Category: San Francisco Giants

By DANIEL DULLUM
Sports Radio Service
Saturday, March 19, 2016

AP photo: San Francisco Giants hosted the Oakland A’s at Scottsdale Stadium on Saturday

SCOTTSDALE, Arizona – San Francisco ace Madison Bumgarner hadn’t pitched for 11 days for a couple of good reasons. He was scratched from his last scheduled Cactus League start due to a sore rib cage muscle and a bout with neuroma – inflammation of a nerve in his right foot.

Saturday, Bumgarner had a rough outing in his third spring start, giving up five earned runs on seven hits – including a three-run blast by Bill Butler – in 2 2/3 innings. He also struck out four without a walk and threw a wild pitch.

As Bumgarner was quick to point out following the Giants’ 9-1 exhibition loss to an Oakland split squad, it had more to do with pulling his mechanics together than the physical discomforts.

‘My delivery was terrible,” Bumgarner said. “It’s not quite where I want it, but it’s not too far off either. My timing is a little off, and my rhythm is off. I’m opening up a little too soon, and that’s probably playing a big part of what’s wrong with the timing and the rhythm.”

Bumgarner said that, compared to four or five years ago, he’s better at recognizing when his mechanics are off.

“Back then, it took me a while to realize what it was, and it would take a little bit longer to fix,” he said. “I put so much work into my delivery that it’s frustrating that it even happens. But I feel like I can turn that around. It’s been tough to watch on video, but I knew something wasn’t quite the same.

“I really don’t think about my delivery when I’m out there. I just want to make sure everything is right because it keeps you from getting bad habits.”

As for treatment for the rib and foot issues, Bumgarner said, “I’ll probably do that every day until it’s completely gone, just to make sure it stays that way.

“None of that hindered me today at all,” the All-Star left-hander continued. “I felt really good, actually. It was a pleasure pitching.”

A good hitter, Bumgarner – who has 11 career home runs, most of any active pitcher – said he hasn’t taken any swings yet.

“There’s no sense in taking any chances with that,” Bumgarner said. “We’ll play that by feeling and see. If I don’t get to hit until regular season, that’s fine too. My main concern is what I’m doing on the mound.”

THE GAME
It was split-squad day for Oakland, and the road team piloted by bench coach Mark Kotsay defeated the Giants in front of a sellout crowd of 12,095 at Scottsdale Stadium.

Butler hit his first CL home run for Oakland with one out in the third inning off Bumgarner, giving the Athletics a 5-0 lead at the time. Marcus Semier and Khris Davis each singled, setting the table for Butler.

Non-roster invitee Tyler Marincov added a two-run homer in the ninth inning off San Francisco closer Santiago Casilla. Hunter Pence drove in the only Giants run with a two-out infield hit in the bottom of the third.

Marincov, Butler and Jake Smolinski each had two hits for Oakland.

Oakland starter Felix Doubront (1-0) worked four solid innings, giving up one earned run on five hits, with two strikeouts and a walk. A’s reliever Liam Hendriks struck out three in two innings, as the Oakland bullpen of Hendriks, Ryan Dull and Patrick Schuster threw five scoreless innings.

CACTUS NEEDLES: The A’s announced they will continue their “Green Collar Baseball” marketing campaign for the seventh consecutive season. … A’s 3B Danny Valencia has has homered in three of his last four games. He’s tied with teammate Franklin Barreto for ninth in the Cactus League with three home runs each. Three of Barreto’s three hits are homers, including a pinch-hit three-run belt on Friday against Cleveland. … Oakland 1B is 6-for-14 (.428) in his last five games. … Giants INF-OF Kyle Blanks was scratched from Thursday’s game due to soreness in his right Achilles tendon, and OF Gregor Blanco was also a Thursday scratch due to a tight back. Blanco returned to action on Saturday. … Giants third base coach Roberto Kelly pulled a calf muscle earlier in the week and wound up in a walking boot. Assistant hitting coach Steve Decker is filling in for Kelly. … Giants OF Mac Williamson is tied for the Cactus League lead in home runs (four), ranked second in total bases (27), tied for third in RBI (11), and is ninth in slugging percentage (.711).

TAGS: San Francisco Giants,Madison Bumgarner,Oakland Athletics,Cactus League,Sports Radio Service,Daniel Dullum

 by Amaury Pi Gonzalez

AP photo: Seattle Mariners Shawn O’Malley is safe at first as San Francisco Giant first baseman Conner Gillaspie stretches missing the throw from third baseman Kelby Tomlinson in the third inning of Wednesday’s exhibition game

PEORIA AZ–March 16, 2016.  New San Francisco Giants hurler Jeff Samardzija worked four complete innings against the Seattle Mariners and gave up seven earned runs on six hits walked one and struck out three. His ERA is 8.31. I know it is only Spring Training but Samardzija and Cueto (the two biggest expenditures this off season for the Giants)are two key pitchers in the Giants rotation.

With Cueto is different. He pitched 212 innings last season with the World Champion Kansas City Royals, then 25 additional innings during his four postseason starts. About a week ago he was scratched from his first start of the season (Giants just cautious because of his workload last season) then two days ago at Hohokam Park, spring home of the Oakland Athletics he started the game and was hit by a line drive of the bat of leadoff hitter Billy Burns, Cueto stayed, but soon later didn’t feel well and left to have his head examined.

But this is only Spring Training. Back in 1990 I remember here in the Valley of the Sun, A’s right hander Bob Welch had a terrible spring, many in the media were asking manager Tony LaRussa, and pitching coach Dave Duncan- “is Welch OK”, “is he hurt?”it was a puzzle to all, what was wrong with him? That was Spring Training. That same 1990 season that same Bob Welch, whom I thought I could even get a hit during spring camp, won 27 games, the Cy Young and the MVP and pitched in the 1990 World Series against Cincinnati.

This is only Spring Training; the key word here is “Spring”. Samardzija and Cueto are the two biggest acquisitions by the Giants pitching staff. Some said that the Giants wanted Samardzija because pitching coach Dave Righetti has the “magic” to make him a great pitcher; for the record (Samardzija never won more than 11 games in one season). In 2015 with the Chicago White Sox he finished with an 11-13 record in 32 games he started with a 4.96, yes that was in the American League where you have to face nine professional hitters every game, because of the designated hitter.

We have completed the first half of this 2016 Spring Training. For the Giants to compete in their division they would need these two pitchers to perform like they can, this division is going to be won by one of these three teams: Dodgers, Giants or Diamondbacks; San Diego and Colorado are there to fight to stay out of the cellar.

Madison Bumgarner has been bothered by foot and rib cage injuries, not serious and he said he will definitely start the opener of the season for the Giants, but still the last couple of weeks have not been pretty for the Giants rotation members, specially for Samardzija and Cueto who combined cost the Giants over $200 million.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the Spanish voice for the Angels TV and the Spanish for the A’s radio and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Amaury is also a huge Frank Sinatra fan and sends his best regards to the Sinatra Family during this difficult time after the passing of Frank Sinatra Jr 72 who died on Wednesday of a heart attack

By Jeremy Harness

photo by: San Jose Mercury News–Giants outfielder Denard Span striking out on Mar 5th vs. Texas Rangers

Days after starting right-hander Johnny Cueto suffered what could have been a real scare, another newcomer had to leave Wednesday’s game prematurely.

Center fielder Denard Span went back for his first fly ball as a Giant and paid a price for it. He came away from the play, a diving attempt that saw him get a glove on the ball but could not bring it all the way in, with a jammed right shoulder.

There is no timetable for Span’s return, but he is expected to be day-to-day. Wednesday was his first game in center field for the Giants, as a sore left shoulder limited him to designated-hitter duty to start spring training.

Two days earlier, Cueto took a line drive, which came off the bat of Oakland’s Billy Burns, directly to his forehead, which left him with a very bad bump in that area, but thankfully, nothing more.

Since that moment, Cueto passed several concussion tests, and according to CSN Bay Area, that bump on his forehead had all but disappeared by Wednesday morning.

Cueto continued to pitch after being hit, but he was reportedly taken to the hospital for observations and was soon placed on concussion protocol.

Meanwhile, unlike Span, he is not expected to miss any time, especially after passing those concussion tests.

Notes: Former Giant Barry Bonds, who is now the hitting coach for the Miami Marlins, reportedly beat several Marlins players, including slugger Giancarlo Stanton, in a home-run contest during batting practice Wednesday.

By DANIEL DULLUM
Sports Radio Service
Saturday, March 12, 2016

photo credit: imdb.com–Baseball Documentary Filmmaker Yuniko Gamo Romer working on the relationship of Japanese and American basebll

SCOTTSDALE, Arizona – A chance visit to a museum exhibit sparked not only interest for Yuriko Gamo Romer in the long relationship of Japanese and American baseball, but a desire to undertake the task of filming a documentary about the subject.

Romer explained, “I’m friends with Dave Dempsey, whose father Con Dempsey was a San Francisco Seal (1948-51), and Con was on the 1949 tour that Gen. MacArthur sent to Japan. Dave’s father had taken some movies, and along with seeing that display, that’s where it started.”

Along with her assistant, Kathleen Quillian, Romer visited Scottsdale Stadium Saturday prior to the Cactus League game between Arizona and San Francisco, looking for interview subjects to include in “Diamond Diplomacy – U.S.-Japan Relations Through A Shared Love Of Baseball.” Romer is the director and producer of the project, currently in the development and early production stage that began in 2014.

“Right now, it’s production, raising money, meeting with players and other stuff,” Romer said. “The hard part about making a documentary is raising the money. I’ve had some success, but I need to raise more money. We’re going to run a Kickstarter campaign, starting in May, and we’ll put social media to full use.”

Romer’s research found that the baseball connection between Japan and the U.S. started in 1872. A key part of the documentary is the 1934 Goodwill Tour highlighted by the presence of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Lefty Gomez.

“Of course, with World War II, Japan essentially couldn’t play baseball,” Romer said. “Ironically, at the Japanese-American Interment Camps, baseball was played there. After the war, during the U.S. occupation, Gen. MacArthur sent the Seals over for that Goodwill Tour. It was a lovely, diplomatic moment.

“Japan was basically bombed out and run down at that time, people were pretty much down in the dumps, and this was something that really lifted their spirits.”

Last year, Romer had the opportunity to film the 50th anniversary of Masanori Murakami’s debut with the Giants – the first appearance of a Japanese player in the major leagues. This, Romer said, is “the next main point in the film.”

In 1964, Murakami was sent to the U.S. as part of an extended training session by the Nankai Hawks. After a strong season in Fresno, Murakami was a September call-up for the Giants, sparking the sports version of an international incident that eventually led to a 1967 agreement that U.S. major league teams would not sign Japanese players.

“It was an inadvertent moment, because no one dreamt that Mashi would become a major league player,” Romer said. “He was on a Single-A team and when he was called up, he pitched in front of 40,000 people at Shea Stadium. There were some contractual issues, he came back to the Giants in 1965, but decided he needed to fulfill his obligations in Japan.”

Until Hideo Nomo pitched for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1995, no Japanese player had appeared in the majors since Murakami pitched for the Giants.

“And then there was that hiatus of 30 years,” Romer said. “I think it was a product of the disagreements and a misunderstanding. Nomo decided he wanted to come to the U.S. and they found some loopholes in his Japanese contract, and he came to the Dodgers. That really opened the doors for what we now see for Japanese players in the U.S.

“We’re going to visit with (former Giant) Nori Aoki, we’ve talked to Kenta Maeda (of the Dodgers). And we’ve got some interesting voices, like Bobby Valentine (who managed six seasons in Japan) – he’s still a big figure there.”

“Diamond Diplomacy” also addresses the flip side – American players who went to Japan.

“I talked to Casey McGehee last year when he was with the Giants, and Leron Lee, who played in the 1980s and was the inspiration for the movie “Mr. Baseball,” Romer said. “We got tips on a couple of other players that we’ll pursue. And we’re hoping to talk soon to Marty and Matt Keough, father and son who both played in Japan.”

Romer said she’s had some success locating archival materials for the movie. “I’ve found a lot of it and we’d like to find more. I have a treasure trove from that ’49 tour, but I’ve found other stuff too, like from the ’34 tour with Babe Ruth. I have some post-war footage, and there’s more to seek out.

“We have an oral history interview with Cappy Harada (the legendary Bay Area native, scout and executive who died in 2010). He was the one who really facilitated the 1949 tour. It’s a lovely interview where he talks about Joe DiMaggio going to Japan on his honeymoon with Marilyn Monroe!”

Romer is having no problem obtaining information, but said, “some of it just isn’t relevant enough to the storyline. So there’s a few things that have to be saved to the side.”

If all goes well, Romer hopes to have “Diamond Diplomacy” released early in 2017.

“The arc of the story is how the U.S. introduced baseball to Japan in 1872 and there’s been this interesting historical roller coaster,” Romer said. “And in difficult moments, baseball has been there for both countries. Yet I think it’s a lovely common ground that the two countries have.

“Japan is one of the few countries that loves baseball as much as the U.S. does.”

EVERYTHING’S ARCHIE
Archie Bradley, Arizona’s starting pitcher on Saturday, is battling back from a rough 2015 season that saw him spend much of his time on the disabled list to recover from being hit in the face with a line drive, followed by a bout with right shoulder tendinitis.

Bradley, still a top Diamondbacks prospect, worked three innings on a strict pitch count, giving up one earned run on three hits with a strikeout and a walk.

“I would like to be more efficient, but I felt I needed to be more realistic,” Bradley said. “I think that sometimes, there’s a perception that spring training isn’t like the regular season, but it is.”

After a 1-2-3 first inning, Bradley labored through the second, giving up a double to Angel Pagan, who scored on Andrew Susac’s double, and threw a lot of pitches to work out of a two on, two out jam.

“The first inning went smooth, in the second inning I threw way more pitches than I wanted to,” Bradley said. “That’s going to happen. I was able to limit the damage with one run and I was able to make quality pitches when I needed to and get out of it.

“Throwing 60 pitches is way too many than I’d like to in three innings, but sometimes, you’re going to have those days. It’s about finding a way to get through them. I threw more changeups today than any other time in my life.”

THE GAME
Arizona won the split-squad battle in Scottsdale 9-5 over the Giants. San Francisco starter Ty Blach (0-1) saw his spring earned run average balloon from 0.00 to 6.43 by the time his three innings were complete.

Blach gave up five earned runs, including a two-run homer to Socrates Brito. But he did hold D-Backs slugger Paul Goldschmidt hitless with a strikeout in three at-bats.

The Giants did have some highlights. Jarret Parker went 2-for-5 with an RBI single and a solo home run. Besides Parker, Joe Panik and Andrew Susac also had two hits.

Reliever Santiago Casilla threw a scoreless fourth with two strikeouts.

In Tempe, the other Giants squad lost 9-6 to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

TAGS: San Francisco Giants,Arizona Diamondbacks,Sports Radio Service,Daniel Dullum,Diamond Diplomacy

By Ben Leonard
Follow @ben___leonard//

AP photo: SF Giants starter Jake Peavy throwing in spring training game against the Texas Ranger 3-7-16
TEMPE, Ariz. –The Arizona desert is where pitchers come to die. The arid climate and thin air gives balls a rocket-propelled thrust out of ballparks across the Cactus League. That’s especially true at the Angels’ Tempe Diablo Stadium, a bandbox practically carved out of a cragged rock formation that watches over the short left field fence.

Giants’ starter Jake Peavy has survived many a hellish spring on the mound, and has gotten even more scorched by the desert than most other pitchers.. “There’s nothing fun about pitching in Arizona,” Peavy said Saturday. “I don’t know what my career ERA is, but I know it’s not good.” For those of you at home, his career Spring Training ERA is 5.92, but Peavy’s not counting.

After all of the trials and tribulations in springs past, that’s why Peavy thought Saturday was an “improvement,” an outing in which he gave up three runs on five hits in four innings, part of a 9-5 loss to the Angels. He fell victim to bloop hit after bloop hit before he hung one slider to Albert Pujols, who made him pay in the first inning with a two-run homer, scoring Yunel Escobar.

When asked what the difference was after the first two innings, when he gave up all of the three runs, Peavy was short: “One pitch to Pujols.” He said he didn’t finish his slider after getting Pujols in a 1-2 hole, which helped Pujols deposit a low, looping line drive home run just over the fence in left. Leading up to that, Escobar had reached on a “jam shot” hit even when Peavy “executed” his pitch.

Although he did give up some hard contact, Peavy’s line was distorted by several cheap hits. One, a broken bat double, put Carlos Perez in position to drive in Simmons with a sacrifice fly in the third, the only other blemish on Peavy’s ledger. In the desert, that’s a fairly good outing. Overall, despite giving up a fair amount of damage, Peavy felt encouraged about his outing and his stuff.

“It was a good day,” Peavy said. “It was a good progression — I got to use a little bit of everything and didn’t go terribly hard. I just was able to throw my pitches against a good major league lineup. It was a fun day of trying to get better.”

Peavy backed off a little bit from his last outing, a solid effort (3.0 IP, 2 ER) against the Texas Rangers on Monday. He threw about 90%, and used all of his pitches. When he missed, he was close. For Peavy,

For Peavy, the results in spring are far less important than finding his comfort zone.”I always worry about pitch execution and how comfortable I am on the mound making adjustments,” Peavy said Saturday. “I was able to do that and make some good pitches to Pujols his next time up. I felt growth and progress, and I’m always pleased when I feel like I’m moving forward.”

But the fiery Peavy would never go out completely satsfied after a three-run outing — he was very frustrated after walking Perez in the fourth with one out. “That’s the stuff where you lose your concentration, and you’ve got to pull it together.”

By Ben Leonard

photo credit: zimbio.com–Giants pitching coach Dave Righetti

TEMPE, Ariz. –When you hear Giants and Angels, you’d think it was 2002. Oh, the nostalgia….Barry Bonds, Darren Baker, and…. Felix Rodriguez.

Although a just few things have changed since that fateful World Series 14 years ago, and Cactus League baseball is slightly different than the Fall Classic, one thing has stayed constant: Giants’ pitching coach David Righetti.

He’ll try to get Giants’ starter Jake Peavy back in the swing of things against the Halos after an injury-ridden 2015 campaign. Peavy made just 19 starts last season due to a cranky back, but when he was able to take the hill he found success, posting a 3.58 ERA. Righetti will perhaps look for Peavy to tone it down a little this spring — the right-hander gets amped like a four year old who just drank a pot of coffee when he gets on the bump. He could use a fresh arm heading into the season — Peavy averaged just below six innings per start last inning.

Peavy has gotten a rude awakening to start his spring, getting knocked for 7 runs in just 4.2 innings (2 GS). He’s guaranteed a spot in the rotation, so perhaps he was just going through the motions.

The Angels will counter with 2015 All-Star left-hander Hector Santiago, who will toe the rubber for the third time this spring. In his Cactus league opener, he tossed two shutout innings against the Giants, but gave up two runs in three innings in his last start on Monday.

If sabermetrics are your thing, Hector Santiago is an enigmatic pitcher. Over his career, his ERA (3.55) has been more than a full run lower than his xFIP (4.71), something Matt Cain had also consistently done throughout his career. He’s struggled with walks and doesn’t strike a whole lot of hitters out, but he finds a way to get the job dome.

The Angels made a few moves this offseason, trading for shortstop and defensive whiz Andrelton Simmons and acquiring catcher Geovany Soto, but did little to fix an thin offense outside of Mike Trout, Albert Pujols, and Kole Calhoun. It wasn’t for lack of talent on the market — the Angels needed a left fielder, and Justin Upton, Yoenis Cespedes, Alex Gordon and Chris Davis were all free agents, yet the Angels did nothing to shore up the postion. Light-hitting Daniel Nava and Craig Gentry figure to platoon in left.

Saturday, the Angels will roll out a relatively stacked lineup for this point in the spring:

Here’s how the #Angels will line up against the Giants. #LAASpring pic.twitter.com/zBCiQ2Bsmq

— Angels (@Angels) March 12, 2016

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On the other hand, the Giants, who have a split squad today, will bring just one regular: Gregor Blanco. The rest of the regulars are at home in Scottsdale taking on the San Diego Padres.

#SFGiants split squad lineup vs. Angels pic.twitter.com/oBYeerxTKO

— Ben Leonard (@RuleOfTreeBen) March 12, 2016

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