In Zaidi we trust - The Giants

His minor league sample suggests that he is due for a massive regression:

MiLB stats: 30 HRs in 853 ABs (3.5% HR/AB), .777 OPS in AAA (only 1 HR in each of his 2 AAA seasons)
MLB stats: 2 HRs in 12 ABs (16.7% HR/AB), 2.000 OPS in MLB

Yeah seems legit but while I’m sure that will happen, I just want to be happy for him while he’s in the early stages. It’s nice to see young players come up and give the team a boost, I have this with my other team (the zmariners) and Bryce Miller atm. Let’s see.

What is that stray Z, maybe it stands for the zFAILING SEATTLE mariners

My six weeks report cards for 2023. I have watched just about every game so far. So yeah, negative Nancy. This team is not good and they are not fun to watch but I seem to like torture. They either strike out or hit a home run. They lose to the worst teams in the league. They were on this role where they would go ahead and then just stop scoring. Our bullpen would then just give it up. Interesting because the bullpen was supposed to be a strength.

Positives, Yaz he is having an unbelievable start but got hurt. Wade Jr is also doing really well and is very patient at the plate. I thought both these guys would be gone by June based on recent track records. Estrada is worth the time to watch. He is off to an amazing start and that part is fun. He is going to be the Giants all -star and will belong as long as he doesn't regress too much.

Kapler bullpen management is horrible, he gets the closer ready every game, drives me nuts. He's not thinking of the future, maybe he thinks his butt is on the line.

Example, last night game he gets Doval up with a two run lead. Acceptable and sitting after the Giants went up six. The bullpen was leaking and now the lead becomes four, he puts in the closer. We are playing the DBacks , probably fighting this team for a play off spot by end of year. He brings in the closer, it was only two runs. He is burning Doval up and we are only six weeks in.

Who am I kidding 500 or bust this year.

Thairo is really special. I haven’t watched even half as many games as you but I can tell that!

Re the bullpen management, he’s not exactly unique in this in the league and unfortunately you have to use your relievers when the starters aren’t getting it done. Add to that the number of relievers performing poorly in key situations, though at least Taylor R has settled a bit. But yeah, as long as Stripling and Manaea are underperforming you’re going to need a lot of innings taken care of, especially with the lineup being kind of patchy.

Pretty sweet nailbiter comeback today against the Phillies (for the sweep). Bart bunts for a base hit, Thairo and Wilmer
Comes through again, Brebbia makes it through the heart of the order, Camilo holds it down

Comescome

giants scored 7 runs with 0 extra base hits lol

Win’s a win 😎 Stripling is such a problem though

Don't get me started

Stripling and Menaea are so bad, bringing the ship down.

What a season so far, this team has me tired up in knots.

Love, love, love Casey Schmitt and Thairo Estrada has been the Giants best player. We just got Yaz back!

Please, please, please let's not make this a lost season.

Go Giants

But despite all of that, just hearing Kruk and Kuip with Jon and Dave has been the highlight of the year. Don't know how much longer we will have them so I'm cherishing this season just for them.

So yeah, had some wine and being a bit of a Goth tonight. Been a great week.

Hate to say it but this team is not going to finish much over .500 but at least they have some fun players to watch now. The first few games I watched were hard going.

Welcome to the show Patrick Bailey:

https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/2023/5/19/23730047/wow-san-francisco-giants-call-up-top-catching-prospect-c-patrick-bailey-also-rhp-ryan-walker

Sick of them messing Bart around tbh

He went on the IL, so this time they just needed someone.

.500

Both my teams back at .500! Think I am watching them tonight as the game’s on early. They seem like a different team.

Javy Lopez in the broadcast booth 🥰🥰🥰

That had to be the worst played game I have seen in a very long time.

It was bad. BCraw was dire. Very uncomfortable watching.

Brandon Crawford is having a tough year, breaks my heart but it's time to hang it up.

Yeah. Just saw that Schmidt is starting at shortstop again (third time in a row?) today. I think for a franchise icon like BCraw they will try to offer him a dignified way out, right? Especially since despite the dire early record they’re only 4.5 games back. Baggs said in The Athletic today:

As a result, Brandon Crawford received a second consecutive day off. There’s really no other way to frame it at this point: Crawford is on the bench because the Giants feel they have better options. And not just with Schmitt at shortstop. They could’ve had Schmitt start at second base to free up the shortstop position for Crawford. But they preferred to keep Wisely in the lineup, too.

Kapler said he and Crawford “have had a couple chats along the way” and would “continue to touch on things,” although not on an everyday basis.

“I think Craw is doing a really nice job handling the situation,” Kapler said. “More than anything, he’s done a great job mentoring players like Casey and Brett Wisely.”

Thanks for posting that gyac. I was being a bit dramatic as it was a reaction to a badly played game. Rooting for Crawford to turn it around.

The Giants are playing really well right now.

They really are! Literally no downside when you’re already in a hole to saying “fuck it, call up the kids” imo, Schmitt is so poised (and has an amazing arm!), they look like an entirely different team. Unbelievably bad to watch in April.

The Giants have found their catcher in Patrick Bailey with Joey Bart being the backup. Bart also has options but Sabol is not the answer there. Zaidi vision is starting to pay off.

Jfc this is an insanely bad take

Hunter Pence did a good job on color for the Giants in this sweep of Colorado.

Isn’t he a coach on staff atm? Happy he’s getting commentary work but I really like Javy in that role.

I think that was ceremonial only. They used Javier López, Shawn Estes and Hunter Pence for road games last year and this year they have used all three again.

Oh I see! Well good for him, he always came across well on podcasts and the like.

Losing Mitch Haniger for possibly the rest of the year is rough but will get a chance to see Luis Matos.

And Patrick Bailey has been impressive.

Yeah it sucks about Haniger but I feel better with Schmitt and the lineup being so much better now.

Saw this amazing quote in Athletic story about BCraw pitching:

He also got a flood of text messages, one funnier than the next. One of his favorites came from Matt Cain.

“He told me to make sure I get on my cardio, do rotator cuff exercises and get some ice on it,” Crawford said.

Given the youth movement, I'm fine with Haniger being a $14MM a year solid vet backup. Also despite his recent resurgence, he was def the weakest hitter on the lineup not named Brandon Crawford so this might unlock better, more consistent lineups moving forward and create more cohesion with the kids. LFG!

Oh also, Joey Bart optioned is sad, but they should just trade him to somewhere he’ll get regular time instead of fucking around with him imo

If I were to wager, Spencer Strider might be headed to the IL. Velocity seems down, missing his spots, looks like a different guy than we say in April/May.

whoops wrong thread haha

ON TOPIC: What's the longest span that Haniger's been off the IL? Dude is made of glass.

Yeah, feel for him but made out of glass sounds right.

What a come back today against the Cards. Three games over 500?

Beat LA

Man wtf... Sad I missed the 9th and 10th.

The win probability chart is hilarious

Four games over 500, they're buried in the first month of the season as they kept losing to horrible teams. They have been playing out of their minds just to break 500. Team is fun to watch.

Patrick Bailey, to be over dramatic, has been a revelation. It's a combo thing with watching Willson Contreras for the last few days. The Cards are going through what we are going through, trying to replace someone like Posey. Not easy but the Giants might have gotten really lucky.

Sorry but I just saw this and I’m dying:

EXCLUSIVE TO ME FOR https://t.co/EpYnQRYIsP: I texted Belt and asked for his reaction to Crawford's scoreless inning, and getting the first shot among the two to pitch in a big-league game. "Yeah, that's great," Belt said. "But I would have pitched an immaculate inning."

— Henry Schulman BLUE CHECK MARK (@hankschulman) June 12, 2023

Said on many occasions, usually after a blowout game:

“They really should let me pitch. They have no idea. I’d dominate.”

Also said on many occasions whenever it was mentioned that he and Kershaw were at the top of the Texas high school pitching prospect rankings:

“I was ranked higher than him. You can look it up.”

What a game tonight in Los Angeles. Giants were being no hit through six by someone making their first start. They go down by 4. Giants came back after that pitcher left and actually took the lead. Bums tied it in the nineth.

Into extra and the Giants don't score but neither did the Dodgers

Into the 11th we go

Here's Jon Miller's incredible radio call of Friday's incredibly bizarre play in the 11th inning 📻

"Man, that was just disgraceful!" pic.twitter.com/MdQUxMjAxl

— KNBR (@KNBR) June 17, 2023

"It ended up being a Greek tragedy" LOL

Bodies everywhere

The baseball gods work in mysterious ways. That's one of the wackiest plays I have ever seen.

Jon Miller is the best

Giants 15
Dodgers 0

Wow, they crushed them. Surprised they didn’t let BCraw pitch again, but it’s nice to see a reliever called Beck shutting them out!