S.F. Giants--Believe In The Magic
Written by T Reginald Sykes, Tuesday July 07 2009
Okay, Giants fans...we have arrived.
We're an uninvited guest to the National League playoff chase. A month ago when the San Francisco Giants involved themselves in the race, fans accepted it as an early season novelty.
At the end of April, the Giants appeared to have the worst offense in baseball. They were last in the league in runs, homeruns and RBI, despite being seventh in the league in team batting average.
At the time, I Remember hearing local spots radio host Damon Bruce of KNBR saying he was not comfortable with a team that relies so much on "luck" to win ballgames.
He even hinted that the team was in the Wild-Card lead as a result of "smoke and mirrors."
Well, fans we have to believe in the magic provided by the Giants so far this season. We can also be secure in knowing that this team is going to be there for the long haul.
Still, by the end of May, Giants fans began pointing fingers of disapproval around the yard and the names most often mentioned were Fred Lewis and Jonathan Sanchez.. They also wondered what happened to the power that some of the Giants were capable of displaying.
But the numbers in June Reflect a diffent Giants team. The team is now fourth in the league with a .263 batting average. They hit more doubles than any National League team(59) and were fourth in the N.L. with 391 total bases and .424 slugging percentage.
On top of that the pitching staff lowered it's ERA to a Major League best 3.53 .
Before June, everyone wanted to see this team trade for a bat, not realizing that the poosible bats they need may already be there.
Pablo Sandoval ended May with four homeruns. He now has 13.
The much critisized Travis Ishikawa has hit all six of this season's homeruns within the past 24 games. Continuing at that pace, he may hit 21-25 homeruns by season's end.
In fact, as a whole, the team hit 26 homeruns for the first two mont's total. In June, they errupted for 25, tied for 7th in the league.
The run production is rapidly increasing and now fans are backing off on trying to add another bat.
And as Sanchez was demoted to bullpen duty, the Giants call up an unhearalded Ryan Sadowski, who nobody had even heard of.
Two starts later, Sadowski is the talk of the town. The guy is a folk hero with his 2-0 record and all 13 innings of his Major League experience.
Now fans wonder what the real prospects the Giants have may be like. Keep in mind, most observers believe that the Giants have a farm system that is loaded with "can't miss" prospects.
Yet fans don't want to get rid of any prospects in hopes of landing a power bat. over the past two weeks fans are beginning to think that the best deal is no deal at all. We may be willing to stand pat and ride the wave of this team's success unntil it crashes on the shores of McCovey Cove.
Halfway to the playoffs, it's time to give credit to "The Great Brubochy," who is either lucky or ingenious. Aaron Rowand batting leadoff?
It seemed as if Rowand's bat took off at that move when the reality is, he's been consistant all season. He batted .283 in May and .286 in April. He's close to .300, now.
Bochy has given Nate Sheirholtz some playing time and has a knack for making the right calls to the bullpen.
Yeah, maybe there is a lot of slight of hand involved in winning with this team. But we're willing watch Brubochy dig through a hat full of rabbits and pull aces from his sleeves instead of trading for a bat.
Until then fans can only hope a second baseman appears in Bochy's next wave of the wand.
Hey, Giants fans, "BELIEVE IN THE MAGIC!"
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2 comments
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I love the Giants. They have to make a move though. If they DON'T, playoffs are still a possibility. If they DO, not only are playoffs a possibility, but so is wreaking havok in October. A power bat may not be the best move with the dimensions of AT&T Park though. A guy who hits for average and plays solid defense would be a better fit. Freddy Sanchez maybe? He would fill the black hole that is second base.
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If the Giants make the playoffs...watch out. Lincecum and Cain in a 5 game series is scary.