Take It Away Stix
I’m out of town still….
| Carstie Clausen | Sat, May 18, 8:20 PM (9 hours ago) |  | |
| to me | |||
Flav: Team got what it desperately needed…new sparkplugs. Rib-Eyes and doubles, baby. THAT is offensive to the opposing team, but it works for the winners. Eleven Rib-Eyes in two games ties Matos tied with a certain fellow name of Clark, when it comes to that stat. NINE doubles for the team today. I love me some doubles. They are best called pitcher-wreckers. Nine of em. Think about that. Giants must have somehow survived something like five games where they didn’t come up with that many two-baggers the whole while. Then there was today. Okay, so it was against the Rockies…a squad never known for kick-ass pitching.
When not only do you sparkplug the offense by a three-run dinger in the bottom of the first, but also haul in an otherwise home-run ball, second of this short season; we gotta think Champion sparkplugs. Cue Springsteen: “Center Field”. Could this 22 Y.O. be the second coming of the MAN who celebrated his 93rd birthday just a few days ago? Jumping the gun a whole bunch, but what’s not to like? Here the ownership springs for a ton of money to acquire a new C.F.er and then tragedy…of a baseball sort …strikes and he’s down for the season after a leaping stab and a conjunction with the fence.
Then this Venezuelan kid, who was the team’s outstanding stand-out in Spring Training gets the call. Seems like he was moping after the disrespect as he was relegated to Sac-town. Enters The Show for his second round…and promptly STEALS the show. Even with Ohtani present, Hollywood couldn’t top that drama. So piss on the MLB site with their constant featuring of that Japanese superstar…and his Yank-Me Cohorts. Maybe, just maybe, there is a new Big Dog in town…perhaps even more than one, as the patience of Zaidi & Co. worked its magic with Heliot…who appears to finally have got his act together. Those two outfield assists in one game may not be an M.L. record, but are damned well impressive. Luciano’s first ever Rib-Eye on Friday night was a smile to remember.
Oh ye of little faith. Read the comments on the Flap a couple, two, three days back. Lots of kvetching. Tired old team and all that. Hardly a positive attitude in the lot. Sure and I went through some WTF moments throughout April and into the first part of may…and then all those injuries. Were the Flap a ship, some of the guys would have maybe jumped overboard. But by day by day attention to the River Cats, the possibility of help on hand just happened to be the best I’ve seen in years. Sac-town was loaded for bear. Heliot Ramos was leading the pack, with a solid spring. Luciano had made the switch from a potential power hitter with loads of strike-outs to a more selective and patient hitter, upping his B.A. and OBP as he was figuring out how to be a consistent hitter. Way I perceived Matos was that he was miffed by what he may have considered as mistreatment by being sent down to AAA at the ripe old age of 22. But once he got the call…all was forgiven and motivation was peaking.
Tune in some more popular music: “The kids are all-right”. Not that the on the field array that Zaidi and ownership had assembled was such a shit, sad sorry bunch of misfits that early action tended to indicate. Chapman, for example, took a lot of flak by Flappers to the tune of “the dude’s washed up”…bad choice and on the downslope. He wasn’t the only one, but the pattern which I noticed as really killing the offense was the BBIP factor. They would hit the ball…sometimes with hard contact…but somehow those holes were not there and a lot of loud outs ensued. The team, as concocted simply did not seem to have the jell factor…no cohesion, no spark. We were witnessing a bunch of ball-players who simply could not get it together as a TEAM.
Then something incredible happened…waaay beyond what a Hollywood screen-writer could concoct…big downer with all those injuries to key performers. And what the fuck happened? Call it a “Coogan’s Bluff” style miracle if you will, but those call-ups, products of the farm system, provided the spark and in today’s game at least…all those veterans who had been struggling suddenly caught the vibe.
Baseball is a funny kinda game. Amidst all the stats and the geometry and fine tolerances of the contest…there is an often overlooked factor: Magic. Recall those three even years from 2010 to 2014. Those three World Championships did not come by chance. There was a certain magic in the air. The improbability of Timmeh and the Panda were almost something you would read in novels. Take the gambling-infested NFL and NBA and you get a lot of talented athletes…but just how often does an under-rated and overlooked team win it all?
Go back a hundred years. In 1924 the words “Major League” meant one thing and one thing only…baseball. Recalll the term “The National Pastime”? Baseball has slipped it’s status. Why? Mainly because most Americans live such humdrum lives that they think that magic is a guy who pulls a rabbit outta a hat. So the media types hype those Sooper-Stars…even while the dumkopf writers refuse to give Barry Bonds his due and elect him to the Hall of Fame. That business has become a laugh, albeit a tragic one
Maybe the May 18, 2024 victory was a one-off. But I choose to think that there’s still some magic in the game. What would have been the Vegas odds that a group of youngsters would have emerged to energize a beaten-down and battered team to the tune of no fewer than NINE devastating doubles in one game, while perking up veterans such as Soler, Estrada and Chapman to performances which we all had hoped would make for a newly resuscitated presentation.
Last team in MLB to win three games in a row had a new look today. Been pretty pissed at the MLB “power rankings”, where those so-called sports writers have consistently rated Los Gigantes as #23. If Hicks does his 5-6 innings of superb moundsmanship tomorrow, my thought is that he will get enough run support to stretch the streak to four wins in a row. When Snell strolls to the mound in that East Coast swing, maybe, just maybe, those prognosticators might give the Giants just a little bit of respect…particularly if those Pipeliners keep putting the timber to the orbs.
A Place To Talk About Giants Baseball 
A lot to unpack here . . . In fairness, the Giants DESERVED to be criticized, so the Flap (along with myself) get a pass. Moreover, I think we collectively called out the Giants to have less Slater, Yaz, et. al., and more youngsters from Sac. We were undoubtedly right with regard to that.
Equally important, I get the excitement, but these are the fucking Sherpas we played . . . Let’s see how this plays out against the rest of the NL before we crown their asses. Even if the new kids on the team face plant, I WANT TO SEE THEM FOR THE DURATION OF THE SEASON AND KNOW FOR CERTAIN THAT THEY ARE NOT THE ANSWER. The plan A of playing Slater and/or other “has beens,” along with Zaidi’s insistence to strke gold on the waiver wire has NEVER worked.
Anyway, good to see Stix post, along with his enthusiasm for the team. Me? I am not convinced after a weekend series.
Sure, give Flappers and callers to Sportsphone a pass, but their incessant bitching and moaning about Farhan is overwrought, reactionary, and tiresome. You’re blaming him for doing what ownership wants, and what free agents don’t want to do, crediting yourselves for the performance of the of the call-ups, who you also bitched and moaned about.
That’s to be expected, it’s what fans do. My only real gripe is how you criticize him for “working the margins” by acquiring several key performers for next to nothing: Yaz, Wade Jr, Estrada on this year’s roster. Add Gausman, Dubon, and Dickerson to the list of rosters past. He’s solving a scrambled Rubik’s Cube and everytime he has to undo a completed side to reposition a piece of a different color, you react, except in baseball the pieces get injured, and he has to reposition them all over again.
There’s only a 1 in 30 chance the Giants will be completed to everyone’s satisfaction by the end of October, maybe a 50% chance they’re even playing meaningless games at the end of September. BUT, here’s the beauty part about baseball in general, the opposite of what may or may not be a disappointing season is not winning the World Series, it’s NOT having your entire team move to Sacramento.
no it isn’t. Matos , Luciano, Ramos and Webb for that matter are all from the previous regime. And they sucked in recent memory. 6 years of Farhan and we have Bailey. Harrison is coming on.
He ain’t solving shit. He’s working with a limited budget and isn’t landing big stars because of it. ‘Break even’ is the mantra of Greggoe.
The drafting and development hasn’t been good (5 years). C
Except for La Stella, free agent signings have been solid. B
If not for the Dubon fiasco, trades would be a B+ If Ray and Jonah Cox pan out, and they make a blockbuster trade this summer for Robert or Mayo, it might be an A-
Re-signing/extensions are a B- by virtue of Webb’s contract. Despite what you read here, re-signing Yaz was a key component to upgrading the team’s defense. He’s the best RF since Cruz Jr, is a better hitter than he’s given credit for, his name alone has gravitas.
Yep. The reason we were pissed was BECAUSE Matos and Ramos and Luciano were in Sacto while Ahmed and Slater doofed it up for 6 weeks.
You knew Matos (hitting .218 in Coast League) was going to hit .385 at ML level and make great catches in CF. Got it. Y’all are killing me. Enjoy what is going on right now.
oh shut it. My bone of contension is we KNOW what Slater brings. Which is little, nothing, injury. I said before I’d rather see Matos/Ramos struggle than fucking slater. Same with Luciano/Ahmed.
I was pissed off when Matos botched deep drives in the OF. Now I’m pissed off when Ramos does. But delight over their success wins out. All part of letting the kids play (and trying to get over the loss of Lee). I was much more pissed off every time I saw Slater’s name in the LU.
Bailey should be back soon, too. The newly energized team has a chance to gain ground on this short six game road trip, absent nasty viruses.
Huh. We passed the D-Backs. Weird year what with AZ and SD scuffliing.
Stix, thanks. Hicks today followed by Webb and Snell to start road trip. Glad so many that were dooming everything up are off the ledge at least for now in realm of Giants blogosphere. Long way to go.
Thanks Stix you are truly a wordsmith. I admit I am one of the doomers who was bored out of his mind with the caliber of play I was seeing. However this series against the Rox was anything but boring and I had some fun. I still doubt the baseball powers will give the Giants any significant recognition since they have Ohtani and the Yanks to cream over.
Now 8th in OPS and runs scored, 13th in ERA and runs allowed. The sharp decline in offense across the league has distorted somewhat the perception of what’s been the bigger problem for the team so far. With decent starts in place of a few of the outright failures, they’d easily be 25-22.
Snells like team spirit.
Matos was more than arguably the Giants best hitter in SpringT. My postulate is the kid got demoralized when he got sent to Sac, after doing what he probably thought necessary to get onto the 26. Nobody is deluded that MatRam is the cat’s meow after a week or so of success, especially with some of it coming against the Rocks. But, it’s sweet, nonetheless. When Conforto and Slater are healthy, then what? Does one of MatRam go back to Sac so Slater van continue waiving at air with a rounded stick? So, I’m with blade at his 8:31. And, keep Luciano up even with his warts defensively. Let’s see what the hell he can do — remember when they brought up a SS who clearly was in over his head at the beginning? — a guy named Crawford…
Ditto snarkk . . . Here’s another – some skinny, black kid had a 1-for-26 start through seven games. But only one month and a flurry of hits later he was batting over .320 by late June. He was crying at one point during this slump. His manager reassured him and continued to play him. Fast forward today, this Giants player is considered the best player or at least one of the top players ever to play the MLB game.
Yep.
This team is not going to win the WSeries, it may not even make the WC. So, what’s the point of continuing to play dudes like Slater and Ahmed, and Conforto and Yaz? No point, other than maybe saving Farhan’s butt because it delays possible minor leaguer “reality bites”. Play these supposed top stars in the minors to see whether they sink or swim. How much longer do they need to be in the minors to figure that out? We keep waiting-for-Godot heralded position players, but the Giants seem to be afraid when they finally show up for an extended period, we’ll all be nonplussed and pissed for having waiting so long for Pfffffttttt. It’s not early for these guys, it’s time to find out. If they aren’t better than Slater and Ahmed, etc., at least we know we’re screwed for another half decade, at least…
There was zero reason to have Matos start season as strictly backup playing part time behind Lee Conforto and Yaz. Conforto is still one of the better hitters on team for doubles and HRs. Yaz won game vs. Dodgers w HR and plays great defensive RF, which is harder than CF and reason why after couple fuckups by Matos (3 base error etc.) he left him there.
If you notice Melvin hasn’t played Fitz one minute since he got picked off and he hasn’t had an AB since Reds left town. Soler at leadoff is working out fine too.
None of these 3 primary “prospects” would be playing now if not for injury. That is a sad commentary on the front office’s consideration of their talents. They may yet turn out to be wash outs, but we need to know it. Slater, Ahmed, Conforto all all just guys nobody will remember in a few years, we’ll remember Yaz because of his name, not because of particularly outstanding play and contributions…
Snell’s, like, “team spirit?”
James, do a search of Nirvana.
Thanks, Blade. I was listening to Bleach in 89. Glad to see you posting again!
Off to see if Hicks can help lower that team ERA.
Very cool. Great pick up in off season and credit to coaching staff for helping turn him into quality full time SP. Hicks has been fun to watch.
Thanks . . . Have a blast at the game James!
I’ve liked the Hicks pickup, but It’d be nice if he can get to the 6th inning, which he hasn’t done in his last three starts and done only once in the last six.
I don’t think that’s going to change much. Taking lots of pitches against him is a solid strategy. Hope that Hjelle remains effective today.
O G starting for Knicks. Great series so far everything on line.
And he nails first 3.
and another . Only NBA series I can watch.
I can’t watch cry-baby Doncic. At least cry-baby LeBron is out.
Ticking up a bit, but odd lack of velocity so far. Definitely pitching to contact, as they say. Hicks wants to please Macdog.
“Bleach” is Nirvana’s lesser known debut, but a solid album in its own right.
Gut punch at Garden. Pacers can’t miss up 18.
McMahon is helluva 3b. Soler making more hard contact, bound to pay off.
Rocks look like they came to play today…
Damn, what a play by McMahon.
Hicks had set down 11 in a row before that single.
Giants have 2 hits so far, both by Yaz.
And that, yikes.
Hicks has to deal with an incompetent ump.
Line drive base hit. Way to pick up teammate LaMonte.
Yeah, what a misplay by McMahon!
Matos is even forcing the oppos to make errors…
Yaha Ramos rocket
Heliot HR! Great rip
RAM of MatRam strikes again — with the dinger to center !
There is no way MatRam can go back to Sac…
Props to Luciano for getting rally inning started w walk. He was down 0-2 then saw 3 breaking balls in next 4 pitches that he took instead of swinging at, voila.
Giants up to 7 NL for BA and OB, slowly getting better. You can’t hit 3 run HRs unless guys get on base first. Matos Ramos Luciano all looking good so far in small sample size.
Easy peasy.
MatRam are both draftees of the SabEvans regime. Ramos 2017, Matos 2018. That’s how long they’ve been in the fold.
They are not Farhan choices, though he has overseen their development. Wondering if that has anything to do with them not getting a lot of rope in the past…
He threw Kapler under the bus, so I wouldn’t be surprised.
Matos had awful season at Eugene post Covid 2022, hitting .211 at High A ball. That slowed things more than any perceived bias. He got hurt and didn’t play well. 2023 he jumped from AA Richmond to Sac, hitting .300 at both levels.
Ramos hit .240 at Richmond 2019 before Covid. 2022 he hit .227 in Sac in 400 ABs. Hit lot better last year. He hadn’t lit up league like top prospect anywhere before that in advanced ball.
Willie, it’s not like the Giants have been full of massive OF talent at the MLB level in 2022 and 2023, and even now. Ramos got yo-yoed last year with Farhan’s endless turnstile roster manuevers…
But these guys haven’t done anything til last season Snarkk. You saw Matos last year–he was terrible in OF and didn’t hit. Zero reason to give him ML job, ST be damned. They brought Ramos up last year and he did same thing he usually does, strike out a lot and hit .179. They didn’t show enough to warrant full time play, which is why Zaidi went out and got Conforto and Lee to start in OF alongside Yaz.
I’m fully against “play the kids” because fans find certain vets boring. Melvin (like Kap was) is trying to win games and put best possible lineup out there, not do tryouts like Royals.
That’s all well and good but we were losing with the vets.
Taylor Rogers with the usual drama…
The Taylor Bros. are just zero fun to watch pitch.
If I bit fingernails, I’d have none left with those two…
Miller is not impressed with this ump’s strike zone, haha.
easy to envision Taylor Rogers getting supplanted by some hotshot in Sac. (Whisenhunt? Crawford?) Not as if they’re conjoined.
Luciano getting some hits is very encouraging. If he can settle in on defense, that would be huge…
He’s timing his throws to first now, quickening when he must, apparently adapting to the speeds of the mlb game. Promising.
STIX HICKS FIX GIANTS PIX
Nice game.
Sweep. Nice solid game.
For the first time this season, SWEEEEEP!
James is rolling.
Giants slowly crawling back towards .500.
Led by youngsters, not vets. Big time energy injection by them…
Good win. They have a head of steam, but things get tougher the next dozen games or so, e.g., both the Yankees and Phils on the schedule.
At least the youth injection has them facing these next good teams with increased energy and a + attitude adjustment. And, Chapman seems to have discovered that if you start your swing sooner, you might put bat on ball. Soler still is looking overpaid and underwhelming. Increased energy might be enough to get a few wins against the good teams instead of getting smoked…
I am looking forward to seeing how they respond. Having a series like this, where they absolutely walloped the Sherpas, is going to do a world of good for their confidence. Particularly since – as you said – they were led by the youngsters. Just glad they all seem to have coalesced at once.
By the by, Matos did have a significant drop-off from his scorching performance the previous year at Low-A (.313/.358/.494) as Willie indicated. However, there could be several reasons for this (one of which he alluded to . . . injury):
Level of competition: High-A Eugene is a step higher in competition than Low-A. Pitching is generally faster and more refined, and hitters need to adjust their approach. This can lead to a drop in batting average and other offensive stats. Sample size: While a full season is ideal, sometimes looking at smaller sample sizes can be misleading. Matos did play 91 games, but a deeper dive into how his performance progressed over the season might reveal if he struggled initially and adjusted later, or vice versa. Injury: Matos did miss about a month with a quad injury in May. Injuries can disrupt a player’s rhythm and development. Focus and Approach: Sometimes a player’s focus or approach at the plate can change, leading to struggles. Matos might have been pressing to prove himself at a higher level, which can negatively affect performance.
I posted in 2022 here about Matos (I think I was directing my comments to Winder, since he lived in Eugene). Anyway, I essentially said, “Matos was going to be a star. He’s injured right now, but this kid can play.” I think I posted a video of him too, making an unbelievable catch. Anyway, he’s been a favorite of mine since he was drafted and I am glad he is having a good start this year.
Yes Blade, you are right Matos was hurt 2022 and so was Luciano who had back problems iirc. Luciano had played very few games above AA ball coming into this season.
Playing the kids sucked last year, and Schmitt was Exhibit A. After initial hot streak he was flat awful, which is why Z went and got D first SS in Ahmed and paired him w Chapman on left side. There was absolutely nothing wrong w signing Ahmed who is probably still a better hitter than Schmitt is based on recent 3-22 w 0 walks sample size. Given Giants pitchers propensity for heavy ground ball usage, having Ahmed alongside Chapman and Estrada made for solid IF D. Fitz was liability.
If as Snarkk said Luciano can field the position Giants are in great shape. Throwing motion may take some work but we’ll see.
I didn’t watch any of the Knicks/Indy game, but that’s an epic laying of an egg by the Knicks.
The New York media will be roasting the Knicks all off-season.
I’m not a Knicks fan at all, but they were hir with a ridiculous amount of injuries to numerous key players, the final blow a broken hand to Brunson in the 3rd quarter.
‘were hit’
I have to admit I haven’t been watching the series.
Pacers couldn’t miss Zum. At one point in first half they were shooting 60 percent from floor. Early on it was higher than that.
Sensational sweep and a day off. Travel day, yeah, but relaxed, time to rest while savoring the new momentum.
I tend to watch some Sunday night mlb after a Giants win. Pods at Braves tonight. Is there a Twitter feed that ids the comic opp team walk up tunes the Atlanta organist plays?
I guess there’s a Facebook page.
I like when organists do that. It’s a nice fun thing to do.
This was for last night:
https://x.com/bravesorganist/status/1791959512468865342
thanks. I thought that was tonight’s. I don’t do FB much. That Twitter link will help. Maybe he’ll step it up for espn.
Ah. Same tonight, for repeat starters.
I did something this weekend I’ve never done before: I watched a WNBA game. Indy vs. NY. Some random thoughts:
The women now shoot the 3-pointer as well as the men.
The women’s game has more fastbreaks than the men’s game.
The WNBA has 12 teams. Sacramento used to have a team. It won a championship, and then disbanded a few years later.
Clark has brought much more interest to the league. She’s very talented, but skinny and small-ish compared to a lot of the players. She’ll adapt to the league.
Less iso 1 on 1 more ball movement and inside post play, back to basket. And of course game played below rim. I’ve watched lot of girls ball at HS and club team level and enjoy it a lot. PAC 12 was really strong in last season. Be interesting to see what Light Years Lacob does w local franchise.
Rec league where I have coached for long time has sent some girls on to D 1 college ball. One girl from San Jose organization played at Cal and held career record for most 3s, now at Santa Clara as an assistant iirc.
Chron beat writer Rubin says Hicks was sick today, barfed up his pre game lunch.
Rough weekend for Denver teams.
Almost impossible to repeat in NBA, huh?
Jim Otto, center for the Raiduhs when they were a thing, for 14 years, dead at 86. A real deal HOFer.
Guy was tough as nails. In a time when the AFL and NFL played a rough, tough game, he was as tough as anybody. All while undersized at Center. He played in a time where I actually cared about the Raiduhs. RIP…