Posts Tagged ‘Randy Winn’

The Giants Have Lincecum, but Who Else Posted by James Bucci in San Francisco Giants August 28th, 2008

The San Francisco Giants’ 2008 season of discovery has uncovered a few pieces to take with them into 2009. At times, this year has had a feeling of confusion, as if the Giants were stuck between two philosophies, playing their veterans or their youth. Since the trade deadline, San Francisco has ditched the past for players of the present and future. Is it mere coincidence that August represents the Giants’ best stretch of the year?

In their last 11 games, the Giants (58-74) have posted a record of 8-3 and until Monday night had won five in a row. While a burst of youthful energy has helped, San Francisco’s notorious second-half players have finally bloomed.

Randy Winn has pushed his average above .300, while the unpredictable Barry Zito (8-15) has put two straight solid starts together and has found a bit of consistency. Both Winn and Zito are known for their slow starts as well as their hot finishes. Though Winn isn’t your prototypical right fielder, he does everything well except hit the ball out of the ballpark. Zito’s recent success can be attributed to a quicker pace when on the mound and attacking the strike zone, a key he’s spoken about, but rarely done.

The Giants have settled on Emmanuel Burriss at second base and Ivan Ochoa at shortstop with Omar Vizquel playing less than usual. Ochoa and Burriss offer speed, defense, but little hitting. As of Tuesday, Burriss had a .278 average, while Ochoa had a .235 average. Read more

The First Domino To Fall Posted by James Bucci in San Francisco Giants July 29th, 2008

With the trade of second baseman Ray Durham to Milwaukee on July 20, San Francisco parted ways with a player who held the longest tenure on the team and officially started a new chapter. Whether the Giants can unload remaining veterans such as Rich Aurilia, Omar Vizquel or Randy Winn before the July 31 trade deadline remains to be seen. In dispatching Durham to the Brewers, the Giants answered the question of whether they would send away their veterans with a resounding yes.

In return, the Giants received low-level prospects in outfielder Darren Ford and left-hander Steve Hammond, two players who might or might not factor in the team’s future plans. The trade of Durham was more about creating a vacancy at second base rather than the players headed the Giants’ way.

Shortstop turned second baseman Emmanuel Burriss, can now be plugged into Durham’s old spot on a full-time basis without the threat of controversy or hurt feelings. Not that Durham ever had the label of a complainer, but the Giants simply have a hard time letting go and constantly feel the need to satisfy older players at the expense of younger ones. Read more

Second-half Questions Posted by James Bucci in San Francisco Giants July 17th, 2008

San Francisco’s slide into the All-Star-break avoided becoming a complete collapse thanks to Tim Lincecum’s pitching gem on Sunday against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. The right-hander tossed eight innings in a 4-2 victory to halt the Giants’ six-game losing streak. At 40-55, the Giants sit in third-place in the NL West, seven games behind the division-leading Arizona Diamondbacks. While the Giants’ play on the field doesn’t represent a team capable of contending, the standings fail to lie, which might stagnate the team’s plans for youthful progress in the second-half.

This scenario has greeted the Giants before. For the last three seasons, San Francisco has greatly needed to reshape their roster with youthful pieces, but have fallen into patching the cracks with a veteran pitcher here or a veteran outfielder there. They chased after the illusion of a pennant because it seemed so close and so easily reachable, but ultimately out of their grasp. This illusion was created by the division’s mediocre teams, which all lack the dominance to sprint out and leave the others in the distance. The Giants’ rise in the standings hasn’t been because of their strong play, but the general lack of quality throughout. It only seems as though the Giants have risen because everyone has sunk down to their below-average level. Read more

A Strange Week Posted by James Bucci in San Francisco Giants June 1st, 2008

After dumping a double-header to the Florida Marlins on Sunday to end last week, the Giants achieved the indescribable, a three-game sweep of the first-place Arizona Diamondbacks in the desert to stir thoughts of the improbable. Could the Giants inch their way into the division race?

Two straight home losses to San Diego, which could have been three, tempered any fantastical thoughts about the Giants contending this year and ushered in a dose of reality. At 24-33, San Francisco is still a long climb from playing even baseball and reaching the second-place Los Angeles Dodgers. But, the Giants’ sweep of Arizona and stirring comeback to dash the Padres’ hopes proved once again that this season won’t lack for entertainment value.

Down 3-1 to San Diego in the bottom of the tenth on Sunday, San Francisco pinned a loss on major league saves leader, Trevor Hoffman with three runs for a 4-3 victory. Rookies Brian Horwitz and Fred Lewis played big roles in the stirring win. Horwitz singled as the tying run after a Ray Durham single opened the tenth, while Lewis tripled to tie the game and then scored the winning run. Read more