Game Thread: 10.8.16 Giants vs. Cubs Game 2

[calsnowskier]

Poopturd lost the game. He was weak.

That is all.

Offense only scored 2 runs. He could have thrown a great game and still lost.

The offense is anemic.

 

[Stokes1931]

Offense only scored 2 runs. He could have thrown a great game and still lost.

The offense is anemic.

Thanks, Captain Obvious! (BTW, where IS GoldenBears98, anyway?)

So what to do about this? Perhaps more discussion in the off season.

Every year, the Giants' hitters go into a prolonged collective slump. This one has been going on since July, that's three months. Have they tuned out Bam Bam? A good hitting coach can help hitters get out of a slump, one would think. Are they tired? Has Noggin played his starters too much? I don't think so, but they need to find a way to limit Posey's games behind the dish next year. Is our hitting philosophy screwed up? We have seen the almost the fewest pitches in the 2nd half of the season. Does not working the count work when you are in a slump? See ball-hit ball seems to be a fantasy when a hitter, much less a team, is slumping. And because we have no speed and no power, station to station seems woefully inadequate to scoring runs consistently. Of course, caveat, injuries to Duffy, Panik, Pence have all taken their toll.

How do the Giants fix this?

We can gripe about the starters (for periods), we can gripe about the bully (legit), but it has been the hitting, especially in the 2nd half, that has been the weaklink. It is not the runs scored so much, even though they were down. We had a few monster games that skewed those stats. It has been the maddening inconsistency that has been the problem. And don't even start with the RISP issue.

 

[tzill]

Offense only scored 2 runs. He could have thrown a great game and still lost.

The offense is anemic.

If he had thrown a great game, it would have been a good game to watch.

It was not a good game to watch.

He is weak.

 

[SFGRTB]

Thanks, Captain Obvious! (BTW, where IS GoldenBears98, anyway?)

So what to do about this? Perhaps more discussion in the off season.

Every year, the Giants' hitters go into a prolonged collective slump. This one has been going on since July, that's three months. Have they tuned out Bam Bam? A good hitting coach can help hitters get out of a slump, one would think. Are they tired? Has Noggin played his starters too much? I don't think so, but they need to find a way to limit Posey's games behind the dish next year. Is our hitting philosophy screwed up? We have seen the almost the fewest pitches in the 2nd half of the season. Does not working the count work when you are in a slump? See ball-hit ball seems to be a fantasy when a hitter, much less a team, is slumping. And because we have no speed and no power, station to station seems woefully inadequate to scoring runs consistently. Of course, caveat, injuries to Duffy, Panik, Pence have all taken their toll.

How do the Giants fix this?

We can gripe about the starters (for periods), we can gripe about the bully (legit), but it has been the hitting, especially in the 2nd half, that has been the weaklink. It is not the runs scored so much, even though they were down. We had a few monster games that skewed those stats. It has been the maddening inconsistency that has been the problem. And don't even start with the RISP issue.

This will be a topic for the offseason, but I think we're basically at a point where we don't have anyone who should be the catalyst for the lineup right now. Belt and Posey are the closest things, with their abilities to get on base, but Pence can't be relied on anymore, Craw is an upper tier hitter for a SS, but not a top/middle of the order bat, and Nunez is basically in the same boat as Craw as a utility guy. Panik could be key, he was legit in 2015, but he still hasn't played a full season and maybe his '15 was a fluke. Span and Pagan were basically replacement level, decent enough to hit 7th/8th but not leadoff.

A guy I've always been a fan of, but may have hit a few too many homers this year (both endearing him to the fan and driving his price to extreme levels) is Brian Dozier. Center a deal around Panik. Again, offseason talk because we still have some games to win, just spit-balling some names. Kole Calhoun. Adam Eaton. Logan Forsythe. Brad Miller.

Those are all guys I'd be fine batting 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 and mixed in with Posey and Belt could jolt this lineup enough.

 

[tzill]

Thinking more and more about Poopturd, he's a decent asset to have as a #4 guy. He'll eat 200 innings, give you a chance to win 2/3 of the time, and seems to be a good clubhouse guy. So, he has some value. I don't think he has 5/85 value, but that money is spent.

All that said, he is NOT a guy who should be getting a start in the postseason. I mean seriously, was ANYBODY surprised with his moundshattery?

After the year he gave us?

We are still alive, but next year -- we need another solid SP, b/c Poopturd aint that guy.