It's All About the BB (Part Two)

A couple weeks back I said, "I have three words that will be the key to the Giants' success in 2009 - base on balls. If Giants hitters can coax a few of these each game, they will put themselves in a position to score runs and win games." Last night, the Giants took that statement and ran - I mean - walked with it. The Giants pulled off an 11-7 victory against the Washington Nationals. There were three home runs in this game - all off Nationals' bats. How did the Giants win this thing? By capitalizing on mistakes and drawing walks. The Giants' lack of base on balls has been frustrating me all season, but last night, I got what I was hoping for...

Bottom of the fifth, Willingham makes an error on what should be the last out of the inning. Travis Ishikawa is intentionally walked to bring up Randy Johnson. Johnson draws a walk to load the bases. Emmanuel Burris walks to bring in a run. Then, Edgar Renteria walks to bring in a run. After a pitching change, the free swinging Pablo Sandoval walks to bring in a run. Seriously, the Giants may launch an extra base hit every now and then, but these wins they've been bringing home lately have often been courtesy of walks and sacrifices, ie "small ball." So, I have to wonder, is this moneyball in action or an example of a team doing the little things. All I know is the Giants are 16-14 with one of the least threatening lineups in baseball.

But, hey, it's not all about walks...

-Travis Ishikawa needed to get something going, and he did, with three hits, including a double and 2 RBIs. He credits this to a fresh approach.
-Osiris Matos is the best hitter on the Giants - dude is batting 1.000 and had a key ninth inning RBI single. Unfortunately, he couldn't seal the deal on the mound in the ninth and was promptly sent to Fresno. Pitching struggles aside, the Giants could use that kind of offense.
-Some dude called the Big Unit notched win number 298, but that is not a big deal.

-W.B.