Giants Face New Obstacle Without Vogey

Since your reading this blog, you're probably no stranger to the fact that Ryan Vogelsong, one of the Giants steadiest starters the last 2 seasons before his slow start to 2013, will be shelved for the next 6 weeks with a fracture on his throwing hand. 

The question now for a team who's pitching staff was already working it's way out of a funk before this injury, is what do they do know? Wouldn't you know it, Vogey had been the Giants worst starter heading into his start Monday night, but coincidentally was turning in his best effort to date with a 5 inning, 3-hit taming of the powerful Washington Nationals. He was starting to look like the pre-2013 Vogey, hitting his spot with his low-90's fastball and showing complete command with that curve and change. Who knows if this was the first step towards him regaining his form or not, but nevertheless, we'll have to wait until July to see what kind of pitcher he'll be after this surgery. For a pitcher to have a fracture like that in his throwing hand than come back in be successful within a month or so seems a little optimistic, but Vogey is one guy I'm not counting out. This does leave, however, the question as to what the Giants will do with Vogey's rotation spot until he is ready to return to the team. Chad Gaudin will be the immediate replacement, and the Giants may give him a  few starts to see if he can hold that down, but he's done such a good job in the bullpen that they may have a hard time finding an adequate replacement for him there. Especially now with Santiago Casilla on the shelf as well.

Not only is this injury causing a big hole in the starting rotation, but it could end up taking away arguably the Giants best reliever (not named Romo), to date. Now, the Giants have two upcoming off-days, including Thursday, and may not need a 5th starter for another couple of weeks, but eventually they're going to need someone to step in and take 5+ starts (assuming the timeline is correct). If they do decide to keep Gaudin in the pen, which is what I'm hoping will be the choice, the top couple names down in Fresno are hardly banging the door down to the big leagues. We talked a bit about Michael Kickham and Chris Heston as fall-backs a week ago after the Giants starters had that pitiful roadie in Toronto and Colorado, but again, those two just aren't pitching up to expectations in Fresno, so I have a hard time seeing either get brought up to San Francisco right this moment. Kickham, however, could have a leg up as he's gone 2-1 with a 1.66 ERA and 25 K's in 25 innings of work over his last 4 starts. The issue with him is that he's not on the 40-man and the Giants would have to make an ensuing move in order to make him ML-roster eligible. Again, they do have a few weeks to see how things shake out, but a decision will eventually need to be made, and my money would be on Kickham if his has another couple solid outings during that span.

Offense Heating Up, Starters Continue to Struggle

After playing their two worst games of the 2013 seasons north of the border in Toronto, the Giants got back on track Thursday in Colorado. They came back from an early 6-run deficit to beat the Rockies in game one of a 4-game set and will look to feed off that momentum throughout the weekend.

In each game up in Toronto, the Giants starting pitcher put the team behind the 8-ball significantly early on. Barry Zito got knocked around pretty good on Tuesday night, but the real concern coming out of that series has to be with Ryan Vogelsong. I talked extensively about Vogey's struggles in our last post, so I won't keep beating a dead horse, but we're 1/4 of the way through the season, and it's really time to start assessing performances. Needless to say, Vogelsong has been one of the worst starters in the game up to this point  and is now sitting at 1-4 with a 8.06 ERA and 1.84 WHIP. The other starter I'm starting to worry about is Matt Cain, who's been dealing with many of the same problems as Vogelsong. 'Cainer strung together a couple of quality starts his last two times out and was showing signs of the old Matt Cain rounding into form, but he was lit up by Colorado Thursday night in game one, giving up 6 runs on 8 hits, including 3 long balls, over 6 1/3 innings. Luckily for Cain, the Giants offense was up to the task and were able to come back and earn the right-hander his third straight victory, but it was hardly a performance he'll be happy about. What's effected Cain the most this year has been the long-ball. He's given up 13 in 56 innings after giving up just 30  the last two seasons combined.

So, with Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum's ERA in the mid-5's and Vogey's north of 8, the starting pitching is hardly responsible for the Giants' current first place standing. Sure, Madison Bumgarner has done his best to help overcome the slow starts by the others, and Barry Zito has been pretty steady for the most part, but it's been the Giants offense that has been the driving force to their success this year. They showed early on this year that they have the ability to comeback in games and with the pitching struggling, that's been something they've had to do quite frequently. Unfortunately, they got down by too large of deficits in Toronto but they got back to their come-from-behind ways in Colorado. There are certainly better lineups in baseball, but the Giants are extremely stable from 1-5 in the order and are finally getting some production out of the bottom of the order too. Their 6-8 hitters played an integral part in Thursday's win, going a combined 4-10 with 5 RBI and 4 runs scored. Brandon Crawford helped pace the bottom 1/3 of the order with a huge April, and has clearly been the most improved Giant in 2013. Meanwhile, Brandon Belt was nowhere to be found offensively in April, but he's quietly been putting things together in May. Belt is hitting .275 with 3 HR, 10 RBI 9 runs and an impressive .958 OPS this month.

If there is one thing still lacking in this lineup though, it's that right-handed hitting corner outfielder that I knew they would need in the offseason, but they never were able to tackle it. A right-handed bat would be ideal in the 7-spot splitting Belt and Crawford. Gregor Blanco has been pretty solid at the plate, but Andres Torres isn't giving the team the right-handed platoon option they need, and Francisco Peguero didn't get the job done in his brief audition. Sabean's top priority heading into trade season will be a quality starter, but a right-handed bat for the outfield will continue to be a necessity until a remedy is found.

Giants' Pitching No Longer a Powerhouse

For the last 5+ years, the Giants have had what many consider one of the top pitching staffs in all of baseball, top to bottom. This year, however, their starting pitching has taken a major step back, and the bullpen isn't quite as bullet-proof as it's been the past few seasons.

After nearly being swept by the struggling Phillies, the Giants have started out behind the 8-ball in their 4-game set with Atlanta, as Ryan Vogelsong had yet another tough outing Thursday night that pushed his ERA up to 7.78 through his 7 starts. Vogey gave up 6 runs on 7 hits through 4 1/3 and surrendered his league-leading 9th home run of the season. As bad as things have been with Cain and Lincecum this year, Vogelsong has had the roughest go of it through the season's first 6 weeks, and it's gotten to the point where even Bruce Bochy is showing some concern. The three right-handers in the rotation (Cain, Lincecum and Vogey) carry a combined ERA in the 6's, and when asked about the struggles in the starting rotation, Bochy quickly replied that there are other options he could go to in terms of starters should this string of bad luck continue. I'm not sure what exactly he means by that, as the Giants are hardly deep with major league ready starting pitching, but he could mean sliding Chad Gaudin into the rotation for a start or two while giving Vogey a couple weeks to work on some issues. It's not like Vogelsong has all the sudden lost his stuff. He struck out 7 batters in his 4 1/3 innings Thursday, but he's just not hitting his targets with consistency like he's done so well in his recent Giants' tenure.


I can't really think of who else Bochy could be referring to when he says "other options" for the starting rotation besides Gaudin. If you look down at Fresno, they're having much of the same issues the Giants are having as up here, as all their starters have gotten off to rough starts as well. Mike Kickham (0-4, 5.65 ERA) and Chris Heston (3-2, 5.82 ERA) would likely be the first two options, but they certainly aren't beating the

Will Sabean Deal for SP?

door down and forcing the issue right this moment. If Vogey continues to struggle though, and the Giants feel a long term change may be in order, they could look outside the organization at various arms that could be available via trade, but it's still so early in the season that they'd probably have to overpay for any decent starting pitcher worth making a move on. One guy who I would take in a second, and someone I've been watching closely this season is Bud Norris. Obviously being the worst team in the game, the Astros are in complete rebuilding mode, and Norris is one of the guys on that roster that may be able to fetch a few solid prospects in return. Not sure if the 'Stros are open to dealing him at this time or what they'd even want for him, but he's definitely a guy I could see excelling in the pitcher friendly confines of AT&T Park.

As far as the bullpen is concerned, things have been pretty good at the back end, as Romo is 12-14 in save opportunities and Santiago Casilla has done a nice job in the set-up role. That's not really the issue, but what I am afraid of is Boch overusing Casilla as he really is the one right-hander Bochy trusts late in games besides his closer. Unlike with their starting rotation though, the Giants do have some clear-cut options within the organization should they feel the need to mix things up. Jean Machi has shown with every opportunity he's gotten that he's a big league-caliber reliever, with the potential to be a very good one.Also, with the way Heath Hembree has started the season in Fresno, it wouldn't surprise me to see him in San Francisco sooner than later, taking on a significant role as a late reliever. Hembree would provide Bochy a legit arm with closing experience who could help keep Sergio Romo fresh for the stretch drive.

Giants Look to Carry Momentum Back Home

After getting swept in San Diego by lowly Padres, the Giants had a statement to make in Arizona, and they turned what started out as a miserable road trip into a decent one by sweeping the D-Backs in Arizona.

It was like the tale of two teams in each of the two series' on that road trip, as the Giants the Giants just kept finding ways to lose in San Diego then turned into the comeback machine again in Arizona. I figured it was going to be a tough roadie after the way the first two games of the trip went. First off, the Giants got another beautiful effort out of Tim Lincecum that was all for not. Timmy threw 7 innings of 2 run ball, striking out 9 Padres and giving the Giants more than enough opportunity to take control of the game, but the offense just couldn't figure out Andrew Cashner. Then in game two, things fell apart late and the defense came up with some costly mistakes, something you rarely see this team do. The bullpen was getting beat up a bit, the starting pitching, besides Timmy, did not impress and the offense looked completely outmatched by San Diego pitching. After the series with the Padres, I was beginning to wonder whether the Giants would still be a .500+ team when they returned this weekend.

However, as frustrating as things started out in SoCal, they were essentially forgotten with the rallying this team did in desert. The one Giant who really needed to step it up offensively and start producing some runs did just that, and it played a instrumental part in the Giants getting right in Arizona. Brandon Belt, who had that torrid spring and had all these expectations coming into the year, finally found his groove a bit, and hit a couple of crucial big flies that ended up being the difference in games one and three, and all of the sudden Belt's numbers for this season have taken a 180. Over the last 10 games, Belt has hit all 3 of his home runs, driven in 9 of his 14 RBI and has seen his average spike from .183 to .244. We've always known Belt has the ability to put numbers up in a hurry, which is the reason his slow start didn't worry me too much. I am curious to see where he goes from here though. Last year, he had a week where he hit 4 homers and drove in 10 runs or something crazy, and everyone thought he'd take off after that, but it didn't really happen. This time around though, I'd be surprised if we don't see a more consistent Belt, and see those numbers steadily rise over the next few weeks. He's obviously got the talent, he's just got to get that confidence going and it sure looks like he's found it here in early May.

So, after the roller coaster road trip, the Giants will kick off a big 10-game home stand with three vs. LA over the weekend, 3 vs. Philly next week and 4 vs. the powerhouse Braves next weekend. Of course, the games with LA are always intriguing, but I'm really looking forward to facing Atlanta. Right now, I think the Braves and Giants have the two best all-around squads in the NL and even though it's still very early, I'm anxious to see how these two measure up vs. one another.

Giants Go 4-2, Narrowly Miss 6-0 Home Stand

After taking the first 4 games of their mini 6 game home stand, the Giants narrowly missed walking away with a 6-game sweep as they battled the D-Backs into extra innings in both of their losses.

With the Diamondbacks taking 2 out of 3 in the series, it pulls them to within a half game of the 2nd place Giants, who are now 1.5 back of the first place Rockies. It's really a shame they couldn't quite squeak out Wednesday's game to back a terrific outing by Madison Bumgarner and take the series vs. Arizona, but everyone will happily take a 4-2 stint anytime. Bumgarner has been the Giants default ace throughout the first month of the season, and he showed you exactly why Wednesday, going 7.1 innings, allowing 1 run on 5 hits and a walk to go with 7 punch-outs. The performance lowered his ERA to 1.87 and his WHIP to 0.89 to go with his 3-0 record. As great as MadBum was Wednesday though, the two key starts during this home stand in my eyes though came from the arms of Tim Lincecum and Barry Zito. Lincecum had the best outing of his young season, and really one of the best starts I've seen from him since 2011, granted it was vs. the Padres. He shut San Diego out over 7+, walking just 1 and striking out 8. Zito's outing was big just because he got rocked last week in Milwaukee, so he needed a strong outing to avoid getting back into one of his ruts, and he delivered.

Outside of Bumgarner, the Giants starting pitching has had some question marks early on. Cain and Vogey have gotten off to slow starts, and prior to his last outing, Lincecum has been off as well. I fully expect Cain and Vogelsong to come around sooner than later, and Zito has been solid outside of that start in Milwaukee. The wild card continues to be Tim Linececum. Look at all the success the team had last year with Linececum actually holding them back in some instances, then imagine if they get that sort of play coupled with a re-born ace!

As far as the offense is concerned, they didn't really light things on fire over the last week, averaging just 3.5 runs per game over the 6-game span, but their are a few huge positives they'll be taking out on the road with them. First off, it looks like Buster Posey is finally getting things into gear. He hit homers on back-to-back nights (his first two of the season) and drove in 6 vs. the Padres and D-Backs which is over half of his total for the season to date. Secondly, Brandon Crawford has just kept fire after a real strong roadie last time out, carrying that success back home with him and really showing how far he's come in the power department. Crawford hit the game-tying shot in the 8th inning of Wednesday's game for his 4th of the year, which ties him with Hunter Pence for team lead. He'll carry a clean .320 average, 4 big flies and 10 RBI into this road trip, and is the Giants' toughest out at the moment. Meanwhile, the other Brandon, who hit the big game-tying home run off J.J. Putz to help the Giants complete the comeback win in game one vs. Arizona, looks to be breaking out of his slump too. After tearing up the Cactus League this spring, I would have thought he'd have his first home run before April 24th, but going 6 for 14 with some big hits on the home stand certainly is a step in the right direction.

Giants Slowed Down In Milwaukee

After starting off the road trip by taking 3 of 4 in Chicago and winning in comeback fashion, the Giants came just short of pulling off two comeback wins in the first two games of their series with the Brewers.

In game one, the inevitable happened as Barry Zito came tumbling back to earth and his 16-start team winning streak came to an end as the Brewers really teed off on him. It was the worst I've seen Zito look since early last year as he just wasn't fooling anyone and didn't have his crisp command working for him but it was one game in a live yard and I'm confident he'll get back on track in his next outing back home. Ryan Vogelsong had the complete opposite luck in Wednesday's game, as the Brewers jumped him for 3 early runs, but he nailed down after to turn in a very solid effort. It's really been only one Brewer's hitter that the Giants haven't been able to figure out and that's been Yuniesky Betancourt. Had it not been for his grand slam in game one, then two-run job off the top of the wall in center in game two, we're likely looking at two Giants' victories. If you would have told me a Brewer would have 2 homers and 7 RBI in the first two games of this series, my money would have been firmly on Ryan Braun, but the scary thing is, he's really done nothing in the two games yet and is bound for a breakout in Thursday's finale.

If there is one positive to take into game three in Milwaukee, it's that the Giants have the confidence that they'll be in the game no matter what happens early on. They got behind by 6 on Tuesday and almost made the full comeback, then erased that early 3-run deficit vs. a Kyle Lohse that was very much on his game on Wednesday. Both Vogey and Lohse had off innings, but were dominant for the other 6 they worked, leaving it up to the bullpens. Typically, in a close, late game you like the Giants chances, but they're working without one of their best relievers in Jeremy Affeldt and they didn't help themselves as Brandon Crawford made a rare fielding mistake on a throw he shouldn't have made in that bottom of the ninth. On the other hand, Crawford was one of the main reasons the Giants were even in this game as he collected another multi-hit game and improved his hit-streak to a career-high 10 games. He's showing more power and has looked like a completely different hitter at the plate early on in 2013. You can see it in his body language it the plate and I'm now expecting good at-bats from him each time out.

Tuesday's loss can be attributed to an off night for Zito and his historic inabilities at Miller Park, but you can't really put Wednesday's loss on one guy. Santiago Casilla was the losing pitcher, and Crawford's errant throw helped set up the winning run at third with less than two outs, but the Giants did have some opportunities to move ahead in this game after they tied it in the 6th. Their offense has slowly been rounding into form, but they still aren't getting much from Buster Posey or Brandon Belt and until one of those guys gets going, they're going to have to continue to scrape for runs. On most nights, their defense and their pitching will come through for them, it's that offense that's going to be the question mark all season long, and they fell just short in a winnable game Wednesday!

Offense Starting to Come Around

Through the first week of the season, the Giants pitching was on point and it had to be, cause their lineup wasn't giving them much support. However, they've picked things up in week 2, and head in to Sunday's game in Chicago with a chance to take 3 of 4 from the Cubbies.

The two wins in this series have come behind the arms of Ryan Vogelsong and Madison Bumgarner, who each earned victories in opposite fashion. Vogelsong gave up five runs early on in the series opener on Thursday, but buckled down after that, and ended up pitching well enough to allow the Giants to come back from the early 5-run deficit. Then on Saturday, Madison Bumgarner had the Cubs hitters absolutely stuck until the 7th inning, when they finally broke through for 2 runs against him. Still, the start was good enough to earn MadBum his 3rd consecutive victory to start the season, and he'll carry a 1.77 ERA and 0.94 WHIP into his next start. The starting pitching, particularly Bumgarner and Zito, has really been excellent through the first couple weeks of the season, but there is still one guy the Giants really need to get going, and he'll be taking the ball in Sunday's series finale. That is of course Tim Lincecum, who did manage to earn a victory in his first start of the year in LA, but has been ridiculously wild in each of his first two starts in 2013. After last seasons major drop-off, coupled with the rough spring he had, the concerns about Lincecum are legitimate, and I'm very curious to see what he does his third time out there.

While the pitching has been really solid throughout, the offense has been a step behind, but they're starting to catch up a bit. The key to me, as it was last year, is the top of that order. When Pagan and Scutaro are each hitting and getting on consistently, it just seems to make this lineup go. Scutaro was off to a really slow start that first week, but he's busted out of his slump this week, going 9 for 15 since the start of the Rockies series. Also, Pablo Sandoval has continued to come up with the clutch hit time and time again, and the Giants really dodged a bullet Saturday when he went tumbling into the stands making a play a foul pop up. With his weight issues, and his nagging elbow injury, it almost feels like a DL-stint at some point will be inevitable, but somehow he made it out of that play in one piece and managed to finish the game. Without the Giants getting much in the middle from Buster Posey and Brandon Belt yet, it's been key that Sandoval and Pence have each had pretty good starts, and they can't afford to have Panda missing any time right now. Brandon Crawford and Andres Torres have each picked things up a bit as well lately. Crawford is looking as good at the plate now as I've seen him since coming up in 2011, hitting safely in all but two games in this 2013 season and even starting to show some extra-base power. Torres (despite striking out 3 times Saturday) has 5 hits in his last 11 at-bats, including 3 doubles, and could start to grab reigns of that left field job if he keeps up that kind of production.