No shame in getting shut down by Jake Peavy, so I won't harp on tonight's loss or too much, except to say Jonathan Sanchez's mental meltdown was disheartening. This was supposed to be last year's problem. C'mon, kid, get your head together.
The starting rotation, the assumed strength of this team, has now failed beyond five innings in four of the first five games. Randy Johnson had a great outing until Yovani Gallardo turned around one of his fastballs, and you could argue that Barry Zito and Sanchez suffered from one bad inning but otherwise looked good. I was off the grid for Zito's game, but that's what my pops told me. So certainly no panic mode yet. If the Giants get the same results the second time through the rotation, I'll have mild concern; the third time through, a tiny ulcer.
Meanwhile, much has transpired since I unplugged Thursday for a much-needed getaway to Point Reyes (a ten-mile hike, an excellent dinner here, a cold beer, a game of billiards with my sweetie and a little live rockabilly here, and a blissful morning sleeping in until 9:30).
First and foremost, Joe Martinez saw his life flash before him Thursday evening, but he's as well as we could hope for: hairline fractures, internal bleeding, a concussion, and as of tonight, at least a month of rest. With the justifiable extra caution accorded to head injuries, we might not see Martinez until June. So the heavily tattooed Justin Miller -- a reference to his body and hopefully not his pitches -- takes Martinez's spot. Get well, Joe, and we can't wait to see you back in town.
The starters' short outings have meant a lot of innings already for the bullpen, especially Brandon Medders and Alex Hinshaw with four appearances each in the first five games. Hinshaw's not doing himself any favors with four walks and no Ks.
Speaking of bullpen arms, I heard back from Paul Kennedy, the PR man for the Grizzlies, and yes indeed Billy Sadler is in the Fresno starting rotation. No definitive word if the Giants want him to try his luck as a starter, if they want to stretch him out in case they need a long man, or if they're simply putting him in different game situations to figure out his control woes.
So far Fresno has scored four runs in three games, which doesn't mean much, but they have a new bat to play with: Dallas McPherson, a 28-year-old career minor leaguer who has never has much of a chance in the majors. Injuries have played a part, but he's also an all-or-nothing type of guy. He led the minors wtih 42 home runs last year playing for high-altitude Albuquerque, and he also struck out 168 times. Is he just another Scott McClain, minor-league slugger extraodinaire, or will his career minor line of .296 / .383 / .586 one day translate into a Carlos Pena-like renaissance?
Pena isn't quite the right comparison; he definitely revived his career at the age of 29, but he's mostly been a major leaguer since 2001 and has always at least serviceable. McPherson's next major-league plate appearance will be his 400th, about two-thirds of a season's worth, and his lifetime MLB OBP is under .300. Still, McPherson gives the Giants more options in case Ishikawa can't handle the daily grind, or Sandoval's D at third is too rough to sustain.
In all five games the lineup has remained unchanged except for Rich Aurilia's start Thursday at first base. I'm curious to see how Bochy starts working in the bench guys, who are a combined 0 for 16 with 6 Ks. Chris Young starts tomorrow for San Diego. Considering track records, perhaps it's a good day for Aaron Rowand to sit, though Nate Schierholtz -- 0 for 8 with 6 Ks -- hasn't fared well against Young, either. To hell with it: Give the kid some ABs, Boch.
