying to get in between the fracas. While Samardzija would be fine enough to pitch the next game, Morse wouldn't be so lucky as he showed up to the park the following day showing concussion-like symptoms which ultimately landed him on the 7-day disabled-list.

In what's been another rough year for the Giants bullpen, Strickland has been one of the few bright spots and owns a team-leading 1.45 ERA in 22 appearances (18.2 innings pitched). By completing the three-game sweep, Washington would eventually get the last laugh as the Giants fell to 13-16 in the month of May and 22-33 overall. In need of a miracle to help turn things around fast, the Giants are tied for last in the division with the Padres and are dead last in the league in runs score per game. Given their struggles and the unlikelihood that they'll be able to overcome their early slumber, it's worth wondering whether or not the Giants will be sellers at the July 31 trade deadline, something Giants fans have been used to being on the opposite end of since 2009. With such names as All-Star pitcher Johnny Cueto who's eligible to opt out of his contract at the end of the season as well as infielders Joe Panik and Brandon Belt ringing out the top of the list of players who the Giants could certainly field offers for if a playoff contender comes calling, the faces on this Giants ball club could look much different come August if the struggle continues. And with 15 of their next 20 games on the road to kickoff the month of June, let's just hope the team bus can survive without breaking down this time around.

Noteworthy: Matt Cain became the 12th pitcher in Giants franchise history to log 2,000 innings with the club, tying them with the Braves and Cubs for the most pitchers all-time with at least 2,000 innings pitched.


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Giants Open 2017 Season with Historically Bad April

Struggling out the gate - With the month of April coming to a close and a month of baseball already in the books, Giants fans are more than glad that May is peeking its face as the team has gotten off to a forgetful start to begin their 2017 campaign. And anything that can go wrong for San Francisco, pretty much has. With injuries to several key players in the early going, none was greater than that of Giants ace Madison Bumgarner who hurt himself in a dirt bike accident during the Giants' off-day in Denver. The 4-time All-Star and former World Series MVP suffered bruised ribs and an AC sprain in his left throwing shoulder which sent him on his first career stint to the disabled-list, costing him to miss three months as he's not expected to return until July's All-Star break. As if the team wasn't already struggling with their most reliable pitcher on the field, losing Bumgarner for any chunk of the season is a huge blow that they could ill-afford in hopes of making it back to the postseason.

At the time of Bumgarner's accident, he had suffered from poor run support as the Giants offense would score a whopping 7 runs in his four starts, two of those runs Bumgarner would drive in himself in Arizona when he became the first pitcher in Major League history to belt a pair of Opening Day home runs. But even before the injury to Bumgarner, an injury to their most reliable hitter in Buster Posey would leave a sour taste in the mouth of Giants fans as he took a Taijuan Walker fastball to the head in his first at-bat of the Giants home-opener, also against Arizona. While the former National League MVP would appear to be fine, Giants skipper Bruce Bochy chose not to take any chances with his All-Star catcher as he was placed on the 7-day disabled-list with a concussion. In his first game back, Posey would shake off the cobwebs by collecting three hits in five at-bats in a 2-1 win in Kansas City where the Giants made their first appearance since their thrilling Game 7 victory to win the 2014 World Series.

Bumgarner's injury would prove to be a bad omen as their trip to Colorado would only get worse. Not only would they get swept for the first time this year in the three-game series against the Rockies, but Johnny Cueto who entered his fourth start of the season with the lowest ERA of all-time (2.43) at Coors Field would be welcomed rather rudely in his first visit to the mile high city of 2017. Not only would Cueto suffer the loss by allowing a season-high 6 earned runs in 5 innings pitched, but in his 10th season in the Majors, he would also surrender the first Grand Slam of his career. And with the Giants outfield already struggling to produce at the plate, they would leave Coors Field with another player lost to the disabled-list.

Other notable injuries would be suffered by left fielder Jarrett Parker and center fielder Denard Span, both of whom hurt themselves while crashing into the outfield wall. While Parker suffered a broken clavicle which will sideline him for 8 weeks, Span was sent on the DL with a shoulder sprain. With the injuries in the outfield coupled with minimal production from left fielder Chris Marrero, the Giants were forced to make several call-ups from the Minors including Drew Stubbs and Michael Morse. As for the infield, injuries sustained by Aaron Hill and Brandon Crawford would result in the call-up of the Giants' No. 2 ranked prospect Christian Arroyo. The 21-year old rookie who was lighting up the Minors at Triple-A Sacramento at the time of his promotion to the big club, would provide a nice jolt of offense in his first week. After going 0-for-4 in his debut, Arroyo would collect his first Major League hit the following day against some guy named Clayton Kershaw. The following day he would connect for his first career home run in a walk-off victory over the Giants' bitter rival Los Angeles Dodgers. He would add another homer in San Francisco's following series against San Diego. Though he's hitting only .207 in 29 at-bats thus far, Arroyo figures to be a bright spot and the future of the Giants for many years to come.

But perhaps the Giants biggest surprise individually is none other than pitcher Matt Cain. In what's been a rough patch over the last three seasons for the former ace of the staff, Cain has experienced a resurgence thus far. Despite allowing 4 runs in his first start of the season, Cain has registered four consecutive strong outings in which he's allowed one run or fewer and has a 2-0 record and an ERA of 2.30 to show for it. After being plagued by injuries in each of the past three seasons and mechanical issues to boot, Cain has easily been San Francisco's best pitcher through the first month. As for pitcher Ty Blach who was moved from the bullpen to the starting rotation following the injury to Bumgarner, the Giants lefty has filled the void rather nicely in his first two starts by pitching a combined 12 innings and allowing only two earned runs. And though his last outing would be one of his best yet, his 7 shutout innings of 3 hit ball would be all but forgotten thanks to another meltdown by the Giants bullpen. In San Francisco's series-finale against the Padres and in their final game of April, the Giants took a 2-run lead into the ninth inning where closer Mark Melancon would blow his second save of the season in a 5-2 loss in extra innings, derailing Blach's hopes of notching his second career win.

The deflating loss would be San Francisco's 17th of the season as they finished out the month April with a record of 9-17. The dreadful month would mark their first 17-loss April in modern baseball history and their worst winning percentage in April since 1983. With a sub par bullpen being their biggest weakness a season ago, 2017 hasn't been much different thus far as the bullpen carries with them an ERA of 5.04 into the month of May. Though it's still way too early to write anyone off just yet, including the Giants, it hasn't been a pretty start to the season as their only series victory came in the home-opening series against the Diamondbacks (April 10-12). And with the month of May beginning with a nine-game road trip including the first three games at Dodger Stadium, things can get ugly quick if the G-Men are unable to turn things around right away. Despite their ugly start, the Giants have now sold out over 500 consecutive home games at AT&T Park, setting a new National League record. With that being said, here's to hoping those fans have much more to cheer about in May.


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Giants Month in Review - May 2016

Entering the month of May in a tie with the archrival Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in NL Western division, the San Francisco Giants managed to separate themselves from their division foes by catching fire and winning an MLB-best 21-games in May. With temperatures starting to heat up across the country, so has the Giants pitching staff, led by ace Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija. And though the Giants finished off the month of May strong, they did struggle early on before leap-frogging their way up the power rankings. 

After salvaging the third and final game of a three-game series against the reigning NL Champion New York Mets to begin the month, the Giants took two of three on the road in Cincinnati, including a Game 1 match-up which featured Giants newcomer Johnny Cueto toeing off against his former ball club. Though he wouldn't get the win and would be touched up for a season-high 6 earned runs in the outing, the Giants reigned victorious, 9-6. Next up, San Francisco would return home for a 4-game set against the Colorado Rockies where they would receive a rude awakening. A week after allowing the Mets to pile on a franchise-record 12 runs in a single inning, Giants pitching would be snake bitten for a second time as the Rockies set a club record by scoring 13 runs in a single inning. Colorado would go on to pummel the Giants, 17-7, tying a record for the most runs scored by an opposing team in the 17-year history of AT&T Park. Ultimately splitting the four-game series against the Rockies, the Toronto Blue Jays were next in line to pay the Giants a visit, taking the first two games before dropping the series finale as the Giants won in walk-off fashion thanks to a bases-loaded walk to Buster Posey in the 13th inning. 

The walk-off win would be the start of an 8-game winning-streak for San Francisco as they pulled off back to back road sweeps against the Arizona Diamondbacks (4-games) and San Diego Padres (3-games), as the Giants completed their first undefeated road trip of 7 games or more since 1913. Also, the 4-game sweep of the D-Backs would be the first by the Giants in Arizona since 2010. In the first two games in San Diego, Bumgarner and Cueto registered back to back complete games with each pitcher allowing only one run. It would mark the first time the Giants have had consecutive complete-game wins by starting pitchers versus the same opponent since August of 1995 (Mark Leiter & Terry Mulholland). Following their successful road trip, the Giants would return home to face off against the Chicago Cubs and reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrietta who had not lost an outing in over 20 consecutive starts. And while the Giants were unable to find an answer for Chicago's ace as San Francisco had their 8-game winning streak snapped, they did bounce back by taking the series victory, winning two of three before pulling off another three-game sweep of the Padres. During their 8-game win-streak, the Giants never scored more than 5 runs as the starting rotation carried the load by logging a 1.34 ERA in 60 2/3 innings and limiting opposing hitters to a .189 batting average.

After struggling for much of the season and looking like a ghost of his former self, former ace and workhorse Matt Cain finally began to turn the corner and find his groove after stringing together three straight solid starts as he logged both his first win in nearly a year (6 innings, 1 earned run against the Cubs), ending a dry spell of 8 straight losing decisions, the longest streak by a Giants pitcher in three years, and his first hit in over two years (a 2-run double off of Jon Lester). But just when the Giants began getting steady production and gaining faith in their fifth starter, Cain was forced to hit the 15-day disabled-list after straining his hamstring in the second inning of a road outing against the Rockies which resulted in him being replaced in the rotation by rookie Albert Suarez. The Giants would eventually go on to lose the game before taking the next two in Denver, including a 10-5 victory in the second game of the series in which Buster Posey connected for a pair of 3-run home runs to tie a personal-best 6 RBI. The Giants rallied from a 5-4 deficit in the 8th by scoring six runs on eight hits in the frame, the most hits in a single inning by the Giants since August of 2012 against the Padres. The sizzling offense would continue on into the following day for the Giants as they tallied 8 doubles in the series finale, matching the most two-baggers in a game during the San Francisco era as they went on to win, 8-3.

With the month of May coming to a close, the Giants would make their final trip to Atlanta's Turner Field to take on the Braves who will be playing their home games in a new ballpark located in Cobb County come 2017. After dropping the first of four games by a final of 5-3, the Giants answered with a 4-0 shutout victory in a game started by pitcher Jake Peavy who celebrated his 35th birthday by tossing 7-shutout innings of 1-hit ball before the bullpen did the rest. Peavy and company held the Braves to just one hit for only the fifth time since Turner Field opened in 1997. As for the offense, Peavy also collected a hit and scored on an RBI triple by outfielder Denard Span who tallied three hits in the win and is beginning to heat up, having collected hits in 10 of his last 23 at-bats. The Giants finished the month of May winning 16 of their last 19 games while posting an overall record of 21-8 and are now 12 games over the .500 mark, having already surpassed their season-high of 11 games over .500 a season ago. Bruce Bochy's ball club currently stands 4.5 games above the Dodgers for first place at 33-21 on the year, good enough for the second best record in the National League behind only the Chicago Cubs (35-15) and third overall after the Boston Red Sox (32-20).

Highlighting San Francisco's dominance in May was the efforts by the Giants pitching staff led by Bumgarner who went 4-0 with an ERA of 1.05. But it would be Cueto who amassed an ERA of 2.08 in May and was awarded NL Player of the Week honors for the second time of his career and his first since August of 2014 after allowing only 1 earned run and 8 hits in his 15 innings of work against the Padres and Rockies. With only two complete games in all of last season, Cueto has already surpassed that total with three this year. His dominance against division foes has been exceptionally well as his 2.35 career ERA against Colorado is the lowest among active pitchers with at least 10 starts against the Rockies. And then there's the three straight complete games he's tossed against the Padres this season, a feat that hasn't been done in a single-season since Felix Hernandez did it against New York Yankees in 2009. Samardzija also finished with a strong month of May despite a hiccup in his last outing in Atlanta, compiling an ERA of 2.08 in six May outings. Cain and Peavy didn't share the same kind of dominance as their peers, but did pitch to the tone of a much better May than April as they both saw their ERA's nearly cut in half. 

With the Giants kicking off the month of June by finishing the second half of their 10-game road trip with two more games in Atlanta before a 3-game set in St. Louis, the team will enjoy a day off before returning home to host the Boston Red Sox for a pair of games before welcoming the Dodgers and Brewers for three games each. The Rays, Pirates, Phillies and Athletics will round out the remaining list of opponents for Giants as they look to continue their winning ways on into June. GO GIANTS!


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San Francisco Giants Month in Review - June

After a historic month of May for the San Francisco Giants which briefly saw the team make the jump from worst to first, the reigning World Series champions got off to a sluggish start in the month of June by getting swept at the hands of the Pittsburgh Pirates at AT&T Park. With the three game sweep, the Giants would endure their second five-game losing-streak of the season before hitting the road and winning four of six versus the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets respectively, failing to complete the sweep both times in the series finale. But just as their impressive mark while on the road continued which ranked tops in the NL, their woes at home also showed no signs of slowing.

Following a three-game series versus the Arizona Diamondbacks which ended in a sweep, the Giants saw their first 8-game skid at home sine September of 1993. With a loss the following day to the visiting Seattle Mariners, the Giants' home losing skid hit nine games. It would be the franchise's first losing streak of its kind since 1940, long before they began calling San Francisco home. Thankfully, they would put an end to the dry spell the following day with a win over the Mariners to split the two-game set. The win also halted their third five-game losing streak of 2015. After splitting another pair of games on the road in Seattle, the Giants would claim three straight series victories against division rivals with the first coming in L.A. against the Dodgers and the latter two at home versus the Padres and Rockies, taking two of three in each series. 

With rookie pitcher Chris Heston hurling a no-hitter on the road against the Mets and the team paying a visit to the White House where they were congratulated for a third time during President Obama's presidency, June was without a doubt a busy month for the ball club. It wasn't all parties and celebrations in the month, however, as both Hunter Pence (wrist) and Nori Aoki (ankle) hit the disabled list with injuries, sapping the team's offensive production. While the outfield duo isn't expected to be on the shelf for much longer, they'll likely be joined on the DL by pitcher Tim Lincecum who was hit hard both figuratively and literally in his last outing against Colorado after allowing 3 earned runs in 1.2 innings and taking a line drive to the forearm which caused him to exit the game. Lincecum missing a period of time does however open the window for Matt Cain and Jake Peavy who will both be called up from Triple-A before the weekend.

Cain, who hasn't pitched since last August while dealing with a flexor tendon injury, will make his season debut Thursday on the road in Miami against Marlins ace Jose Fernandez who will also be making his 2015 debut. As for Peavy, he'll be making his first start since April 17 when he takes the mound in Washington against the red-hot Nationals who have won 9 of their last 10 games. Giants skipper Bruce Bochy is hoping the duo of Cain and Peavy can both be effective enough to the point where the team can approach July's trade deadline without needing another starting pitcher. With a record of 12-14 in June, the G-Men currently stand 1.5 games behind the archrival Dodgers in the NL West at 42-36 overall, thanks in large part to the sizzling numbers put up by catcher Buster Posey as of late. The All-Star hopeful who currently leads all NL catchers in All-Star voting, tallied 28 RBI's in the month of June alone, giving him 54 on the year. He also clubbed five Home Runs in the month, including a pair of Grand Slams. With Posey swinging a hot stick at the perfect time and the team less than two weeks away from the All-Star break, the Giants could very well find themselves atop the division at the midway point.

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Giants Month in Review: April

With baseball season officially in full swing as the San Francisco Giants kiss the opening month of April goodbye, the reigning World Series champs haven't quite resembled a team that had just won it all several months prior. Last year the Giants got off to one of the hottest starts in franchise history through the first two months when they won 32 of their first 50 games. And while the G-Men still have another month to go to determine whether or not they can match last year's blazing start, duplicating or surpassing that mark is unlikely given the slow start they got off to in April.

Following a 3-1 start to the season after taking two of three in Arizona and the first of four games in San Diego, the Giants ran into a brick wall, dropping 8 straight including a three game sweep at the hands of the Colorado Rockies in San Francisco's home opening series. They wouldn't fair much better in their second series at AT&T as the D-Backs came in to take three of four in the city by the bay. The Giants would finally see their 8-game skid come to an end as the team celebrated their 2014 Championship run with a victory on the night in which the team was awarded their championship bling prior the team's Ring Ceremony game, only to lose the following day. The homestand wasn't all negative, however, as the Giants benefited from a much needed day off with a three-game sweep of the archrival Los Angeles Dodgers at Home which included walk-off wins in games two and three.

The Giants then took to the road where they split two games in Denver before the series finale at Coors Field was postponed due to inclement weather. A three game set at Dodger Stadium would witness one of the classic pitchers duels between the two hated rivals when World Series MVP Madison Bumgarner out-dueled 2014 NL MVP Clayton Kershaw in a 2-1 victory. However, the Dodgers would wind up winning the series finale the following day to take the series win, two games to one. The highlight of the month, though, has to be the surprising contribution of rookie pitcher Chris Heston who has done everything and then some since being asked to fill in for the injured Matt Cain. Called up from Triple-A Sacramento prior to his start on April 8, to fill the void of Cain who was placed on the DL with a flexor tendon strain in his right forearm, Heston dazzled in his season debut, pitching six innings in which he gave up 2 runs (both unearned), while allowing three hits, walking a pair and striking out five to earn the win. Aside from a minor bump in the road at the hitter-friendly Coors Field in Denver in which he was tagged for 11 hits and 6 earned runs in 5.1 innings pitched, Heston hasn't skipped a beat, allowing 1 or 0 runs in each of his other four starts.

Despite the lone shaky outing, the 27-year old has been a glowing bright spot for the Giants in the early going, boasting an ERA of 2.51 in 5 starts and a record of 2-2. With Matt Cain and Jake Peavy serving time on the disabled-list, manager Bruce Bochy is going to have a difficult decision to make regarding his pitching rotation if Heston's success continues. With little help from the injury bug in April as Brandon Belt, Casey McGehee and the aforementioned Matt Cain and Jake Peavy all saw time missed, the month of May figures to be bit brighter for the Giants as their offense looks to get a boost from 2014 All-Star outfielder Hunter Pence. The Giants' lanky outfielder suffered a left forearm fracture during Spring Training which has caused him to watch from the dugout. With Pence absent from the lineup, it's been shortstop Brandon Crawford who's led the team in home runs (5) and RBI's (14) thus far, two categories Pence will surely help out in when he makes his return later this month following a Minor League rehab assignment. 

With a 9-13 record in the month of April, things are already looking up for the Giants in the month of May as they flipped the page on their calendar with a three game sweep of the visiting Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim over the weekend to improve to 12-13 on the year, inching closer to the .500 mark. San Francisco completed the sweep thanks to a superb outing from hurler Tim Lincecum who registered his best performance of the season by scattering three hits (all singles) over 8 scoreless frames as the Giants awarded him with the 5-0 victory. The home team wasted no time to back their starting pitcher with some run support as Nori Aoki and Joe Panik led the game off with back-to-back home runs in the first inning, something the Giants haven't done since 1964. Next up, the Giants will host the San Diego Padres for a three game set before closing out their 10-game home stand with a four-game series versus Giancarlo Stanton and the Miami Marlins. 


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Giants complete Comeback, Prepare to face off vs Tigers in Fall Classic

Two years removed from winning their first World Series title in 56 years and a year removed from failing to make it to the postseason, the San Francisco Giants are heading back to the Fall Classic after one of the more improbable playoff runs in recent memory. Last night's Game 7 victory over the defending World Champion St. Louis Cardinals only added to what the Giants have done all postseason long -- winning with their backs against the wall. After becoming the first team to ever overcome a 2 games to 0 deficit and win three straight games on the road in the new Division Series playoff format against the Cincinnati Reds, the Giants continued their postseason magic. 

Down 3 games to 1 in a pivotal game 5 at St. Louis' Busch Stadium, the unlikeliest hero Barry Zito hurled a superb 7 2/3 innings of shutout baseball to keep the Giants alive and send the series back to San Francisco for game 6. With a win the following night, the Giants set up a winner-take-all game 7 in which they had all the momentum coming in. History, however, would be on the Cardinals side. While St. Louis entered Monday's meeting winners of 11 elimination game 7's, good enough for the most all-time, the Giants on the other hand came in owning a league worst record of 0-5 all-time in game 7's. But like the saying goes, there's a first for everything. The San Francisco offense would prove just that by scoring runs in each of the first two innings before chasing Cardinals ace Kyle Lohse after only 2 frames in which he was tagged for 5 runs. By the end of the third inning the Giants were up 7 to 0 and never looked back. At San Francisco's AT&T Park, facing All-Star pitcher Matt Cain with a 7-run deficit, St. Louis had no chance to work the magic we've grown accustomed to seeing them pull off dating back to last year's World Series.

With the 9-0 victory, the Giants became only the third NL team to comeback from a 3 games to 1 deficit and go on to win the series and only the second team in MLB history to win six consecutive elimination games, tying the 1985 Kansas City Royals who won the World Series that year. Giants second baseman Marco Sctuaro would make some history of his own by being named NLCS MVP after batting .500 (14-for-28) in the series, setting an LCS record with 6 multi-hit games and becoming one of only two players to follow up a 20-game hit streak during the regular season with a 10-game hit streak during the postseason in the same year (Mike Piazza being the other in 2002 with the Mets). What's most baffling about the Giants' epic NLCS comeback is that Buster Posey was virtually a non-factor at the plate. That'll have to change, however, if the Giants plan to win their second Championship in three years as they set their sights on the Jim Leyland led Detroit Tigers who are coming off an impressive sweep of the New York Yankees and are seeking their first World Series title since 1984.

Just like they were in 2010 when they upset the Texas Rangers, the Giants will once again be the underdogs facing an offensive juggernaut this time in the form of the Detroit Tigers' lethal duo of this year's triple crown winner -- Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder. Not to be forgotten is ALCS MVP Delmon Young who always seems to come through at the plate during the postseason. Facing one of the games premiere pitchers in Cliff Lee who San Francisco beat not once, but twice in the 2010 Fall Classic, Giants hitters will face another tall order and be given the daunting task of having to go up against last year's Cy Young Award winner and reigning MVP Justin Verlander who plans to avenge his World Series defeat in 2006, entering the series a perfect 3-0 this postseason with 25 K's and an ERA of 0.74. Giants manager Bruce Bochy hopes to counter by naming Barry Zito the starter for the Giants in game 1. Equally as good as Verlander has been is Doug Fister, Anibal Sanchez and Max Scherzer who posted a combined ERA of 0.66 in the ALCS. But unlike the struggling Yankees who simply failed to show up at the plate, the Giants' scrappy bats won't make it easy on Detroit's stellar rotation.

How they match up: Though the Tigers benefit from a starting rotation that has dominated this postseason where as San Francisco has been inconsistent prior to Zito's gem in game 5 of the NLCS, their bullpen lacks the depth that the Giants possess. Giants manager Bruce Bochy owns the better team defensively, but Detroit's ability to hit the long ball takes the cake. Along with two of the best managers in the game today, these two teams facing off also means the two MVP front-runners of their respective leagues will be showcased in a series that I'm expecting will go no less than six games with the Giants prevailing. And while the previous three teams that have come off a seven-game LCS have went on to win the World Series when facing a club coming off a sweep, the Giants have to like their chances of making it four consecutive. 


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Mr. Perfect

With a major contribution in helping the Giants claim their first ever Word Series title in 2010 since the ball club moved from New York to San Francisco in 1956, there's been little that starting pitcher Matt Cain and the Giants have been yet to accomplish in the franchise's rich 100+ year history. But a little more than two months after signing the right-handed workhorse to a blockbuster 5-year, $112.5 Million deal, the 27-year old pitcher rewarded the franchise with something they've never seen before. Though the ball club has been on the giving end of 14 no-hitters which is tied for the fourth most by a team in MLB history, never before has there been a player to throw a perfect game while donning the orange and black. But on June 13, not only would Cain register a perfecto, but he would also toss one of the most dominant pitching performances the game of baseball has ever seen. 

With three career one-hitters under his belt including one earlier this season against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Giants fans knew if anyone on the current roster had the stuff to throw a perfect game it was Matt Cain. And in front of a sellout crowd at San Francisco's AT&T Park against the Houston Astros, Cain would do just that. Facing the minimum of 27 batters and preventing the Astros from getting a single man on base, Cain notched just the 22nd perfect game in MLB history. And though the 2012 season was already treated to a perfecto thanks to Chicago's Phillip Humber, to say Cain's feat was better would be an understatement. Proving just how dominant he was, Cain didn't fall behind to a single 2-0 count all game long. Even more impressive was that he fanned a career-high 14 Houston hitters. Half of Cain's punch outs coming by way of the swinging variety while the other half struck out looking. The 14-strikeouts was also the most K's ever in a perfect game, tying the mark set by Sandy Koufax of the arch-rival Dodgers who struck out 14 Chicago Cubs in 1965. Not to be overlooked was the stellar game called by Cain's battery mate Buster Posey and outfielder Gregor Blanco who's diving grab in the seventh inning to preserve the gem was arguably the best catch we've seen from a Giant in recent years.

Notoriously known for being on the receiving end of poor run support for a majority of his career in the big leagues which has translated to a poor and undeserving win-loss record for Cain, Giants hitters would have no trouble getting runs on the board this time around as they set a record for the most runs of support in a perfect game by tacking on 10-runs. Ironically, the game was also the win that put Matt Cain over the .500 mark in his career (76-75), a mark that Giants fans should only see expand from here on. Having been one of the most underrated and under appreciated pitchers in the game today while in the shadow of teammate and 2-time Cy Young Award winner Tim Lincecum for the greater part of the last few seasons despite logging a number of productive years of his own including two All-Star campaigns in 2009 and 2011, Cain's recent domination coupled with Lincecum's struggles this season just might help Cain solidify himself as the ace of the Giants pitching staff moving forward. 

On pitch no. 125, Cain would get the pinch-hitting Jason Castro to hit a ground ball to third baseman Joaquin Arias who off balanced rifled a strike to the first baseman Brandon Belt for the 27th out of the ball game. Sticking the ball in his back pocket, Belt then raised his arms before joining the rest of his teammates in mobbing Cain on the pitchers mound as the team celebrated in a similar way they did just two years ago when winning the World Series, showering the man of the hour with cans of beer. The coolest part, however, was that Matt's wife Chelsea stood and watched from the stands before greeting and congratulating him first hand near the Giants dugout.

For Giants and baseball fans alike, this will be one of those games/events that we tell our children and grandchildren that we had the privilege to watch. At least I will. 


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Giants extend Cain, Prepare to kickoff 2012 season without Vogelsong

With the health of Ryan Vogelsong one of the biggest concerns heading into the 2012 season as he's expected to begin the year on the disabled-list, one less situation the Giants organization and their fans will have to worry about is the future of All-Star pitcher Matt Cain. After extending the contracts of Tim Lincecum, Jeremy Affeldt and Javier Lopez during the off-season, the team saved the best and biggest for last by offering Cain a mega deal.

Prior to the signing, Giants fans were praying to the Baseball Gods every night before bed that they'd wake up to the news of Cain agreeing to a new deal with the ball club. Though it took a little longer than many would have hoped, those prayers were answered just days before the start of Opening Day when both sides agreed to a 5-year, $112.5 Million contract. The deal which locks Cain up until the end of the 2017 season, includes an option worth $21 Million for 2018 and is the most lucrative contract in MLB history issued to a right-handed pitcher, surpassing the previous mark held by the Dodgers' Kevin Brown (7-years, $105 Million).

Cain, already a 7-year veteran, has become a fixture in the Giants' rotation and is currently the longest-tenured Giant having made his Major League debut with the organization back in August of '05. The first of many homegrown talents of the pitching variety which the Giants have become famous for the past several years now, it was Cain who paved the way for other young studs such as teammates Tim Lincecum and Madison Bumgarner who together have formed one of the most formidable starting rotations in all of baseball for what looks to be many years to come.

Looking passed his sub .500 career win-loss record of 69-73, which to his credit has been an indication of receiving the Major League's lowest run support over the last five seasons (3.7), Brian Sabean and company instead looked at more significant stats such as innings pitched. Having reached the 200 innings plateau for the fifth consecutive season in 2011, Cain is among an elite class of hurlers to have achieved that feat in five straight years. The others being Roy Halladay, Dan Haren, Mark Buehrle, C.C. Sabathia, James Shields and Justin Verlander. Still at the youthful age of 27, Cain has already achieved so much on the mound being the workhorse that he is, but even he would tell you that there's still room for improvement.

Historically an unfortunate victim of poor run support including the 20 of Cain's first 30 career starts in which the Giants scored two runs or fewer in, you would think a player of Cain's stature had enough of the torturous style of baseball that San Francisco tends to play. Wrong. Following the busy 2010 season which saw Cain put in plenty of work on the mound during both the regular season and in the postseason where he hurled another 21.1 scoreless innings in San Francisco's title run, many believed the excessive number of innings pitched would have put a toll on the right-hander's throwing arm the following year. Instead, he would log a career-low in ERA (2.88) while being named to the All-Star squad for the second time in his career. If you're one of those baseball fans who firmly believe that pitching wins games then the Giants appear to be in good shape for many years to come.

However, one predicament the front-office could find themselves in several years from now is what exactly they'll do when the contracts of Lincecum, Cain, Posey and Bumgarner all expire around the same time and if they'll be able to afford re-signing them. But until that time comes, we'll enjoy the ride for the time being.

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San Francisco Giants 2010 Preview

The countdown to baseball's Opening Day has begun as teams get set to kick off the 2010 season, a week from tomorrow. With pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training, the Giants have only one thing on their mind for the new season, and that's winning the pennant. Since the 2003 season, the Giants have been idle from the playoffs and are still seeking their first World Series championship since relocating to the bay area in 1957. The Giants haven't won a World Series tittle since the 1954 season in New York, giving them a championship drought of 55 years, currently the third longest behind the Chicago Cubs (101 years) and the Cleveland Indians (61 years). But with the Barry Bonds era over and years of rebuilding, many believe the future is bright for the team that lay's low in the city by the bay.

With the lack of offense over the past few years, pitching has truly become the team's hallmark. But with a slimmer Pablo Sandoval and Aaron Rowand returning from spring workouts, the team hopes to improve at the plate. One area the team addressed from last season, is the issue at first base. This offseason, the Giants took a chance by acquiring Aubrey Huff who's coming off a poor year hitting just .241. But so far this spring, Huff has continued to look a lot like the power hitter the Giants have been seeking. His defense however, is still a work in progress. But with a stellar glove in Travis Ishikawa, the battle for first base may be a close one. And with the return of Bengie Molina behind the plate who re-signed with the club for a 1-year deal, don't rule out any possibility of prospect Buster Posey playing at first either.

Another key acquisition the Giants made in the offseason, was the signing of veteran Mark DeRosa. Granted how versatile the 12-year veteran is, skipper Bruce Bochy will be able to move him around the field where ever and whenever he needs to. With last year's Giants squad often showing offense from time to time, GM Brian Sabean is confident enough that with the addition of these two bats, the team can be lethal. One player that made a splash last season that will be returning to the San Francisco ball club, is Juan Uribe. With second baseman Freddy Sanchez expected to start the season on the disabled list, Uribe could fill the void when needed if he isn't platooned at shortstop with Edgar Renteria. With the growth of Pablo Sandoval, the team will no longer have to rely on the slowest guy in the organization -- Bengie Molina. Despite his snail pace speed, the team has relied heavily on the 2-time Gold Glove Award winner as he earned the nickname 'Money Molina'. But with Buster Posey under his wing, his speed will no longer be a liability in the future.

The Giants are coming off a year in which they won their most games since 2004, and as mentioned before, are eying their first playoff appearance since 2003. Carrying the ball club for the past few seasons, Giants starters combined for a 3.58 ERA last year which ranked 2nd best in the majors, only behind the Los Angeles Dodgers (3.41 ERA). Much thanks came from another Cy Young campaign from Tim Lincecum. Both Lincecum and righty Matt Cain had strong seasons, being named to the 2009 All-Star game NL roster. Last year's Giants pitching also posted an opposing batting average of .234 which was the lowest in the big leagues and the 63 combined wins matched those posted by the starters of the World Series champion New York Yankees. As this franchise has proved over the past few years, pitching is key and it'll be nice to have a lot of last year's arms on the team for many years to come. And as any pitching dominant team should do, the Giants re-signed most of their young arms.

In his first year in which he was eligible for arbitration, both the Giants and Tim Lincecum avoided the situation hours before the two met in court by agreeing to a 2-year deal worth $23 million dollars. And as early as today, the Giants made it official that starter Matt Cain, set-up man Jeremy Affeldt and closer Brian Wilson all signed extensions with the club through the 2012 season. Affeldt, who signed last season as a free agent, was named Setup Man of the Year in 2009 by MLB.com's This Year in Baseball Awards, posting a Major League-Best 33 holds. For what it's worth, he also led all left-handed relievers and ranked third overall with a 1.73 ERA last year. Wilson on the other hand, appeared in 68 games in 2009 and has accumulated 79 saves over the past two seasons. With Lincecum, Jonathan Sanchez, Barry Zito and now Cain all under team control through the 2012 season, its nice to see the Giants show some commitment, recognizing young talent locking players and giving extensions for what looks to be a very bright future for many seasons to come in San Francisco.