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Post by klaiggeb on Mar 26, 2014 16:22:35 GMT -5
One artical today had the Giants definately in the playoffs.
I, for one, am not so sure.
Why? Glad you asked.
For me, not counting health, it comes down to starting pitching, and honestly, after Bumgarner, Cain and Hudson, I haven't seen much about which to be impressed.
Seriously.
Vogey, who started out well, has been hit hard in his last 3 or 4 outtings.
Lincecum, too, started the spring well. But as of late it seems he's being plagued, again, by command problems.
Oh sure, we hear all positive stuff from Boch and company, but to me, it's only coming across like so much fluff, bluff and bluster.
It's like he's holding his breath with his fingers tightly crossed behind his back.
Hey, I get it. He has to show a 'confident' front.
As the boss, he's got to project confidence in his guys.
But I'm not the boss, and I'm not constrained by such limitations.
I'll wait and see, of course.
Lord knows, I'm certainly NOT saying they won't perform well. Not in the least.
I've seen too many times that, when the bell rings, the real pros step forward and perform. That spring training is just that; nothing more, nothing less.
It's just that we're in the last week, and I expect better outtings. The time for "working on stuff" should be behind them.
We'll see.
boly
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sfgdood
Long time member
stats geeks never played the game...that's why they don't get it and never will
Posts: 90
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Post by sfgdood on Mar 26, 2014 17:04:25 GMT -5
Well obviously the positives are not coming from just Bochy and those on the Giants payroll. One thing we know about the rotation is that all of them have the mental toughness, as evidenced in many postseason tilts. The media sees this as do the other teams. Vogey may not be great as he was in 2012 but with all the rest he received, not by choice, he will not only be refreshed but he will be motivated. I think Vogey, more than any Giant, was effected by the WBC coming right after the WS run. With Lincecum, I think people see the guy is still just 29 and remarkably durable. The nono and the great outings--albeit with some bad ones sprinkled in--in the second half of 2013 drove up Lincecum's market price and I have no doubt that he would have got the same money or more elsewhere if the Giants had passed. His stuff is still "swing and miss" type stuff and, with Hudson along to mentor him, I think this is setting up for a very good season for the moustachioed Freak.
Naturally it has to be done on the field, but this group showed in 2012 that when they have a bad year, they are motivated as hell to make that memory go away. I like the team's chances to bounce back and the guy I expect to have maybe his best season is Posey. He took his second half dip very personally and has worked his ass off. He will be ready and extremely focused.
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Post by Rog on Mar 27, 2014 9:50:50 GMT -5
Almost all teams enter the season with huge unknowns. Last season one might easily have picked the Giants and the Nationals as the two best teams in the NL. Neither wound up in the playoffs. This season there is a good chance both will do so. The Nationals appear to have more slack than the Giants in doing so, but a year ago few were predicting the Dodgers would win 92 games, either.
I think reasonable projections can and should be made. They give us some kind of idea about a team's base line. But there are so many variables that a team's number of wins can likely sway by 10 games in either direction.
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Post by rxmeister on Mar 27, 2014 14:36:00 GMT -5
I have no faith whatsoever in Ryan Vogelsong having a good year, although I certainly hope I'm wrong. You could tell from spring training that Edwin Escobar isn't ready, and I don't want to see Yusmeiro Petit out there every fifth day. If I'm the Giants I'm looking at the waiver wire. The guy I see available right now that I like the most is Erik Bedard. I think he's better than Vogey, and would give the rotation a second lefty.
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Post by klaiggeb on Mar 28, 2014 10:04:05 GMT -5
--Mark--I have no faith whatsoever in Ryan Vogelsong having a good year, although I certainly hope I'm wrong. You could tell from spring training that Edwin Escobar isn't ready, and I don't want to see Yusmeiro Petit out there every fifth day. If I'm the Giants I'm looking at the waiver wire. The guy I see available right now that I like the most is Erik Bedard. I think he's better than Vogey, and would give the rotation a second lefty.
--boly says---
I've always liked Bedard. But throughout his career, he's been one of those guys that simply can't seem to stay healthy.
Still, a good guy to pick up, because I think I agree with you about Vogey; I have no faith in him having that 'good' bounce-back year I was hoping for.
Lord knows, I hope we're both wrong.
boly
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Post by Rog on Mar 28, 2014 12:05:52 GMT -5
Remember back two starts ago when Ryan had a bad outing but said he thought things were getting better? I said I wouldn't worry unless he didn't improve his next outing. He didn't improve, so now I've joined Boly, Mark and others as a Vogey Worry Wart. The one caveat I would give is that we didn't see Vogelsong's last outing, and it is true that in one game, the stats don't always tell the tale.
Petit had a rough spring too, although he was excellent in his most recent outing, saving what might have been a slipping grasp on making the roster.
Bedard was once a very good pitcher, but as Boly points out, has been oft-injured since. His problems have been injuries and a lack of control. His fastball has fallen below 90 mph the past two seasons, although he has still struck batters out. But last season he essentially gave up a hit per inning and a walk every two.
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Post by Rog on Mar 28, 2014 12:08:37 GMT -5
This is a long shot, but another potential starter -- and as Mark mentions about Bedard, a southpaw -- is David Huff. Right now I think he's the #7 starter ahead of Escobar, who the Giants don't seem to think is far away but didn't have much of a spring.
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