Tag Archives: Giants

Bad pitching, bad defense and a path to the postseason

Aside from a burst offense in an aborted comeback on Wednesday, little has gone right the last three days against the Oakland A’s. The defense has been bad and the pitching has been worse. Health, too, has been a problem; Angel Pagan hasn’t played since Saturday and Marco Scutaro has caught the virus making its way through the Giants’ clubhouse.

The Giants have played themselves into a tie for second in a very tight NL West. At this point, the winner of the division might only need 85-87 wins. The defending champs aren’t out of anything, but the last three games have been enough to wound the spirit of a once-believing fan base. Let’s ask some questions and posit some answers:

Is this just bad luck? Are the Giants vulnerable? Is this a .500 team?

First, let’s address what made the Giants successful from 2009-2012:

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SF Giants lineup: Pagan out again, plus scouting reports on Kickham

When Ryan Vogelsong was injured a week ago, Giants fans became on edge like they hadn’t in quite some time. The starting rotation hadn’t had a long-term injury since Barry Zito in 2011, but Zito wasn’t pitching well enough for anyone to be concerned. And his replacement was Vogelsong, who lit up the National League and collected an All-Star Game appearance and a few Cy Young votes along the way.

The Chronicle’s Henry Schulman thinks Kickham won’t be up for long, given that the Giants have 3 of 8 days off in early June. But two starts seems imminent, so here are some scouting reports on the young lefty:  Continue reading →

Mike Kickham to start for Giants Tuesday

Left-hander Mike Kickham will start Tuesday for the San Francisco Giants when they play the Oakland Athletics. Kickham last pitched in Fresno on Friday, getting his third straight win and improving his record to 3-4. He has been the hot hand, giving up just three earned runs in his last three starts combined after a rocky start to the season.

“He’s been the best pitcher down there in Fresno,” said Bruce Bochy, “He’s a left hander we think a lot of.”

The need for a starter arose after Ryan Vogelsong was injured in his start last Monday when a pitch broke his pinky finger in two places during a fifth-inning at-bat. The Giants were able to skip his turn on Friday, using Thursday’s off day to keep the other rotation pitchers on normal rest.

Management will need to make a roster move, as Kickham is not on the 40-man roster. The simplest move would be to transfer Erik Surkamp from the 15- to the 60-day disabled list. Surkamp is still recovering from Tommy John surgery, and he really isn’t on the radar to contribute in the big leagues this season. The move is expected to come late Monday or early Tuesday.