San Francisco Giants

Home Run Trot's June All-Star Team: Pitchers

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 08:00:00 -0800

Choosing the pitchers for June's team was just as tough as making some of the decisions for the position players. Some of the players below, like Zack Greinke and Jason Frasor, are making their third straight appearance on the team. Others, like Josh Johnson, are making the team for the first time. Take a look and leave your comments. I think it's a great pitching staff.

*Stats as of 7 PM EST July 2

STARTERS:

SP: Zack Greinke, Kansas City
Yes, Greinke had a tough June going 2-2 with a 4.05 ERA and .290 batting average against. Yet he still leads all starters with a 1.95 ERA. He's also tied for the league lead in wins with 10. Greinke has given up only 25 runs. Thus, he makes the team for the third month in a row.

SP: Tim Lincecum, San Francisco
Lincecum is behind Greinke with 8 wins. But he leads all starters with 132 strikeouts. He has a 2.37 ERA, the third lowest overall, and has given up only 30 earned runs. Lincecum had his best month of the season in June. He went 4-1 with a 1.48 ERA and .202 batting average against. Lincecum is one reason why the Giants are ahead in the NL Wild Card race.

SP: Matt Cain, San Francisco Giants
Cain joins his Giants teammate on this team. Cain has 9 wins this season. He has only 88 strikeouts but has a 2.48 ERA. He also went 3-1 in June with a .192 batting average against.

SP: Roy Halladay, Toronto Blue Jays
Yes, Halladay is currently injured. His overall production this season demonstrates why he gets a place on this team. He's 10-2 with a 1.05 WHIP and 95 strikeouts. His ERA dropped from 2.77 to 2.56 during June. Halladay makes the team for the second straight month.

SP: Josh Johnson, Florida Marlins
Johnson has "only" 7 wins this season. He also has only one loss. He went 3-0 in June with a 2.95 ERA and 30 strikeouts. Overall, he has 97 strikeouts, a 1.13 WHIP, a 2.76 ERA, and a .228 batting average against.

Friday's Games of the Day

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 04:40:00 -0800

The Fourth of July Weekend kicks off with a full schedule of games. The Yankees look to start a new winning streak against the Blue Jays. The Brewers and Cubs continue their seesaw NL Central battle. The Brewers need wins to stay ahead in the division because the Cardinals and Reds are battling for positioning in the division. The Mets and Phillies begin a series that will determine which team is in first in the NL East on Monday. These games, and many more, can be found in Friday's Games of the Day.

Toronto at New York Yankees: The Mariners broke the Yankees seven-game winning streak but are 7-3 in their last 10 games. They look to have A.J. Burnett and company start a new win streak against the Jays and Brian Tallet. Four of Hideki Matsui's 6 hits off Tallet have gone for extra bases, with one being a long ball.

Milwaukee at Chicago Cubs: The Cubs took the first game of this series on Thursday. The Brewers and Jeff Suppan look to even the season series back up at 4-4 against Carlos Zambrano. Derek Lee has 21 hits off Suppan with 11 extra base hits (4 home runs). J.J. Hardy is only 2-for-19 against Zambrano. Mike Cameron is worse, 1-for-13 against Zambrano.

New York Mets at Philadelphia: The Phillies have lost 3 straight and are 3-7 in their last 10 games. They're now tied with the Marlins for first place in the NL East. The Mets find themselves only 1 game behind. This series will determine who's in first place in the division come Monday. The Phillies are relying on Rodrigo Lopez to get the win. Wonderful.

Home Run Trot's June All-Star Team: Position Players

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 08:20:00 -0800

The monthly All-Star team is another feature I'm bringing over from my old blog. For those unfamiliar with my previous work, here are the April and May posts. I'm bringing the All-Star team over to MLB Notebook with a twist. It's going to be divided into two posts. One for the position players and a second for the pitching staff. Now that I'm working with some other great writers, these monthly posts can properly be used to start a discussion.

*All stats are compiled as of 7 PM EST on July 1.

Catcher: Bengie Molina, San Francisco Giants
Making this selection was not tough, unlike April and May. Molina is making his second appearance on this team. He leads all catchers with 10 home runs and 45 RBI. He also has 14 doubles and a triple. His numbers stayed pretty even with his April and May numbers. He's also sporting a .996 fielding percentage with only 2 errors.

First Base: Albert Pujols, St. Louis Cardinals
Pujols makes his third straight appearance on this team. Pujols leads MLB in home runs (30) and RBI (77). He's also scored 61 runs and has a .332 batting average. This pick was a no-brainer.

Second Base: Chase Utley, Philadelphia Phillies
Second base has proven to be perhaps the toughest pick to make. Utley makes the team for a second time because he picked up the pace in June with 6 home runs, 19 RBI and a .320 average. He's tied for second among second basemen with 51 RBI. He leads all second basemen with a .999 OPS.

Third Base: Pablo Sandoval, San Francisco Giants
Sandoval takes the spot from Evan Longoria on the strength of his June. In 94 June at-bats, Sandoval had 8 home runs, 20 RBI, 9 doubles, and a .394 batting average.

Shortstop: Hanley Ramirez, Florida Marlins
Ramirez makes the team for the first time. He's batting .345 with 100 hits in 290 at-bats. He also has 13 home runs, 58 RBI, 26 doubles, and 12 steals. His middling .975 fielding percentage and 7 errors can be overlooked this time.

FB365's Morning Drive 7/2/09

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 07:41:55 +0000

Jordan Zimmermann is getting a lot of fantasy love lately. I was on this guy in late April. He out-pitched Josh Johnson yesterday.

Cody Ross hit his 14th bomb of the season of newly acquired Sean Burnett. Ross is slugging .633 vs. left handed pitching this season.

Josh Johnson left the game after only 3.1 innings. No injury, just a rain delay and 4 walks to go with a rising pitch count.

Ricky Romero continues to impress. He's stranding over 85% of runners and his FIP is a run higher than his ERA before his start yesterday. Walks and the AL East are my concerns, but he's definitely a guy worth rostering right now. He's only owned in 33% of Yahoo! leagues.

Brad Bergesen impressed against the Red Sox. He's not going to strikeout a ton of guys, but he's keeping the ball on the ground and keeping the walks to a minimum. His next start comes against the Mariners. If you need a spot start, he's worth another go.

Yovani Gallardo struck out a career high 12 in 7 IP against the Mets. If Gallardo can reduce his walk rate, he's basically Lincecum light.

Gil Meche, coming off a "dead arm" period, threw 121 pitches in only 6 innings. His arm looked fine with a fastball sitting in the mid 90's, but minor injuries have been an issue this season. If I'm A Meche owner (or a Royals fan) I'm not happy about the pitch count at all.

Billy Butler, 4-4, continues to outperform James Loney, but it seems no one is paying attention.

Jason Hammel has been pitching well for the Rockies lately. He's not quite the ground ball pitcher Aaron Cooks is, but he is getting enough groundballs and limiting walks to be an NL-only add.

Troy Tulowitzki got cold just as fast as he got hot two weeks ago. I think he'll finish with an AVG around .270.

Jimmy Rollins took another o'fer, but so did most of the Phillies against Jair Jurjjens who only allowed 1 hit.

Justin Verlander was touched up last night. That makes two less than spectacular starts in a row. I'm not reading much into it.

Jose Contreras has struck out 8 batters in 3 of his last 4 starts.

Randy Wells pitched well again and got his third straight win. I'd start him again at home vs the Braves in his next start.

Johnny Cueto brought back the strikeout last night against the D-Backs. Of course the D-Backs are second only to the Marlins in team strikeouts.

Kevin Millwood and Jered Weaver squared off in a battle of the "sell highs". Neither faired particularly well and neither are likely to repeat their first half numbers in the second half.

Nelson Cruz left with a back injury. It didn't sound serious, but I never like to hear about back problems. Keep an eye on the situation.

Albert Pujols did not hit a homerun, but he did go 2-2 with a stolen base. Can he go 60/20!!? Not likely, but this is just amazing to watch.

Matt Cain continues to strand runners like crazy. 8 Cardinals left on base and only 3 strikeouts.

Adam Wainwright struck out a career high 12 in 9 innings. He's throwing a curveball or slider on nearly 40% of his pitches. That combined with only 132 innings pitched last season raises a bit of a red flag for potential time missed later this season.

Adrian Gonzalez did play last night after leaving the game with a knee injury the night before. He went 0-3 in the game and is now hitting .268.

Thursday's Games of the Day

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 04:45:00 -0800

Thursday brings us another short schedule with only nine games scheduled. Thursday is still filled with good games. The Mets and Pirates finish a series that began in June. Houston and San Diego face off in a matchup of teams just out of last place in their divisions. The Phillies look to beat the Braves and stay in first in the NL East. And the Brewers and Cubs renew their rivalry. Those games and more can be found below.

New York Mets at Pittsburgh: This game is a makeup of the June 3 game that was postponed. If Paul Maholm and the Pirates beat the Mets again, will Carlos Beltran comment again about how the Mets shouldn't lose to the Pirates? The Mets are depleted and throw Tim Redding out there. Adam LaRoche has four homers against the Mets since 2006, including one off Redding.

Houston at San Diego: Because a series between two teams in next to last place is better than a series between two teams in last place. The surprising Wandy Rodriguez takes the mound for Houston. Adrian Gonzalez's status for the game is in doubt, which obviously doesn't help the Padres.

Philadelphia at Atlanta: The Phillies need a win here to keep from falling behind the Marlins in the NL East. The Braves would extend their winning streak to four games if they win. Both JA Happ and Javier Vazquez go for their 6th win. Happ has a 9.00 ERA against the Braves. Chase Utley has a .333 average and 5 RBI against Vazquez.

Wednesday's Games of the Day

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 04:35:00 -0800

July begins with several teams either looking to extend winning streaks or stop losing streaks. San Francisco and St. Louis continue a series that impacts the early Wild Card race. Colorado looks to turn their luck around against the Dodgers. Plenty of pitchers are looking for win number eight, nine, or ten on July 1. Nyjer Morgan joins the Nationals. Adam Jones and Marco Scutaro begin July looking to end recent slumps. Those, and plenty of other good storylines, can be found in Wednesday's Games of the Day.

Washington at Florida: The Nyjer Morgan era begins in Washington. He and his new teammates will face the 7-1 Josh Johnson. Johnson is 4-0 agains the Nats in his career. Nick Johnson has a .556 batting average against Josh Johnson.

Tampa Bay at Toronto: The Rays keep rolling. They defeated Toronto 4-1 on Tuesday running their win streak to 8 games and handing Toronto their fourth straight loss. The series finale features James Shields and Ricky Romero, two very exciting pitchers. Shields is 0-2 with a 4.09 ERA in his last three starts against the Jays. Look for him to turn it around thanks to his team being hot right now. He'll get help from Marco Scutaro who is in the midst of a 1-for-16 slump with his last hit coming on June 26.

Boston at Baltimore: Josh Beckett goes for win number 10 against Brad Bergesen. Bergesen was 3-0 in June. Beckett is 4-1 lifetime at Camden Yards. I'm looking for Adam Jones to rebound from a poor June. Doing it against Josh Beckett might not happen. Teammate Luke Scott has a .545 batting average with 1 homer and 3 RBI against Beckett.

The surprising Giants lead the NL Wild Card race

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 16:25:00 -0800

I know it's still very early in the season, but the San Francisco Giants lead division rival Colorado and St. Louis by 1.5 games in the NL Wild Card race. San Francisco is playing extremely well for a team written off by many during Spring Training. They have a ways to go to catch the Dodgers, but that doesn't take away from what they've accomplished this season. If the Giants weren't in the NL West, they would lead either of the two remaining divisions. That is a testament to both the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Giants themselves.

The Giants are winning with what I, and many others, keep preaching as the most important part of any baseball team, solid starting pitching. Where other teams need another arm, the Giants are set. Yes, Jonathan Sanchez and Barry Zito are a mess. Ryan Sadowski ably filled in for Sanchez on June 28 and will remain in the rotation. The other 3/5 of the rotation is holding its own. Randy Johnson is 7-5 and averages 8.17 K/9. His stats aren't the prettiest of his career, but he's being effective and winning. Johnson is 3-1 in June, pitching no fewer than 5 innings per start this month.

Dealing

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 14:10:00 -0800

There were some great pitchers going last night, and some great performances from them. Let's take a look.

Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
T Lincecum (W, 8-2)	9.0	2	0	0	0	8	0	95-60	2.37

Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
R Harden (W, 5-4)	7.0	9	1	1	1	9	0	102-65	4.57

Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
J Lester (W, 7-6)	7.0	5	0	0	0	8	0	108-70	4.35

Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
R Oswalt (W, 4-4)	9.0	2	1	1	2	8	0	110-74	4.02

Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
R Nolasco (W, 5-6)	8.0	4	2	2	0	8	1	106-74	5.99

Pitchers	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	PC-ST	ERA
G Floyd (W, 6-5)	7.2	5	0	0	2	5	0	95-59	4.12

Two seperate two-hitters, and some great work by the others. It's a good day if you owned one of these guys on your fantasy team.

Tim Lincecum Channels Greg Maddux--The Rest of Baseball Watches Nervously

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 06:52:53 +0000

"Oh, the places you'll go...there are games to be won. And the magical things you can do with that ball will make you the winning-est winner of all."--Dr. Seuss

Uh oh.

Don't look now, but a bad situation for Major League Baseball just got, potentially, a lot worse. Particularly if you earn your paycheck hitting in the National League. And if you suffer the ultimate indignity, if you have the misfortune of operating in the NL West?

My sincerest condolences. Truly.

Because Tim Lincecum seems to have found a new toy.

I'm not really taking about the sinister slider he's featuring more heavily in his growing repertoire. Although the Freak's newest out pitch was in full effect during Monday night's masterpiece against the St. Louis Cardinals, it must play second fiddle on this night.

The real star of the show was a different culprit--Lincecum's stumbled across the Greg Maddux Pitch and he seems to like it. Consider the following:

First inning--13 pitches, whiffs Albert Pujols

Second inning--12 pitches, whiffs Ryan Ludwick and Chris Duncan

Third inning--8 pitches, whiffs Brad Thompson

Fourth inning--9 pitches, retires Pujols on one pitch

Fifth inning--10 pitches, surrenders his first hit to Rick Ankiel

Sixth inning--11 pitches, whiffs two more

Seventh inning--13 pitches, Pujols touches him for a double and he Ks Duncan again

Eighth inning--13 pitches, his final strikeout

Ninth inning--6 pitches, puts newbie Mark DeRosa away to end the game

Final line--9 IP, CG, 0 ER, 2 hits, 8 Ks, 0 BBs, 95 total pitches, 60 for strikes, and no more than 13 pitches in any single inning

Like I said, that sheet right there is horrible news for opposing MLB batters.

There is nothing unique about what Greg Maddux did in the sense that any pitcher disciplined enough and possessing the requisite control with some movement can repeat it. Obviously, all those things coming together in one hurler is extremely rare--thus the resplendent legend of Greg Maddux.

But Maddux was not a freakishly tall fireballer like Randy Johnson. Nor did he have the once-in-a-lifetime arm of Nolan Ryan. He had no preclusive physical attribute. Any special pitcher wise enough to take notice could incorporate a little of Mad Dog's special ingredient.

The right special pitcher could absorb it completely.

The Franchise might be that ace.

The latest work of art twirled by our virtuoso makes three complete games in his last four starts and the pitch count has been eroding with each successive gem--110 tosses on June 10th against the Oakland Athletics, then 108 on June 23rd against those same Athletics, and now 95.

The shutout of the Redbirds and the fearsome Albert Pujols took the diminutive righty a brief two hours and six minutes. Not too shabby, especially since the Gents scored six of 10 runs via their customary small ball.

All of which suggests Tim Lincecum has learned the power of, as Mike Krukow said during the telecast, retiring hitters in three pitches or less. In other words, pounding the strike zone with pitches good enough to swing at or be called strikes, but not good enough to drive anywhere except by the perfect swing.

Some would call it using your fielders. Others would simply call it smart.

Whatever moniker you prefer, the 25-year-old reigning NL Cy Young has the tools to adopt the approach perfected by Maddux. To keep the hitters guessing and desperate to swing at the first attractive offering because the count only works against them.

In truth, Tiny Tim has the tools to dazzle hitters on an entirely new plane.

Like a primed Greg Maddux, Lincecum usually has good control of all his pitches when he takes the bump. Unlike Maddux at any stage in his career, the Giants' star deploys a rotation of filth far in excess of anything the soon-to-be Hall of Famer could run up to the plate.

I can't imagine there was anything fun about an afternoon in the batter's box against Maddux. Nor can I imagine the proposition will be any more enjoyable if you add Lincecum's PlayStation arsenal with its XBox movement.

What makes the Freak even scarier is how green the kid is.

It's not just that he's five years shy of 30. He's also lounging on merely 1.5 years' worth of experience in the Show. And it's not like Lincecum's been letting the time go to waste--he added the dominating changeup after his first stint in 2007 and sprinkled in the polished slider for good measure after winning the hardware in 2008.

Tim Lincecum has clearly learned how to pitch, no longer treed into relying on his gnarly stuff. In 72 starts, the youngster has gone from thrower to pitcher, from brutish force to artful finesse.

It's been a joy to watch for the San Francisco Giant organization and its fans.

I imagine it's been quite the opposite for the rest of the Big Leagues.

Because we get to watch him; they have to face him.

And that's becoming an uglier ordeal with each start.

**www.pva.org**

Fantasy Links of the Day

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:25:00 -0800

I found a fair amount of links for tonight's list. The focus is definitely on the Hitter Links and the Pitcher Links with a smattering of links in the other areas. Carlos Carrasco, as can be seen after the jump, is a worthy prospect.

Closer Links:

Bullpen Usage Report discusses Huston Street, Brian Fuentes, J.P. Howell, and Mike MacDougal.

Depth Charts and Hot Seat.

Hitter Links:

In Leading Off, Eric Karabell professes his fantasy love for the Tampa Bay Rays. He's right, while we all watch their pitchers, it's the Rays offense scoring the fantasy points.

Is Clint Barmes worth owning? (Yes)

Jacoby Ellsbury is like Juan Pierre.

MLB Top 10: Halos Grab AL West Lead

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 16:06:55 -0500

Sometimes when I think about this list during the weekend before Mondays roll around, things end up looking a bit differently than I pictured. This was one of those weeks. Over the weekend, multiple winning streaks were snapped, teams unexpectedly played poorly, and my top ten list underwent some major reconstruction. The result? A drastically different list compared to what we would've seen on Friday.

1. Los Angeles Angels (41-32)
The Halos have won five straight, including a series win over the red-hot Rockies last week. They followed up the impressive series win by sweeping the woeful Diamondbacks over the weekend, and they now hold a 1.5 game lead in the AL West over Texas. They get the chance to widen the gap this week when they continue their road trip in Texas, in what some are calling the biggest series for the Angels this year.

2. Tampa Bay Rays (42-35)
Don't look now, but the Rays are only two games back in the AL wildcard race after a successful homestand that saw them take two of three from the Phillies and sweep the Marlins. While they're in third place in the AL East, the Rays would be leading nearly every other division in baseball with their record -- only Detroit and the Dodgers lead their divisions with better win percentages.

3. New York Yankees (43-32)
The third of three teams in the Majors that are on five-game win streaks, the Yankees continued their dominance over the Mets over the weekend, capping off a strong week in which they also took two of three from Atlanta. Thankfully CC Sabathia is fine after an injury scare in Florida, and if Sunday night was any indication, Chien-Ming Wang may have everything figured out. Still, considering that they're only three games behind the Red Sox, you have to wonder if they'd be leading the division if they could figure out a way to beat Boston head-to-head.

4. Colorado Rockies (40-35)
Someone finally slowed them down last week, when the Angels managed to take a series at Angel Stadium. The Rockies don't appear to be rattled, though, considering their weekend sweep over the Oakland A's. With the Giants losing their weekend series in Milwaukee, the Rockies are now only a half game behind San Francisco for both second place in the NL West and the wildcard lead.

5. Detroit Tigers (42-33)
To be honest, I was planning on putting the Tigers at the top of the the list before their weekend series against Houston rolled around. They entered the series winners of seven straight, and were facing off against a pretty mediocre Houston club. What happened? The Tigers lost two of three, and nearly got swept before stealing a win in the 9th inning on Sunday. Still, the Tigers have won 8 of their past 10 games, and deserve a spot in the top half of this list.

6. Seattle Mariners (39-36)
No team continues to irritate teams needing a trade than the Mariners. Not only do they seem to refuse to fall back to Earth, but they're still threatening in the AL West -- not only won't they be selling anytime soon, but they may in fact be buying. This past week, the M's followed up a predictable series win over the Padres with an unpredictable series win over the Dodgers, holders of the best record in baseball. They're now three games over .500, but they'll face a real test this week with an East Coast road trip to New York and Boston. If they can survive that trip, perhaps Texas and Los Angeles have something to be afraid of.

7. Boston Red Sox (46-29)
There haven't been any crazy win streaks lately, but all it really takes to guarantee yourself a playoff spot is to win 2 out of 3 in every series. The Red Sox have lost two straight games exactly once this month, and have only seven losses in total. Considering the slump they finished May with, I'd say that's pretty good, wouldn't you? With David Ortiz hitting again, the Red Sox lineup has started to look more intimidating than it's been all year. With teams like the Orioles, A's, and Royals filling their remaining schedule before the All-Star break, there's no reason to believe that they won't continue to win 2 of 3.

8. Chicago White Sox (37-38)
They're still under .500 and their offense is still very unreliable, but they continue to get good pitching, and are capable of going on a pretty good run if the ball is bouncing their way. The ball definitely bounced their way in the past week, as the White Sox stunned the Dodgers and Cubs for series wins in a six-game homestand. They're still not much of an intimidating club -- you're not going to worry when you see them come up on the schedule -- but they're still only 5 games out of first in the AL Central.

9. Minnesota Twins (39-38)
They finally dropped a game to interleague rival Milwaukee last week, but that didn't stop them from taking another series from the Brewers. The Twins followed that series by going into St. Louis and effectively shutting down every Cardinal bat that didn't belong to Albert Pujols. The Twins, as usual, don't do anything great but do a lot of the little things very well -- even when Joe Mauer appears to suffer the effects of the Sports Illustrated cover curse.

10. San Francisco Giants (40-34)
They did lose a weekend series in Milwaukee, but they were one crazy bottom-of-the-ninth rally by the Brewers away from actually taking that series. Pablo Sandoval continues to carry the San Francisco offense (he's hitting .340 with 11 HR and a .965 OPS), while the pitching does the rest. Following what should have been an encouraging win on Sunday, the Giants now head to St. Louis for a huge four-game series that could have some pretty drastic short-term effects on the NL Wildcard picture. It'll be interesting to see if they can keep this up, or if the lack of offense will come back to bite them before they can trade for a big bat.

Links For Monday; Bay, Inge, Kurkjian

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:20:00 -0500

Hello, ladies and gentlemen. Here are your links for the office this morning...

Brandon Inge was the Detroit Tigers' hobbled hero on Sunday, writes Tim Twentyman. Inge has quietly put together an excellent campaign for the Tigers, batting .271/.364/.514 with 17 home runs and a .374 wOBA. When factoring in his outstanding defense at third base (6.8 UZR, 13.3 UZR/150), he has been worth 2.8 Wins Above Replacement, which is very impressive.

Within the piece, there is word that Edwin Jackson continued to pitch beautifully for Detroit, but, as has been the case all year, received poor run support and didn't factor in the decision.

Once-top prospect Daric Barton was optioned to Triple-A on Sunday in order to make room for Mark Ellis on the Oakland A's roster.

Chad Gaudin tossed a one-hitter to lead the San Diego Padres to a victory over the Texas Rangers.

The Tampa Bay Rays became the first team to hit 100 homers and steal 100 bases, writes Marc Topkin.

Mark DeRosa, in case you missed it, is now a St. Louis Cardinal. For my take on the deal, click here.

Great story here: minor league journeyman Ryan Sadowski scattered four hits in six shutout innings to lead the San Francisco Giants to a a victory over the Milwaukee Brewers and earn the win in his first major league start.

Sadowski was a hit in his debut, writes Henry Schluman.

Atlanta Braves rookie Tommy Hanson continued to shine on the mound, improving his record to 4-0 after beating the flu and the Boston Red Sox on Sunday.

The Red Sox will try to lock up impending free agent Jason Bay to an extension, according to Tony Masarotti.

Bronson Arroyo is mulling offseason surgery.

Strikeouts are more prevalent than ever, writes Tim Kurkjian.

King Felix is ready to reign, writes Jim Caple.

Nick Kapur of UmpBump thinks that ESPN.com's weekend MLB content sucks.

Jon Heyman gives his report card on the best and worst free agent signings.

Ken Rosenthal released his All-Star ballot on Fox.

Tim Marchman on Steve Phillips

San Francisco Giants' 2009 Season Is Already a Success--Now It's a Matter of Magnitude

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 07:26:10 +0000

That might sound a little premature. Actually, it might sound a lot premature.

After all, the San Francisco Giants have only played 74 of the 162-game slate. They sit a mere six games over .500 and, while they're in a cluttered group of leaders hunting for the National League Wild Card, their company in contention features some intimidating teams.

The St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, New York Mets, and Chicago Cubs are all within hailing distance of los Gigantes. On paper, that doesn't bode well for our guys.

Aside from the Metropolitans, all those teams can trot out aces in the first two spots of the rotation--Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Edinson Volquez, Aaron Harang, Carlos Zambrano, and Ryan Dempster.

For its part, the Senior Circuit's ballclub in NYC has Johan Santana and a bullpen bristling with A+ arms.

The offensive side of the equation isn't even worth rehashing. Each franchise has an embarrassment of riches compared to San Fran's arsenal.

Although the Orange and Black pitching staff can ultimately run circles around all those mentioned and has been thus far, the other contenders have each been slowed by injuries, surprising struggles, and/or pure rough luck.

Despite the sluggish first half, our fellas aren't exactly opening up a cushion.

So, a correction figures to come for at least one of the four organizations (possibly two or three) and the Giants better be ready with some good baseball in retort because it'll take quite a bit to keep up. In other words, they don't have much margin for error.

Again, a situation that doesn't bode well for a team relying on a increasingly younger nucleus.

Here's the thing though--the 2009 San Francisco Giants weren't expected to make the playoffs by most keen observers of Major League Baseball. I've said it before, even the most optimistic amongst us die-hards were probably figuring on a watered-down NL West to keep the denizens of Pac Bell Park afloat.

I was as giddy as anyone about the hometown prospects for '09.

Had you told me the Los Angeles Dodgers would have the best record in baseball as the season lopes into July, I'd've said San Francisco would be playing for 2010.

Yeah, in a lot of ways, the China Basin nine are playing with house money from here on out. If they were to fall off a cliff and sink to the bottom of the division, it'd simply be an overachieving collection of youngsters returning to a harsh reality.

The rebuilding process would ease forward and use the hot start as an effective learning tool.

And yet, the success thus far in the standings is not what I mean when I say the season's already in the overall win column.

Barring some sort of fabulous meltdown or injury (knock on wood), the Gents look like they can rely on a pretty impressive core going forward.

The praises of Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain have been sung extensively. At 25 and 24, respectively, the promise was that those two arms would be a nice luxury at the top of the rotation for years to come. An encore performance to his 2008 Cy Young from the Freak and the break-out campaign from the Kid seem to be confirming said promise.

Brian Wilson (27 years old) also looks to be proving an All-Star '08 closing games for the club was no fluke.

Pablo Sandoval--the youngest of the group at 22--has quickly snuffed what little doubt there was about his prowess with the splinter. Little Panda is hitting .340 and looks to be discovering his power stroke, having powdered six big flies since June 14th.

For those of you worried about his defense, I hope you saw the diving snare he made and subsequently turned into a dazzling 5-4-3 double-play (with an assist from the second base umpire).

When you toss in the can't-miss prospects down on the farm--Buster Posey (22), Connor Gillespie (21), Tim Alderson (20), Madison Bumgarner (19), and Angel Villalona (18)--you begin to get a sense of why the early results of '09 are already exciting.

With the four proven commodities thriving in the Show and another five blue-chippers slowly bubbling up to the Big Leagues, the San Francisco Giants already have a sunny horizon. Especially since the phenoms are spread over pitching as well as hitting.

But the good news isn't over.

Enter guys like Merkin Valdez (27), Sergio Romo (26), Ryan Sadowski (26), and Nate Schierholtz (25).

Valdez and Romo have been monsters out of the 'pen with the younger righty being the filthier of the two. Schierholtz looks to be a keeper--he's got five tools and has brought them all to bear over the past week. If he can do it on a consistent basis, handle with care.

With Nate the Suddenly Great's recent rampage, he's earned a good amount of leash to unearth that cherished 'C'-word. You just can't send a guy with speed, power, a cannon, and a good baseball IQ to the pine after he's proven the ability to flash all of the above on the diamond.

Not unless the individual slumps his way from grace, and it'd have to be a bad one.

Sadowski makes the list not necessarily because of what he is, but for what he represents. The righty, who shut down the Milwaukee Brewers (one of the NL's best offenses), represents the random act of kindness from the Baseball Gods.

Like Schierholtz to a lesser extent, Sadowski symbolizes a player who the Giants don't see coming at the moment, but who might arrive in the Bigs and become a key contributor.

The pleasant surprise.

We already know San Francisco can count on Lincecum, Cain, Wilson, and Sandoval. We're told Posey, Gillespie, Alderson, MadBum, and AnVil are of the breed that can't help but contribute with a bat and ball. Early returns suggest we've not been told lies.

So what happens when other guys pop up and decide they want to be a part of a rosy future?

Or what happens if Jonathan Sanchez (a still-green 26) emerges as a dominant reliever? The southpaw looked gnarly in a frame on Sunday and the theory makes sense--his struggles seemed to be mental and they seemed to manifest in bloated pitch counts.

As a fireman, Sanchez' pitch count shouldn't be a concern so perhaps neither will the mental bugaboos. He'll be able to throw harder, feature all his pitches without saving anything for latter innings, and generally think less.

All sounds good to me.

Just another possible gem for the franchise, stumbled across on the path to 2010 and beyond.

The San Francisco Giants are genuine contenders for the first time in years and threaten to author a magical story when the dust settles. But that's all gravy because this team was never built specifically for 2009.

Sure, some nice pieces were added just in case, but the squad was meant to be a bridge to brighter days.

At the moment, those days are blinding.

**www.pva.org**

Monday's Games of the Day

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 04:40:00 -0800

Twelve games are scheduled on Monday as we return to intraleague play. The biggest story is Roy Halladay making his return against the Tampa Bay Rays. We also have Boston facing Baltimore with Jon Lester on the hill. The Mets attempt to make their way past the Phillies in the NL East. Also, Albert Pujols and Tim Lincecum face off in St. Louis.

Boston at Baltimore: The Red Sox are 12 games ahead of the Orioles. The O's are 23-18 at home and the Sox are 21-19 on the road. That makes this an even series. What doesn't make the series even is the fact that Boston swept the Orioles in four games earlier this season. Baltimore's Nick Markakis does not hit Jon Lester. Ditto for Luke Scott.

Chicago Cubs at Pittsburgh: Rich Harden looks to get back on track while Zach Duke goes for his NL-lead tying ninth win of the season. Alfonso Soriano has Duke's number. He hits .517 off Duke with six extra-base hits, including two home runs.

New York Mets at Milwaukee: The Mets can't find a way to get ahead of the Phillies in the NL East. Fernando Nieve is 3-0 and takes the mound for the Mets in Milwaukee.

Saturday's Games of the Day

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 09:15:00 -0800

The final weekend of Interleague Play reaches its middle on Saturday. I think we have some good matchups. The Blue Jays look to run their mark against the Phillies to 5-0. Kevin Slowey goes for win number 11 while Tim Wakefield goes for his 10th. We'll also see if the good versions of Paul Maholm and Barry Zito show up to pitch. I've also made my prediction for NL Rookie of the Year. You can find that after the jump.

Philadelphia at Toronto: The Blue Jays continued their dominance of Philadelphia with a 6-1 win on Friday. They'll try to run that mark to 5-0 with Brad Mills on the mound. Mills made his debut on June 18 in Philadelphia. He pitched only 3.2 innings, giving up 6 runs (4 earned). He faces JA Happ. Mills could be the slump buster Jimmy Rollins needs. Rollins hit a home run off Mills when they last met.

Minnesota at St. Louis: Who knew Kevin Slowey would be good enough this season (10-2, 4.04 ERA) to prompt a desire to see a Kevin Slowey-Albert Pujols matchup?

Boston at Atlanta: Tim Wakefield is 3-4 against the Braves in 7 career starts. The Braves have lost three in a row and three-of-four against the Red Sox. Wakefield's opponent, Javier Vazquez leads the NL in K/9 with 10.64 and Boston has the fourth most strikeouts in the AL. J.D. Drew has 4 home runs and a .417 average against Vazquez.