Kuzul

Aaron Rowand hits game-winning single in the bottom of the 12th inning and goes 2-for-3 in Giants’ 5-4 win.

Looks like things have not changed much since last year.

The San Francisco Giants continued their victorious but torturous ways, as a sellout crowd at AT&T Park witnessed one of the greatest, yet weirdest games baseball fans will ever see.

The game featured two dramatic ninth-inning rallies with two outs and nobody on, a strike zone the size of a golf ball at one time and an SUV at another, an unlikely hero two home openers in a row, and an extra-inning dogfight where the Giants stranded a runner at third with nobody out in the bottom of the 11th inning.

If you thought that was weird, the St. Louis Cardinals moved their left fielder and put five men in the infield in that bottom of the 11th inning—and it worked when Aaron Rowand lined a smash right to third base, which was manned by left fielder Allen Craig.

The Giants achieved their 5-4 victory and broke the 4-4 tie in the bottom of the 12th inning when Rowand roped a game-winning single off the left-center field wall with the bases loaded. Coincidentally, it was just last year on the Giants’ 2010 home opener when Rowand hit an RBI infield hit in the 13th inning to beat the Braves 5-4.

“This one was a lot easier than the last one trying to leg it out,” Rowand said.

The 12th-inning rally began off Cardinals lefty Brian Tallet (0-1) when Miguel Tejada hit a one-out single to left. With two outs, Andres Torres reached on a catching error by first baseman Albert Pujols.

Cardinals manger Tony La Russa elected to walk Freddy Sanchez to load the bases for an unlikely hero. Rowand promptly silenced the naysayers by coming through in the clutch for the second home opener in a row.

“It was a lefty in that situation, so I hope they got to me,” Rowand said.

The ecstasy at AT&T Park by the end of the 12th inning was nothing of the sort back in the top of the ninth inning. With the Giants up 3-2 and Brian Wilson looking for his first save of the year, Wilson lost the 12-pitch marathon battle with Ryan Theriot, as he singled in the tying and lead runs with the bases loaded. The inning started with two quick outs.

Wilson was angry, as he walked off the mound in the top of the ninth inning. He seemed to disagree with home plate umpire Bruce Dreckman’s strike zone and began shouting at him while he was leaving the field.

“I was a little pissed,” Wilson said. “Emotions are flying. It’s opening day. Oh well, that’s what happens.”

It appeared that the Giants’ opening day party, which included their championship flag being hoisted and set atop a pole forever at AT&T Park, was ruined by the Cardinals’ ninth-inning rally. However, the Giants returned the favor and started a two-out rally of their own, which concluded with a game-tying single to right by Pablo Sandoval.

It appeared the first baseman Pujols was out of position when Sandoval hit his hard ground ball to the right side, as he broke toward the bag as the pitch was being thrown by closer Ryan Franklin. Nonetheless, the Giants enjoyed every minute of it.

“The game was an emotional roller coaster, a great game,” said Bruce Bochy, Giants manager. “These guys fought hard. It was quite a ball game for a home opener.”

Lost in all the hoopla was a fine starting pitching performance by Giants starter Jonathan Sanchez. Although he threw a lot of pitches early, he battled through a first-inning jam and allowed just one run while striking out seven in five innings of work.

The Cardinals scored first on a Tyler Greene single in the top of the second inning. The Giants would tie the game on a third-inning home run by Miguel Tejada, his first as a Giant.

The Giants grabbed the lead on a Freddy Sanchez double in the second inning. They would tack on another run in the sixth inning on Pat Burrell’s third home run of the year, making the score 3-1.

For the most part, the Giants kept Pujols in check. The Cardinals slugger went just 1-for-6, with an RBI single in the eighth inning that cut the Giants’ lead to 3-2. Pujols’ average fell to .179 for the year.

Dan Runzler (1-0) pitched a perfect 12th inning to earn the win in relief. He was one of eight pitchers used by the Giants in the game.

Although the torture called Giants baseball continued, like last year, torture still never felt so good for the fans in San Francisco.

My Thoughts

This was just a great baseball game.

The Giants did something that all good teams need to do to be successful. That is to not quit, even when all seems lost.

When the Giants blew their 3-2 lead in the ninth inning, many teams might have felt so deflated and just rolled over—not the Giants. They roared back with a two-out rally. Rowand (2-for-3) got things started with a two-out single, and would eventually come in to score on Sandoval’s game-tying single.

Another instance where the Giants showed resiliency was after the bottom of the 11th inning. After Torres doubled and advanced on a wild pitch with nobody out, the Giants suffered a crushing blow. Victory was within reach, but the Giants stumbled.

Freddy Sanchez struck out, and then, Aaron Rowand hit a hard, low liner that the left fielder dove for and trapped at third base. La Russa moved the left fielder to third base, and it actually worked, as Torres was nailed in a rundown on the play. Mark DeRosa then struck out on some questionable pitches for the third out of the inning.

Again, the Giants could have rolled over and let the failure get into their heads. Fortunately for the Giants, this did not happen, as Runzler came out and pitched a scoreless top of the 12th, setting up the Giants’ walk-off win at the bottom of the inning.

Another thing to note: Bruce Dreckman’s strike zone was awful today. The one thing players ask for in a home plate umpire is consistency, no matter if his strike zone is high, low or wide. It seemed that early in the game, Dreckman’s zone was very tight when Sanchez was on the mound. Later on, his strike zone widened, especially during DeRosa’s 11th-inning at bat.

If the Giants are going to do this torture bit on their fans again, it should be another fun season in the wacky world of San Francisco Giants baseball.

Tidbits

The Giants are now 3-4 and have won three home openers in a row. With home runs from Burrell and Tejada, they now lead the National League in home runs with nine (tied with the Reds and Brewers).

Rowand got his second-straight walk-off hit in a Giants home opener.

Cardinals outfielder Matt Holliday says he may play this weekend after having his appendix removed just five days ago.

Pujols has hit into five double plays in seven games so far this year.

Tomorrow, Matt Cain will look for his second win of the year against the Cardinals’ Jaime Garcia. The game will start at 7:05 p.m. to accommodate the Giants’ ring ceremony.

W: D. Runzler (1-1)

L: B. Tallet (0-1)

Vinnie Cestone is a Baseball/San Francisco Giants Featured Columnist for The Bleacher Report. Unless otherwise noted, all quotes were obtained first-hand or from official interview materials from Comcast SportsNet Bay Area.

Stats and other information came from ESPN.com and MLB.com.

This article was featured on the blog Talking Giants Baseball.

Follow me on twitter @vintalkingiants.

Questions or comments? E-mail my blog mailbag at vc4re@yahoo.com. Your questions may be answered on my blog.

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The Giants did not expect to start their trek to a repeat title like this.

The Giants hit a road block on Thursday’s opening day at Dodger Stadium, kicking the ball around in the sixth inning.

Miguel Tejada botched a throw to second with a runner at first with one out, followed by a rare Posey throwing error with the bases loaded. Just nanoseconds before, Posey made a great save on a pitch by Lincecum in the dirt.

The Dodgers drew first blood in the game on the error.

As Posey threw the ball, the runner at third, Matt Kemp, appeared to already be back on the base.

“I thought he was off the base,” Posey said after the game. “I would not have thrown it if I thought he wasn’t.”

To complicate matters further for the Giants, Clayton Kershaw was dominant for the Dodgers. In seven shutout innings of work, Kershaw held the Giants to four hits and one walk, including nine strikeouts.

Cleanup hitter Buster Posey was one of the few to get something going against Kershaw, finishing the night one for four, but with two strikeouts.

“He did a good job of moving the ball around and mixing up some off-speed pitches,” Posey said of Kershaw.

The Giants seemed to struggle in all facets of the game in their three-error debacle—except for pitching. Tim Lincecum was nearly as fantastic as Kershaw, but earned a tough loss, pitching seven strong innings of unearned one-run ball.

The Dodgers tacked on another run in the eighth inning on a James Loney RBI double.

The Giants avoided embarrassment by scoring in the ninth off Jonathan Broxton. Burrell lined a screamer over the left field wall, reminiscent to his game-winning home run off Jonathan Broxton last July.

Brandon Belt had a game to remember. In his first at bat, he accomplished an important milestone—his first major league hit, an infield single.

Belt had impressive at-bats throughout his 1-for-3 night, including a walk off Clayton Kershaw.

Although he made the last out of the game on a soft line drive to Uribe, Belt battled Broxton till the end.

Starter Tim Lincecum shrugged the loss off as best he could.

“Games like this are going to happen,” Lincecum said. “Hopefully, we’ll get them tomorrow.”

One noticeable improvement was the defensive play of Pablo Sandoval. During the sloppy sixth inning, Sandoval shined, as he saved two runs with a diving play on a line drive to his left. Runners were on second and third at the time.

The good news for the Giants? Tomorrow is a new month.

WP: Clayton Kershaw (1-0), LP: Tim Lincecum (0-1), Broxton (S, 1)

HR: Pat Burrell (1, 9th inning off Broxton)

My Thoughts

Aside from the errors in the sixth inning, the Giants cannot expect to win many games by scoring two runs. Clayton Kershaw is a great pitcher, but some questionable at-bats hindered their chance at mounting a rally.

An at-bat of note was Andres Torres’ eighth inning plate appearance. Hong-Chih Kuo threw six straight balls to start the eighth inning, but Torres swung at what appeared to be ball three.

Torres would go on to have a good, long at-bat and line out to Andre Ethier in right field, but Torres probably should have taken a strike there with Kuo struggling with his control. If he takes the 2-0 pitch, the count might be 3-0 (the pitch was borderline) and who knows what happens?

Although Belt did not get the ball out of the infield, his approach was good. In the fifth inning, Belt somehow laid off Kershaw’s two-strike off-speed pitches and worked out a walk. Even his last at-bat off Broxton was a two-strike battle, although it was a line drive out to third base.

A questionable defensive miscue came from Buster Posey in the defensive nightmare sixth inning.

After Posey made an amazing block to keep the runner at third, there was no reason to throw the ball. The runner at third, Kemp, was standing on the base as Posey fired an errant throw to third.

The bottom line is the Giants did not get it done offensively or defensively. Scoring one run will not win many ball games.

Regardless of the errors, the Giants gave up few enough runs to win. Every team makes mistakes, but the good teams make up for those errors and pick up their teammates who caused the blunders.

The Giants have to do what they did last year to win. That is to catch the balls they could get to, get timely hits, and have fun.

The Giants will try to rebound tomorrow against the Dodgers at 7:10 p.m. from Dodger Stadium. Jonathan Sanchez will make his 2011 debut against Chad Billingsley.

Follow me on twitter @vintalkingiants

This article was featured on the blog Talking Giants Baseball

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The San Francisco Giants may become just a little less crowded in the outfield on Opening Day.

The Giants suffered a big blow during Wednesday’s spring training contest against the Los Angeles Angels, who won the game 8-0. The score and Matt Cain’s atrocious start were the least of the Giants’ concerns, as Cody Ross pulled up lame coming in on a line drive to right field.

Ross left the game in the first inning with a strained right calf muscle. According to MLB.com, his immediate playing status remains uncertain, pending the results of an MRI Thursday, but playing on Opening Day against the Los Angeles Dodgers may be questionable.

Bochy has some interesting options in filling Ross’ spot. Will rookie Brandon Belt or the maligned veteran Aaron Rowand benefit from Ross’ injury?

Assuming Ross is unable to start the season, here is the current state of the Giants’ outfield as the Giants break camp next week.

Andres Torres

It seems as if he is penciled in to be the starting center fielder, even if Rowand replaces Ross on the field. Bochy has inserted Rowand in the corner outfield positions this spring to prepare for a change from his native center field position.

Pat Burrell

Mychael Urban of CSNBayArea.com said he believes Burrell was the front-runner to start in left field before Ross’ injury. Urban also said that Brandon Belt may start at first base with Aubrey Huff moving to the outfield.

Aubrey Huff

With Ross’ injury, Huff just might be patrolling a corner outfield position in next Thursday’s opener. Urban added that the Giants like Belt’s bat and are confident he can handle first base. This appears to be the likely scenario if Belt continues to play well for the rest of spring training.

Aaron Rowand

His hitting is atrocious, but he has a decent glove. He will have a shot to prove himself with Ross’ injury, as the Giants will probably move people around until Ross comes back.

Nate Schierholtz

He is an exceptional fielder with a great arm, but he is out of options. Because of this, Urban said he might be given a shot to start right field. From an offensive standpoint, Huff in right field and Burrell in left make the most sense.

Mark DeRosa

He played some left field for the Giants in 2010, but the team would rather have him bounce around the infield. However, DeRosa has hit the ball hard this spring and could force himself into the lineup, whether in the outfield or the infield (with Huff moving to the outfield).

Cody Ross

Do not completely rule out Ross. If Thursday’s MRI goes well, he might patrol right field on Opening Day after all. However, given how the injury looked, this probably will not happen.

Predicted outfield on Opening Day

LF: Pat Burrell

CF: Andres Torres

RF: Aubrey Huff (with Belt at first)

The bottom line is, the Giants are a versatile team who are well-equipped for a situation like Ross’ injury. If Belt can contribute and continue his good plate approach, the Giants might not miss Ross all that much while he is healing from his calf injury.

Follow me on twitter @vintalkingiants

This article was featured on the blog Talking Giants Baseball

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According to Chris Haft of MLB.com, San Francisco Giants All-Star closer Brian Wilson was diagnosed with a mildly strained left oblique yesterday.

Wilson believes he will be ready for Opening Day, but Martie Lurie of KNBR said on the Giants’ postgame show that March 31’s opener is in jeopardy for the bearded right-hander.

Wilson will not throw the ball until Monday, when he will be re-evaluated.

Wilson earned a major league best 48 saves last season. He reported the discomfort last Friday, the day after pitching a shutout inning against the Angels in an exhibition game.

Coming into Saturday’s game, Wilson pitched five innings in the preseason and gave up just one run (1.80 ERA). 

My Thoughts

This is a bit of a concern for me.

Brian Wilson is one of the best closers in the National League, perhaps the game, and I do not think the Giants have anyone formidable to replace him with. Santiago Casilla does not throw enough strikes for me in the ninth, and Sergio Romo is just too prone to the long ball late in the game (as seen in the NLDS).

Although Javier Lopez is a good pitcher, I want someone who can throw gas coming into the ninth inning. If this were 2009, I would say Jeremy Affeldt could step in, but he just has not been consistent enough of late.

A possible under-the-radar candidate could be Marc Kroon.

Kroon was a successful closer in Japan who nearly broke the all-time saves record over there. In six seasons, Kroon accrued 177 saves and threw as high as 101 mph.

He is doing okay in spring training, giving up two runs in six innings (3.00 ERA) while striking out four.

Still, it would be very difficult to replace Wilson, who insists that he will be fine for the opener in Los Angeles. However, anything can happen and the Giants need to look at other options just in case.

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The RBI (runs batted in) is a major stat in baseball, but fans and experts debate whether it is meaningful in determining a player’s offensive worth.

James Loney of the Los Angeles Dodgers is a good example of the debate. In 2010, Loney batted just .261 with 10 home runs, but had 88 RBI.

Were Loney’s 88 RBI an indication of a solid contribution with the stick, or were they just a product of him hitting with many ducks on the pond? Baseball experts seem to disagree, and no right or wrong answer seems to exist.

Mike Petriello, a prominent Dodger blogger and creator of the blog “Mike Scioscia’s Tragic Illness,” says that RBI have no connection to how well a player can swing the bat, as they are too dependent on whether the batters before him reach base.

“The whole point of stats is that they’re supposed to show what a player did, and numbers like RBI (and pitcher wins) have too much noise from the influence of other players,” Petriello said.

Mychael Urban, a baseball insider for CSNBayArea, disagrees with Petriello and believes that a run-producer is a valuable asset to any team.

“Anyone who ignored the importance of driving in runs is asinine,” Urban wrote on Twitter.

Both sides of the coin may have some merit.

Ken Rosenthal, Senior Baseball Writer for Fox Sports, suggests that an argument can be made for both sides, but other baseball statistics are better indicators of a hitter’s ability.

“There is a real difference of opinion on this (on RBIs measuring a player’s offensive worth),” Rosenthal wrote on Twitter. “I say yes, stat has some value, but OBP/SLG mean more.”

Rosenthal’s assessment seems to make the most sense. Although the RBI statistic does not paint a complete picture in determining a player’s offensive worth, it does have an important value.

It takes some sort of hitting talent to drive in runners, regardless of how often people are on base when a player comes up or the team on-base percentage. Anyone who watched the 2009 Giants could clearly see the importance of a consistent RBI-producer.

The 2009 Giants often stranded runners on third with less than two outs. They could not get any runners in, no matter who was on base or how often men were on base. The Giants routinely squandered these golden opportunities.

James Loney was good at getting those runners in. He was able to take advantage of those situational at-bats, even when an out would produce a run.

Unlike most of the 2009 Giants lineup, he had the concentration and hitting ability to get a good pitch to drive to the outfield with runners at third and less than two outs. He could get that RBI hit when it mattered. He could get that RBI ground out with the infield back.

Sometimes the little things—e.g., the manufactured RBI—are what win ball games.

They may not be impressive, but they are just as important. The Giants improved their situational hitting drastically in 2010 and look what happened—they won a championship.

Loney only had 10 home runs, but that does not mean he is a bad hitter. In order to get 88 RBI with such little power, he had to be a smart situational hitter, trading an out for a run if necessary. He had to hit doubles and get those base hits with runners in scoring position.

Loney is a gap-to-gap Mark Grace-type hitter. He was fifth in the National League in doubles, with 41, which might have been a contributing factor toward the solid RBI total.

Regardless of his little power at a power position, Loney demonstrated enough competence at the plate to deliver quality situational at-bats.

Take someone like the Dodgers’ new acquisition Eugenio Velez and ask him to do the same thing Loney did, given that he has the same chances with runners on base as Loney did. Would he be competent enough to reach 88 RBI?

He would chase too many pitches out of the strike zone and would either strike out or pop out. He just does not have the offensive ability to do what Loney does on a consistent basis.

Although driving in runs is just one dimension in assessing a hitter’s offensive ability, it is an important one that cannot be ignored. Of course, a player’s batting average, slugging percentage, on-base percentage, home run total, .OPS, and sabermetric statistics should also be examined when assessing a player’s offensive ability.

Still, someone who can drive in runs, but lacks in other offensive categories, still brings something valuable to the table—he can bring in runs when the situation calls for it.

Every team needs someone like this to win, but to determine if someone is a great hitter requires looking at more of his numbers.

Time to get out that book on advanced statistics.

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The San Francisco Giants struck out in developing major league talent for most of the 2000s, but that trend has turned around recently.

Born and bred within the Giants organization, Tim Lincecum, Matt Cain and Buster Posey are emerging as perennial superstars in the major leagues. They have demonstrated leadership and poise during baseball’s biggest stage, the World Series.

Many formidable predecessors donned the orange and black on day one of their professional careers. Will “The Thrill” Clark was one of them, along with many others.

Posey has lived up to the hype so far, but who else in Giants history has preceded Posey? Here are the last 10 Giants’ prospects who lived up to the hype.

This article was featured on the blog Talking Giants Baseball.

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Revert back to July 10, 2009. After struggling earlier in that season, Jonathan Sanchez, after being banished to the bullpen, spot started for the injured Randy Johnson.

The result on that fateful night was a dazzling performance against the San Diego Padres, as he no-hit them in an 8-0 rout. Not a single walk tainted Sanchez’s line.

Fast forward to Oct. 23, 2010. The Giants are battling the Phillies in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series in Philadelphia, needing a big start from their left-handed hurler.

Although the Giants ended up winning the clinching NLCS game, Jonathan Sanchez had a night to forget, lasting just two innings, while walking two and surrendering two runs. His night came to a close after he drilled Chase Utley on the back, leading to a Sanchez/Utley confrontation where Utley flipped the baseball back to the mound after he was hit.

Such is the inconsistency of the Giants’ left-handed enigma, Jonathan Sanchez. On one night, he can look just as good as Lincecum or Cain, but on another night, he makes Todd Wellemeyer look like Cy Young.

One might think of Sanchez like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. While he has all the upside in the world and had a fine 2010 season, his immaturity showed in the postseason, and he led the National League in walks.

Will Sanchez show progress in 2011, or will he regress?

Here are five reasons why one might be high on Jonathan Sanchez and five reasons why one might be skeptical about the left-hander.

This article was featured on the blog Talking Giants Baseball.

Follow me on twitter @vintalkingiants

Do RBIs measure a player’s offensive worth? Click here to vote.

Questions? Comments? Feedback? E-mail my blog mailbag at vc4re@yahoo.com. Your question may be posted on my blog, along with answers.

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The Mannywood era of Dodger baseball came to a close in 2010. Now that the slugger has moved on from the City of Angels, the hunt is on to replace him.

Dipping below 700 total runs scored in 2010 for the first time since 2005, the Dodgers need to improve their offense if they plan on climbing to the top of the National League West once again. Even with Andre Ethier and Matt Kemp, they were a team that was 27th in baseball in home runs at 120 and 24th in RBI at 621.

For the Dodgers to succeed in 2011, they will need some help from Ned Colletti to improve the offense. Can he lure Princewood to Los Angeles?

Here are 10 potential sluggers who can make Mannywood a thing of the past at Chavez Ravine in 2011.

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Spring training is nearly two months away, and the Giants have been relatively inactive on the hot stove during the offseason.

With the exception of the Miguel Tejada signing, their other signings have involved bringing back components from the 2010 World Series championship season, such as Pat Burrell and Aubrey Huff.

Although the free agent market has thinned now that Carl Crawford and Jayson Werth have joined other clubs, the Giants still have some viable options on available players, both in the free agent and trade markets.

Here are 10 potentially available players who could guarantee October baseball on the shores of McCovey Cove again in 2011.

This article was featured on the blog Talking Giants Baseball.

How many games will the Giants win in 2011? Vote here.

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Nearly two months ago, the San Francisco Giants took care of some unfinished business, their first world championship in San Francisco. 

Now, with spring training just two months away, the Giants have little time to prepare for next season’s campaign. They brought back most of their 2010 championship team, including their pitching staff, and added Miguel Tejada to replace Juan Uribe, but is it enough?

The rest of the National League has appeared to become stronger, especially with the Phillies’ “Fantastic Four” starting pitching staff, but the Giants still have the tools to take home the Major League Baseball championship crown again in 2011.

Here are 10 reasons why the Giants just might bring home another World Series title to the city by the bay.

This article was featured on the blog Talking Giants Baseball.

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