Category: San Francisco Giants

Giants’ season set to get underway in Los Angeles against the Dodgers

Published on by jeremy2878Leave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Harness

After the Giants concluded the annual pre-season Bay Bridge series with the A’s, the Giants had a day off Wednesday and are now preparing to face the Dodgers in Los Angeles to kick off the 2018 season on Thursday.

However, one thing will be glaringly different about the way the Giants look on the field for Opening Day. Madison Bumgarner has consistently been the team’s Opening Day starter, but due to his suffering a broken metacarpal on his left hand, he will not be out there Thursday.

Instead, it will be fellow lefty Ty Blach to take the hill for the Giants opposite Dodgers star Clayton Kershaw.

Blach earned the Opening Day start almost by default, as Jeff Samardzija suffered a pectoral strain and will miss his first scheduled start of the year. However, he is reportedly expected to test out the strain on Wednesday, to gauge how much time he expects to miss.

If that’s not enough, the Giants have another injury concern on the mound, and it surrounds closer Mark Melancon. He last pitched March 23, and there is growing concern that he’s not fully back from the forearm surgery that he had in September.

The rosters need to be turned in by 8:30 a.m. Thursday, sand there is a strong possibility that Melancon will be placed on the disabled list along with Bumgarner and Samardzija.

The Dodgers, on the other hand, don’t have nearly as many injury issues, but they do have one. Third baseman Justin Turner was hit by a pitch by A’s righty Kendall Graveman about a week ago and suffered a broken wrist as a result, and he will miss significant time.

Johnny Cueto will start Friday night for the Giants, as he goes up against Dodgers lefty Alex Wood.

Giants shutout A’s 3-0 to end the spring

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — In their final tuneup before the regular season begins in just two days, the San Francisco Giants and Oakland A’s faced off for the last time until their Bay Bridge Series in July.

Andrew McCutchen got the Giants on the board in the bottom of the first inning as he doubled in Joe Panik, who led off the inning with a single and the Giants would go on to defeat the A’s 3-0 before a crowd of 32,644 at AT&T Park.

Another newcomer to the Giants added a two-run single in the bottom of the fourth inning, as Austin Jackson hit a two-run single that scored Evan Longoria and Hunter Pence.

As a team, the Giants were never set down in order by the A’s pitchers, as they picked up a hit off the A’s quartet of Andrew Triggs, Kyle Hendriks, Trevor Cahill and Frankie Montas.

It was a good final spring start for Chris Stratton, as he went five innings, allowing zero runs on four hits, while walking one and striking out three, as he finished the spring with a 1-1 record and the Giants ended the 2018 Spring season with a 15-17-1 record.

The Giants six-pack of pitchers did a fantastic job in their final dress rehearsal prior to Thursday, as Stratton, Josh Osich, Cory Gearrin, Sam Dyson, Pierre Johnson and Derek Law pitched nine innings, allowing just six hits, walking four and striking out four.

NOTES: Ty Blach will take the mound on Opening Day for the first time in his big-league career against the defending National League Champion Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday afternoon, while the Dodgers will send Clayton Kershaw to the mound and he will be making his eighth consecutive Opening Day start.

This will be the 12th time since the Giants and the Dodgers moved to the West Coast in 1958 that the two rivals will have faced each other on Opening Day. In the first 11 meetings, the Giants have a 6-5 lead.

Lefty Derek Holland gets an opportunity to resurrect his career in the SF Giant’s starting rotation

Published on by moepeaLeave a comment
2018 Major League Baseball Photo Day
SCOTTSDALE, AZ – FEBRUARY 20: Derek Holland #45 of the San Francisco Giants poses during Photo Day on Tuesday, February 20, 2018 at Scottsdale Stadium in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Robert Binder/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

from the cover athletic.com photo: San Francisco Giants pitcher Derek Holland throws to the Oakland A’s during Monday’s pre season game at AT&T Park in the second game of the Bay Bridge Series

By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Seven weeks after Derek Holland’s under-the-radar signing with the Giants as a non-roster invitee, the relationship between the club and the player has gotten quite serious.

Madison Bumgarner (and Jeff Samardzija) are on the shelf, and the 31-year old Holland is in the starting rotation. Given Holland’s recent history, this is quite a development, one the resurgent pitcher won’t take for granted.

“This is a great ballclub,” Holland said.  “And I’m glad to be a part of it.”

After a 14-loss season (in 26 starts) with the White Sox in 2017, Holland was released. Signing with the Giants, he hoped, would give him an opportunity to stay in the majors as a reliever.  But the Giants are plentiful in terms of options in their relief corps. Thanks to the imposing salary cap, all the opportunities–if any–would be in the club’s starting rotation. In fact, besides the still-too-green Tyler Beede and Chris Heston, nearly three years removed from his June 2015 no-hitter, the Giants possessed few options other than Holland.

So Holland took the ball and ran with it.  In five spring appearances, Holland won once and got his ERA under control after it hit 6.20 for 2017.  With 18 strikeouts in 15 innings, Holland earned a look for a rotation spot.  The Giants were forced to overlook Holland’s four homers allowed, and his 17 hits allowed in 15 innings didn’t seem so bad when compared to Matt Moore of 2017, or the possibility of signing aging, ageless one, Bartolo Colon.

So when Bumgarner’s bone in his hand was broken by a liner through the box, and Samardzija was declared out of at least the first two starts of his season, Holland got a spot.  But the Giants can’t be sure what they’re getting: Holland’s best year was 16 wins in 2011, and he missed most of both 2014 and 2015 with injuries.  The 31-year old stayed healthy in 2017, but his ERA soared.

“Despite getting released, I started off really well,” Holland explained.  “I  made every start.”

Last April, Holland won three games.  Then two in May, and only one win in June.  In June and July, the starter lost five games both months.  Then after a relief appearance in September, Holland was granted his unconditional release. A similiar start for the Giants would be nice, the rest of Holland’s 2017 would be too much of a reminder of what they got from Moore, who lost 15 times.

The difference? 2017 was rough on Moore psychologically, and it sometimes showed. Holland’s a much lighter personality, and the expectations for him aren’t as high.  That atmosphere could put the veteran in better position to succeed.  The Giants certainly hope so.

On Monday, in his final tune-up against the A’s, Holland pitched five innings and allowed four hits. Two of those four hits were solo shots for Mark Canha and Matt Chapman, but Moore kept the Giants in the game, and limited the traffic on the basepaths.

“He did a nice job,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “I really think he’s set to go, and throw 100 pitches.”

 

Giants to start 2018 season with patchwork rotation

Published on by jeremy2878Leave a comment

Photo credit: @Starting9

By Jeremy Harness

SAN FRANCISCO – The Giants spent a great deal of time–and money–upgrading their lineup in the field. Meanwhile, the once-vaunted rotation has begun to fall apart.

The most glaring absence is that of Madison Bumgarner, who suffered a fracture in his left hand after getting hit by a line drive Friday and is expected to miss 6-8 weeks as a result.

Enter Derek Holland, who started Monday’s game for the Giants and had his longest and overall best outing of the spring but was marred by a pair of solo home runs in a 9-2 loss to the A’s at AT&T Park.

Holland gave up only two runs on four hits over five innings and cruised through the first two innings without much issue. However, he made a huge location mistake in the third, and Matt Chapman made him pay for it immediately. He left a fastball over the plate waist-high, and Chapman drove it into the left-field seats to tie the game at 1-1.

Two innings later, he made the same mistake to Mark Canha, and the result was just as damaging. Holland could only watch as the ball disappeared into the seats in center field as the Giants fell behind, 2-1.

All in all, it has been a productive spring for Holland, who was a non-roster invitee to spring training who has been penciled in as part of the Giants’ starting rotation when the season starts. The former Ranger, who spent last season with the White Sox, had a 4.20 ERA entering Monday but showed very good command of the strike zone, which is what the Giants are looking for.

To make room for Holland on the roster, the Giants released outfielder Jarrett Parker.

He will take the mound for the Giants for Saturday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, assuming the spot originally saved for Jeff Samardjiza, who has a strained pectoral muscle and will be out for the next 10 days, thus missing his first scheduled start of the year.

As the Giants head into Opening Day, the rotation is expected to look like this: right-hander Johnny Cueto, lefty Ty Blach, Holland and righty Chris Stratton.

After trailing by a run after seven innings, the Giants rallied in their half of the eighth and tied the game when Gorkys Hernandez sprinted home on a wild pitch.

The game eventually went into extra innings, but Oakland dropped a seven-spot in the 10th to even up this annual Bay Bridge series.

Barry Bonds set to join elite group of Giants

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @big_john819

By Jeremy Kahn

SAN FRANCISCO — In honor of the San Francisco Giants’ 60th anniversary of moving to San Francisco, the team is giving Barry Bonds the highest honor that they give to any player that wears the uniform.

Bonds, who retired after the 2007 season, will have his number 25 retired on August 12, as the Giants face the team that drafted Bonds out of Arizona State with the sixth pick in the 1985 Major League Baseball Draft, the Pittsburgh Pirates.

In 15 years with the Giants, Bonds hit 586 home runs, the second most in team history, behind his godfather Willie Mays (646 from 1951-1952, 1954-1972), as he helped lead the Giants to the National League Western Division Championship in 1997, 2000 and 2003.

The Giants also made the postseason in 2002, when they made it all the way to the World Series as the Wild Card team. However, the Giants came up one game short of their ultimate goal, when the Anaheim Angels took Game Seven for their only World Series Championship in team history.

While wearing the Orange and Black for those 15 years, Bonds also won the NL MVP on five different occasions in 1993, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004, Bonds also won five Gold Gloves in 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997 and 1998.

Bonds won the Silver Slugger Award nine times, as he took home the award in 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004.

The most feared hitter of this generation, Bonds also won batting titles in 2002 and 2004, and led the National League in home runs on two different occasions, the first time was in 1993, when he 46 home runs and helped the Giants to 103 wins on the season and in 2001, when he hit a major-league record 73 home runs.

He joins Orlando Cepeda, Juan Marichal, Mays, Willie McCovey and Gaylord Perry as the sixth member of the San Francisco Giants to get his number retired. Bill Terry, Carl Hubbell, Monte Irvin and Mel Ott also have their numbers retired after Hall of Fame careers when the Giants played in New York.

Christy Mathewson and John McGraw are also honored by the Giants, as the two are honored with plaques, as their careers pre-dated numbers.

Cueto’s sharp in final start; Giants rout A’s 5-1

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @BerkeleyBrennan

By Jeremy Kahn

OAKLAND — It may be just an exhibition game, but whenever the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland A’s get together, it is always a good time.

Buster Posey hit a two-run double in the top of the third inning that scored Gregor Blanco and Nick Hundley, as the Giants took the first game of the Bay Bridge Series with a 5-1 victory over the A’s before a crowd of 21,229 at the Coliseum.

The Giants added another run in the inning, as Joe Panik scored on a sacrifice fly by Pablo Sandoval.

Jed Lowrie got the A’s on the board in the bottom of the inning, as he singled to centerfield to score Dustin Fowler.

Stephen Duggar robbed Matt Joyce of a potential home run, as the center fielder went over the wall to bring the ball back into play.

Johnny Cueto looked great in his final preseason start, as he went five and two-thirds innings, allowing one run on five hits, walking one and striking out six.

Sandoval put the game out of reach in the top of the eighth inning, as he launched a Raul Alcantara offering onto the stairs in right field for his fourth home run of the spring.

NOTES: With the victory, the Giants improved to 14-16-2 this spring season.

When the Giants open the season on Thursday at Dodger Stadium, this will be the 31st meeting between the two rivals on Opening Day since 1900 and the records between to the two teams is 15-15.

Madison Bumgarner suffered a displaced fracture of the fifth metacarpal on his left hand after getting hit by a Whit Merrifield line drive on Friday.

Jeff Samardzija was diagnosed with a strained pectoral muscle and will rest for 10 days before beginning to throw again.

UP NEXT: The Bay Bridge Series between the Giants and A’s will shift to AT&T Park Monday night at 7:15 pm PST.

River Cats hang on to defeat Giants 6-5

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @RiverCats

By Jeremy Kahn

With the regular season starting in just five days, the San Francisco Giants have returned to Northern California after breaking camp in Scottsdale, Arizona.

Before their exhibition ending three-game series against the Oakland A’s beginning on Sunday at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum, the Giants headed 90 miles north to Sacramento, the state capital of California, to face the Sacramento Rivercats.

Shaun Anderson started the game for the Giants, as he went 3.2 innings, allowing three runs (two earned), not walking a batter and striking out four. However, he did not fare in the decision.

Jerry Sands hit a two-run home run off of Cory Gearrin in the bottom of the sixth inning, as the Rivercats hung on to defeat the Giants 6-5 at Raley Field.

D.J. Snelten struck out the side in the top of the sixth inning to pick-up the victory for the Rivercats, who open the season on April 5 against the Tacoma Rainiers.

In his only inning of work, Gearrin gave up three runs (two earned) on three hits and walked two, before giving way to Jose Valdez.

Despite giving up two hits in the top of the ninth inning, Reyes Moronta struck out the side to pick-up the save for the Rivercats.

The Giants played their regulars Joe Panik, Brandon Belt, Andrew McCutchen, Evan Longoria, Brandon Crawford, Hunter Pence, Pablo Sandoval, Austin Jackson and Nick Hundley went a combined 7-for-23 against Rivercats pitching.

Kelby Tomilnson went 1-for-2, as did Jordan Arenado, the younger brother of Colorado Rockies star third baseman Nolan Arenado.

NOTES: Madison Bumgarner underwent surgery on his left pinkie, where pins were inserted into the hand. Bumgarner will miss six to eight weeks.

UP NEXT: The Giants and A’s begin their annual Bay Bridge Series on Sunday afternoon at the Coliseum, before heading across the Bay to finish the last two games at AT&T Park.

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: 2018 MLB Predictions on West and East

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: awfulannouncing.com

By: Amaury Pi-Gonzalez

2017 was a great season for Major League Baseball, culminating with the Houston Astros defeating the Los Angeles Dodgers and winning their first-ever World Series.

After another great season in 2017, José Altuve will hang around for at least another seven years with the champs signing a brand-new $163.5 million contract on this month of March.

Many other exciting things happened in the 2017 season like the Minnesota Twins, who finished in last place in 2016, reaching the playoffs. The Cleveland Indians set a new American League record with 22 victories in a row. Los Angeles Angels slugger Albert Pujols reached the magical 600 home run mark. Pujols ranks #7 with 614 on the home run list and he is just 32 hits short of 3,000. Texas Rangers third baseman Adrian Beltré reached 3,000 hits. The Los Angeles Dodgers won their fifth consecutive division title.

However, it wasn’t very good overall for our two local Bay Area teams, the Athletics and Giants, as both finished in last place. This was the first time they both finished as cellar-dwellers the same year. In 1995, they both ended up at the bottom with identical records of 67-77, but that season was shortened by a labor dispute.

So this is how I see this 2018 season that is just around the corner…

American League West
1. Houston Astros
2. Los Angeles Angels
3. Seattle Mariners
4. Texas Rangers
5. Oakland Athletics

The World Champion Astros are an easy pick to win this division again as they got even stronger after acquiring Gerrit Cole along with Justin Verlander.

The Angels picked up young Japanese prospect, Shohei Ohtani, considered by many as “The Babe Ruth of Japan.” Ohtani is a right-handed pitcher who hits left-handed with power. Angels also addressed their infield needs as they acquired Ian Kinsler who will play second base and Zack Cozart (shortstop). who will play at third for Mike Scioscia’s ball club. Scioscia will be on his 19th season as manager, at the start of this 2018 season, currently the longest consecutive tenure for a manager. The Angels watched the playoffs pass by them for the third consecutive season after finishing five games behind the Twins in the American League Wild Card race in 2017. They haven’t won a postseason game since 2009, even with the incomparable New Jersey native Mike Trout on their roster for the past six seasons. Trout is arguably the best player in the game. Because of an injury to his left thumb, Trout played in 114 games, hit .306, hit 33 home runs and drove in 72 runs.

For the Halos, their lone playoff appearance with Trout came in 2014, when they were swept by the Royals in the American League Division Series. Trout remains signed through 2020, but the Angels’ window to capitalize on the 26-year-old superstar in his prime is shrinking.

I had the pleasure of covering Trout for the past seven seasons in Anaheim since his rookie year. In my opinion, he is not only the best player in the game, but he is a great man who is talented, dedicated and always joyful to take the field. He is the whole package.

The biggest question mark for the Angels will be: Can their pitchers stay healthy?

They still have a young and talented rotation with Richards, Othani, Shoemaker, Heaney, Skaggs and Ramirez. They could go to a six-man rotation sometimes during the season, like when they have long stretches of consecutive days, without any days off. It will be fascinating to see how the young Ohtani will do and how would he be used.

I believe the Angels are a serious Wild Card contender. The Angel Stadium in Anaheim will be rocking this year, not only because they have Trout, but Pujols will begin the 2018 season with 614 home runs with the titles of only active player with over 600 and #7 on the top 10 all-time home run list. The Dominican is only 32 hits shy from 3,000.

Not to mention they were the team to sign Japanese super prospect, pitcher and hitter, Shohei Ohtani. The Angels will debut the third-largest electronic message board in baseball in Anaheim. All of this could make their owner, Arte Moreno, very happy this year, but most of all, contingent play all the way until October.

The Mariners are basically the same team as last season. 2017 was a disappointment. It looks like the great Felix “The King” Hernandez is not the same dominant pitcher. Also, most of their starting rotation has been hurt. They are still a great offensive team with Segura, Canó, Cruz, Seager and company, provides enough runs for them to stay in games, but just like the Angels, their pitching is suspect. Ichiro is returning to Seattle (his first team in 2001) on a one- year contract because the M’s said that he is going to play. Ichiro reportedly said he wants to play until he is 50. He is 44 to start the season.

The Texas Rangers and Oakland Athletics have not been picked to win this division, but both teams have lots of talent. In this case, the A’s have a lot of younger talent compared to the Rangers. For Texas, Adrian Beltré, who reached the 3,000 hit mark last season, and a sure pick for Cooperstown, is on his last contractual year. Elvis Andrus, Joey Gallo and Rougned Odor provide solid leadership and offense. The starting rotation has four lefty starters: Cole Hamels, Martín Pérez, Mike Minor and Matt Moore. Their bullpen needs a boost. Bartolo Colón signed a minor league deal with the team, but we all know no team would sign Colón to play in the minor leagues. Well, at least not with his control.

Question: Who will play the longest, Colón or Ichiro? My bet is on Colon since the Dominican Republic native will be looking to win at least six more games so he could pass Nicaraguan Dennis “El Presidente”Martinez as the Latin pitcher with most wins in history (245). Dennis Martinez won two more games than Juan Marichal, who ended his Hall of Fame career with 243 wins. But even with Colon, a very-respectable number five pitcher on any rotation, the Rangers are likely going to be the underdogs this season. My guess, if Colón wins those six games, he will consider retirement.

The Oakland Athletics finished last for the third consecutive season in 2017 with a 75-87 record, but manager Bob Melvin was always an optimist with an abundance of hope.  One of the best home run hitting teams in baseball that plays in one of most difficult home run parks, Khris Davis returns for at least another year, as he signed for 2018, for $10.5 million. Davis hit 43 home runs and drove in 110 runs last season and is the highest paid player in the roster. Davis became the fifth A’s player to hit 40 home runs in a season, alongside Reginaldo Martinez “Reggie” Jackson, José Canseco, Mark McGwire and Jason Giambi.

Strong in the infield with a young, talented Matt Chapman at third and Matt Olson at first, at the corners–“The Matt Boys” supply lots of power. Marcus Semien will enter his sixth major league season and third with the A’s at shortstop. Veteran Jed Lowrie, who gives them an all-around performance at second base.

The A’s picked up Stephen Piscotty of the Cardinals to play in the outfield. He returns to the Bay Area after spending three years in St. Louis. He attended Stanford University.

The A’s also addressed their catching situation shortly after they signed veteran Jonathan Lucroy.

The A’s bullpen improved as they acquired left-handed pitcher Ryan Buchter, signed Yusmeiro Petit as a free agent and acquired right-handed pitcher and young hardthrower Emilio Pagán early after his season ended from Seattle on the trade that sent the talented Ryon Healy to the M’s.

Melvin will have a young pitching staff. The A’s are starting off as pitching challenged. Jharel Cotton will be out for the entire season with Tommy John surgery, To replace Cotton, they signed Trevor Cahill for this season. Yes, the same Cahill who began his career with the A’s in 2009 and was an 2010 All-Star in Arizona.

Another familiar face in Oakland is returning, lefty Brett Anderson  who pitched with the A’s from 2009 to 2013. Kendall Graveman will be their Opening Day starter for the second year in a row also against the Angels, followed by Sean Manaea, and then guys like Daniel Mengden, Andrew Triggs, Paul Blackburn will all be in the mix.

This year, it could be a challenge for Bob Melvin as well as pitching coach Scott Emerson when it comes to pitching and looking for the winning combination.

The A’s are a glorious franchise that dates to 1901 as a charter member of the American League as the Philadelphia Athletics. They have won nine World Championships, the third-most of all current MLB teams. Only Yankees and Cardinals have won more World Series than the A’s. The A’s have a young and powerful offense, they were the fourth team with most home runs last year, with 234. When a team can hit for power, like the young A’s, they are always entertaining.

Sure, the A’s could surprise us. After all, it is baseball, and there are always surprises each season. Some say, “What excitement these young guys will bring!” and that could be true as the sky is the limit especially for guys like Davis,Chapman,Olson. But at the end of the day, it will probably be another tough season for the Green and Gold.

Note: There’s a new attraction at the Coliseum called “The Treehouse,” which is a new destination area above the left field bleachers in the Oakland Coliseum that is set to debut during the 2018 season. The Treehouse will be open to all fans and will feature two full-service bars, standing-room and lounge seating, numerous televisions and pre and post game entertainment. In good conscience, I had to pick the A’s to finish last again, but I would love it if they were to prove me wrong.

Significant A’s note: Celebrating their 50th Anniversary in Oakland. On April 17, the A’s game vs. Chicago White Sox will provide free admission for everybody. During every Wednesday home game in the regular season, fans can pick the price they pay for their tickets. In addition, there will be more Fireworks at the Coliseum this season.

National League West
1. Los Angeles Dodgers

2. Arizona Diamondbacks
3. Colorado Rockies
4. San Francisco Giants

5. San Diego Padres

I do not see anybody better here than the Dodgers. Although, they will begin their season without their top clutch hitter and third baseman, Justin Turner, who was hit by a pitch in Spring Training on his left wrist, causing a fracture, but no surgery was necessary. He will begin 2018 on the DL.

I think the Dodgers will shoot for a sixth consecutive division title this year. 2018 is the last year on the contract for the best pitcher in the game Clayton Kershaw. With a solid offense, good defense, great bullpen, they should be able win the west.

Arizona is a serious candidate for a wild card as well as Colorado. Arizona signed Japanese right-handed reliever Yoshihisa Hirano as well as veteran catcher Alex Avila. This season, they should take advantage of a window of opportunity since outfielder A.J Pollock, and left-handed pitcher, Patrick Corbin, are eligible for free agency after the season. Their superstar first baseman, Paul Goldschmidt, is just two years away from the same situation.

The Rockies have a good young rotation, but lack a #1 pitcher, a stopper to halt losing streaks. Well-balanced, all-around players like Nolan Arenado–an MVP contender every year–are hard to come by. He finished 2017 with a .309 average, 37 home runs and 130 RBI. He became the first and only third baseman in history to win five Gold Gloves in his first five years in the majors.

Charlie Blackmon is arguably one of the best players in the game. The center fielder enjoyed a tremendous 2017 where he hit .331 with 37 homers and 104 batted in.

Ian Desmond and Carlos González were held back due to injuries, but are two solid players that could easily bounce back. The Rockies appear to hope to improve on the wild card finish they had last season. This Rockies team can hit anyplace, not only in Coors Field.

In 2017, the San Francisco Giants finished 64-98. This offseason, the Giants acquired veterans Evan Longoria and Andrew McCutchen to play in the outfield, while trying to complete revamping their outfield by picking up veteran Austin Jackson.

Madison Bumgarner was struck in his pitching hand by a line drive hit by Kansas City’s Whit Merrifield in the third inning of a game on March 23 and was diagnosed with a left hand fracture, so he will begin 2018 on the DL. Also, Jeff Samardzija will begin this season on the DL with strained pectoral muscles. That being said, the Giants need a healthy closer in Mark Melancon, who was on the DL three times in 2017.

Brandon Crawford and Brandon Bell, also known as “The Brandon Boys,” will need better years offensively. Longoria and McCutchen provide much-needed power to a team that finished last in both leagues last season with a puny 128 home runs and last in runs batted in with 612.

Although Buster Posey hit a solid .320, he only hit 12 home runs and drove in 67 runs. During his nine-year career with the Giants, only once has Posey drove in over 100 runs in 2012. Despite all that, Posey remains the face of this franchise.

Pablo Sandoval is looking for some at-bats to regain the magic he had during the Giants’ three World Championships. Every projected starting position player with the Giants, with the exception of second baseman Joe Panik, is in his 30’s.

At the beginning of Spring Training, the Giants signed left-handed reliever Tony Watson for two years, with a third year option. He is 32, so he fits right in with the Giants over 30 crowd.

It’s hard to believe that AT&T, once SBC and PAC Bell Park is 18 years old! I remember calling their first game there. The San Diego Padres, who finished in the cellar in 2016, passed them last year. The Friars’ big deal this offseason was signing free agent first baseman Eric Hosmer to a sweet eight-year, $144 million contract.

I would place the Giants on top of the Padres this season because they seem to have a deeper club, and they shall start the season with a healthy Madison Bumgarner, unlike 2017. The Padres deserve a lot of respect, they are an overall young club that’s continuing to improve.

The Giants will have to win 17 more games this year to reach the .500 mark with 81 wins. It will not be easy. But if they do, a wild card for Bruce Bochy’s Giants could be in sight.

In today’s game, it doesn’t matter if you win 100 games during the regular season as many teams have won just over 80 games and won the World Series.

Case and point: Last World Series they won in 2014, they ended season with 88-74.

Significant Giants note: On August 11, Barry Bonds’ #25 will be retired at AT&T Park, in a series against his first team, the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Rest

American League
East: The Boston Red Sox have to win this division, just because they have more pitching than the Yankees plus they also improved their offense signing free agent J.D. Martinez. The Yankees have a serious and perhaps the best bullpen in the world. However, the Red Sox’s starting rotation is much more superior, so I see the Yanks good for a Wild Card berth.

Central: I think the Cleveland Indians to win the division, and should be easy for the Tribe.

The Twins did great last year. This offseason, they signed underrated starter Lance Lynn, and they be back as a wild card. Look for their young-powerful third baseman Miguel Sanó to have a monster year. Also, Paul Molitor is an excellent skipper.

West: Houston Astros are going to win the division again. Angels, Yankees, Twins and Toronto will be among wild card contenders.

Duo to watch? Yankees’ Judge and Stanton. Together, they both could produce over 100 home runs.

National League
East: Washington Nationals on a class of their own, should win by 10 games, they won it by 20 last year. There is nobody close to them.

Mets would need two more Céspedes in their lineup, but their pitching should be good.

Central: The Chicago Cubs can win it again with St Louis coming in a close second.West: The Los Angeles Dodgers can win the division again. Arizona, Colorado, Milwaukee and San Francisco will be fighting for those wild cards.

Atlanta and Philadelphia should be better, fighting for .500 record.

World Series: Houston Astros vs. Washington Nationals.
A’s Opening Day on March 29 vs. Los Angeles Angels at 1:05 pm PST.
Giants Opening Day on March 29 at Los Angeles Dodgers at 4:08 pm PST.

Play Ball!

Athletics in Spanish – Oakland A’S Baseball on KIQI 1010AM and KATD 990AM Spanish Language Radio, covering the Bay Area, Oakland,San Francisco, San Jose, Sacramento, Stockton. Broadcast of 74 live A’s homes games.including three on the road from San Francisco. SAP in Spanish on TV.

Athletics in English – NBC Sports California/MLB Net/FOX Sports 1. Radio: 95.7 FM The Game, the flagship station for the Athletics Radio Network.

Bumgarner hit by line drive; Mad Bum possibly out six to eight weeks

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @Deadspin

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Friday, March 23, 2018

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. – For the second time in two days, the San Francisco Giants’ pitching rotation was dealt a serious blow as spring training draws to a close.

Thursday, it was Jeff Samardzija finding his way to the shelf. Friday, it was ace Madison Bumgarner.

In the top of the third inning of the Giants’ Cactus League contest against the Kansas City split squad, Bumgarner was hit on his pitching hand trying to field a line drive by Royals’ second baseman Whit Merrifield.

After a brief discussion with the team trainer and Giants manager Bruce Bochy, Bumgarner was immediately pulled, replaced by right-hander Ryan Halstead, activated from the minor league camp.

Bochy said after the game that Bumgarner suffered a fracture on the side of his left hand, just below the knuckle on his little finger (fifth metacarpal).

Bumgarner will have pins inserted on Saturday, and is reportedly expected to miss six to eight weeks.

“There’s no way around that,” Bumgarner said. “They’ll put the pins in, and hopefully, it’ll heal the way it’s supposed to, and heal quickly.”

“I can’t give you any details until I get some more,” Bochy said, adding that it was too soon to determine any prognosis or timetable for Bumgarner to return. “They’ll let us know soon just how long this will take.

Asked about who will start on Opening Day, Bochy said, “I don’t know yet. We had guys set to go on certain days. It’s what we’ll talk about on the flight to San Francisco.

“Obviously, we’ll have to make some adjustments … It’s just a downer. This was (Bumgarner’s) short day. I really feel for him. Obviously, you know what he means to us … And how he was, the way he was throwing the ball all spring. Unfortunately, you have to deal with these things, but this was really a downer today.”

After a strong start in 2017, Bumgarner missed nearly three months after suffering a shoulder injury (Grade 2 left shoulder sprain and bruised ribs) while riding a dirt bike on April 20.

This was Bumgarner’s sixth and final scheduled spring training start. He’s 1-2 with a 3.43 earned run average in 21 innings. Bumgarner’s 30 strikeouts are second in the Cactus League to the 32 punch-outs by Cleveland’s Trevor Bauer.

Bad luck continues for the Giants’ rotation. San Francisco is already expected to place Jeff Samardzija on the disabled list to start the season, after an MRI revealed a strained pectoral muscle.

“And that’s never a good thing, but we have a lot more depth this year,” Bochy said. “So, we’ll get this thing figured out in the next couple of days on what we’re going to do with this rotation. There’s nothing we can do but push on.”

FIRST TIME
Brandon Belt played left field for the first time all spring for the Giants. Hitting third, Belt was 1-for-3 Friday.

Belt is hitting .396 this spring with three home runs and 11 RBIs.

THE GAME
Kansas City’s split squad surged ahead in the third inning and stayed there, holding off a late San Francisco rally to beat the Giants 9-6.

After Merrifield reached on the liner back to Bumgarner leading off the third, he went to second on Ryan O’Hearn’s base hit, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a Chester Culbert single.

Culbert gave the Royals their first lead on a solo home run off Bumgarner in the second inning. Pablo Sandoval tied the game for San Francisco with a solo shot to right off KC starter Jakob Junis (2-0), leading off the bottom of the second.

It was Panda’s third homer and 15th RBI of the spring. Sandoval is hitting .313 in 18 CL games.

Culbert led the Royals split-squad offense, going 4-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored.

The Royals added three runs in the sixth and two in the seventh.

Jerry Sands, sporting No. 98, hit his second CL homer for San Francisco on a towering drive to left in the eighth inning. The sellout crowd of 11,002 chanted “Jer-ry, Jer-ry” as he circled the bases.

Sands had major league stints with the Dodgers, Tampa Bay, Cleveland and the White Sox between 2011 and 2016.

San Francisco scored four runs in the ninth. Kelby Tomlinson and Dylan Davis had RBI singles in the rally.

Steven Duggar was 2-for-4 in the Giants’ 11-hit attack.

BARNEY NUGENT AWARD
Outfielder Chris Shaw was voted the 2018 Barney Nugent Award by the Giants’ players, coaches and training staff. The award is given in recognition of the player in his first big league camp “whose performance and dedication best exemplifies the Giants’ spirit, much like Nugent did.”

Nugent worked as an athletic trainer for the Giants from 1993 to 2003.

ON DECK
This was San Francisco’s final 2018 Cactus League game in Scottsdale. The Giants head to Sacramento to face their Triple-A affiliate River Cats at Raley Field (6:05 p.m.), then move on to Oakland for the first game of their annual three-game set with the Athletics at 1:05 p.m. on Sunday.

The Monday-Tuesday games against the A’s are at AT&T Park, both starting at 7:15 pm PST.

TAGS
San Francisco Giants, Cactus League, Madison Bumgarner, Sports Radio Service

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca: Samardzija on DL for right pectoral muscle; Giants go with four-man rotation

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

On the San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca:

#1 The big news is that Jeff Samardzija goes on the D.L. after giving up three home runs in back-to-back starts. Did that send up a red flag for you that something was wrong with Samardzija?

#2 Samardzija underwent an MRI and it revealed he had a strained right pectoral muscle in his chest.

#3 The MRI came after Samardzija gave up two home runs in an inning of a Triple-A game. He hit the next hitter and then he was removed.

#4 How will Samardzija’s absence impact the Giants’ rotation?

#5 Michael’s favorite spring training moments in Giants camp during the exhibition sesaon.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Dcua at http://www.sportsradioservice.com