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The G-Men are Having Fun Playing under Buster, and so are we.
The question right now is who is having more fun, the players or the fans? And who is responsible? The guys are playing like little boys, picking each other up when down, playing games in the dugout, helping each other to get better and looking like a cohesive unit, top to bottom. This is the culture of Buster Ball.
Buster was brought into the ownership group with a piece of the team (so he has a stake, as if he needed one) and anointed as the President of Baseball operations. The first thing he did was to lift the cross of analytics off the backs of the players. Not that there is anything wrong with statistics (baseball cards thrive on stats) but the emphasis now is playing for each other and the fans. Every player has a consistent position and knows that he will not lose it because of one bad game, or one matchup that doesn’t make sense to the Gods of analytics. As the sage said: “success is the sum of small efforts repeated day in and day out.” And for a team with a 13 and 6 record less than a month into the season the consistency has been a breath of fresh air. We all want to come to the ballpark (or turn on the TV) every day.
Baseball is fun when winning, but it’s also fun when you see a team not let themselves get down by one bad play or giving up one big hit to the opposition. I don’t know about everyone else, but I want to get to the ballpark on time and see the warm-ups. The chemistry is outstanding, the stands are full, the crab sandwiches are delicious, the Irish coffees are to die for, the foul balls fly into our gloves, and the seagulls are quiet. Tony, however, is still singing at the bottom of the 9th inning.
The Line-Up is stable and it shows in hitting and defense
The stability and consistency are exemplified by the fact that we all know the names of the starters and the bench players.
Either Wilmer Flores (leading the team with 6 dingers) or Yaz (batting .302 with 3 HR’s and stellar defense) will be leading off.
Adames (flashing an all-start glove at short) will bat 2nd (or DH).
Jung Hoo Lee (covering center field like a blanket and batting. 348 with 10 doubles, leading all of baseball) will be in the 3 hole.
Matt Chapman (flashing his Gold Glove 3B credentials) hitting cleanup.
followed by the kid at 2nd base Fitzgerald (where did he come from? batting .349 with 17 hits, 3 HR and a team leading 4 stolen bases – he is fast!)
Then we get to the big bopper that is striking fear in every opposing pitcher - Heliot Ramos in LF with a .413 slugging and .684 OPS
Finally, there is a rock behind home plate in Patick Bailey (coming off his 1st Gold Glove season) being one of the premier pitch framers working the game today. Remember Buster Posey in 2010? Is it the second coming? Inquiring minds want to know.
The surprises include Casey Schmidt being moved from his natural 3rd and 2nd base position to 1st, where he is thriving with clutch hits and great defense.
The bottom line is we know these guys, know where they belong and know what they can do. Better yet, so do they.
The Pitching staff is being supported and are relaxed
The G-Men lost Blake Snell to some team in Southern California but are not missing him. The pitching staff is melding into a cohesive unit behind Logan Webb (team leading 2.63 ERA), a revitalized Robbie Ray (with a team leading 3 wins after his Cy Young two years ago and injuries last year), a young Landen Roupp and a more mature Jordan Hicks.
The relievers are the real story however, Randy Rodriguez has not given up a run in 9 games, Hayden Birdsong went from a starter to long relief and is holding his own. Erik Miller, Tyler Rodgers and Ryan Walker (with 4 saves already) are nails out of the bullpen. This week against the Phillies we saw what Lou Trivino can do. Even Camilo (who has had his share of meltdowns) seems to thrive with this group. Finally, we are all waiting for Verlander’s first win as a Giant. A likely first round HOF’er, he is doing his thing of educating the young pitchers while he plugs along the road to 300 wins and enjoys getting Panda dolls from Giants fans.
The bottom line is the pitchers are loose and look like a staff that can handle the long haul of a regular season. It’s too early to be sure but taking 2 out of 3 from the mighty Yankees (they of the torpedo bats) and splitting a series in Philly at the most raucous park in all of baseball does give one a feeling of good things to come as the spring turns into summer.
The Upcoming series – Brewers and Rangers
Watching the standings in April is rarely a productive thing to do but this year the entire NL West is on fire. The FOUR best teams in all baseball are in the NL West. The Padres lead the pack, followed by the Dodgers, the Giants and the Snakes. Any of these four teams would lead every other division in baseball.
The Brew Crew are 10 and 1 and in 2nd place in the NL Central. They are hot and want to climb over the 1st place Cubs, so this is an important series to them. Their pitching (behind Jose Quintana and Freddy Peralta) is staunch. The hitters to watch are Jackson Chourio (5 HR and 17 RBI’s) and 3B Sal Frelick (batting .318).
Then the G-Men face Bruce Bochy’s Texas Rangers, who are leading the AL West with a 12 and 7 record, and who would like nothing more than knocking the G-Men off their perch close to the top of the NL West. Look for hitting from Corey Seager (remember him?) and pitching from Nathan Eovaldi.
It’s going to be a great week of baseball and a great way to celebrate the cohesive Giants – and Buster Ball.
On the Board ready for pick up are:
4/21 MON [6:45] Brewers [4]
4/22 TUES [6:45] Brewers [2] – I’m going and have the other two tickets
4/23 WED [6:45] Brewers [4]
4/24 THUR [12:45] Brewers [4]
4/25 FRI [7:15] Rangers [3] – I’m going
4/26 SAT [1:05] Rangers [4] – Brandon Crawford t-shirt
4/27 SUN [1:05] Rangers [4] – Youth Softball Day
Let the torture continue.
Ciao, and GO GIANTS!
The Czar
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THE PROTOCOL: The firm has four seats in Section 118 (Premium Lower Boxes), Rows 25 and 26. These are awesome seats directly below the press box and 25 rows behind the home plate on the left side behind the screen. It is foul ball territory for left-handed batters so bring your glove – I have collected 22 foul balls myself over 23 years and am looking for more. If we don’t use all the tickets ourselves (or clients and friends of the firm don't claim them by calling me and reserving a game), then my next step is to give the tickets TO THE FIRST PERSON WHO GETS BACK TO ME PROVIDED THAT THEY ARE SERIOUS. If you ask for the tickets and don't use them, you will be taken off the list unless there is a seriously good reason. There will be a waitlist.
When there are four seats available (we split up a lot of games) we will allocate the tickets two and two if the first people back just want two tickets. You can also go for four and might get them. I'm the Czar, my call.
Oh, and BTW, The Czar found the original Hinman & Carmichael brick from 2000 (after looking for it every year since 2000) and found H&C’s Gotham Club Founders Bat! If you are on the patio, or in the Club, look for the symbols of baseball!
