Game of the Week: August 22: SF @ STL

[Commissioner Erick]

San Francisco Giants (65-52) @ St. Louis Cardinals (53-64)


SF: Justin Marsden (7-12, 5.74)
STL: Matt Shoemaker (2-6, 3.35)


The San Francisco Giants have proven that their hot start wasn't a fad as they currently lead the NL West. The team is second in the league in not committing errors, while Brandon Waddell and Matt Andreise have anchored the team's rotation. Pitching and defense have always been San Francisco's calling cards when the team has been good. This Giants team has also hit for power. Yoenis Cespedes has been one of the more inspired signings of the offseason, as his 29 home runs have added an element of danger to San Francisco's staff. The Giants were gifted Rafael Jimenez in the Rule V draft, and he looks like a young slugger that can hit in the middle of their order for a decade. Finally, Shane Benes has added power to his game, allowing him to become a well-rounded star. The Giants will take on a Cardinals team that hasn't made strides in the second half and is firmly playing for next year. Nick Pratto and Anderson Cosma have delivered on their potential and look like young, vital hitters. Josh Donaldson hasn't been able to pace the team though, and there are still too many dead spots in the lineup. The future is bright in St. Louis, but can the Cardinals be a playoff team next year? The team will have to evaluate what they have to answer that.


Players to Watch:


Giants:


RP—Rafael A. Gomez:

Acquired in a trade with Cincinnati a month ago, Gomez has been electric for San Francisco. He hasn't walked anybody in 7.1 innings, but he's whiffed 10 and allowed only one home run. With the Reds, he allowed only four long balls in 43.2 innings, so it's somewhat of a legitimate skill, one made even better by pitching in San Francisco now. Gomez throws strikes, and everything he fires is down, making him ideal to come on board with runners in scoring position. He's help shore up San Francisco's bullpen and could be a key player down the stretch.


RP—Adam Ottavino:

Ottavino has alternated rough years with excellent ones, a pattern that has continued this year. He has a 2.74 ERA, a 3-0 record, and six saves. Ottavino has been filthy against right-handers in particular this year, as they're batting .167 off him. Lefties have normally hit him hard though, with a .745 OPS the lowest mark lefties have had against Ottavino in a season. This year, they have a .611 OPS. There's nothing that really tips off why he's been so good against lefties, so Dave Twibell is just letting it ride.


1B—Dan Vogelbach:

Vogelbach ended up without a spot in the lineup in Tampa Bay so San Francisco picked him up in May. Vogelbach hasn't hit in either spot, producing a .224 average with five home runs on the season in 240 plate appearances. Vogelbach's isolated slugging mark of .130 is not befitting of a slugger, as the main issue is that he hasn't thumped the ball. The Giants don't have that stereotypical slugger to play first or designated hitter, so Vogelbach will continue to get at bats. He'll need to come around for the Giants to have an offense capable of doing damage though.


Cardinals:


CF—Jonathan Machado:

Machado is a speed-and-defense guy that St. Louis has tried in Center Field for 27 starts. Unsurprisingly, the results aren't good. Machado hasn't hit at all, with a .274 OBP limiting his ability to use his legs on base. He has just one home run and four doubles so he's not doing damage with his bat. His zone rating is neutral and he doesn't have an outfield assist. He hasn't shown a real reason yet that he's a major-league caliber starter.


3B—Josh Donaldson:

Donaldson will have to show the Cardinals how good he can be going forward so they'll know if they're a contender or not next year. He's hit just .230 in August with a .700 OPS. If that's his new normal, then the Cardinals will be handicapped with Donaldson making $38 million next year. He hit a pair of home runs in July after coming back from a rib-cage injury, but only hit .241. He hasn't been a star, and he'll be 37-years old. He'll likely still be a starting-caliber player, but St. Louis may not be able to depend on him to be a middle-order star. Donaldson will have roughly seven weeks to show who he could be.


RP—Luis Contreras:

A scouting discovery in 2018, Contreras showed explosive stuff in the minors, but was very erratic. He's still a bit wild, but his stuff has been fantastic. He has 85 strikeouts in 72.2 innings despite not really throwing anything that isn't a fastball. Right-handers have not had any success hitting extra base hits off him. Lefties have hit for some power as they can square him up easier, but they still have the same issue hitting for average. Contreras just turned 21 and already looks like a late-inning weapon.


TRIVIA: Who is the only Center Fielder in Giants history to hit 20 home runs in a season?

[Commissioner Erick]

Cardinals 6 - Giants 2


WP: M. Shoemaker (3-6)
LP: J. Marsden (7-13)


Despite the Giants record, they do not have a strong back of their rotation, a weakness that was exposed during the Game of the Week. Joc Pederson singled in a run in the first inning, Nick Pratto hit a huge three-run home run, and the Cardinals handed Justin Marsden his league-leading 13th loss. Daniel Brito had a big day for the Cardinals with three hits and three runs scored, while the Giants subbed Dan Cabrera in for Rafael Jimenez and saw him go hitless.


How They Played:


Giants:


RP—Rafael A. Gomez: DNP

With the Giants getting blown out, they didn't use Gomez, relying on just two relief pitchers to finish the game.

He only pitched twice during the week, earning a win and a loss. On Wednesday, he came on in the tenth inning with a runner on first and no out. He got a soft line out before allowing an infield hit. He struck out Nick Pratto though, plus he retired Randal Grichuk on a force out to end the inning. However, he walked Kenny Hernandez and allowed a hit to Edmund Sosa to begin the 11th. Adam Ottavino came on an induced a soft ground out, but Dan Cabrera dropped Jeremy Martinez' fly ball, leading to an unearned run and a loss. On Sunday against Pittsburgh, Gomez worked 2.2 innings. He didn't strike anybody out, but he got five ground balls and allowed only an unearned run. When Yoenis Cespedes doubled in a run in the top of the tenth and Adam Ottavino closed the game, Cespedes emerged with the win.


RP—Adam Ottavino: 1 IP, 0 R, 1 K

Otavino hadn't pitched in a couple of days so he came on to get some work. He got Daniel Brito to fly out, struck out Joc Pederson, and jammed Nick Pratto into hitting a pop out, impressively retiring three left-handed hitters.

Ottavino pitched twice the rest of the week, facing only three hitters total though. He got Jonathan Machado, a lefty, to ground out weakly before Dan Cabrera dropped the fly ball Ottavino induced from Jeremy Martinez. On Sunday, after Rafael A.Gomez got the first two outs of the tenth inning, Ottavino got Andrew Stevenson, a lefty, to fly out harmlessly for Ottavino's seventh save. Should Ottavino's gains against lefties be real, he'll be a dominant force in the late innings for San Francisco.


1B—Dan Vogelbach: 1-4

Vogelbach hit second and played first, having a non-descript day. He popped up on the first pitch he saw in the second inning off Matt Shoemaker, then popped up again to begin the fourth. He hit it a little deeper in the sixth, flying out to center field on the first pitch. In the eighth, after a long at bat, he slapped a single through the hole on the left side for a hit. Vogelbach didn't show the bat speed needed to be a premier slugger, popping pitches up, and hitting balls to center and left. He wouldn't be starting on most teams, and his presence at first handicaps what the Giants can do in the playoffs.


Cardinals:


CF—Jonathan Machado: 2-3, 1 R, 1 HBP, 1 CS

Machado reached base three times, giving him a rare time to show off his wheels on the bases. He was thrown out trying to steal, which is disappointing given his legs will have to be what gives him most of his value. He singled in the second inning and was promptly gunned down trying to steal second. He was plunked in the fourth and showed off his wheels, going first to third on a single up the middle before scoring on a Nick Pratto home run. He slapped a single the other way with a hit off Casey Mize in the fifth. With two on in the seventh, he hit a topper back to the mound leading to a fielder's choice, beating out the return throw to first to prevent a double play. Defensively, Machado had a nice game. He ranged over on the first play of the game to track down a Calvin Mitchell fly out, though a Jose Lezama fly ball in the fifth dropped out of his reach. He made a nice play in the sixth, coming on strong to grab a Dan Vogelbach line drive, and caught a scorching liner by Lezama to end the game.

Despite the strong game, it was a miserable week for Machado. He hit just 3-23 with a single walk, not getting a chance to try to steal another base. His defense also wasn't strong as his zone rating dropped to a negative number after the week. He's been given chances, but still hasn't shown to be worthy of being in the starting nine yet.


3B—Josh Donaldson: 1-2, 1 2B, 2 BB

The Giants were scared of Donaldson throughout the game. Justin Marsden walked Donaldson on four pitches in the first inning. Donaldson got something to hit with a man on and one out in the third, ripping a double to put men on second and third. A sac fly led to a run scoring later in the inning. In the fourth, Donaldson greeted Casey Mize by walking. Donaldson lined out hard to first in the sixth inning. Defensively, Donaldson made a nice pick in the third of a Calvin Mitchell chopper, in the fourth of a Yoenis Cespedes grounder, and in the fifth of a Delvin Perez grounder. He also caught up a pop up in the first.

Donaldson parlayed that success into a big week. He hit .476 with two home runs and a 1.331 OPS, bumping his August OPS from .700 to .838. He needed the week to show that he can still be a premier middle-order hitter. With him hitting well again, the Cardinals have won seven of nine—which is not an accident.


RP—Luis Contreras: DNP

The Cardinals didn't call upon Contreras as they had the game in hand and it wasn't a save situation.

They called upon him the next day, and he worked a scoreless ninth, allowing a walk, striking out one, and earning a win when Kenny Hernandez hit a walkoff, three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth. He came in the next day in the ninth inning and stayed on for 3 innings of scoreless work. When the Cardinals scored in the bottom of the 11th inning, Contreras got his second win of the week. Finally, he came in on the ninth inning on Sunday to protect a one-run lead in San Diego. He allowed a leadoff hit, but otherwise slammed the door, striking out Luis Almanzar to record his 11th save. It was a dominant week, with a pair of wins, a save, and five scoreless innings, as Contreras begins to ascend as the game's next big closer.


TRIVIA: With 13 losses, Justin Marsden is now the only current Giant in their all-time single season loss leaderboard. Which Giant, most famous for being a part of a lopsided trade with Philadelphia, is their All-Time loss leader?

[Grubs - Philly]

The Blach-head

[Commissioner Erick]

Nov 20, 2019 12:54:41 GMT -5 Grubs - Philly said:

The Blach-head

Ding ding ding!

[Commissioner Erick]

Trivia 1: Austin Slater