With Cliff Lee on the hill, Game 1 of the World Series was almost a foregone conclusion: Rangers would win the opener and the Giants would have to try and even things up in Game 2.

Too bad the Giants had other plans.

In what had to be the most impressive feat of any team this postseason, the Giants crushed the Rangers 11-7 on Wednesday night to take a 1-0 lead in the Fall Classic. The previously unbeaten Lee went just 4.2 innings while yielding seven runs (six earned) on eight hits.

Freddy Sanchez did the most damage, going 4-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored. He set a postseason record by hitting three doubles in his first three at bats, which all came off Lee. After Texas took a 2-0 lead after two innings of play, Sanchez’s first double scored Edgar Renteria to put the Giants on the board in the third inning. His second double to deep left-center scored Andres Torres in the fifth to give the Giants a 3-2 lead and they never looked back from there.

San Fran scored six runs in that fifth inning to break the game open. Aubrey Huff and Cody Ross had RBI singles, while Juan Uribe hit a towering three-run shot off reliever Darren O’Day to give the Giants an 8-2 lead. The expression on Lee’s face as he watched that inning from the dugout said it all: “How could this have happened?”

What’s interesting is that Lee wasn’t necessarily off his game. He struck out seven batters and showed some of the same mastery that he had in previous postseason starts, but the Giants just hit him – and hit him hard. The fact that Lee is a strike-thrower actually played right into the Giants’ free-swinging approach and they didn’t let up the entire night. It didn’t matter if it was Lee on the mound or Nolan Ryan in his prime – they were going to get hit.

Try as they did, the Rangers did score two runs in the top of the sixth and three runs in the top of the ninth to make it somewhat interesting, but the damage had already been done. The Giants’ offense, which everyone has written off several times this postseason (and for good reason given their shoddy performance at times), had once again came through in the clutch.

Lost in the offensive clinic the Giants put on was their ace Tim Lincecum, who picked up his second postseason win of his career. He certainly wasn’t dominant (5.2 innings, 8 hits, 4 runs, 3 strikeouts), but the Rangers’ offense has a way of humbling even the best pitchers. Simply put, he was good enough on a night where his offense did the talking for him. It was a rare role-switch for a pitcher that usually has to limit his opponent to only two or three runs because he knows his offense will struggle.

The Giants have been a streaky offensive team all year. Given their pitching, if their offense can stay hot then they’re going to be tough to beat. The series is far from over, but this is a picture-perfect start for the G-Men.

Top photo courtesy of AllPosters.com.

Like any red-blooded sports fan, there are players I root against. I’m supposed to be somewhat objective with in my job so I won’t list those players’ names, but I’m like most fans: I don’t mind seeing certain players fail.

Brooks Conrad isn’t one of those players.

I love self-made guys because they never have the best talent, they’re not flashy and they usually appreciate what they have. Conrad, the 30-year-old journeyman who was forced into regularly playing time because of injuries to Chipper Jones and Martin Prado, is a self-made player. He was a nobody until May 20, when hit his first career major league grand slam by helping the Braves beat the Reds, 10-9.

But because of his three errors in the Giants’ 3-2 come-from-behind win on Sunday in the NLDS, now Conrad is somebody. And unfortunately for him, he’s somebody for all the wrong reasons.

Conrad’s three errors tied a record for most errors in a single divisional series playoff game. Two of his errors led to Giants’ runs, including the eventual winning run when a Buster Posey routine ground ball traveled through his legs to score Aubrey Huff in the top of the ninth.

Of course, had Billy Wagner not gotten hurt in Game 2 of this series, Craig Kimbrel would have never pitched the top of the ninth on Sunday. And had Kimbrel gotten one more strike on Freddy Sanchez, the Giants’ second baseman wouldn’t have reached on a base-hit and Atlanta would be up 2-1 in the series.

But Kimbrel didn’t get him out and manager Bobby Cox went to his bullpen. He wanted a lefty-on-lefty matchup, so he called upon Mike Dunn to get Aubrey Huff out, but he couldn’t. Huff lined a pitch into right field to score Travis Ishikawa (who Kimbrel had walked earlier in the inning), and then Conrad’s blunder led to the Giants’ second run of the inning. Closer Brian Wilson then retired the Braves in the bottom of the ninth and now San Fran holds a 2-1 lead in this best-of-five series.

It was the Braves that had drove a stake through the Giants’ hearts on Friday night by coming from four runs down in the eighth to eventually beat San Fran on a Rick Ankiel 11th-inning home run. It appears as though the law of averages caught up with the Braves and now both of these teams have pulled victory from the jaws of defeat in this series.

But back to Conrad. When they showed his grand slam against Cincinnati on the big screen in centerfield yesterday in the bottom of the ninth, the Atlanta faithful booed it. While I don’t blame Braves fans for showing their frustration, I can’t help but feel for Conrad. No player wants to be the goat – no player wants to have one travel through the wickets and have it lead to a game-winning run for the other team.

But unfortunately for him, his gaff put a spotlight back onto the Braves’ biggest issue: Their defense. Coming into the playoffs, Atlanta had the worst fielding percentage of any of the eight teams and it was their defense that ultimately doomed them in Game 3.

Damn that law of averages.

We’ll see if Conrad (who may get benched after yesterday’s performance) and the Braves can recover in Game 4 tonight, as Derek Lowe takes on rookie Madison Bumgarner. If Bumgarner can pitch as well as Jonathan Sanchez (whose gem was overshadowed by Eric Hinskie’s 2-run go-ahead homer in the 8th and Conrad’s errors) did on Sunday, then the Giants could be moving on to the NLCS tonight.

Before their sweep of the Braves this week, I would have said that the National League Wild Card is a three-team race. But now that the Rockies are putting together a very Rockie-like charge, this is definitely now a four-horse competition in the NL.

Let’s break down the contenders and make a prediction.

(Side Note: I’m fully aware that the Phillies and Cardinals still have a great chance of catching the Braves and Reds in their respective divisions, but I’m going by the standings as of Thursday, August 26. In a couple of weeks, I’ll update this list so for now, let’s just call this Version 1.0.)

Philadelphia Phillies
Games Remaining: 36
Games Back: 0
What I Like About Their Chances: I like the Phillies because quite frankly, they’ve been here before. They know what it takes to play good baseball in the month of September and their roster is chockfull of veteran players. Even though they haven’t shown it of late, the Phils also still have the best lineup 1-8 of any of the four Wild Card contenders and a three-headed monster in Roy Halladay, Roy Oswalt (who has been outstanding in the month of August) and Cole Hamels. This is, by far, the most talented team of the four listed…

What I Don’t Like: …that said, this club isn’t playing very good baseball right now. In their last seven games, they’ve won only two and they were just swept at home by the Astros. Also, despite all of their offensive firepower, they’ve managed to score just 16 runs in those seven outings. They also have six more games against the Braves, who they are just 5-7 against this season. This is a club that seemingly can’t put it all together this season and you just get the sense that something’s missing.

San Francisco Giants
Games Remaining: 34
Games Back: 0
What I Like About Their Chances: All of a sudden, the Giants have become an offensive juggernaut. In their last three games (all versus the Reds), they racked up 39 runs and 53 hits. Thus far, the acquisitions of Jose Guillen (to my surprise) and Cody Ross have paid off, and guys like Pablo Sandoval and Freddy Sanchez are starting to get hot at the dish. Believe it or not, it has been the pitching that has failed them over the last three weeks or so, but if Tim Lincecum can shake out of the funk he’s in then this will be a formidable team down the stretch.

What I Don’t Like: The recent offensive explosion could be a direct result of the warm weather that San Francisco has had. You might think that’s a lame statement, but the ball jumps off hitters’ bats at AT&T Park when it’s warm and deadens when it’s cooler (which is the normal climate in the “City by the Bay”). The weather is supposed to dip back down for the Giants’ series against the Diamondbacks this weekend, so we’ll find out soon if the 39 runs was just an anomaly. Of course, the Giants’ biggest concern at the moment is the seemingly season-long funk that their ace has been in. Since throwing a gem against the Dodgers on July 30, Lincecum has posted an 8.38 ERA in four straight losses and has surrendered 19 runs on 28 hits in just 19.1 innings of work. He has shown signs of getting back on track, but it’s safe to say he’s nowhere near the pitcher he was the last two years. If he doesn’t figure it out soon, the Giants’ chances of making the postseason reduce dramatically. Another reason to hate San Fran’s Wild Card hopes is its 2-9 record against the Padres – who they play six more times.

St. Louis Cardinals
Games Remaining: 38
Games Back: 1
What I Like About Their Chances: The Cards may have the easiest route to the postseason of any of these four contenders. Out of their 38 remaining games, 22 of them are against teams with losing records. And unlike the Phillies and Giants right now, their top three starters have been lights out recently. Chris Carpenter is 3-1 this month with a 2.60 ERA, Adam Wainwright has been even nastier while posting a 1.95 ERA and Jaime Garcia has amassed a 2.84 ERA this month. Aside from pitching, let’s not forget that this club also has the best pure hitter in baseball in Albert Pujols and ample protection around him in Matt Holliday and youngster Jon Jay. For August Busch’s sake, even Pedro Feliz is contributing at the dish right now.

What I Don’t Like: Twenty-two of their remaining 38 games may be against teams with losing records, but the Cards are a very pedestrian 23-21 against those clubs. While that’s still a winning record, keep in mind that we’re talking about teams like the Pirates, Astros, Nationals, Cubs and Brewers here. In the past two weeks, St. Louis has dropped series against the Cubs, Brewers and Pirates – in the middle of a pennant race, mind you. How does this happen with a starting rotation that features Carpenter, Wainwright and Garcia?

Colorado Rockies
Games Remaining: 36
Games Back: 4
What I Like About Their Chances: This team has already proven that they can get crazy hot and at 41-20, they’re extremely tough to beat at home. Carlos Gonzalez has carried this team and as proof of their 12-10 victory over the Braves on Wednesday, the Rockies are seemingly never out of any game. Six of their final 11 series are at home so if they can pull off a couple of more sweeps like they did against Atlanta, Colorado could shock everyone and win this race down the stretch.

What I Don’t Like: Despite their success at home, this club has played like garbage on the road, posting a 25-40 record away from Coors Field this year. That doesn’t bode well for them considering they have tough road challenges coming up against the Giants, Padres and Cardinals coming up over the next month or so. Those three series could essentially make or break Colorado’s chances and considering they have the most ground to cover of any team listed here, that may be too much to overcome. They also have the worst collection of starting pitching of the Wild Card contenders and Ubaldo Jimenez has dropped two of his last three starts. (Although it’s worth noting that he still has a 2.57 ERA this month.)

Prediction:
It’s a toss up between the Cardinals and the Phillies for me. They both have more talent than the Giants and Rockies, although both are coming off terrible series against bad opponents. In the end, St. Louis’ schedule is favorable and if they don’t wind up winning the NL Central, I like them to secure the Wild Card. Again, they have the easiest road of any team listed above and if they can get their act together on the road, I think they head back to the postseason. Of course, if Tim Lincecum can get back to being Tim Lincecum and the Giants’ offense stays red-hot, the Giants are going to be extremely tough to beat in a three-game series from here on out.

Is that clear? To recap, I like the Cardinals, Phillies and Giants to potentially win the Wild Card………………and maybe even the Rockies.

Update: With their win today, the Dodgers are now only 5 games back in the Wild Card race as well, with a huge series coming up this weekend in Colorado. Hopefully L.A. sweeps the Rockies and thus, make me look like a fool for not including them in this piece.

Jose Guillen can’t play defense, can’t get on base and he can’t hit for average.

So naturally Giants’ GM Brian Sabean had to have him.

On Friday, the Giants acquired the 34-year-old former Royal, who is well known for having a poor clubhouse reputation. That’s something the close-nit Giants don’t need right now heading into a huge weekend series with the first place Padres (the team the Giants are trailing by 2.5 games in the NL West).

Clearly hypnotized by his 16 homers this season, Sabean felt the need to add the outfielder despite the fact that Guillen is more useless than a chair with only two legs. Plus, his acquisition means that Aaron Rowand, Travis Ishikawa (assuming Aubrey Huff moves back to first base) and Nate Schierholtz will receive less playing time than they already are, which is befuddling when you consider that Guillen isn’t a better option than any of them.

If I punch myself in the side of the head enough times and squint hard enough, I might see the need for Guillen as a pinch hitter. But there’s no way that the Giants actually believe this schmuck is a starter. Do you know how much ground there is to cover in right field at AT&T Park? Guillen would be an absolute train wreck and for what? A couple of home runs down the stretch? I thought that’s what Pat Burrell was for? Didn’t Sabean already acquire Pat Burrell already? I’m confused.

The worst part is, Sabean traded away two capable outfielders earlier this season in Fred Lewis and John Bower – two homegrown players that were better defensively than Guillen and who came with zero baggage. How does trading Lewis and Bowker and trading for Guillen make any sense? Tell me what the difference is between those players, or how Guillen makes the Giants better than Lewis and Bowker? And what happens to Schierholtz? The kid entered spring training as the favorite to start in right field and after a poor couple of weeks at the plate, he became Lewis’d, Bowker’d and Kevin Frandsen’d in the blink of an eye. If I were a Giants’ farm player, I’d want to be dealt immediately because Sabean will eventually block my position with a crusty old vet. It’s only a matter of time.

Sabean doesn’t have the slightest clue what it takes to build an offense. For every Burrell, Huff and Juan Uribe, there’s a Rowand, Edgar Renteria and Mark DeRosa (who clearly wasn’t healthy when Sabean decided to hand him a two-year deal this past offseason). For every Bengie Molina trade, there’s a Guillen, Ryan Garko and Freddy Sanchez deal right around the corner.

I’ve never see a man make so many stupid decisions and yet retain his job for 14 years. If Brian Sabean were the President of the United States, half the nation would be underwater right now.

In order to help get you ready for the MLB season, we’re doing division-by-division rankings with quick overviews on how each club could fair in 2010. Next to each team, you’ll also find a corresponding number written in parenthesis, which indicates where we believe that club falls in a league-wide power ranking. Be sure to check back throughout the next two weeks leading up to the season, as we will be updating our content daily. Enjoy.

All 2010 MLB Preview Content | AL East Preview | AL Central Preview | AL West Preview | NL East | NL Central | NL West

Last up is the NL West.

1. Colorado Rockies (7)
Before I wax poetically about the youthful Rockies, I have an axe to grind about the television broadcasting crew of Drew Goodman, Jeff Huson and George Frazier. Those three form one of the most biased, nonobjective broadcasting teams in baseball history. I’m not kidding. The Rockies never get the same calls as their opponents do. The Rockies never get the national recognition like everyone else does. The Rockies are the greatest team to ever walk the planet and if they played a roster compiled of Jesus, Moses, God and the 12 apostles, Colorado should win 5-4 in extras nine times out of 10. If not, the Rockies beat themselves, because there’s no way Jesus and the gang were better. Don’t believe me? Just ask Goodman, Huson and Frazier. All right, now that that’s out of the way – the Rockies are a damn fine club and should leapfrog the Dodgers in the division this year. Their core – Troy Tulowitzki, Ian Stewart, Chris Iannetta, Dexter Fowler and Carlos Gonzalez – are all 27 years old or younger and that doesn’t include 26-year-old stud Ubaldo Jimenez, who is absolutely filthy when he’s on. Throw in key veterans like Todd Helton (a perennial .300 hitter) and Jeff Francis (who could win 15-plus games filling in for the departed Jason Marquis), and Colorado has the tools to make a deep run. The question is whether or not starters Francis and Jorge De La Rosa will keep their ERAs below 5.00 and the young offensive players can move forward in their development and not backwards. But outside of the ultra-annoying broadcast team, I love the Rockies from top to bottom this year and believe they can do some damage in 2010.

2. Los Angles Dodgers (12)
Dodger fans are probably thinking to themselves, “Hey clown face – nothing has changed. This is the same team that won 95 games last year, so what’s with this second place nonsense?” And they would be right to think that – I do have a clown face. But whether fans want to admit it or not, owner Frank McCourt’s divorce from wife and former CEO Jamie McCourt will have an affect on their club this season. In fact, it already has seeing as how the Dodgers’ spending was limited this winter. Matt Kemp, Andre Ethier, Clayton Kershaw, Chad Billingsley, Manny Ramirez and Casey Blake should keep L.A. competitive throughout the season and there’s likely to be a knock down, drag out fight between them and the Rockies for first place. But what happens when Kershaw, Billingsley, Vicente Padilla, Hiroki Kuroda and James McDonald start making trips to the DL? Ownership certainly isn’t going to spend money on replacements, so experienced players may have to step up and that usually spells trouble. Plus, if guys like Rafael Furcal, James Loney and Russell Martin don’t rekindle the magic they had earlier in their careers, Kemp, Ethier and Blake may find it harder to keep the club afloat by themselves. Don’t forget that Manny only hit .255 after taking a pitch off the wrist in late July last year, so his best days are likely behind him as well. Do the Dodgers boast the same roster as the one that was so successful last year? Yes, but the power has seemingly shifted in the division.

3. San Francisco Giants (15)
Watching the Giants on a nightly basis is like watching a unicorn, in all its mythical wonderment and greatness, frolic around an empty field for three hours, only to be intermittently beaten by some idiot caveman with a club. Only, the ironic thing is that the caveman doesn’t really know how to use the club, so he just flails at the unicorn for three hours until both of them tire out and collapse. San Fran’s pitching staff, in all its mythical wonderment and greatness, is outstanding, but its offense continues to be a cross between a used baby diaper and hot garbage. Reigning two-time Cy Young winner Tim Lincecum is the best pitcher in baseball and 25-year-old Matt Cain is a Cy Young-contender in the making. When his heads on right, Jonathan Sanchez can be equally frustrating to hitters and his ’09 second half (which included a no-hitter) suggests that he has a bright future. Barry Zito will never live up to his contract, but he was productive and reliable for the first time in a Giants’ uniform last year and fifth starter Todd Wellemeyer had a great spring. The problem is that GM Brian Sabean hasn’t a clue when it comes to positional talent. With exception of the fun-loving star-in-the-making Pablo Sandoval and future prospect Buster Posey, the Giants don’t have any hitters that will keep opposing pitchers up at night. The offseason additions of Mark DeRosa and Aubrey Huff, as well as the re-signings of Freddy Sanchez and Juan Uribe should help, but all four of those players are complementary pieces on a good team. On the Giants, they’ll all be counted on as key contributors, which is a problem. This club won 88 games last year – more than any team that didn’t make the postseason. Their starting pitching, Sandoval and their bullpen are rock solid, but if the G-Men hope to make the playoffs this year, then guys like Aaron Rowand, Bengie Molina, Edgar Renteria and Nate Schierholtz (who will finally have the opportunity to play full time) have to step up in a big way. We’ll see if Sabean did enough this offseason to give the Giants a shot.

4. Arizona Diamondbacks (19)
In Brandon Webb and Dan Haren, the D-Backs have an outstanding 1-2 punch at the top of their rotation but the problem is that Webb isn’t healthy. He hopes that his shoulder injury will heal soon and is targeting a late April return, but that might be a little optimistic. Edwin Jackson was a nice offseason pickup, but ‘Zona has to hope that he’ll pitch closer to his first half production of last year (2.52 ERA) and not his second half (5.02). If Webb returns quickly and Jackson pitches well, then the D-Backs have enough pitching to challenge anyone. But there’s a ton of question marks surrounding the rotation (outside of Haren obviously) entering the season. Offensively, youngsters Justin Upton and Mark Reynolds will supply plenty power, while the return of Conor Jackson and newly acquired Adam LaRoche should boost the offense as well. But the key might be outfielder Chris Young, who had a great September after being demoted to the minors earlier in the season to fix his swing. If his September production wasn’t an anomaly, then Arizona certainly has enough offense to compete for the Wild Card. I just don’t trust the pitching and for as good as the offense could be, the D-Backs have several hitters that struggle to get on base on a consistent basis. If Webb were healthy, I could envision this club finishing higher than this. But I don’t think they’ll get out of the gates strong and it could sink their season.

5. San Diego Padres (24)
For a team that was forced to cut costs, the Padres finished a respectable 75-87 last season. Adrian Gonzalez, Kyle Blanks, Chase Headley and Everth Cabrera comprise and solid offensive core, but the problem is that their starting pitching is beyond suspect after the club traded Jake Peavy to the White Sox last year. Mat Latos may soon assume the No. 1 role, but he his little big league experience and there’s just not an ace among Jon Garland, Kevin Correia and Clayton Richard. Those three can certainly eat innings, but none of them are the top of the rotation arm that the Padres need to replace Peavy. The bottom line is that the Pads could surprise this season, but if Gonzo is traded at the deadline like many expect, then San Diego will sink to the bottom of the NL West. And even if he isn’t dealt, the Padres might still fail to get out of the West basement due to their starting pitching (or lack their of).

Photo from fOTOGLIF
]]> http://www.scoresreport.com/2010/03/27/2010-mlb-preview-nl-west/feed/ 3 http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/12/11/are-the-giants-getting-closer-to-acquiring-uggla/ http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/12/11/are-the-giants-getting-closer-to-acquiring-uggla/#comments Fri, 11 Dec 2009 17:30:48 +0000 Anthony Stalter http://www.scoresreport.com/?p=30928

One potential move that has taken a backseat to the Roy Halladay sweepstakes at the winter meetings this year is a deal that could make Dan Uggla a San Francisco Giant next season. According to FOXSports.com’s Ken Rosenthal and MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro via their Twitter pages, the Giants and Marlins are heating up discussions involving Uggla.

Uggla is the right-handed bat that the Giants desperately need. They acquired Freddy Sanchez at the trade deadline last year, but he could potentially move over to third base (moving Pablo Sandoval to first) in order to make room for Uggla, who hit .243 last year with 31 dingers and 90 RBI. San Francisco is already a contender (and I use that word loosely) with its pitching, but in order for the G-Men to make a serious run at the postseason they need more pop in their lineup outside of “The Panda.”

The question now becomes: What do the Giants need to part with in order to acquire Uggla? They’ve already traded one top prospect away in Tim Alderson to acquire Sanchez, and they have zero plans to deal pitcher Madison Bumgarner or catcher Buster Posey.

The problem is that the Marlins would no doubt ask for Bumgarner in a deal for Uggla. The bigger problem is that Giants’ GM Brian Sabean might just pull the trigger on the deal because 1) he’s Brian Sabean and 2) he’s willing to do anything to acquire a player he absolutely covets, and Uggla fits the bill. (Remember, this was the same man that traded Joe Nathan, Francisco Liriano and Boof Bonser for one year of A.J. Pierzynski.)

I’m sure Sabean would love to trade Fred Lewis, Kevin Frandsen (who I’m absolutely convinced is hated by the organization) and a couple of second-tier prospects in order to acquire Uggla. But that’s not going to work for Florida. They’re in the market for young talent, not talent that has never developed and by the looks of things, never will.

If Sabean pulls off a deal for Uggla and is able to retain Bumgarner and Posey, then kudos to him. If he winds up trading Bumgarner, well, then the man just traded away his No. 1 pitching prospect for a guy that hit .243 last season.

Photo from fOTOGLIF
]]> http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/12/11/are-the-giants-getting-closer-to-acquiring-uggla/feed/ 0 http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/10/31/giants-re-sign-freddy-sanchez/ http://www.scoresreport.com/2009/10/31/giants-re-sign-freddy-sanchez/#comments Sat, 31 Oct 2009 13:00:45 +0000 Anthony Stalter http://www.scoresreport.com/?p=27886

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the Giants have re-signed second baseman Freddy Sanchez to a two-year, $12 million deal.

This is a good deal for the Giants. Considering he’s turning 32 this winter, it’s safe to say that Sanchez’s best days are behind him. But he hits for average, is a decent defender and he’s one of the few San Francisco batters that understands the importance of taking pitches.

The Giants gave up their No. 2 pitching prospect in Tim Alderson to get Sanchez last year at the trade deadline, but the second baseman struggled with injuries and San Francisco missed the playoffs. If Sanchez can stay healthy and produce then the trade won’t be for naught, although Alderson could eventually develop into a solid starter for the Pirates.

It’ll be interesting to watch what Brian Sabean and the Giants do this winter, because they have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball but their offense is putrid outside of Pablo Sandoval. If they can add another bat, the Giants could definitely challenge for the NL Wild Card spot next season.