08 August 2011

There is no "I" in Brandon Belt.

"The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few... or the one." - Vulcan Proverb

Managing the 2011 San Francisco Giants might be the most impossible job in the world. What do you do when only two guys on your roster have even a shred of a clue at the plate? How can you build a productive offense around a see-the-ball-hit-the-ball, rolly-polly thirdbagger and a preppy-lookin' dude with Zito socks and a penchant for taking it back up the middle? What do you say to a pitcher who throws eight innings of two-run ball against one of the league's best offenses and takes the loss? Who do you go to for advice when you're ready to pull out every hair left on your head because the middle of your lineup just went down in order on 7 pitches in a one-run game?

These are the questions I ponder as I study the face of Bruce Bochy — the chiseled jaw of a former Navy brat, the fine lines around his eyes, the squinting gaze of a guy who's seen his fair share of bus rides and red-eye flights in a sport where chance plays just as much of a role in the difference between victory and defeat as talent and ability. I really pity the guy when he's up at the podium in the postgame pressers, groping for cliches to cover for his bottomless frustration with what has to be one of the most pathetic offenses ever to lead a division in August.

The Twitterverse and comment threads are awash with lamentations over the banishment of Brandon Belt to Fresno. But I put it to you: If Belt were with the big club right now, starting every day at first base, what evidence do you have that tells you this offense would be appreciably better than what it's been of late? I grant you, the dude's gotten an unfair shake this season. I agreed with the decision to put him on the Opening Day roster, but the confidence displayed by that move didn't wash with the contract they gave to Huff in the offseason. Why promise Huff all that green — for two years, no less! — if you thought Belt was even close to being ready for prime time? Just to repay him for being the your Rock of Gibraltar last year?

Now, to be sure, the yo-yo is not the best way to build player confidence, but playing Devil's advocate for a moment, it's fair to point out that Belt hasn't exactly forced the team's hand as Buster Posey did when he was recalled in May of last year. Maybe that's not a fair comparison. After all, Sabean's said his plan last year was always to dump Molina once Buster got a little more seasoning. Huff seems implanted at first base, and that contract is a big part of the anchor. But again, what appreciable difference would one player make when the uniform is struggling?

Fact is, there's nothing Bochy can do. The Giants' offensive problems go far beyond one hitter. He can mix and match and even pull the names out of a hat, but in the final analysis, it's the players who have to exorcise their own demons. How can you play the hot hand, after all, if every hand is cold? 

The beauty of the 2010 team was the way anyone on the roster would step up on any given night and carry the team, the uncanny way that the most unlikely of heroes always seemed to come up with the clutch hit. It's the reason that team was scoring 4.36 runs per game through 115 contests, almost a full run more than this team's 3.47 mark. It's the reason that team had outscored their opponents by 85 runs to this point, while this year's team has been outpaced by 7. It's the reason that team had a better record by two games despite a lower spot in the standings. It's what made the difference in the postseason, when 4-3 was a common winning scoreline and not Aubrey Huff's new nickname. It's something the 2011 team has had in bursts but can't seem to sustain. 

The Giants have gone from a team with a walk-off streak early in the season to a team with a no-walk attitude. Nate Schierholtz was the most obvious candidate for Clutch Performer of the Year just a few weeks ago. Now he's swinging at those pitches that almost hit him again. He had a good day at the plate on Sunday, which was a welcome sight, but he needs to bring back the consistency he showed in June and early July. You could make a case that he's lost in the wake of the Beltran deal, but whatever is eating Nasty Nate started before the Big Trade, and it's not helping this ballclub score runs and win games, especially with his platoon-mate Cody Ross hitting more fans than pitches with his bat.

All this is a long way of saying Brandon Belt is not the answer. Reviving this catatonic offense will take a team-wide change of approach. We saw signs of it Sunday, and those have to continue. Working counts, taking walks, driving in runners from third with less than two outs (hereafter known as RBIWRATLT2O). These are the staples of winning offenses, strong and meek alike, and they're the key fundamentals that have eluded the Giants since their charter flight touched down in Cincinnati. It's not brain surgery, right? It shouldn't take much to turn this worm, no matter how bad it looks out there. And a couple walks from Aubrey Huff aren't a bad start.

But hey, I'm not the guy with the answers. Brian Sabean's minions spend all day thinking about how to make this team better. I spend about a two hours a week while I'm writing this blog. (Sure, I tweet up a blue streak just about 24-7, but them's is just jokes.) Seriously, though, I don't know what goes down behind the scenes, I don't know who's been on the trainer's table more than the next guy, I don't have the time to look up each and every matchup. All I can do is call 'em like I see 'em. 

It's all any of us outsiders can do...

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BTW...

Like I said, I call 'em like I see 'em, and I haven't been seeing much from the bats on this squad of late. The front office made all the right moves: Carlos Beltran replaces Posey's middle-of-the-order pop, Jeff Keppinger replaces Freddy Sanchez's OBP, and Orlando Cabrera... is not Miguel Tejada. So, really, there's nothing for Bochy to do but shake the sno-globe and see what happens. But since Beltran came over to the Orange and Black, it's been pretty much the same mold with different pieces:

Torres/Rowand, Keppinger, Beltran, Panda, Huff, Cabrera, Ross/Schierholtz, Stewart/Whiteside, Pitcher

I wasn't the only tweep who watched Keppinger's 4-for-4 performance Sunday and suggested he could hold his own in the leadoff role, and it became quite the topic on the postgame show with Uncle Marty. Normally, that's a recipe for a really bad idea. But this is something that merits consideration by the Boch-ster, especially considering the past week's offensive embar... uh, performance. So here's the starting nine I'd trot out there: 

Kepp, O-Cab, Panda, Voltron, Nate/Boss, Huff, Torres/Row, Stewy/Whitey, Pitcher

Yes, it'd be nice to add a catcher who can, you know, hit. But I'll take the word of the top brass who said there wasn't a deal out there to be made on July 31st. There's always the waiver wire...

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We don't need no stinkin' chemistry.

In the wake of Fight Night at the Cove on Friday, there's been a lot of chatter out there about team chemistry. The consensus seems to be that the Giants fudged their unique brand of clubhouse energy when they went all mercenary and pillaged the league for warm bodies to dress up in Orange and Black like a set of life-size Ken dolls — at least that's how I imagine Mat Latos pictures it going down. In one week's time, the team went from a merry band of misfits to a machine constructed to bring home another championship. But despite the malaise that's seemed to envelope the club over the past 10 days, this argument just doesn't hold water with me.

I'm a believer in the old axiom that winning breeds chemistry, not the other way around. The Giants could have stayed pat at the trade deadline, held on to their prospects, and cast their lot with the team they had, but it would've been the same as throwing up a white flag of surrender. The offense needed to be improved, and if it meant drawing the ire of #matlatoscomplaints, then so be it. Let's not forget that two of the players in the promo poster for Showtime's The Franchise series are not coming back this season, no matter how long the Giants keep playing. Like it or not, 2011 is not the new 2010. In many ways, it's the new 2009, and we all remember what the failure to add a big bat meant back then. In case you've forgotten, here's a brief glimpse into Hell.

So don't worry so much about chemistry. Soon as this offense starts clicking and this team starts winning consistently again — and these things will happen — you'll see the back-slapping and shaving cream pies return to the Giants dugout... 

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Dirty vs. Zito: The Metrics of Frustration

I no longer enjoy watching games pitched by Jonathan Sanchez or Barry Zito. This is nothing new. The former taunts us with his effortless nastiness, stubborn nature, and sudden lapses of concentration. The latter saps us of our energy, slowly dragging us into ennui with 82 mph fastballs and talk of ancient wisdom and a zen-like approach to pitching. But the recent yin-yang of their appearances in and prompt disappearances from the rotation due to major structural flaws has made me sit down and quantify which pitcher I'd rather see if I was forced at gunpoint to watch one of them. Here are the results:

Sanchez Pros: First off, he's got the best stuff on the staff. It's electric, and it looks like he could bring it getting out of bed after an all-night bender. Secondly, he threw the club's only no-hitter in my lifetime, and there's always that sense that if everything falls into place, it could happen again. When he's on, he's practically untouchable, and it's something to behold, but it's like a game of craps, you just don't know how the dice are going to come up, and that leads us to...

Sanchez Cons: "Good lord, please throw strikes." I don't know how often I've mumbled this under my breath during the 10 games I've seen Sanchez start this year. If it weren't for the walks and the nibbling and the high pitch counts, he could get past the mental issues. But it's all too much when piled on top of an already damaged psyche. Every five days, I have this irrational hope that suddenly something will click and he'll be a Puerto Rican Sandy Koufax. But it's more likely that he'll end up a Puerto Rican Bill Lee.

Zito Pros: Pretty much the only pros that I have left to cling to about Zito are he's a fellow USC alum and a raging hippie. Both of these are matters of pride. My hope that he doesn't become an historic embarrassment is grounded in the notion that it would reflect badly upon me for sharing educational and recreational affinities with him. Of course, that is a ridiculous notion. Zito is much more of an embarrassment to UC-Santa Barbara than to old 'SC.

Zito Cons: Oh my, where to begin? Look, I have no problem watching a junk ball lefty ply his trade. If he does it right, he's efficient and effective, gets you back to your car early, and generally frustrates the living shit out of opposing hitters. Giants fans won't have to think very hard to recall a guy who did this awful well by the shores of McCovey Cove, and even before that in the hurricane winds of Candlestick. Here's a hint: They call him "Woody". At the risk of being blunt, Barry Zito may have won a Cy Young Award, but he is no Kirk Rueter.

Conclusion: When it comes down to it, the chance of seeing brilliance far outweighs my Trojan pride. I'd rather watch the five-and-dive from Dirty than labor through another Zito outing of between four and seventeen outs. Any day of the week and twice on Sunday...

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Who 'dat?

It occurred to me after staring at his dumb-looking mug on the scoreboard, taunting us with a grin for four straight days, Hunter Pence looks an awful lot like another parasite that used to pester los Gigantes. Yes, Punter Hence is a taller, spindlier, more awkward, powerful, talented version of David Eckstein

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Pictures of Food

I'll never forget the day Tyler Florence retweeted me, validating my opinion that cheesesteaks were not a thoughtful featurette topic for the Phillies series, and confirming that Tyler Florence saved a search for his name on his Twitter app. Hey, I can't blame the guy. Twitter's like a focus group of 200 million people. Once you get a little fame, people are gonna talk. May as well know what they're saying. If you have a thick enough skin and an open mind, you can learn how to better communicate with your audience...

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Taking the Pirates series off for personal reasons... Okay, I'm driving across California to see Phish play a few shows. It's an annual tradition that I've missed while the band was away and I was indisposed. Hoping the Bucs don't bust their schnide in our house. Put them down, Gigantes. Put them down.

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