Comm. KTE, 7/8-7/10: Giant Missteps.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Like, y'know, completely mentally beefing on an assignment. I apologize for the Asiana-quality responsibility-handling. (Maybe my mother-in-law IS right.)

Anyway, as we visit last year's champs/this year's bottom dwellers (with a worse Pythagorean Rating/"Simple Rating" than our ostensibly-awful heroes), I'll need a little help with the heavy lifting...

Wearing the idiot's accoutrements behind the dish, of course, is the characteristically offensive/uncharacteristically durable Buster Posey (337 PAs, .310/.389/.517, 159 OPS+). His ungodly 153 wRC and 7-WAR-pace first half constitute a backslide for the reigning MVP, and give him JUST enough juice to slide into a (deserved) All-Star backup slot, because, y'know, Yadier F. Molina. He's not the reason they're skimming the NL West shoals...

... and neither is the serviceable first-sack-straddler Brandon Belt, who's apparently finally done enough (read: exactly the same as last year, only with more slugging) to merit everyday-status from Bruce Bochy. Having started in Ikey fashion (.183/.227/.233 over the first month, with a career-low 6% walk rate), he's bumped up his performance enough to place high-middle-of-the-pack among NL first-basemen, and actually outrank All-Star contender Adrian Gonzalez in both fWAR AND bWAR. The glove-- rated top-2 in the Senior Circuit by BB-Ref and Fangraphs-- helps, as do the smart socks, yagottabelieve.


[sees calves] [Notes non-flying-out fanny] [Gets half-erection] -Keith

Who's on keystone duty? I forget.

[Frayed Knot]

Game Times:
Monday - 10:15
Tuesday - 10:15
Wednesday - 3:45
It's like they're in a different time zone over there or something!

Perhaps the most surprising thing about this year's Gigantes is their pitching suckitude.
For years it was the strength of their squad and the most cited reason for their two WS titles in a three year span, they sit 5th from the bottom in NL ERA as a staff right now (and that's NOT adjusted for home park) with only Madison Bumgraner (3.05) having an ERA under 4.5 among their starters.

We'll see Lincecum tonight [4-9, 4.66]; Zito tomorrow [4-6, 4.44]; and Cain on Wednesday [5-5, 4.85]

[Frayed Knot]

Infield:
Middle of the diamond is solid with Scutaro at 2B and Crawford at SS
Panda is back at 3B after missing some time but isn't better than Wright and wasn't even when he was winning votes over him


Outfield:
Angel Pagan is out so CF and LF are being handled by a combination of that other former NYM Andres Torres, former Brave Gregor Blanco, plus a combination of 26 y/o rookie Juan Perez (42 ML ABs) and the just called up Cole Gillespie (7 ABs plus some previous time with Arizona)
Hunter Pence has started every game this year in RF [.266/.311/.456 w/13 HRs]

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Ah, yes, THAT's who's on second-- first-time-All-Star/perennial near-re-Met Marco Scutaro (323 PAs, .310/.363/.403, 121 OPS+). He's been tough to strike out (position-leading/second-in-league 6.5% K-rate) and just plain tough, missing just 10 games over the season's first half, despite a number of bumps and bruises and mallet fingers.

Double-play mate Brandon Crawford (317 PAs, .259/.320/.374, 22 XBH) has brought his usual Gary-Payton-shaming glovework and Swayze-shaming hairwork to the park this year, and coupled it with some
half-decent batwork and Twitter entertainment value, all while waking up for 2 am feedings/otherwise helping raise a new daughter. He has been pretty frizzing bad of late, though (15-for-98, with a .372 OPS, over the last month).


Plus two EXTREMELY high-maintenance-looking puppies... and a couple of smallish dogs. TIP YOUR WAITSTAFF!

[Edgy MD]

Third base is the province of Pablo Sandoval, and after being spared the embarrassment of winning an All Star vote he should've had no part of, he can get back to work trying to save his worst season as a big leaguer. His numbers are down across the board, but the key number is 16, as in 16 extra base hits in 69 games all year.

That's good for a .378 slugging percentage, and a .378 slugging percentage ain't good for much, and certainly not an All-Star Game. Sandoval took two weeks off in mid June with a foot injury, but it's not like he's been hitting since he got back. He hasn't.

[Zvon]

GJ guys. Thank you.

[Frayed Knot]

This whole thread and, indeed, the whole feeling about the Giants team needs to be reassessed.
That's right, they've signed Jeff Francoeur.

[Edgy MD]

My scouting report: Good arm. Cute wife. Swings at everything like he's a hockey goalie trying to stop everything from getting past him. batmagadanleadoff hates him like stole his kidneys.

[Guest John Cougar Lunchbucket]

Francoeur always sets the place on fire in his first week though, he did it for the Braves, Mets and Royals so far.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Edgy MD wrote: My scouting report: Good arm. Cute wife. Swings at everything like he's a hockey goalie trying to stop everything from getting past him. batmagadanleadoff hates him like stole his kidneys.

I haven't been following his career closely these last two years, but if I remember, he's not a bad platoon player (defense and starts against LHP's), if you have room for that on your roster. But he's a manipulative scumbag who, I think, is detrimental to the team in his narcissistic quest to play regularly.

[Guest Swan Swan H]

No need to worry about the Frenchy Factor just yet - he's headed to Fresno to play some LF and get some ABs, per Hank Schulman of the SF Chronicle.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

I do hear his laundry is delectable.