Another Reason To Hate the A's

Those witty motherfuckers in the Oakland A's front office took out this ad in the Chronicle today.

If you can't read the fine print, here's a closer look at the clever little diss Billy Beane snuck in.

I guess this is the level Billy Beane thinks he needs to lower himself to in order to get people to watch his team.

Celebrating the Past or Trying to Forget the Present?

Apparently the Giants lost to the Cleveland Indians tonight, 4-1. This came as a shock to me, because I could have sworn I just watched them beat the Texas Rangers 5-3 behind a walk-off home run by Armando Rios. No, the game I was watching was actually one of a series of "Classic" games that Comcast Sportsnet plans to televise to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Giants in San Francisco.

July 18, 2000, the night Rios hit his dramatic homer off Rangers' closer John Wetteland, was a simpler time. Barry Bonds had 475 career home runs, Joe Nathan was a promising young starter, and Scott Spiezio was some dude on the A's. I'll admit, I'm kind of sucker for these classic games, but as much fun as they are, there's something a bit bizarre and creepy about watching them. There's a strange pre-2002, pre-BALCO, even pre-9/11 innocence to everything. I felt like leaning in to the TV and saying, "Oh, old Giants, there's so much I need to tell you." The game against the Rangers was one of the most exciting games I can remember at the time, but watching it again, I couldn't help but remember that the story of the 2000 season didn't have a happy ending.

I've got a better idea. How about we keep showing these classic games, but have Kruk and Kuip overdub the old players' names with current Giants. Trying to forget the legacy of Barry Bonds? Easy, he's now Fred Lewis. That wasn't Kirk Rueter getting a big out. That was Barry Zito. Rich Aurilia can stay the same. It will just be a better Rich Aurilia.

Royals Win College World Series

Oh wait, I'm actually being told that was a Major League game.

Roberts On The Way Back

Yay?

The Good and the Bad

The hardest thing so far about running a Giants blog is finding the motivation to post when the team isn't playing well. It's hard to find the desire to write when you don't even want to watch the games. That said, I'm in a good mood following tonight's 9-4 comeback win over the Royals, behind a strong start by Matt Cain and some clutch hitting. So here's an update on what we've been up to over the last week or so.

The Still Orange & Black team took in two games of the series against the Tigers. I was at the game Monday, and for most of the night, I was worried that I would only remember the game as being Tim Lincecum's worst start of the year. However, John Bowker made it one of the most exciting games I can remember going to with his three-run homer to put the Giants ahead in the eighth. Fred Lewis also added his name to the distinguished list of "Players Charlie Has Seen Hit Home Runs."

Wednesday didn't go quite so well, as Barry Zito was knocked out after allowing five runs in two innings. But hey, at least Will and I got to spend a day in the sun. Monday night was cold. The two games brought my record this season to 2-1. Will's still looking for his first win, though to be fair, he's seen Zito three times while I've seen Lincecum twice. We decided to plan our next visit around who's pitching. Actually, our next baseball experience will be July 4 weekend, when we travel down to San Jose to get a look at the baby Giants. We've never been to a minor league game before, so we're pumped.

John Bowker!

He is the shit...

I Saw Omar Steal Home

I was out at AT&T Park on Friday night, and the game pretty much sucked. Aside from seeing Zito hit double digits in the loss column, there was one bright spot - I Saw Omar Vizquel Steal Home! Seriously, it was quite possibly the most amazing thing I'd ever seen. I didn't actually believe that it had happened. Charlie texted me, "Holy shit!!" That's what I was thinking. "It really fired everybody up," Vizquel said afterwards, although being fired up didn't translate into any more runs. Still, it was the first time a Giant had stole home since 1983. And to think, this could have happened during the inning and a half I spent waiting in line for garlic fries. Glad I saw a piece of Giants history.

2-9

It's way better than 1-9.

Bowker Takes Aim at 600 Homers

Ok. So it is a bit too early to declare John Bowker as a future member of the 600 home run club. However, if he could learn to be consistent instead of incredibly streaky, he may have a great career ahead of him. Then again, it may be Bowker's streaks of hot and cold that make him our secret weapon.

Giants fans got excited when Bowker homered in his first two major league games. Then he cooled off, and critics thought it was a fluke. Then he got hot again. But, coming in to Washington this past weekend, Bowker was mired in a little bit of a slump. He only had six hits in his last 40 at-bats.

If the Giants end up sweeping Washington in four games, Bowker had as much to do with that as anybody, going 4-for-12. His eighth inning grand slam on Saturday turned a pitcher's duel into a blowout, and the following day, he padded what was a one-run lead for Barry Zito with a two-run homer.

Sports talk radio hosts cite often cite Bowker as an example of, "What if these kids actually can't play," but just when it starts looking that way, Bowker turns it around again. With a little guidance and a lot more experience, Bowker could be hitting those clutch bombs just a little more often.

Griffey Hits 600

Finally, a member of the 600-home run club who hasn't been suspected of juicing.

Bengie Blogs

I can't believe I didn't find out about this until recently, but Bengie Molina has a blog on MLB.com entitled "Behind the Mask." Bengie actually updates it fairly frequently. The two most recent posts discuss winning the Player of the Week Award and picking up his 1,000th career hit. He's a much more eloquent writer than Barry Bonds, and he actually talks baseball.

In other news, Bengie was none too pleased about Brian Sabean's comments regarding the Giants' first round draft pick, catcher Buster Posey. Sabean said that Posey is "on the fast track and Bengie's clock is winding down." Molina said, "It hurt my feelings because I came here to work hard every single day. I give them everything I have." While Sabean insisted that he was referring to Molina's contract and not his career, Bengie has every right to be upset. Even though we all know there's a good chance Bengie won't be back after next year, it's extremely disrespectful to say that the guy who's been carrying the offense is "winding down." Nobody takes more pride in their game, or takes losses harder, than Molina. I don't care how good Buster Posey is. He's going to have some big shoes to fill.

Food For Thought

Tim Lincecum: Great pitcher or The Greatest pitcher?

Bonds Back in Court

Exiled local hero Barry Bonds was back in court this morning, pleading not guilty to perjury charges that we refiled in court. This is nothing new.

In other Bonds news, there still seems to be little to no interest in Bonds on the part of all Major League teams.

Giants Select Buster Posey

Gerald D. "Buster" Posey, a catcher from Florida State, was selected by the San Francisco Giants in the first round of the draft. (Note: He's also a closer). "I'm extremely excited. It's one of the greatest days of my life," he tells ESPN. Whether the Giants can actually sign him is another story - he carries reportedly a $12 million price tag.

**UPDATE**
12:55 PM - ESPN's Keith Law says:

Posey is the best catcher in the draft, and he is likely to move quickly. There is very little downside to Posey. Defensively, he can play in the big leagues right now. Catching is a glaring need for the Giants in their farm system. And Posey is one of the best makeup guys in the draft.

Watch the MLB Draft...

... on ESPN2 and MLB.com. I've never watched a draft before, but I am kind of excited about this one.

It Can Always Be Worse

The Giants lost 5-3 yesterday to the Mets, with Matt Cain not having his best day out on the mound. But I don't really care, because I saw this on ESPN this morning and it made me say, "Hey, things aren't so bad":

Honestly, this wasn't as fun (or funny) to watch as I hoped it would be (not like the time Todd Stottlemyre cussed out a reporter and threw a chair). Basically, I just feel bad for John McLaren. He seems like a nice guy. He's just tired of losing. But there was a sweetness to him saying that it would have to be a team effort. He didn't call anybody out, and didn't even talk bad about his players. In fact, he said they were "busting" their asses. I hope Seattle can turn it around, and hope it doesn't come to this for Bruce Bochy.

Lowry Out Until '09?

Every now and then, I start to wonder, I wonder what's going on with Noah Lowry? Well, it appears the situation just isn't getting any better. ESPN reports:

Lowry was examined Tuesday by Dr. Robert Gamburd, the same physician who did some of the pitcher's preliminary tests back in spring training.... While Groeschner isn't ready to tell Lowry he won't pitch this season, it's becoming more of a long shot as each day, week and month passes. Lowry has done his best to keep his spirits up despite the constant frustrations that his arm isn't healing as quickly as he thought it would.

Giants Bullpen Arms Available

In his most recent interview with The Razor and Mr. T, Brian Sabean admitted that his biggest disappointment this year was with the bullpen. With the exception of closer Brian Wilson, you would have to believe most of the veteran arms in the 'pen are on the trading block. The San Jose Mercury News reports:

The Giants have informed other clubs that relievers Tyler Walker, Jack Taschner and Vinnie Chulk are available in fair-value deals. The club also is soliciting offers for Erick Threets and Brad Hennessey, who is starting for Triple-A Fresno.

It's questionable what kind of return of these guys could guarantee in terms of prospects, however if teams are desperate for bullpen help, anything is possible.

Insert Depressing Headline Here

Sanchez Doubles in Sixth

Yesterday, the Giants went up 6-0 in the first, but the negatron in me thought, "Well the Mets have eight innings to come back." They did chip away with two runs, and in the bottom of the sixth, Bruce Bochy was faced with a big decision - with runners on second and third and one out, let Sanchez bat or pinch hit? Bochy elected to let Sanchez bat, and what a good call it was - Sanchez launched a double to the deepest part of right field, putting the game away at 8-2. It was another highlight in what has been an exciting couple of weeks for the Giants. And maybe I am mistaken, but when Sanchez went in to second, he yelled, "Fuck the DH!"

Who the Fuck is Joba Chamberlain?

I don't really follow the American League, which is why this blog is not called Still Using the DH, but apparently some dude named Joba Chamberlain is making a hotly anticipated start for the New York Yankees tonight. I'm not really sure why this is so significant, but since the national media devoted so much coverage to Pat Misch's first career start, I figured I needed to mention it.

Diamondbacks No Prob, Padres Another Story

This Giants team is hard to figure out. That being said, I think they are living up to my declaration from back in April:

So, don't expect the Giants to just roll over. With this talented young staff and a lineup packed with young energy, this team may not have all the resources to make the playoffs, but they can spoil your day.

The team may be under .500, but they did go out last week and sweep the first place Arizona Diamondbacks in their home stadium. When Randy Winn hit a ninth inning homer and Brian Wilson shut down the D-Backs 1-2-3 to clinch the sweep, I felt as though we had reached the high point of the season. For a moment (and this passed), I thought we had a shot to win the division. That moment passed ... rather quickly.

Somehow, after all that momentum, the Giants just got shut down in two games by the San Diego Padres. That helped bring me down to earth. Tim Lincecum was golden on Sunday, but a one-run lead is hard to hold. The squad didn't look nervous though with Trevor Hoffman entering the 10th with a 3-1 lead. Apparently, the all-time saves leader has become the new Todd Worrell (circa 1997). Hoffman blew his second save against the orange and black, with Fred Lewis nearly taking him deep. I kinda wish the ball had gone out because that would have been way more exciting a finish than Edgar Gonzalez neglecting to try and make a play anywhere. Still, we'll take them where we can get them.