Belt to Triple-A…

http://bit.ly/e7Smqy

It was fun getting to watch our young phenom. He was able to blast a HR against the Dodgers, so that alone is worth the show and being remembered in my heart.

I’m sure he will be back, he has a lot of potential with his plate discipline, sometimes watching a little too much but I think a lot of that has to do with confidence. In Triple-A he didn’t constantly face higher level pitching and it was easy for him to bounce back if he had a bad game, in the Bigs its a whole other ball game (meant to put that).

While its sad to see him leave I have a feeling we will see him half way through. Hopefully not due to an injury by a guy on the roster but more so because he got his confidence back and is killing it. I don’t believe Rowand can keep it up and Burrel is not the answer at all so because of their lack of play I am hoping Belt will get a call back up and shift Huff to LF.

Today… I will pour a little Anchor Steam out for you Belt.

DH + HR = not necessarily more

I took some time to check out some stats on a great baseball stat site open to the public (www.baseball-reference.com) and I noticed something interesting. The following is the avg amount of HR’s hit per team per game in the MLB for the last 15 years:

2010 – .95

2009 – 1.04

2008 – 1.00

2007 – 1.02

2006 – 1.11

2005 – 1.03

2004 – 1.12

2003 – 1.07

2002 – 1.04

2001 – 1.12

2000 – 1.17

1999 – 1.14

1998 – 1.04

1997 – 1.02

1996 – 1.09

1995 – 1.01

 

This shows you that 3 of the last 4 seasons have either been barely 1 HR per game per team seasons or below. This was not the case for all of the other years as you see. What is it that has caused the sudden decline though? Can you say well the NL pulls down the AL production because of the solid pitching and no DH? If you thought that was the case well look at the split between the AL and NL over the last 5 years (I don’t feel like writing out 15 years between them, so you can look up more if you like):

2010 -  AL .97  vs NL .94

2009 – AL 1.13 vs NL .93

2008 – AL 1.00 vs NL .96

2007 – AL .99 vs NL 1.01

2006 – AL  1.12 vs NL 1.04

 

What this shows if anything is that the AL is a lot more inconsistent then the NL. The NL for th emost part hasn’t had much of a drop off but the AL tends to from super highs to lows. Especially the difference between the 09 – 10 seasons. So what is the deal, are DH’s becoming more of a old mans position where once legends now sit their lazy asses down and wait to bat, therefore consistency has gone down? I don’t know but it is very interesting.

First Weekend in the books…

Well… it was an interesting weekend. A lot of walk off wins, some big time upsets but luckily no season ending injuries right out the gates. Reds, Phillies, Rangers, and Orioles are all undefeated. Among those 4 I would have to say the Phillies are the real deal but the other 3 teams I predict will have good years. Unfortunately the Orioles are the ones that will lose out in the end though because of a tough division. I am a little skeptical about the Rangers as well but it will clearly be because of their power if they are to try and return to the promise land.

As for my Giants… although they lost 3 out of the 4 I am still confident in them. Errors killed them on the first two games and I feel like if not both, they could have won one of those games. Also they scored 19 runs which is the 3rd best in the NL right now, only 2 behind the Phillies. Their team ERA is at 2.73 which is the 5th best in the MLB right now. So clearly their bats are working and their pitching is still at an elite level, yet their record is 1-3. As long as they can address the errors issue I think they will be able to show everyone why they are the World Series Champs.

I figure each week I will pay respect to whatever team had the best one and show the best fan appreciation. Since the Phillies are a favorite going into the season this year and they were able to come up with some great wins, I figure they deserve it. So here you go…

Week 1 – Phillies

A Giant Killing…

Well it’s about time, the Giants can now notch one in the old win column.

 

Other then saying yes the game turned out the way I figured, Lilly throwing it over the plate and waiting to see what the Giants can do and Cain rocking it as long as his change up was hitting its spots so his fastball could rip through, I have to say I was disappointed in Dodger fans. That was a long sentence I know but anyways here is my problem…

 

We’re only 3 games in to the season and Dodger stadium was barely half full. How is it that the Dodgers are suppose to be known as “loyal” or “diehard” and they can’t even fill up a stadium on the 3rd day while still undefeated and playing their rival who are reigning world series champs? I guess it just goes to show you that when you beef up security at Dodger stadium, you lose half your fan base. I have to say it was definitely obvious when the Giants did well, since I could hear cheering through out the stadium. The section I was sitting in was predominately Giants fans and we of course we loving every second of today. Shame on you Dodger fans, opening weekend on  a Saturday afternoon and you can’t even show up for your team. Just one more reason why I’m glad I’m not a Dodger fan.

 

Enjoy…

Errors, Errors and more Errors…

Well…. At least I can say that I was able to point out the key players to the game last night. Kemp definitely had the better bat for the Dodgers and was the key figure in running for an extra base which set up the 2nd run for the Dodgers and also hit in one earlier off a big double. Belt also hit his first home run (3 run) in his young major league career, and it also looked like it would be a 3-2 game at that point but….

In 2 games now the Giants have made 5 errors, 3 of which have been crucial errors that ultimately cost them the game. Last nights worst one was a routine grounder that Sanchez could have made the play to end the inning but he miss played it and so the inning stayed alive and so did the rally for the Dodgers to take the lead. For the most part though it was another pretty good pitching match up. Billingsley was on for the most part until his pitches werent staying down in the 4th and Sanchez was dealing until that crucial inning when things started falling apart.

Today is a new day though and it poses a interesting pitching matchup. The Dodgers pitcher, Ted Lilly, is more of a hard nose pitcher that just tries to throw strikes and get batters to make easy out. He has some stuff to his arsenal but for the most part he is not looking to be a high strikeout type of guy, just a I’m gonna put the ball over the plate and its up to you to make something happen type of guy. While the Giants pitcher, Matt Cain, is a proven fastball pitcher with some stuff to help compliment it. I would say Cain should have the upper hand today but then again I believe Bochy is changing up the line up (too soon) and that may not be the right move I feel. Hopefully though the defense can stand strong and the line up change won’t matter. we will see though.

 

My guys to watch out for are Andre Ethier and again Brandon Belt. Ethier likes to show up on Saturdays in the afternoon and put on a show and I am a little afraid of that and how he might fair against Cain but Belt I still feel like has some stuff to prove and show the nation as they play on Fox this afternoon as one of the big games.

Dodgers 2

Giants 4

Day 1 in the books… Giants fan pummeled

I was able to attend opening day last night at Dodger stadium for yet another rivalry match up with the Giants.

I have to say that Kershaw is the real deal. He has nasty stuff and he looks like he is poised to have a Cy Young worthy year, although I don’t think he will win it, he will still be a top 5 pitcher in the NL towards the end. Lincecum was pretty studly as well, although he wasn’t racking up the K’s like his counterpart was, he still was able to throw strikes and get the outs. Location was his biggest problem on his payout pitches. Other then sloppy defense on behalf of the Giants, it looked like it could have gone extra innings the way it was rolling.

Other then the Giant fan being pummeled in the parking lot the day wasn’t that bad. I for one went with just a standard black shirt but no representation of the Giants on it. There were definitely a lot of Giants fans there this year and of course the consistent argument was as follows:

“World Series Champs” – Giants Fan
“Stop living in the past, were in the future” – Dodger Fan
“One game, we’re still reigning champs” – Giants fan
“Shut up Faggots!” – Dodger fan

It’s good to see you can still count on a Dodger fan shouting out the ever so original “fag” line and of course stabbing someone for being a supposed “fag” in black and orange.

Tonight’s game should be another interesting one. Billingsley has been pretty solid against the Giants while Sanchez has normally struggled but over the last couple starts found his rhythm against them. One guy to watch out for tonight is Kemp. He was actually patient last night (a shocker) and was able to draw walks and score the runs for the Dodgers because of it. Sanchez throws more fastballs for strikes and that could be problematic for the Giants if Sanchez isn’t hitting his spots. As for the Giants, although it’s only his second game I think Belt may be able to do something tonight. He showed a lot of poise in his at bats by drawing a walk and digging in for what had to have been a 12 pitch at bat against Broxton last night.

Prediction: Giants 3 Dodgers 2

Predictions…

I wanted to take my time and actually write out something nice the beginning of the new season but because I am at the 11th hour with this I figure I will just put down the predictions and get dirty with the posts later. I plan on trying to really follow this season and update this as much as possible so stay tuned. Of course part of this new found need to update this is because my San Francisco Giants are the reigning World Series Champs, so we will see how much glory I can swim in as this season moves along. With that out of the way here are my predictions for everything:

AL East
Boston Red Sox
New York Yankees
Tampa Bay Rays
Baltimore Orioles
Toronto Blue Jays

AL Central
Detroit Tigers
Minnesota Twins
Chicago White Sox
Kansas City Royals
Cleveland Indians

AL West
Los Angeles Angels
Oakland Athletics
Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners

NL East
Philadelphia Phillies (1)
Atlanta Braves
Florida Marlins
New York Mets
Washington Nationals

NL Central
Cincinnati Reds
St. Louis Cardinals
Milwaukee Brewers
Chicago Cubs
Houston Astros
Pittsburgh Pirates

NL West
San Francisco Giants
Los Angeles Dodgers
Colorado Rockies
San Diego Padres
Arizona Diamondbacks

AL Wildcard
New York Yankees

NL Wildcard
Los Angeles Dodgers

Playoffs
Phillies over Dodgers
Giants over Red
Giants over Phillies

Red Sox over Angels
Yankees over Tigers
Red Sox over Yankees

Red Sox over Giants in 6 games

AL MVP
Adrian Gonzalez

NL MVP
Ryan Braun

AL ROY
Jeremy Hellickson

NL ROY
Brandon Belt

AL Cy Young
Jon Lester

NL Cy Young
Tim Lincecum

AL Manager
Jim Leyalnd

NL Manager
Dusty Baker

There you have it…

Giants get the Blues…

It’s been awhile since I’ve posted something here and since the Giants have come and gone from LA I figured I should give my take on what I saw this past weekend. We obviously didn’t take the series but it doesnt mean the Giants didnt show a great effort on their part. This past series was definitely a great one for a rivalry that I feel like has lost some steam over the last couple of years… and if we can both play the way we did this weekend later on down the stretch, then I think we can expect some good heated competition.

Game 1 – Dodgers 10 Giants 8
First off, I already had a bad feeling going into Friday’s game with Todd “I should be a long reliever” Wellemeyer taking the mound but at the same time Vincent “I take forever to pitch” Padilla was on the mound for the dodgers, so there was a little chance of hope. Unfortunately, the Dodgers capitalized first and they pretty much had a solid lead for the majority of the game. Vincent Padilla nearly killed Aaron Rowand in the process, which I understand why Bochy called the dogs off but at the same time I would have liked to have seen some sort of retaliation, especially since its the Dodgers. Apparently Padilla is known for throwing dumb ass pitches like that and a lot of retired veteran pitchers are not happy with the way he handles the inside of that plate. Still after nailing Rowand near his temple on the helmet the Giants didn’t give up. They scored 5 runs in the 9th to make it a 8-10 game but the rally fell short once the Dodgers wised up and took out our undercover agent Russ Ortiz and put in a pitcher that didnt have ulterior motives.

Game 2 – Giants 9 Dodgers 0
Game 2 was a better showing of what the Giants are made of and I think they rocked it because they knew I was going to be there. The FreaK took the mound and dominated oddly enough only going 6 innings but still added 7 strikeouts to his 24 total on the year with a .90 ERA. He also showed some flex with the pine as he went 3-4 with 3 rbi’s on the day. For the Dodgers their young up and comer Charlie Haeger was getting no love with the wind for his knuckleball and instead it just became extended BP for the G-Men. The Dodgers like a bunch of pussies sat a few of their normal starters for the game so it wasnt the game I was hoping for so Tim could prove himself but if the Dodgers wanted to get their ass spanked in their home stadium like that, then so be it.

Game 3 – Dodgers 2 Giants 1
The Big lefty Zito was on the mound for this game and I showed up in the 5th. He was for the most part cruising through and so was Mr. Kershaw. Clayton had a good groove with his heater and offspead pitch working for him so he was racking up the K’s, while Zito’s curve was working for him and he was keeping the hitters off balance and getting them to pop out or ground out. Then the 7th came a long and I could tell something was going to happen while Uribe battled Kershaw. He was nailing the pitches for foul balls and I knew if he left on in on him and just over the plate it would be gone, sure enough Uribe sent one over the left field wall and it then became a 1-0 game. With that said, Zito was still left in for the 8th inning! A move I was a little skeptical about since it just seemed like his luck might run up. He got the first out but then walked Anderson and so then it became a chess match. Torre took out Anderson and put on a faster guy with DeWitt and then put Manny in as a pinch hitter…. so does Bochy bring in one of our solid relivers and try to work through the last two outs or does he bring in B-Will and try to push him to the limit and face Manny with his 97+ mph fastballs? Bochy chose to go with Romo and what ended up being a 1-2 count and looking like the wise choise, ended up being a bad mistake. Romo had good stuff but his slider which he got manny to just watch for a strike two pitches earlier ended up staying over the plate rather then moving to the outside and Manny took it deep. Then of course Furcal grounded out and martin struck out but the damage was already done and Broxton closed the door.

So like I said, even though we didnt win the series, it was still a good one. A heart breaker to have to watch in person and considering the last time I saw Manny come in to pinch hit was when I was in the stands for Manny bobblehead night and witnessed ManRam taking a ball deep on the first pitch for his first at bat since he was caught with woman hormone supplements. So I guess as lucky as I am and don’t want to be I have witnessed him hitting 2 crucial pinch hit home runs… *note to self* stay away from Dodger Stadium if Manny is not in the lineup but available. In the end we are still leading the NL West and tonight we play those dirty Pads in the Southern part of Cali.

Key Giants Stats as a Team so far…

Pitching
ERA – 3.11 (3rd in MLB)
AVG – .221 (2nd in MLB)

Batting
Runs – 69 (T3rd in MLB)
RBI – 63 (T5th in MLB)
AVG – .285 (4th in MLB)
SLG – .448 (5th in MLB)

The Dirty Sanchez strikes!

Big J is like Dr. Jeckel and Mr. Hyde… He can either be an ok pitcher that eventually starts getting walked all over or he can be a downright monster on the mound, today he was a monster. He could have had a complete game but because it’s been awhile Bochy made the smart decision in bringing in B Wil so he can get his reps in and not get rusty. So Jonathan dropped 11 k’s on the Pirates today over 8 innings, thus leaving them with the feeling of poop smeared across their upper lip and feeling like shit.

Big ups to Huff on getting his first inside the park HR, Whiteside showing a flash of power with his HR and Rowand bringing spring into summer as he got his first HR. Let just hope the G-unit can keep the bats alive for this ever so important bragging rights weekend against the blue crew. I for one will be their at the game this Saturday ad Sunday, that will be my first time at Dodger stadium this year and I hope to bring the bad luck.

The fat boys are back…

And you know they could never be wack! Yes I’m paying homage to a classic fat boys song and I’m doing that because B-Mo and P-Blo rocked it once again tonight. Molina went 4-4 with a HR to help his 4 RBI night and Pablo went 3-4 with 2 runs of his own.

Our pitching meanwhile held ittogether very nicely. Zito took the mound and went 6 innings giving up 2 runs to then get in a little trouble in the 7th but Romo bailed him out only giving up one run credited to Zito and getting his 3 outs on Strikeouts. Meanwhile our young stud lefty Runzler owned again and Mota showed he still has it as they had perfect innings of their own.

That makes those Bay bad boys 6-1, still rolling and just getting pumped for the upcoming series in LA. On a side note how about then A’s?! I mentioned in a early post that you shouldn’t question Mr. Beane’s motives even though some player were concerned. Glad he has faith in his players while his own guys were worried cause they are owning their division. Owned the Angels in Anaheim and took care of the Mariners in their first series and are at it again as they won 4-0. Bay area is playing some standout ball, suck it LA.