When the Giants Come to Town, It's Bye-Bye Baby

04.15.2008
4/14/08: Err-izona

Giants 5, D-Backs 4: Watching on the free MLB.tv tonight, I saw two of the best at-bats I'd seen all year. First was Bengie Molina in the seventh inning. One out, a run already in, and the go-ahead run on third. If Bengie hits a grounder, it would likely mean an inning-ending double play. Knowing that, Bochy sends the runner from first, Durham, on two consecutive pitches. Both times, they're sliders off the plate, and Molina does all he could just to foul-tip them and falls into a two-strike hole. Against a sinkerball pitcher, no less, but the next pitch was up, probably a hanging slider and terrible pitch selection, as Mike Krukow noted in the wrap -- and Molina drove it to medium-deep center for a sacrifice fly.

At-bat #2: Freddie Lewis, up against a tough lefty in the eighth, works the count, takes close pitches, goes full, then lines a single the opposite way on a fastball to the outside corner. Beautiful eye, beautiful approach.

That said, the Giants stole one tonight. The Backs forgot their D. Randy Johnson looked stiff and uncomfortable on the mound -- and who would have thought he'd be uglier without his porn-stache? -- but a little help from his friends would have kept the Giants off the board entirely. All five runs unearned.

Speaking of bad D, Aaron Rowand cost the Giants two runs in the third when he broke late on a soft liner, then let it bounce past him. Catch it, and Arizona doesn't score at all; field it on a bounce, and Arizona probably only scores once. But he helped make up for it by breaking up a double play in the 7th to help the Giants score their go-ahead run.

PLODAG: Keiichi Yabu, for two quick painless innings in relief after the first five seemed to take three hours. Big nod, too, to the Big Sweaty, for a nine-pitch, three-up, three-down eighth inning.

The Upside: FreddieLoo!, for his Tony Gwynn impression.
  


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[April 15, 2008 9:13 AM]  |  link  |  reply
Chris said

I have really loved the way that Freddie has been swinging the bat lately. When was the last Giants prospect that would willfully hit the ball the other way?

I touched on it lightly at my site, but check out his hitchart this year (doesn't include last nights single)

http://www.baycityball.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/fredchart.png

He's consistently gone the other way when pitched away or down the middle. I'm thinking that teams might start busting him inside more.

[April 15, 2008 11:11 AM]  |  link  |  reply
ELM said

Thanks for that, Chris. I won't be able to watch the next two games, which Fred presumably will start. If you notice a change in pitching patterns, let us know!

[April 15, 2008 11:30 AM]  |  link  |  reply
Chris replied to ELM

Will do, Lefty. The pitch he served to LF last night was also middle of the plate fading away from him. At any rate, it's refreshing to see.