Category: San Francisco Giants

San Francisco Giants Friday game wrap up: History made in Giants loss

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By Jeremy Kahn

AP photo: Washington Nationals Wilmer Difo turns the double play on the San Francisco Giants Joe Panik’s ground ball the Giants Angel Pagan is out sliding at second base in the first inning at AT&T Park on Friday night

SAN FRANCISCO-It seems lately that the later that Jeff Samardzjia goes in a game, the opposing team figures him out.

Ben Revere singled in Wilmer Difo in the top of the fifth inning, helping the Washington Nationals defeat the San Francisco Giants 4-1 before a crowd of 41,959, the 459th consecutive regular season sellout at AT&T Park, but the play of the night came in the bottom of the eighth inning.

Nationals reliever Sammy Solis will probably never forget in his career.Solis came on to replace Blake Treinen in the bottom of the eighth, and Solis promptly entered Nationals and major league history.

Brandon Crawford hit into a triple play that ended the inning for the Giants, as he lined out to Ryan Zimmerman for the first out, tagged first to get Posey for the second out and threw to Rendon to get Span for the third out of the inning.

It was the first triple play in Nationals history since moving to Washington from Montreal, where they played as the Expos from 1969-2004.

This was the first L3-3-5 triple play in major league history (back to 1876), this according to Bill Arnold of the Sports Features Group and Society for American Baseball Research (SABR).

Difo picked up his first hit of the season, as he doubled to leadoff the inning. Difo was called up on Wednesday after Nationals second baseman Stephen Drew was placed on the disabled list, retroactive to Sunday with Vertigo-like symptoms.

Just two batters later, Revere scored when Daniel Murphy hit a triple out near the 421′ mark in right-center field.

That was enough for Max Scherzer, who went seven innings, allowing just one run on five hits, while walking two and striking out seven on his way to his 11th win of the season.

Samardzjia went six innings, allowing four runs on seven hits, walking two and striking out two, as he lost for his third straight start. Samardzjia last won on July 8, as he defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks.

With the two strikeouts on the evening, Samardzjia became the 45th active pitcher to strikeouts in his career.

The Giants got to Scherzer in the bottom of the second inning, as Conor Gillaspie doubled with two outs and then Gregor Blanco singled in Gillaspie.

Matt Reynolds made his Giants debut in the top of the seventh inning, as he replaced Samardzjia. Reynolds signed a minor league deal with the Giants on June 24, after he was released by the Arizona Diamondbacks on March 29.

Reynolds pitched a combined 10.1 innings for both the Richmond Flying Squirrels and the Sacramento Rivercats, as he did not allow a run in either stop. Reynolds pitched in 13 games.

In 0.2 innings of work, Reynolds walked a batter and threw a wild pitch before being replaced by Hunter Strickland.

The Giants are Reynolds’ third major league team, as he pitched for the Colorado Rockies from 2010-2012, and then the Diamondbacks in 2013 and 2015.

Rendon added to the Nationals lead in the top of the sixth inning, as he singled in Jayson Werth, who led off the inning with a double off of Samardzjia.

Denard Span went 2-for-4 against his former team, including an infield single leading off the bottom of the eighth inning that he saw him trip over first base; however Span stayed in the game.

After Span’s infield single to leadoff the inning, Angel Pagan picked up his second hit of the night, a blooper that landed just in front of Werth in left field. That was enough for Oliver Perez, who gave up the back-to-back singles, as he was replaced by Treinen, who promptly walked pinch hitter Buster Posey after he got ahead of Posey 0-2 to load the bases.

That was it for Treinen, as he faced just one batter before being replaced by Solis.

NOTES: Aaron Rowand hit into the last triple play for the Giants on September 6, 2009 against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. It was the eighth triple play hit into by the Giants since they moved to San Francisco in 1958.

Werth extended his on-base streak to a career-high 32 games, tying Dustin Pedoria of the Boston Red Sox for the longest streak in the majors this season.

In the first two games of the series, the Giants are 1-for-15 with Runners In Scoring Position, a lowly .067 average.

Reynaldo Lopez will take the mound for the Nationals, while Jake Peavy will take the ball for the Giants.

Matt Reynolds embracing opportunity with Giants

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By Ben Leonard

sfgiants.com file photo: San Francisco Giants left hand pitcher Matt Reynolds joined the Giants pitching staff last Thursday

SAN FRANCISCO– Independent league ball isn’t quite the first thing that comes to mind when you think of glamor. Or even the hundredth. With its minuscule budgets and dwindling attendance, they’re hard places to find future major leaguers.

That wasn’t the case for the San Francisco Giants’ most recent roster addition, Matt Reynolds, who pitched in the Atlantic League before signing with the Giants on June 24th. He was called up Thursday after left-hander Josh Osich was placed on the disabled list with a forearm strain.

“It’s been an interesting journey,” Reynolds said Friday.

“Indy” leagues, as they call them, are a completely different baseball universe. Completely unaffiliated with Major League Baseball, these leagues run mostly in the pursuit of profit and zany promotions.

The Atlantic League is one of the more prestigious independent leagues, with several former big leaguers on Reynolds’ team, but that didn’t stop them from, among other things, hosting an mid-game fireworks show. Yes, stopping play for fifteen minutes right after the seventh inning.

After undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2013 and a rough stint with the Diamondbacks in 2015, that sort of league was Reynolds’ only choice after spring training this season.

“It made it a fun opportunity,” Reynolds said. I kind of got back to really enjoying baseball and enjoying the guys in the clubhouse.”

Playing for the Lancaster Barnstomers this season, Reynolds struck out 32 hitters in 22 innings, good for a 1.64 ERA. That was enough for the Giants to give Reynolds a chance, inking him to a minor league deal and shipping him to Double-A Richmond.

There, he gave up just two hits and no runs in eight relief appearances, striking out seven. When Osich (one of the Giants’ two left-handed pitchers) went down, Reynolds became a clear candidate for a call-up.

Now, he’s thrown into the midst of a pennant race with the Giants, who sit just two games ahead of the Dodgers in the National League West. Quite a different place from Lancaster.

“Obviously it’s really fun to step in here on a really good team that’s playing for some big things,” Reynolds said.

 

Nats strike first, getting past the Giants in a meeting of division leaders

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Nats celebrate win

By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–Joe Panik returned to the lineup, and the Giants had an opportunity to become only the second big league club to reach 60 wins, but Tanner Roark and the Nationals kept the NL West leaders out of the win column for at least one more night.

Roark improved to 4-0 lifetime against the Giants, pitching seven innings, allowing four hits and a run, in Washington’s 4-2 win in the battle of division leaders.  Roark escaped numerous jams as the Giants failed to come up with a hit with runners in scoring position, going 0 for 9 on the night.

Johnny Cueto suffered through a lengthy second inning, in which allowed three runs, all with two outs, and was denied the opportunity to grab his 14th win of the season. Cueto settled down, and got through the fifth inning, but his outing was tied for the shortest this season. The Giants’ ace has now failed to win any of his three starts after the All-Star break.

The Giants attempted to rally in the ninth inning, loading the bases with one out, and knocking Washington closer Jonathon Papelbon from the game, but a pair of relievers came on to retire Denard Span and Angel Pagan swinging to end the game.

“We could’ve used a big hit there to really pick this club when you’re in a streak like this, but they got out of it,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “We just couldn’t quite finish it there in the ninth. It would’ve done a lot for the club.”

The idle Dodgers moved within two games of the NL West lead as the Giants’ cushion has evaporated in a streak in which they’ve lost 10 of 12. The Giants couldn’t respond on the field Thursday, but they did consummate the only trade of the day with the trade deadline approaching on Monday.

The Giants acquired infielder Eduardo Nunez from the Twins in exchange for minor league pitcher Adalberto Mejia. The 29-year old Nunez was named an All-Star for the first time, hitting .300 this season while leading the AL in stolen bases with 26. Nunez is expected to join the team on Saturday.

Panik returned to the active roster and batted third, but went hitless in four at-bats. The Giants’ top four hitters—Span, Pagan, Panik and Buster Posey—combined to go 1 for 17 with a walk. After decent offensive outputs on Monday and Tuesday, the Giants’ bats have been quiet for two straight games.

Conor Gillaspie had a pair of hits for the Giants, but either Gillaspie or infielder Ramiro Pena figure to lose their roster spot with Hunter Pence and Ehire Adrianza poised to return from the disabled list, with one or both expected back this weekend. GM Bobby Evans confirmed that the Giants are still in talks to acquire help for the bullpen, with San Diego’s Andrew Cashner and Tampa Bay’s Alex Colome prominent among the numerous names that might be available.

On Friday, the Giants have Jeff Samardzija on the pitchers’ mound in a matchup with Nationals’ ace Max Scherzer at 7:15pm.

Giants’ woes continue despite strong outing from Madison Bumgarner

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Bruce homers

By Morris Phillips

Jay Bruce stayed hot, the Giants stayed cold, and Madison Bumgarner found himself in between, unable to affect either extreme.

Bruce’s seventh inning solo shot off of Bumgarner was the difference on Wednesday afternoon, swinging the game, a 2-1 decision, and three-game series to the Reds. When the margins are that narrow, it’s frustrating, especially to the coldest big league team over the last two weeks that still is just one game removed from having the game’s best record.

“You run into a well-pitched game,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “That happens. You hate to see it when your guy throws well. No question, (Reds’ starter Dan Straily) pitched great. We just couldn’t do much with him.”

The former Athletic, Straily, has made 63 starts over bits and pieces of five major league seasons, and Wednesday he more than proved that his career is starting to gain traction. The right hander pitched into the eighth inning, allowing a run, on three hits and one walk, striking out five. He improved his season record to 6-6, and now has two wins against the Giants, one win against the A’s.

After throwing 90 pitches, and recording two outs in the eighth, manager Bryan Price lifted Straily, preventing his starter from potentially registering his first career complete game. But Straily also felt the timing was right, his pitches were starting to lose steam, and regardless he had completed his mission.

“Three pitches or less, that should be your goal every single time,” Straily said after doing just that with 13 of the 23 batters he faced. “It’s just part of who I am as a pitcher.”

The Giants’ lack of offense lowlighted their 1-7 road trip, then things perked up the first two games against Cincinnati, followed by Wednesday’s drought that was punctuated with too many quick outs, and no pop. Leadoff hitter Gregor Blanco saw just nine pitches, but made four outs, and the team couldn’t chase Straily, or score after Conor Gillapsie’s solo home run in the third inning.

The pitching was far better, courtesy of Bumgarner, but the home run he allowed to Bruce was the eighth allowed by Giants’ pitching in the series, a new, low mark over a three-game set in AT&T Park history. Those eight follow, the 18 round-trippers the staff allowed on the road trip, which is lot of slack jaws, and eyes rolling on the mound.

Bruce has homered in five consecutive games, and has 25 of the season.

The Giants lead in the NL West remains 2 ½ games over the Dodgers, who lost at home to the Rays on Wednesday. After losing nine of 11 since the All-Star break, the Giants (59-42) are only looking up to the Cubs, who hold the game’s best record at 60-40.

The team is hopeful that they will get Hunter Pence and Joe Panik back on Monday, in time for a road trip that begins in Philadelphia. Recent rumors have the team linked to San Diego’s Andrew Cashner and Milwaukee’s Jeremy Jeffress on the trade market, but it’s likely the team will face the NL East leading Nationals the next four days without any roster movement.

Johnny Cueto faces Washington’s Tanner Roark in Thursday night’s series opener at 7:15pm.

 

 

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca: Giants thoughts are with injured and rehabbing players Duffy, Pence and Panik

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AP photo: San Francisco Giant Brandon Belt has his stroke back hitting a double here against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night. Belt on the last eight game road trip hit only .061

On the Giants podcast Miguel discusses the Giants who had lost eight of nine previous to Tuesday’s game. With the series tied at one a piece with the visiting Cincinnati Reds the Giants are pushing to win this three game series after dropping every series they’ve been in since the All Star break.

The Giants hurting for some offense are hoping that Hunter Pence can get back into the line up soon after he went through hamstring surgery. Pence a great clubhouse presence is looking good in Triple A Sacramento and he’s connected for a double and is seeing the ball well. The Giants Matt Duffy and Joe Panik are also out of the starting line up.

Michael Duca does the Giants podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

San Francisco Giants feature-commentary with Tony the Tiger Hayes: Double Trouble

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by Tony the Tiger Hayes

sportsmemorabilla.com file photo: Former San Francisco Giant George Foster who played with the Giants from 1969-1971

 SAN FRANICSCO–It didn’t take long for the Giants to realize they had badly swung and missed on the power hitting left fielder that rarely swung and missed sending rockets over the outfield fences.
In one of the worst trades in Giants history, San Francisco cavalierly swapped the young hitter with a world of home run potential to the Cincinnati Reds for a return package that flopped worse than Shamu the Killer Whale.
George Foster, right? Well, yes, we are talking about the trade of the future All-Star to the Queen City in 1971, but we are also outlining the Giants more recent swapping of 2016 All-Star Adam Duvall to Cincinnati.
Duvall hammered home that point tonight at AT&T Park hammering a pair home runs. The second blast was a tape measure shot traveling some 447 feet landing far up the left field bleachers.
While the trades of Foster and Ducal took place some 44 years apart, the results are eerily similar for Giants fans.
Like Foster before him, Duvall, who played parts of two seasons in the majors with San Francisco, has blossomed as a potential home run champ with the Reds clubbing 25 home run so far in 2016.
He played in the All-Star Game this season and was a finalist in the Home Run Contest.
While it’s almost certain Duvall would not have the same home run numbers if he had remained with San Francisco – for starters the Reds home park is a band box launching pad and AT&T Park’s outfield barriers often seem as far away as Treasure Island.
But on the other hand the Reds have shown patience with Duvall – not giving up on him after he struggled when he first came to the club last season.
The Giants track record with young talent indicates they would have moved on to a proven commodity after Duvall hit a slump similar to the one he lol had with Cincinnati last season.
While it’s tough to argue with the Giants formula for success over the past decade, compared especially to the middling, woebegone Reds, it is intriguing that the Duvall story is a repeat of the Foster fable.
In 1971 the Giants were contending for a NL West title – they would win it – when they swapped the then 23-year-old Foster to the Reds for backup infielder Frank Duffy and pitcher Vern Geishert.
Duffy, a Stanford product, would bat a weak .179 in in 21 games for the Giants. The following off-season he was flipped to Cleveland along with future Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry in another awful deal that returned the alcoholic hurler Sam McDowell. Geishert never appeared in a big league game for the Giants.
Foster who had smacked four long balls over parts of three seasons with the Orange & Black played in 54 games over three seasons with SF. Once comfortable in Cincinnati, Foster became a super star, playing in three World Series, winning All Star Game MVP honors in 1976, capturing back to back home run titles in 1977-78 and walking away with NL MVP honors in 1977.
Like Foster, Duvall came up through the Giants farm system, debuting at the big league level in mid 2014. However in 28 games, Duvall could only muster a .198 average in 21 games.
Then in mid- 2015 Duvall was sent to the Reds in a deal for Mike Leake. While Leake was often injured with SF, Duvall was nothing special with the Reds hitting under .200, but their patience was rewarded in 2016.
The Giants meanwhile are still patiently searching the atmosphere for the pair of home runs Duvall crushed Tuesday night.
Tony the Tiger Hayes is a talk show host on http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants Tuesday game wrap: Cain does the job

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By Jeremy Kahn

AP photo: San Francisco Giant pitcher Matt Cain center is greeted at home plate by Brandon Belt (9) and Ramiro Pena left after hitting a three run homer to help his cause in the second inning against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night at AT&T Park

SAN FRANCISCO-Matt Cain decided enough was enough, and he took this game versus the Cincinnati Reds seriously.

Cain went 5.1 innings, allowing four runs on six hits, walking just one and striking out four and the San Francisco Giants defeated the Reds 9-7 before a crowd of 41,896, the 456th consecutive regular season sellout at AT&T Park.

This was the second win for the Giants since the All-Star break, as they now 2-8 since then. The nine runs are the most that the Giants have scored since they scored 12 against the Oakland A’s at the Coliseum on June 30.

Asides from getting his second win of the season against six losses, Cain also helped out his cause with the bat, as he hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the second inning to extend the Giants lead up to 4-0.

It was the seventh career home run for Cain, and his first since July 21, 2012 when he connected for one against Cole Hamels of the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park.

Ramiro Pena drove in the first Giants run of the game, as he hit a single that scored Brandon Crawford just prior to Cain’s three-run home run. Crawford led off the inning with a single, and then went to third when Brandon Belt hit a fly ball that Adam Duvall was unable to hold for a two-base error.

The Giants added to their lead in the bottom of the third inning, as Mac Williamson led off the inning with a single, then after a Buster Posey flyout, Crawford and Belt both singled to bring up Grant Green with the bases loaded. Green hit a ground ball to Brandon Phillips at second base, he then tagged Belt for the second out and threw to Votto to complete the double play; however Bruce Bochy thought differently , as he challenged the call.

After the umpires look at it, the call was reserved and Williamson scored from third base to give the Giants a 5-0 lead.

Joey Votto broke up the shutout with his 18th home run of the season to get the Reds within four at 5-1 in the top of the fourth inning.

The Reds scored again in the top of the fifth inning, as Billy Hamilton singled to score Eugenio Suarez, who led off the inning with a single of his own.

Duvall, who was traded from the Giants to the Reds last season in exchange for Mike Leake came back to haunt his former team, as he hit a two-run home run to get the Reds within one.

The Giants extended their lead to two, as they scored one in the bottom of the fifth, when Green hit a sacrifice fly to score Posey from third base after Posey stole his sixth base of the season.

The Giants blew the game open in the bottom of the seventh inning, as they scored three runs, as Williamson and Posey singled and then Crawford tripled into the right-center field to score both of them. Conor Gillaspie hit a pinch-hit single to score Crawford.

Bruce got the Reds within four runs, as he led off the top of the eighth inning with a solo home run on the first pitch thrown by Sergio Romo. The very next batter was Duvall, and he greeted his former teammate by hitting his second home run of the game and 25th home run of the season.

Following the Duvall home run, Brandon Phillips singled;however he was retired on a nice double play that was started by Gillaspie to Green and onto Belt. Romo then got Ramon Cabrera to groundout to end the inning.

Angel Pagan was ejected in the bottom of the eighth inning by home plate umpire Joe West after he argued a called strike three. It was the fourth career ejection for Pagan, and the first during the 2016 season.

With the Giants out of position players, Belt moved to left field to replace Pagan, Posey moved from catcher to first base and Trevor Brown came onto catch Santiago Casilla, who picked his 26th save, the day after his 36th birthday.

Casilla gave up a run, a hit and a walk; however was able to get out of the jam, as he got Bruce to strikeout to end the game.

NOTES: Pagan saw his 14-game hitting streak come to an end, as he went 0-for-4 on the evening.

Giants pitchers allowed four more home runs tonight, and have given up 23 in the 10 games since the All-Star break.

With the sellout tonight, the Giants surpassed the Cleveland Indians for the second longest consecutive sellout streak. The Indians sold out 455 consecutive games between 1995-2001. The longest streak in major league history is held by the Boston Red Sox, who sold out 794 regular season consecutive games between 2003-2013.

Duvall’s previous multi-home run game came on May 30, 2016 against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field

This was the first time that Romo allowed two home runs in a game in his major league career.

Giant problems: NL West lead down to 2 1/2 games after 7-5 loss to the Reds

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Bruce loose

By Morris Phillips

SAN FRANCISCO–For Brandon Belt, the cool ocean air and adoring fans along McCovey Cove made all the difference. Stuck in a nasty post All-Star Game slump, the first baseman responded upon returning to AT&T Park with three hits, including a seemingly effortless, two-run homer.

For the rest of the Giants, Monday’s narrow 7-5 loss to the Reds was maddening, a rerun of most of the issues that plagued them on the just-concluded 1-7 road trip that’s all but eroded their comfortable lead in the NL West.

Balls flying over the fence? Three of them, all charged to starter Jake Peavy. Poor defense? Defender extraordinaire Brandon Crawford fumbled a ground ball, then threw wide to first, his improbable fifth error in the last seven games. Heads up play? Not enough of that either: Ramiro Pena wandered too far from first base and was picked off when Cincinnati’s Brandon Phillips wormed his way between Pena and the bag as catcher Tyler Barnhart’s throw arrived.

The home team’s fans were off their game too. A guy wearing a Giants’ jersey and armed with a glove reached over the rim of the right field arcade and snagged Jay Bruce’s first of two homers, a two-run shot that likely would have gone for three bases, not four, had the fan shown restraint.

So what’s it going to take for the Giants—21-7 before the break, and now 1-8 after it, to reignite their engines?

“Right now, we just need a quality start,” manager Bruce Bochy admitted.

Peavy seemed capable of giving the Giants what they needed, but didn’t have it on Monday. The veteran starter has won twice as much after the break than before over the last three seasons, and had never lost to a visiting Cincinnati ball club in his career (4-0 with 50 strikeouts in seven starts). But capturing that synergy would have first required that the Reds forget how pleasurable it was seeing Peavy at Great American Ballpark in May.

In that one, Peavy went six innings, departing after allowing four home runs, and leaving the Giants in a 7-2 hole. On Monday, Peavy gave up three home runs, the last one to Bruce, allowing the Reds to regain the lead after the Giants had scored four times to go ahead 5-4.

Talk about an extension of the road trip: the Giants’ pitchers have allowed 19 home runs in the last nine games.  And that four-run comeback might be all the offense the team can muster right now: over the final four innings Monday, the Giants had one hit and stuck out five times.

After the game, Bochy remained upbeat, finding a silver lining.

“Jake gives up six runs. He only gave up four hits, three of them left the park. That’s what power will do for you. They played hard, I loved the vibe in the dugout. Good comeback off a tough pitcher who’s been throwing the ball well. We just couldn’t hold ‘em,” Bochy said.

Belt’s home run answered the four-spot the Reds posted in the fourth. The slugger’s bust out night came after he went 2 for 33 on the road trip, and was dropped to sixth in the batting order on Monday in hopes that he would feel less pressure to carry the club offensively, according to Bochy.

Angel Pagan’s two-run shot in the fifth briefly gave the Giants a 5-4 lead, but Peavy’s final pitch of the evening was deposited over the left field fence by Bruce. The Cincinnati outfielder has been mentioned as a trade target of the Giants, and his latest stretch explains why. Bruce has 10 hits, 13 RBIs and four homers in his last seven games, that despite the persistent trade rumors that have him moving who knows where before the August 1 deadline.

“I feel like personally I have been pretty good at keeping things in their own little boxes,” Bruce said. “The last thing you want to do is let things creep in that affect performance or preparation or execution or focus.”

On Tuesday, the Giants will take aim at 23-year old Cody Reed, the Reds’ starter who is 0-4 in six starts. Matt Cain will go for the Giants, looking to have a far better outing than he did in Boston last week, where he was lifted in the third inning of an 11-7 loss.

 

 

Giants trying to bounce back from disastrous road trip

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By DANIEL DULLUM
Sports Radio Service
Monday, July 25, 2016

zimbio.com: San Francisco Giants manager Bruce Bochy is looking to get the club back on track as he stated in a pre game interview on Monday night

SAN FRANCISCO – Giants Manager Bruce Bochy had an interesting reaction laced with his trademark dry humor when asked about the Chicago Cubs acquisition Monday of closer Aroldis Chapman from the New York Yankees.

“I wish they’d made that deal three days sooner,” Bochy said, referring to the San Francisco’s lackluster road trip, resulting in a 1-7 record in their last eight games against San Diego, Boston and the Yanks. “All I can say is that the Cubs got a really good one. He’s a quality closer; one of the best.”

Addressing the eight-game skid, Bochy pointed out, “that’s baseball. All teams go through these stretches. It’s frustrating, but we haven’t played well defensively and haven’t been hitting the ball. But remember, we saw some good pitching during that stretch as well.”

The conversation that preceded the Giants’ Monday game against visiting Cincinnati duck tailed into what San Francisco may or may not do with the August 1 non-waiver trading deadline fast approaching.

“Our GM (Brian Sabean) is out there kicking the tires on a few things, but there’s nothing so far,” Bochy said, noting that some of the injured Giants are set to return in the next few days.

Bochy added, “Truth is, we can’t be concerned about what other teams are doing at the deadline. As a rule, we try not to get caught up in what everyone else is doing. We’re more focused on what we need to do right here.”

Hunter Pence, who’s been on the DL for two months with a torn hamstring, is ready to begin his rehab assignment at Triple-A Sacramento (“He’s about a week away,” Bochy said.). Bochy said Joe Panik (concussion issues) “is a little ahead of schedule” and will start his rehab assignment with the River Cats soon.

Matt Duffy (strained left Achilles) has been on the DL and is currently on a rehab program.

Before adjourning, Bochy was asked about new Hall of Famer Mike Piazza, who he managed at San Diego in 2006.

“Mike and I go back to the minor leagues when I started managing and it seemed like we were on the same paths. When I had him in San Diego, he was a great teammate and helped us win that division. He had amazing natural power,” Bochy said. “When I was managing in the (2000) All-Star Game in Boston, Mike came up to me and said, ‘If you want me to go nine (innings), I’ll go nine. I’m here to help us win.

“I thought Mike was a good teammate, and he’s a good person.”

TAGS: San Francisco Giants,Hunter Pence,Joe Panik,Aroldis Chapman,Mike Piazza,Bruce Bochy,Sports Radio Service

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: Giants looking to get over rough trip and get some good home cooking going

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AP Photo: San Francisco Giants Mac Williamson slides into the tag by New York Yankees third baseman Chase Headly who completes a double play in the eighth inning of Sunday’s game at Yankee Stadium

On the podcast with Morris, the San Francisco Giants are too good of a team to play as poorly as they did on this road trip going 1-7 and couldn’t think of the last time they had a tough start like this after having a great first half. The Giants allowed 16 home runs and five of them came on the trip to Boston. Also there was the night that David Ortiz hit three home runs.

The Giants never held the lead in any of the eight games in the first eight innings of those games. The Giants just couldn’t get it in gear and lucky for them they have built themselves a cushion and they lead the NL West by three games in front of the Dodgers. The hope is now the Giants will start this current homestand and get well on some home cooking.

Morris Phillips does the Giants podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com