Where Have All The Fastballs Gone?

Eovaldi’s average fastball velocity in two starts so far this year is 97 mph.

Watching Miami Marlins starter Nathan Eovaldi overpower the Giants on Sunday afternoon was an eye-opener on several levels. For one, I began to wonder if the team actually fines anyone who takes a first pitch in back-to-back at-bats. But mostly I had to ask myself, why don’t the Giants have guys with arms like that?

Perhaps you’ve noticed, but these days the Orange and Black are nearly devoid of pitchers, starters or otherwise, who can simply reach back and throw one by a hitter. Let me first say that I am well aware that velocity by itself is pretty useless against big league hitters, and on the list of things I would preach to pitchers it would sit comfortably behind location and the ability to change speeds effectively. That said, like home run power, velocity can be a great equalizer and overcome certain deficiencies a pitcher may have.

In the case of a guy like Eovaldi, whose calling card is not pinpoint control and command, it means he can get away with mistakes here and there and still get people out. Should he ever harness his stuff and combine the mid-to-high 90’s velocity with the ability to hit his spots consistently, look out. Worst case scenario, he never gets it all together and slips easily into a relief role where the fastball plays up and he’s only forced to face a hitter once a game at the most. Either way, that’s a valuable big league arm.

For all the accolades showered upon the Giants pitching staff over the last several years, and they have been fantastic, they do not have a single arm on their roster that even approaches Eovaldi’s. It’s a hard truth to swallow, but a truth nonetheless.

The 18 Million Dollar Question

World Series hero, Barry Zito

Let’s face it Giants fans, we love us some Barry Zito. Game 5 of the NLCS, Game 1 of the World Series, those were magical performances that will forever live in the hearts and minds of Giants fans everywhere. Things weren’t always so magical for Zito in the Orange and Black, which brings me to the aforementioned 18 million dollar question:

Should the Giants exercise the 18 million dollar option on Barry Zito’s contract for 2014?

Tough one, isn’t it? Let’s examine both sides of this very expensive coin.

The Moment of Truth, Or Is It?

Will the real Tim Lincecum please stand up?

Small sample sizes. In baseball, they are good for very little beyond, well, they’re just not very good. Which makes tonight’s start for Tim Lincecum vs. the Dodgers just that much more interesting.

On the one hand, Giants Nation is waiting with bated breath to see what a slightly heavier, well-coiffed Big Time Timmy Jim will do in his first start since a disastrous 2012 regular season. Can he ever be close to the same again, or was his dominant post-season run in the bullpen a glimpse at his ultimate destiny as a pitcher?

On the other hand, does it even matter what happens tonight or will we just be fooling ourselves one way or another as we either proclaim his demise or trumpet his return to glory?

Buster Posey: What Does It All Mean?

Buster Posey, f**k yeah!!!

I was getting ready to sit down and write about how good I thought Tim Lincecum looked last night in his final tune up before the regular season, when it was announced that Captain Amer… I mean Buster Posey, had just signed the biggest contract in San Francisco Giants history.

First off, bravo to Giants management for locking up one of the best players in the league and if he stays healthy, potentially the greatest catcher who ever lived. And they did it in a way that even alongside a large, lengthy deal for Matt Cain, will not leave the club hurting for cash down the line. Combine these deals with the bargain-basement deal given to Madison Bumgarner and you have the backbone of a contending team in place for the next half-decade.

Oh How I’ve Missed You

It has been five long, but glorious, months since last I posted here at FBB and I must say that I have missed it, and you, quite a bit.

As you may or may not recall, my hiatus began after game 4 of the NLCS having watched the Giants go down 3-1 on the road against the reigning, defending World Series champs. Staring a playoff exit in the face, I decided to stop torturing myself with posts on how brutal it was to watch the Giants commit self-immolation. Instead, I closed up shop and waited for the inevitable, hoping that “going dark” would have some sort of cosmic effect on the outcomes of the games to follow.

Lo and behold here we sit five months later and your San Francisco Giants are the defending World Series champs for the second time in three years. You are welcome. That brings us to today and I am happy to announce that I am back for the 2013 season and am looking forward to bringing you new content as often as my schedule allows.

This week you can look forward to several new posts, including my thoughts on everyone’s favorite Freak and that one time Brandon Belt called me out on Twitter. Trust me, you don’t want to miss that. Check back soon for that and more and thank you very much for reading!

 

NLCS Game 4: Cardinals 8 – Giants 3

It was that kind of night and that kind of season for Tim Lincecum

There isn’t a whole lot to say about what was a humbling and embarrassing performance by the Giants in game 4 of the NLCS, a game that leaves the Orange and Black a game away from seeing their season come to an end.

Tim Lincecum capped a miserable year with a characteristically uneven performance and put his team in a hole from which they could never recover. The bats were virtually silent, the decision to start Hector Sanchez behind the plate and Buster Posey at first base cost the Giants no fewer than 2 runs (probably more) and they were outplayed and outclassed in every phase of the game.

Outside of a very solid effort on both sides of the ball from Angel Pagan, a surprise home run from Hunter Pence and a meaningless home run by Pablo Sandoval in the 9th, the Giants were lifeless and (mostly) punchless and will now turn to none other than Barry Zito to save the season and send the series back to San Francisco.

Make no mistake, the Cardinals are a good team, but the Giants are making them look like a great team and that’s what hurts the most. Could lightning strike twice and see this team win three games in a row to advance? Sure, it could, but you would be hard-pressed to find anyone in their right mind who truly believes it will happen.

I am so mad right now that it actually hurts to write this. Anything is possible, but I’m not holding my breath.

NLCS Game 3: Cardinals 3 – Giants 1

Hunter Pence is killing the Giants in run scoring opportunities

In game 3 of a playoff series that the Giants appear doomed to chase the whole way, Matt Cain was outstanding and like so many times before was left with nothing to show for it. It was a tough loss in a pivotal game, and here’s how I saw it.

NLCS Game 1: Cardinals 6 – Giants 4

Bumgarner has carried his late season struggles into the playoffs

Game 1 of the NLCS felt a lot like games 1 and 2 of the NLDS before the Giants rallied to make a game of it. Unfortunately they came up short to go down 1-0 in the series and here are five quick thoughts on the game itself.

Deja Vu All Over Again

What will Bochy do next?

It has been far too long since last I updated this little blog of mine and for those of you who had been following me for the last few months, I apologize for my absence. I wish I could say I was returning in happier times for our beloved Giants, but alas my first post in over a month resides beneath the shadow of an 0-2 hole in the NLDS.

I don’t need to remind anyone of how they got here, nor do I need to (over) analyze the reasons why. If you don’t pitch and you don’t hit, you don’t win, simple as that. That said, the current predicament that the Orange and Black find themselves in reminds me very much of another notable playoff collapse. I speak of course of the year that was 2003. We remember it well, don’t we?

The Giant Monday Notebook

Buster Posey, pitch destroyer.

Despite the doom and gloom of dropping three of four to the Mets at home to start the week, the Giants salvaged a 4-3 week overall after sweeping the Rockies in Colorado. Still a half game up in first place and with new additions Marco Scutaro and Hunter Pence fitting in nicely, things are looking up for the Orange and Black.

Who’s Hot, Who’s Not? 
Generally speaking, I abhor small sample sizes, but for the purposes of the Monday notebook it’s worth taking a quick look at who had a good week and who needs to pick up the pace.