I expect O.Co Coliseum to be orange in envy, as Giants fans should take over the stadium, as it has done to many teams since our glorious 2010 World Championship (heck, fans did it to San Diego at the end of last season too!).
Are the A's serious? They are putting up a rookie who had a lousy first outing up against Big Time Jimmy Tim, another nobody up against Dirty, then their flailing ace against Cainer. I would be upset if there is not a series win and a sweep should not be out of the question, the A's have lost a lot recently, so not like the 2010 Giants. It is all here, at this link, of Probable Pitchers for the series.
They had lost 9 in a row with Geren, the first with Melvin for a 10 game losing streak, but has been .500 since then for new manager Bob Melvin, though that is because they got to play the KC Royals at home, if that is not a recipe for winning a series, I don't know what is (they have played roughly .333 on the road, which is the winning percentage of winning one game out of three on the road).
The A's have actually been OK at home, playing .500, but then again, they are facing the Giants top three starters, Tim Lincecum, Jonathan Sanchez, and Matt Cain. And they are sending up two rookies like lambs to the slaughter. Graham Godfrey gave up 5 runs in 4.1 IP while walking 2 and striking out only two. Even a struggling Lincecum should be able to get a win against him. Guillermo Moscoso has a 3.91 ERA, but in 25.1 IP, he has 11 walks and 11 strikeouts, he's been living on some luck or has a pitch that can really induce a lot of popups. That type of pitcher sometimes do give the Giants fits, but Dirty has been very good this season. The Giants should win the first two games of the series.
The Trevor Cahill game is the only one that they have a good chance of winning. He has basically given up only one run per start to the Giants, his ERA is 1.37 in his career, two starts at home, one start in SF earlier this season.
Unfortunately for the A's the Cainer has had some of his best performances against them, 2.30 ERA career, 1.38 ERA in the Coliseum, including two shutouts in three starts. I would call it even for that game.
Giants Thoughts
In another universe, I probably would have become one of those Giants fans who support the A's too, but the meanness of A's fans have burned that bridge long ago (Giants are going to be The Team of the 2010's, put that in your green and yellow hats and smoke it!). I would be happy if they moved away, even happier if they would move to the South Bay and pay the Giants around $100M for those rights - they never rightfully paid the Giants for entering their territory in the first place in the 1960's anyway, they really should not have any rights to the SF Bay Area. It would only be right if they ponied up that money (or assets) to the Giants now for the rights to the South Bay. And then the Giants could use that money to keep Lincecum around longer, win-win.
The Giants better win the series, that is all I can say, and it would be even better if we can sweep them and show them how much of a sham all those reporters talking up the 2011 A's as a repeat of the 2010 Giants. Not even, Billy Beane has no real strategy for winning and Mr. OBP does not even follow the advice of the organization that he was happily quoted for, Baseball Prospectus, on how to be successful deep into the playoffs.
Meanwhile Brian Sabean, who Baseball Prospectus BEGGED the Giants to fire before the 2010 season, has basically followed the formula that BP (and THT) had laid out as the way to win in the playoffs: defense, particularly pitching, with high K/9 pitching staff and a great closer. Beane still does not get that a closer is a key part of a winning team, he has been using his stale old-saber theory that closers were replaceable cogs that are easily replaced. Sabers who think that is so just don't understand that there is a lot of the game that you can't quantify, this is no fantasy baseball league, these are real people.
Go Giants!
You know, I've never really had a reason to dislike the A's. It was hard not to like them when they had the Big 3 with Mulder, Hudson, and screwup. Tejada, Giambi, Chavez, Damon, Dye, Byrnes... that was a fun team. But otherwise, I've never been overly excited about them. And it's really bothered me how well they'd shut us down in the past few years in head to heads. But those days seem to be over.
ReplyDeleteHow nice would a sweep be right now? Double-digits over .500... wow!
I started out as a Giants fan in the 60's before the A's moved in from KC. I've never, ever gotten over the feeling that the A's are imposters. I hated to see htem move in and they clearly hurt the Giants franchise for a long time by diluting the fan base.
ReplyDeleteAs bad as the Coliseum is, it's more comfortable than Candlestick was. It was also closer and easier to get to for fans from the East Bay suberbs so that siphoned off a huge chunk of the Giants fan base.
Well, THAT was disappointing, to say the least!
ReplyDeleteYeah, to say the least!
ReplyDeleteThanks DrB for sharing your perspective as a Giants fan when the invading green and yellow snots came into our region.
What you say makes sense to me about who all those fans with the half hats are, the former Giants fans who are now A's fans.
Kyle, thanks for your comment.
ReplyDeleteI don't really dislike the A's, I just dislike a large swathe of their fans, and thus I have no problem inflicting pain on them via their team. The A's I follow because they are local and I'm just into sports. I would not miss them if they go, but I'm OK if they stay, as long, that is, they pony up the money (>$100M) to move to San Jose.
Their dominance of the Giants have gone on for a long while in the season series, it was more even lately, but they have been a thorn in the Giants sides for a long while now.
So I wouldn't be sad if the A's moved and their fans would join the Raiders' fans in crying in their beers (only matter of time, I think, Al Davis is crazy and greedy, and looks to live forever it seems).