SFGiants, Games 20-22 Rockies Series

Hi there! It's been a while...miss me? I've missed you. I've also missed the Giants. I hate Thursday off days. The only positive is that it gives me a chance to catch up on the shows I wanted to watch (Survivor & The Mindy Project). A little about me - it's been a very busy week at work. Like, crazy busy. I've also gone bridesmaid dress shopping, had sushi twice, went on a hike at Bishop Ranch, and spent a lot of time at the gym. My trip to Peru is coming up, so I'll be busy working out. That means few chances to live tweet the game and even less time to write :( I'm going to keep up with my blog though because it's become a source of relaxation for me. 

Anyway...I'm excited to be back at AT&T Park tonight, tomorrow, and Sunday. Yes, I'm doing another three-game series. I love it. Also, my friend Chris is in town visiting and I'll be meeting up with my favorite Giants friends/fans, so this weekend will be a blast!

Aren't you glad I'm done writing about myself? ;) Let's relieve that stressful and demoralizing series with a happy ending, shall we? 

Game 20 - Vogelsong
This game sucked. Vogelsong was not effective at all, and even admitted post game that he was embarrassed by his performance. I feel bad for him. This picture says it all. 

Here are some lowlights from the 8-2 loss:
- Vogey lasted only 1 1/3 innings, allowing five runs on three home runs.
- Charlie Blackmon hit two of the five total home runs for the Rockies. All eight of their runs were scored via home run.
- The Rockies sent nine men to the plate in the first inning. It was just awful from the beginning. Nolan Arenado and Wilin Rosario both hit home runs in the 1st, giving the Rockies a 4-0 lead. Blackmon led off the 2nd inning with a home run.
- From Owen Perkins at mlb.com: It was Vogelsong's shortest outing in 82 starts as a Giant and the shortest start by any National League pitcher this season.
- David Huff came in to relieve Vogey and promptly got a double play to end the 2nd inning. He also had his first AB in the majors and made it safely to first, beating out the throw. Unfortunately, he hurt himself in the process. He stayed on base and scored his first run when Buster Posey GIDP but didn't pitch in the bottom of the 3rd. More suckage.
- Yusmeiro Petit replaced Huff in the 3rd. After Rosario singled, Corey Dickerson hit a two-run home run. DJ LeMahieu doubled, but the Petit settled down and got the next three batters out. He also led of the 5th inning and it was funny to watch.
- In the 5th, Hunter Pence had a ground rule double that potentially kept Angel Pagan from scoring. With Pence and Pagan on 2nd and 3rd, both Posey and Michael Morse couldn't get them home.
- In the 7th, Pagan struck out on a called strike and argued with the ump. According to Bruce Bochy, he was going to be pulled for Gregor Blanco to rest anyway, so he let Pagan argue longer and "get his money's worth." Gotta love Boch! 

- Jean Machi replaced Petit in the 7th. Juan Gutierrez came in to pitch in the 8th and Blackmon hit his 2nd home run off him.
- Brandon Belt singled in the 9th, and following a wild pitch and a passed ball, Belt was on third with no outs. Brandon Hicks/Crawford both made outs, and Belt eventually scored. On a error. Oy vey.
- The Giants were 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

Game 21 - Bumgarner
Ugh, this game. Madison Bumgarner deserved so much better than this, but his teammates failed him. The Giants lost 2-1, despite Bumgarner going the distance against Franklin Morales in this great pitchers duel. All three runs were scored via solo home runs. Notable details and tidbits on this game:
- MadBum had an eight inning complete game. He struck out six, only allowed two runs, and only threw 97 pitches. He's also the 2nd pitcher in the history of Coors Field who has pitched a complete game, allowed two or less runs, and got the loss.
- In his last two starts, Bumgarner has gotten one run from his teammates. ONE.
- Troy Tulowitski hit a solo home run in the 4th, breaking the scoreless tie. Rosario and Justin Morneau both singled. Drew Stubbs GIDP and then MadBum intentionally walked LeMahieu. Belt committed an error, but no other runs were scored.
- Pence hit his own solo homer in the 5th with two outs to tie the game. It's only his 2nd HR of the season. 

- Arenado put the Rockies ahead in the 6th with a solo home run. He has a 13 game hitting streak.
- Bumgarner was strong in the 7th and 8th, quickly getting out of both of those innings. He also doubled with two outs in the 7th, but then Pagan struck out.
- In the 8th, Pence singled, Posey struck out, and then Morse singled. Useless Pablo Sandoval then GIDP. Like I said in a previous post, my patience for his struggles is at an all-time low. 
- Last chance in the 9th for the Giants to at least tie it up for MadBum. After Belt ground out, Crawford walked, followed by a single from Blanco. Hector Sanchez struck out, and then Pagan grounded out. Game over :(
- The Giants are now 3-for-40 with RISP. It's getting really sad, you guys.

Game 22 - Cain
This game was pure bipolar baseball, down to the last outs. I couldn't watch live because I was at work, but listening to the radio broadcast and following along on mlb.com was so very stressful. My heart was racing at various points in the game, and the only reason why the Giants didn't send me into the pit of depression is because they somehow avoided the sweep and managed to win this game despite all the shenanigans that occurred. Watching the replay was fun though. Let's take it from the top!

1st inning highlights
Blackmon singled, and then scored on Tulowitski's home run. Rockies lead 2-0.

2nd inning highlights
Morse led off the inning with a home run. Sandoval walked, but then Sanchez GIDP. Crawford lined out to end the inning. In the Rockies half of the inning, Brandon Barnes, LeMahieu, and Tyler Chatwood (the starting pitcher) all singled to load the bases. Blackmon grounded out to score Barnes and then an error by Belt on a pick-off attempt allowed LeMahieu to score. Blackmon later scored on a single by Tulowitski.

3rd inning highlights
Hicks led off the inning and hit a home run. Matt Cain singled, Blanco struck out, Pence singled, and Belt flied out. With two outs, Morse hit a three run home run, his second of the game, to tie it up at 5-5. Because he cleared the bases, it was overlooked that Sandoval struck out. AGAIN.

4th inning highlights
When Hicks was called out on strikes, Bochy argued with the umpire briefly and was subsequently tossed from the game. LAME. Meanwhile, the Rockies took the lead when Blackmon hit a solo home run. I'm getting sick of that guy - he had an excellent series against our pitching. 

5th inning highlights
The Giants had a great opportunity to take the lead when Cain singled, followed by Blanco and Pence walking to load the bases. But this is the 2014 Giants, so of course they didn't get any runs with the bases loaded with no outs. Belt, Morse, and Sandoval all failed to get an RBI.

6th inning highlights
Nada.

7th inning highlights
Belt hit a two run home run (Pence had walked) off relief pitcher Rex Brothers. Cain was left in the game - bad decision - and walked Blackmon. Arenado doubled him home and the Rockies tied it up. AGAIN.

8th inning highlights
Sanchez led off the inning with a home run off relief pitcher Matt Belisle. Unfortunately, the Rockies tied it up once more in their half of the inning against Santiago Casilla when Blackmon drove LeMahieu home. 

9th inning highlights
Pence led off the inning with a double, but Belt, Juan Carlos Perez, and Joaquin Arias could not get him home.

10th inning highlights
The only thing of note is that Posey came in as a pinch hitter and was intentionally walked. I feel like that will continue to happen throughout the season.

11th inning highlights
Pence singled, then Belt walked. Perez sacrificed them over and then the Rockies intentionally walked Arias to load the bases. After a long and intense 10-pitch battle, Sanchez made our baseball dreams come true and hit a GRAND SLAM. Whooooo hooooo, Giants lead 12-8. 

Sergio Romo was in to pitch the bottom of the 11th even though it wasn't a save situation and of course, the Rockies did not go quietly. Tulowitski singled and subsequently scored on Morneau's two run home run, to bring the Rockies within two. After Rosario grounded out, Stubbs singled, but then Romo got Barnes to GIDP to finally, and mercifully, end this rollercoaster of a game.

Fun facts:
- There were a total of nine home runs, six for the Giants and three for the Rockies.
- It was Sanchez's first career grand slam. He had two home runs in the game (also a first), as did Morse. Two Giants players last hit two homers in the same game on May 25, 2005 (my birthday, just FYI) - Moises Alou and Pedro Feliz against the Dodgers. Sanchez also had a career high five RBIs.

- Pence and Hicks both had three hits. I'm hoping Pence is starting to get hot.  
- Jeremy Affeldt was able to get out of a bases loaded jam in the 7th inning. He's doing well and I'm so glad he's back. 
- Machi got the win and is now 4-0. Lmfao.
- Speaking of funny things, my friend Brooke called the Rockies "Rocktards" and I haven't stopped laughing about it since. Well done.
- Wednesday's game was just the second win for the Giants in the last seven games :( They also finished the series going 3-for-31 with RISP.
- Happy flight and some momentum going into their off day. 

See you at the ballpark! GO GIANTS!!!

xoxo, 
JC

SFGiants Game 19 - Happy Easter!

First and foremost, hope you all had a Happy Easter! Or if it's your preference, hope you had a Happy 420. Whatever floats your boat.

I went to church with my mom Sunday morning and then had lunch after. As we were eating our dessert, a tall, beautiful woman walked by with an adorable little boy. She looked familiar and then I realized that it was Nicole Vogelsong, with her Vogelchild, Ryder. I walked over to them to introduce myself, and she was so unbelievably sweet. She even knew me by name and mentioned my twitter handle. I even got two Vogelhugs. I made friends with Ryder too - what a great kid. Looks just like daddy. We even talked baseball a little bit and were excited when Buster Posey hit his home fun. Not going to lie, I loved meeting her. And Ryder, of course <3 

I mean, seriously. How cute are the Vogelsongs??? Anyway, onto the game!

1st inning highlights

Angel Pagan popped out to start the game after a seven pitch AB. Hunter Pence then walked. On the first pitch Posey saw, he hit his 4th home run of the season, and just like that, the Giants had two runs for the first time in what felt like forever. That hit was much needed after getting into a 1-24 slump at the plate. Michael Morse worked a seven pitch at bat as well, and subsequently struck out.

2nd inning highlights

After Joaquin Arias flied out to Seth Smith, Brandon Hicks coaxed an eight pitch walk. Brandon Crawford moved Hicks over to third with a single to center. Erlin then walked Lincecum to load the bases. Pagan came through with a single of his own to center, scoring Hicks and Crawford. Those two RBIs gave Pagan a total of 12 in the young season. After his teammates gave him a 4-0 lead, Lincecum had a shut down inning and headed back to the dugout after striking out Tommy Medica, giving up a single to Nick Hundley, and then getting Alexi Amarista to GIDP. 

3rd inning highlights

The Giants were quiet in their half of the inning, but the Padres were not. With two outs, Will Venable singled, followed by a single from Smith to move Venable to third. Former Giants Xavier Nady walked to load the bases. Chase Headley then doubled to right, with Venable and Smith scoring. The Padres also sent Nady home, and was initially called safe. Bruce Bochy challenged the call, and it was overturned. That was a perfect time to challenge, especially since it went our way. 4-2 going into the 4th was much more manageable than 4-3, especially given how anemic the Giants offense has been.

4th inning - Uneventful on both sides.

5th inning highlights

Another quiet inning from the Giants offense, but the highlight of the inning was seeing Posey gun Everth Cabrera out trying to steal 2nd. POSEY AIN'T HAVIN' IT. He is seven for 18 on getting the runner out on stolen base attempts.

6th inning - Uneventful on both sides. 

7th inning highlights

Lincecum was at 101 pitches, but Boch put him back out there, and Hundley promptly hit the first pitch he saw out, to bring the Padres within one run of the Giants. Jeremy Affeldt came to relieve Timmy and pitched a clean inning. 

8th inning highlights

Nothing going on as usual on offense, but the 8th inning gave Giants gamer babes a chance to see Javier Lopez pitch to TWO batters. WHOA. He was then replaced by Santiago Casilla. 

9th inning highlights

Sergio Romo came in to save the game. He walked leadoff batter Headley, who went to second on a wild pitch. After that, he got three consecutive pop ups from Yasmani Grandal, Hunley, and Yonder Alonso to secure the save and end the game. This was Romo's fifth save.

NO SWEEP. Little victories are important. It also ended their three game losing streak.

Some interesting fun facts:

- The Giants' last 10 games have been decided by 11 runs.

- The Giants had more runs (4) than hits (3). The Padres outhit the Giants seven to three. 

- After Pagan's RBIs in the 2nd, the Giants did not get another hit. 

- The win game Lincecum his 90th victory. 

- The Giants bullpen is currently number one in MLB with their combined 1.79 ERA.

- Pagan was interviewed after the game and we got to hear him say happy flight :)

Excited for the game tonight. Hoping for a strong start from Vogelsong and also hoping our bats come alive at hitter friendly Coors Field. 

GO GIANTS!

xoxo,

JC

SFGiants Game 18

Getting older sucks. Nursing a slight hangover and am really tired. I wanted to nap, but it was game time! 

1st inning highlights
I finally tried the food at Free Birds. It's freaking delicious. And yes, that was the highlight of the uneventful first inning for me :)

2nd inning highlights
Seth Smith hit a single off starter Tim Hudson. Chase Headley struck out and then Jedd Gyorko (Jerkoff) grounded out, sending Smith to 2nd. Smith then scored when Yonder Alonso singled him home. 

3rd inning highlights
Joaquin Arias got the first hit of the game for the Giants. Brandon Crawford struck out and then Hudson bunted into a double play. In the Padres half of the inning, Everth Cabrera and Will Venable singled consecutively. Yasmani Grandal then lined into a double play to end the threat. 

4th inning highlights
Angel Pagan, Hunter Pence, and Buster Posey were up...and none of them got a hit. The Giants' offensive woes are starting to stress me out. 

5th inning highlights
Michael Morse led off the inning with a home run. I really like his swing. It was his 3rd home run of the season. After Pablo Sandoval flied out, Brandon Belt and Arias both hit deep fly balls to Smith. If only either (or both!) had hit the ball just a little bit further. In the Padres half of the inning, Alexi Amarista led off with a single. Huddy committed an error trying to pick him off. Eric Stults bunted Amarista over to third base and then Cabrera tripled to center, putting the Padres back in the lead, 2-1. Venable hit into a fielder's choice, with Belt throwing to Posey to get Cabrera out at home. Neener neener. The inning ended with a weak ground out by Grandal.

6th inning highlights
Huddy had a nine pitch at bat that resulted in his first hit of the year. In the bottom of the 6th, Smith singled to left. Headley hit a high chopper to Belt, who showed his agility by jumping up to snag the ball. He threw a little high and off center to BCraw who still made an excellent throw back to Belt, just a couple steps after the runner.

7th inning highlights
Nick Vincent replaced Stults to face Posey, Morse, and Sandoval. He struck out the side :( Hudson had a nice inning himself, getting Amarista out on one pitch. He then struck out Tommy Medica and got Cabrera to fly out.

Side note: Huddy set a franchise record with 29 consecutive innings without a walk. He's been such a great pick-up. I'm so happy we have him!

8th inning highlights
My frustration with our offense is growing. They are wasting the efforts of our pitchers by not being able to score any runs! Venable doubled off David Huff to start the bottom of the 8th. After getting Grandal out, Jean Machi came in to pitch with a runner at third. Chris Denorfia laid down the perfect bunt, allowing Venable to get score an insurance run, 3-1.

9th inning highlights
Last chance to score - Pagan flied out, Pence flied out on one pitch (sad Pence in the dugout made me sad), and Posey struck out to end the game. Womp womp. 

Sad but true tidbits:
- Hudson pitched really well, but was handed the loss. The Giants have scored three runs TOTAL in the last three games.
- The Giants did NOT have any runners in scoring position the ENTIRE game.
- Bumgarner, Cain, and Hudson have combined for 18 1/3 innings pitched in the last three games. They've gotten 18 strikeouts and have only given up FOUR earned runs. Each of them were handed losses due to the lack of run support.

Fuck. I'm in a bad mood now. I think I need to watch reality TV to ease some of my pain. I really hope tomorrow is better.

Together, we're frustrated.

xoxo,
JC

SF Giants Games 16 & 17

I'm bummed that I've been so busy because that means there is little time for baseball. When I can't watch the games, it gives me anxiety.

On Thursday, I had back to back meetings, so I didn't get to watch or listen to the game much. I did follow along on the MLB app while I was in training, so you can't say I didn't try ;)

Quick tidbits from Game 16 
- I'm sure you're aware of this, but let's start from the beginning: the Giants lost 2-1 versus the Dodgers, but secured the series win with their victory the day before.
- Pablo Sandoval's batting average continues to plummet. 
- "Trader" (lol, Twitter folks that can't spell) Brian Wilson came in to pitch in the 8th inning. I heard the loud boos on the radio broadcast. Ehire Adrianza doubled to lead off the inning and then Hunter Pence walked. Unfortunately, Wilson got Sandoval and Buster Posey out to end the threat.
- This was the 7th consecutive one-run game the Giants have played in.
- Madison Bumgarner only lasted 4 1/3 innings due to high pitch count. 
- Hyun-Jin Ryu pitched so well against the cold Giants bats and shut them down until he exited the game. 
- The lone run the Giants scored was in the 9th inning. Michael Morse struck out, but reached base due to Kenley Jansen's wild pitch. Brandon Belt grounded into a force out and later advanced to 2nd on defensive interference. Hector Sanchez struck out, followed by a walk from Gregor Blanco. Adrianza singled to left, scoring Belt. He was 3 for 3 after coming in to replace Brandon Hicks. The rally was on and I was excited for the possibility of our boys tying it up, but then Brandon Crawford struck out to end the game. 

Friday night, I was busy making penis shaped cakes and blowing up penis shaped balloons. No, I'm not a weirdo (well, actually I am, but let's not get into that)...it was for a bachelorette party. By the time the game started, I was seated at Mas Sake in San Francisco with five of my girlfriends drinking many, many sake bombs. But of course, the TV showing the game still had some of my attention.
 
Quick tidbits from Game 17
- This was the 8th consecutive one-run game for the Giants. Their record in these games is 4-4.
- The Giants have only scored two runs in the last 19 innings, and four runs in the last 26 innings. Pitiful. 
- Angel Pagan led the game off with a ground rule double, but Blanco, Belt, and Sandoval were unable to get him home. In the Padres half of the 1st, Chris Denorfia tripled to center. With two outs and Jedd Gyorko at the plate, a passed ball by Hector Sanchez allowed Donorfia to score. I was so frustrated at this.   
- Posey and Morse had the day off, but were both put in as pinch hitters in the 8th inning. Neither got a hit. The Padres' Yasmani Grandal, pinch hitting for Tyson Ross, hit a home run off Juan Gutierrez to bring the score to 2-0.

- Belt hit his 6th home run of the season against Huston Street in the 9th, cutting the lead to 2-1. Pence walked with two outs and then stole second base. Sanchez then ended the game with a silly strikeout.

- The Giants had three stolen bases in this game.   
- Matt Cain pitched really well but got Cained by his teammates once again. 

I'm hoping the rest of the San Diego series goes better and our guys get hot at the plate again. It's not just one player, it's so many of them. I'm most concerned about Sandoval though. He needs to find his groove...and quickly because I'm getting really frustrated with him. However, the Giants offense as a whole needs to get hot. Losing these one-run games sucks :(

GO GIANTS!

xoxo,
JC
 

SF Giants Game 15

Sup y'all. To be honest, I'm still pretty happy about last night's game. I'm running on empty since I only slept four hours last night, so it was probably dumb to go on a short hike after work especially since I didn't eat much today. Thankfully, I survived! I didn't want to be a jerk and say "Umm, is it time to turn around yet? The game starts soon..." but we completed our 4-mile loop just in time for me to turn on the radio and listen to the first inning on my drive home.

1st inning highlights
Dee Gordon led off the game with a single. Carl Crawford flied out to left field, and then Hanley Ramirez grounded into a double play. Angel Pagan grounded out and then Hunter Pence ended up on 2nd due to a field error by Kemp. HAHA, Kemp. Pablo Sandoval and Buster Posey stranded Pence at 2nd.

2nd inning highlights
After Adrian Gonzalez was out for interfering with Posey, Kemp walked. Kemp was picked off at first and called out. Don Mattingly challenged and four very long minutes and 25 seconds later, the call was upheld. HAHA, Kemp. I wish the umps hadn't taken that long, but glad that Ryan Vogelsong was able to stay loose. 

Side note: Jon Miller mentioned that the Giants were down one Brandon tonight. Brandon Crawford was given the night off due to tightness in his hamstring. It happened last night when he was racing around the bases. Miller mentioned it wasn't that serious. Fingers crossed!

3rd inning highlights
Juan Uribe singled to left field and then during Drew Butera's at bat, Posey gunned him down trying to steal 2nd. POSEY AIN'T HAVIN' IT. In the bottow of the 3rd, Paul Maholm walked Pagan. He was out at second on a ground ball force out by Pence. Sandoval singled and the Posey singled deep enough to Crawford, giving our speedy kale-monger more than enough time to make it home. Unfortunately, Morse hit into a double play to end the inning.

4th inning highlights
Quiet inning from both sides. Nice to see Vogey cruising along without any issues.

5th inning highlights
Gonzo was out on one pitch and Pagan singled. That's about all that happened this inning.

6th inning highlights
With two outs, Vogey walked Maholm. The other PITCHER. That was annoying enough until Gordon tripled to right, driving Maholm in to tie the game. It sucks so bad when a two out walk to a pitcher ends up scoring. In the Giants half of the inning, Posey walked, but then Morse hit into ANOTHER double play. Please stop that shit. Belt singled and then made it to second on a wild pitch. Brandon Hicks hit a deep fly ball to center, ending the inning and leaving the score tied.

7th inning highlights
HanRam was hit by a pitch, directly on the hand. Looked pretty awful. Hope he's ok. Gonzo singled, knocking Vogey out of the game. I'm glad the fans gave him a loud ovation. Jean Machi came in to pitch and promptly struck out Kemp. Andre Ethier singled on a weird ass play where Hicks looked like he was going to throw to Belt, but threw to Machi instead. With the bases loaded, our nemesis Uribe hit into a double play, to the delight of Giants fans everywhere. Our turn! Arias was walked on four pitches. Ehire Adrianza bunted him over to 2nd. Pagan struck out and then the Dodgers intentionally walked Pence to pitch to Panda. In all honesty, I thought that was a wise choice, given Sandoval's struggles at the plate this season. Thankfully Sandoval made them pay with a single to center, scoring Arias. This put the Giants up 2-1.

Side note: The Giants bullpen has been pretty amazing thus far. They currently hold the 2nd lowest ERA in the National League. I am confident that they will continue to be strong.

8th inning highlights
Butera and Puig were out rather quickly versus Santiago Casilla. After Gordon singled, the Giants brought in Javier Lopez. He sidearmed to first on a pickoff attempt and threw it away. It ended up being harmless as Crawford grounded out on the first pitch to end the inning. Nice to see Morse get a hit this inning, considering he had to GIDPs in this game. Brandon League was surprisingly good. Shocker!

Side note 1: 
X-rays on HanRam's hand were negative. It looked really bad, so it's good that it's not broken.

Side note 2:
Twitter couldn't get enough of some Giants fans misspellings, and rightfully so. There was a group of six people, each with an individual letter to spell out Beat LA. Unfortunately they were in the wrong order so #BaetLA was trending for a while. I like to drink at games too, so I'll pretend they were just too drunk to realize. How hard is it to remember to stay in the the same order when you do that though? Spelling error number 2 featured a sign that said "Go Gaints!" Come the fuck on, people. Get it right.

9th inning highlights
Sergio Romo came in to save the game. Justin Turner - one pitch, one out. El Mechon then struck out both Gonzo and Kemp to end the game. THAT'S WHAT'S UP!!!

Fun tidbits:
- Great to see Happy Panda during his post game interview. 
- The Giants have won four out of six consecutive one-run games.
- Vogey pitched his best game of the season, allowing only four hits and one run. He also faced only 15 batters through five innings and only gave up one hit during that time.
- The Giants won their 2nd game today in honor of Bruce Bochy's birthday. Happy birthday skipper!
- The Giants are now in 1st place.

- I'm going to relax now and either watch P.S. I Love You or last night's episode of The Voice :)

Sweep LA.Duck the Fodgers. Together, We're Sleepy. Enjoy the rest of your night!

xoxo,
JC

SF Giants Game 14 - Jackie Robinson Day

First off, the Giants always do excellent pregame ceremonies. We are so lucky that our announcers, including Renel, do such a great job with baseball festivities. Hall of Famers Jon Miller and Vin Scully announcing the starting line-ups was so cool! I may despise the Dodgers, but Vin Scully deserves so much respect, even if he makes me a little sleepy :) 

Seeing our players wearing 42 gives me a sense of pride for the game I love and obsess over. Most importantly, It's wonderful that Jackie Robinson is honored like this once a year throughout the MLB. His story will always be a highlight in the history of our beloved national pastime.

I was nervous for Timmy Lincecum and his hideous porn stache, but he has historically pitched well against the Dodgers, so I was hopeful that he would have a great start. I haven't been able to record my thoughts as I watch the game in a while, so this should be fun.

HERE WE GO...

- Lincecum started the game with a strike. Good omen! The only downside was that it took him 20 pitches to get out of the first. After giving up a home run to former Giant Juan Uribe in the 2nd, Timmy was already up to 38 pitches.
-Stupid bastard Josh Beckett hit Michael Morse in the elbow during his AB in the bottom of the 2nd. Beckett then threw the ball away on a pick-off attempt, allowing Morse and his long legs to saunter over to 3rd. Unfortunately, Brandon Crawford struck out and stranded Morse and his sore elbow at third base. 
- Beckett, Dee Gordon, and Carl Crawford all struck out in the 3rd. Great inning by Lincecum. GRAB SOME PINE, MEAT! Times three. 

- In the 4th, Timmy loaded the bases with Adrian Gonzalez, Yasshole Puig, and Andre Ethier with one out. I held my breath as he struck out Uribe and Tim Federowicz. Crisis averted.
- Unfortunately for the Giants, the same thing happened to them in their half of the 4th inning. Brandon Belt got the first hit of the game, Buster Posey was unintentionally walked, and Hunter Pence singled to load the bases. There was only one out, but Morse struck out and Crawford grounded out. Dodgers still leading 1-0 :(
- Beckett is one of the most annoying pitchers to watch. He's so fucking slow. It's painful. 
- The Giants had another good chance in the 5th with the bases loaded (Brandon Hicks, Belt, and Sandoval were all walked) with two outs. Posey hit a shallow fly ball to center and yet again, more missed opportunities for our guys.
- With Beckett out of the game, the Giants finally tied it. Pence started the 6th off with a single and Morse reached on an error by Hanley Ramirez. Pence was safe on a close call at third following a wild pitch and BCraw sacrificed him in to tie it up. 

Look at this gem after Pence hustled home. 

- Javier Lopez came in to pitch in the 7th. Let's take a moment to enjoy him, shall we?

Unfortunately, he gave up an RBI single to put the Dodgers back in the lead. Stupid Uribe led off the inning with a double and scored when Justin Turner got a hit off Lopez. That is two games in a row now that Lopez has inherited a runner and gave up an RBI. Not happy about this. 
- My patience with Sandoval dimishes with each game. I think I'd be a lot more supportive of him if his agent weren't such a dumb ass. 
- I'm sick of repeating this, but the Giants wasted another great opportunity to score. In the 8th, Pence collected his 3rd hit of the game and then promptly stole second while Gregor Blanco was at bat. He eventually walked. BCraw struck out on a filthy pitch that made his swing look absolutely dreadful. Hicks then grounded into a pitiful double play. And just like that, the 1,000,000th runner was stranded by the Giants. Have fun in Fresno, dude! You and Jean Machi (Macheeeee) will have fun there. Please give us Hembree. Or Kontos. And a position player. Maybe Minicozzi?
- In the 9th, with my blood pressure rising, Hector Sanchez struck out. Angel Pagan singled, followed by a Belt double that scored the speedy Pagan to tie the game! (Photo credit to my twitter follower @SanDiegoGiants. In fact, the majority of photos in this post are likely all his, copied from his TL. Thank you for screenshots of great moments throughout the game.)

Check out Pagan's helmet. I love that it flops around like that when he's racing home. Useless Sandoval struck out and the Dodgers intentionally walked Posey. Scared much? Unfortunately, that strategy worked and Pence flied out to Puig.That ended the ninth, bringing us to extras.
- Adrian Gonzalez hit a sharp liner and Hicks made a great defensive play, robbing him of a hit. I forgave Hicks about 10% for that double play earlier. Puig walked, but was left there whining as Andre Ethier popped out to BCraw. Note: Sergio Romo was hyped up facing the big boys, but he had a score free inning, and that's all we could hope for.
- In the Giants half of the 10th, Gregor Blanco slid into first on a close play at first base and was called out. Blanco did a double finger shake at the ump - NOT TODAY. Ha. I wish I found a good picture of the actual play, because it was epic. 

Bruce Bochy challenged the call, and it was successfully overturned. It still makes me laugh thinking about how unsuccessful Jim Harbaugh is at challenges as the 49ers coach. Glad Boch doesn't have the same losing percentage as him. Anyway, BCraw singled, followed by a beautiful bunt from Hicks to move both runners over. Another 10% forgiven, Hicks! Sanchez walked to load the bases. What could possibly go wrong? The Dodgers put five infielders out on defense and that was interesting to see.

Pagan flied out to HanRam. My guess is that the Dodgers defense freaked him out. Belt also flied out, and another opportunity with the bases loaded and one out was wasted. How many batters left on base at this point? A GAJILLION.

- The Giants offensive woes had Boch and Giants fans everywhere doing a Bochy facepalm.

Santiago Casilla replaced Romo, and our former friend, now foe Uribe singled. The Giants were lucky when Dodgers catcher Federowicz laid down the worst bunt ever. I don't remember the last time I saw a bunt double play. I screamed pretty loud with happiness when that happened. Matt Kemp got a double, but Justin Turner grounded out and we fans rejoiced at the chance for another walk off. 
- Useless Sandoval grounded out to start the bottom of the 11th. Joaquin Arias came in as a PH for Casilla. I was really hoping we'd see another awesome Casilla at bat, but alas, it didn't happen. I wish this could've happened again. Why so serious, Jairo? 

Arias singled to center but unfortunately my baseball crush Pence grounded into a double play to send us to the 12th. Womp womp.
- Yusmeiro Petit came in to pitch the 12th, leaving Bochy with no bullpen and no reserves, just starting pitchers left. HanRam doubled and Gonzo was intentionally walked, but thankfully Petit got Puig to fly out. Worth mentioning that King of Douches thought he hit a three run home run, douched it up at the plate, and Pence caught the ball with MILES of room left. Wasn't even close. Puig also gave up on the ball and was barely out of the batters box. He didn't even fake run. What a dick. How do you root for that idiot? I hope he's benched again for his shitty attitude. Ethier grounded out and it was the Giants turn.
 -Team Brandon gained another member as Brandon League came in to pitch for the Dodgers. Blanco flied out and then BCraw singled. Hicks' ground out moved BCraw to 2nd.  A wild pitch sent him to third with two outs. Sanchez then singled past Turner's outstretched glove and BCraw scored to FINALLY end this nearly 5-hour long rollercoaster. 
- Sanchez's post game interview was hilarious. He was hungry and wanted to go home because it was almost time to drop his daughter off at school ;) Gotta love the humor of our guys. The post game dog pile on Sanchez was so adorable and it was great to see our guys happy and celebrating. It was also officially April 16th, Bochy's birthday. They won for the skipper!

Other random observations:
- Former hottie and Giants closer Brian Wilson and his disgusting beard and hobo looks warmed up a couple times, but never got into the game. He was booed lustily by Giants fans, as expected.
- Jeremy Affeldt is close to coming back and while I like to talk shit about him, the bullpen needs him! Can't wait to welcome him back. 
- Posey and Morse were taken out of the game and I missed them both in extras. 
- The Giants left 16 runners on base. Pretty pathetic, but I think they'll fix that problem.
- The game that would never end lasted 4 hours, 54 minutes.
- Forgotten in all this is that Lincecum had a decent game and lasted five innings. 

I'm going to pray that Ryan Vogelsong has a good start and lasts at least six innings. Pretty please? The bullpen is tired. Time to step up Vogey!

I was too excited to sleep, so I had to finish writing this before I went to bed. Long day at work in store for me in the morning, but it's worth it because our guys won. 

Beat LA. Fuck the Dodgers. Good night, faithful and loyal fans.

xoxo,
JC

SF Giants Games 12 & 13

Well, hi there. It's funny how an off day like today, early in the season, feels like absolute torture. So, to feed my baseball addiction, let's recap the weekend games! 

Game 12: April 12th

Saturday was family day with my mom, cousins, and goddaughters. We did a chocolate making class in the morning from 10-12 and then had lunch after. I'm catholic and gave up chocolate for Lent so it was crazy ridiculous of me to do that, but I survived anyway.

I didn't get to watch most of this game, but here are a couple tidbits:

- Rockies starting pitcher Brett Anderson left the game with a bruised finger in the 3rd. The bullpen saved the day for him and completed the shut out of the Giants :( 

- The red hot offense we have been seeing this season was stone cold today and only managed three hits: Hunter Pence, Pablo Sandoval, and Brandon Crawford.

- I feel bad for Matt Cain. His entire career has consisted of starts like this - strong outings with ZERO run support.

- Cain went seven innings and only allowed four hits. The one run scored to win the game was small ball at it's finest. Charlie Blackmon walked, Brandon Barnes singled, and they completed a double steal. Troy Tulowitski then sacrificed Blackmon home and that was it all day.

- Angel Pagan's hitting streak ended at 10. Michael Morse's nine game hitting streak was halted as well.

- Sandoval struck out in the 8th inning with the bases loaded, continuing his suckfest of a season thus far. Second time that's happened in three games.

Game 13: April 13th

I was invited to go to the game, but respectfully declined. That was so fucking stupid of me! Ha. I needed to relax and have a day at home. Plus, I spent HOURS at the Verizon store after the game yesterday, buying a new phone and tablet, so I was awake past 3am because I'm obviously a huge nerd. I was surrounded by technology and I loved it. Old phone to new phone transfer, work laptop, personal netbook, work iPad, and new LG tablet were all in effect and syncing up. Good times. Anyway, from the top...

- Wilin Rosario hit a home run off of a location mistake by Tim Hudson in the 2nd, Rockies led 1-0.

- Aside from Pagan hitting into a double in the 3rd, there was no action until the bottom of the 5th. Birthday boy Pence was hit by a pitch, boo. Also, this is my new favorite picture of him. So dreamy!

Morse followed with a single that sent speedy Pence to third base. BCraw then sacrificed Pence home to tie the game. Brandon Hicks singled, and after a wild pitch during Hudson's at bat, Hicks and Morse were on 2nd and 3rd, respectively. With two outs, Mr. Beautiful Hair singled to right field, clearing the bases. That put the Giants up 3-1. Pagan is 10 for 20 with 10 RBIs with two outs this season.

- In the bottom of the 6th, Sandoval led off the inning with a home run to right field. It was good to see him smiling and a little more carefree, but I still want more from him. Hope he can start to get hot. 

- The Rockies responded with a Justin Morneau home run in the 7th. DJ LeMahieu had an RBI double, and the Giants lead was down to one run. Javier Lopez came to face one batter, and Drew Stubbs singled to score LeMahieu (the run was charged to Huddy) and tie the game. 

- The Giants had a chance in the bottom of the 9th when Gregor Blanco hit a ball deep to Triples Alley and was waived home. I can't believe we were *that* close to seeing another inside the park home run. Unfortunately, Blanco was tagged out on the nuts. OUCH.

Hope his family jewels are okay! With that, the Giants and Rockies stayed tied and it was time for free baseball. 

- Sergio Romo pitched the 10th. With one out, LeMahieu singled. The next batter, Josh Rutledge struck out and LeMahieu was gunned out at second by Posey for the double play. AIN'T HAVIN' IT.

- BCraw led off the 10th inning, and on the 2nd pitch he saw from Rex Brothers, he absolutely smashed it over the brick wall and into McCovey Cove. Walk off splash hit! A thing of beauty. Let's relive it in photos, shall we? Check out his sweet sweet swing.

What followed was an awesome, yet not Puig douchey, bat-flip.

The ball hit the water in beautiful fashion as BCraw rounded the bases to greet his teammates.

Look at all of that hair - BCraw and Pagan! It was awesome when Pagan gave Crawford a gatorade shower. Even better that he got Amy G pretty good too :D

- That home run was Crawford's first splash hit, the 64th splash hit by a Giants player. The last extra inning splash hit was by the Home Run King Barry Bonds in 2003.

- Hudson said in his post game interview that he wished he had pitched better. Perhaps he should've been pulled earlier, but I think he's been an excellent pick up and is quickly becoming a fan favorite. Worth noting is that he's gone 23 innings (his first three starts as a Giant) without yielding a walk. Fucking STUD.
- Read Crawford's take on his splash hit extra innings walk off here: http://brandon.mlblogs.com/2014/04/13/another-day-at-the-office-brandon-crawford/. 

All in all, a great game and a great series win. Plus, the Giants had good momentum going into their off day today and will be rested and ready to take on the Dodgers tomorrow. Hope Timmy figured out what was wrong with him and is ready to BEAT LA. 

Excited for the game tomorrow! FUCK THE DODGERS. 

xoxo,

JC

SF Giants Game 11

Hi again. Guess who's back? Back again. JC's back. Tell a friend. Feel free to laugh at me, I'm fully aware of how goofy I can be. 

I don't think I could've physically gone to the game again tonight. I'm still tired from the last three days. Six Bart rides, six Muni rides, and countless indulgences the last three days really tired me out. Of course, even before the game started, I was already missing AT&T Park. Seriously, how do you not love this place?

I meant to take note of the things I wanted to write about tonight, but I had work I needed to do this evening (yes, on a Friday night) and then I bonked my head SUPER hard on my cupboard, so I'm a little "special" right now. Bear, or should I say Baer, with me.

First of all, if you haven't read Hunter Pence's blog filling in for the Brandons, you definitely need to. He is so damn funny. It also explains why Giants fans on twitter are going Brandon crazy. Enjoy this gem, because Together, We Are Brandon: http://brandon.mlblogs.com/2014/04/10/another-pinch-blogger-hunter-pence/. 

I was confident in Madison Bumgarner tonight. I thought he'd pitch well and stop the bleeding from the last couple nights. He wasn't at his best, but hitting a GRAND SLAM and ending your night with FIVE RBIs as the starting pitcher is pretty fan-fucking-tastic. 

We didn't get off to the best start, and that weird freebie run the Colorado Rockies scored when Josh Rutledge got caught stealing irritated me. Plus, the Rox got a lot of pitches out of MadBum in the first inning. It didn't take Jorge De La Rosa nearly as long to get out the Giants hitters, and before we knew it, MadBum was back on the mound. 

After an uneventful 2nd inning, Carlos Gonzalez hit a two-run home run to increase their lead to 3-0 in the 3rd. Admittedly, a small part of me was feeling negative and thought - great, here we go again! Thankfully, Brandon Crawford hit a triple to right field, and then the Game 11 MVP MadBum barely missed a home run in his first at bat but instead drove in the Giants first run of the game with a very long and well hit sac fly to CarGo.

His hair may always look wet, but we love him nonetheless.
 
The Giants half of the 4th inning was where all the magic happened. Pablo Sandoval singled, followed by Michael Morse's walk. Hector Sanchez flied out and Brandon Belt struck out before Brandon Hicks was hit by a pitch to load the bases with two outs. BCraw was walked on four straight pitches, bringing the score to 3-2. With MadBum walking up to bat, I tweeted this. I was kidding, mostly, but also partially hopeful that my wish would come true. https://twitter.com/JCSaturday/status/454826464068644864

On the first pitch he saw, our MadBum crushed a fast ball from De La Rosa over the left field wall. No doubt about it at all. The best part was there was no conceited strut around the bases, no show boating whatsoever, just a cool, calm and collected snot rocket on the way to the dugout as his teammates celebrated him. I could watch it over and over again. ICYMI, here you go:
http://m.mlb.com/video/v32004859/colsf-bumgarner-launches-a-grand-slam-to-left-field.

Side note: the last Giants pitcher to hit a grand slam was Shawn Estes in 2000. I distinctly remember that game because it was the day before my birthday and I like to think it was a birthday present for me. Ha. I LOVE HIM, in case you were unaware.

The Giants didn't score again, but there were some fun moments:
- Hunter Pence legging out a double and challenging CarGo's arm was hilarious. He swung so hard at the pitch that he fell over, got up, and still made it to second easily. He also tagged up on Sandoval's fly ball out, and showed off his speed once again. He was stranded on 3rd base though and looked pissed that he didn't score.
- Worth mentioning that former Giants prospect and hottie Charlie Culberson got a double and RBI off MadBum. Remember him? YUM.

- Glad to see Brandon Belt double in the 6th. He seemed frustrated during his previous at bats. Side note: I love that tonight's batting order featured Brandon Cubed - Belt, Hicks, Crawford.
- MadBum lasted six innings and was lifted for a pinch hitter in bottom of the 6th. Not his best pitching effort since he quickly hit 100+ pitches, but he definitely carried the team tonight. 
- There were many great defensive plays that helped keep the Rockies from scoring. After last night's awful errors that lead to defeat, it was nice to see a change tonight. Having said that though, the defense also had some very sloppy moments that the coaching staff needs to address and fix right away. 
- I was worried about our offense without both Buster Posey and Angel Pagan in the lineup, but MadBum more than made up for their absence. Worth mentioning that Bumgarner now has more RBIs than Pence and Sandoval. P.S. This photo cracks me up every time. Baby Brandon is so sassy. 

Last but not least, Sergio Romo was still fighting off a nasty flu bug. Regardless of his ailment, the umpires gifted him with a generous strike zone and he struck out the side looking. Troy Tulowitski was especially annoyed at his game ending caught looking strikeout. Neener neeer, Tulo. That's what's up!

I'm going to sleep cuddling stuffed Posey and my Pence bobble head. JK ;)  Good night!

xoxo,
JC