Kuzul

San Francisco Giants starter Matt Cain got the better of his matchup with the Phillies  Cole Hamels, spearheading his team to a 3-0 victory.  The Giants rode Cain’s terrific effort and more clutch hitting from the red-hot Cody “Babe” Ross to grab a 2-1 lead in the NLCS.

After the NLCS pairing was set, there was much punditry about how the Giants were the only team in the National League—and perhaps all of baseball—who could match up with the Phillies’ Big Three. 

After three games, these three points are clearly taking shape:

The Giants’ Big Three have matched up well with the Phillies’ vaunted H20 and most importantly have overmatched the Phillies supposedly high-powered offense.

While the top three starters are a close match for one another, this series may well be decided on the matchup of the #4 starters in Game Four tomorrow night—veteran Joe Blanton of the Phils versus rookie phenom Madison Bumgarner of the Giants.

The Phillies need to either cool off Cody Ross or have a hitter or two resemble the batting stroke of the amazing Babe Ross.

Matt Cain seemed to have the Phillies off-balance all game as he yielded just two hits in seven innings of work.  The big right-hander did walk three and plunk two others but the Phillies never seemed to have him on the ropes.

The Phillies offense—which showed some signs of life in Game Two—did not manage to connect for any extra base hits.  In the four innings that the Phillies did advance a runner into scoring position, Cain was able to get the needed strikeout (Raul Ibanez in the fourth) or groundouts (Chase Utley in the third and fifth; Shane Victorino in the seventh) to end the inning.

Meanwhile, Cole Hamels was pitching well but without any offensive support, or much defense for that matter.  Hamels was perfect through three innings, but had the misfortune of facing Ross with runners on first and third and two outs in the fourth.

Ross put the Giants on the board with a sharp single to leftfield that scored Renteria, who had led off the inning with a single.  Aubrey Huff then hit a grounder that just eluded second baseman Utley’s outstretched mitt to plate Pat Burrell.  It was clearly a hit, but a play that Utley often makes.

The Giants scored an insurance run in the fifth, although their 2-0 lead must have looked like 12-0 the way the Phillies were laboring at the plate.  Erstwhile Phillie, Aaron Rowand—seeing his first action of the NLCS—laced a double to lead off the inning.  After striking out Cain and retiring Renteria, Hamels induced Freddy Sanchez to hit a one-hopper that somehow fooled the normally reliable Utley.  The ball bounced off Chase’s right arm and into rightfield, allowing Rowand to score.

If 2-0 seemed like 12-0, 3-0 must have resembled a three touchdown lead.  The Phillies were sent down 1-2-3 by reliever Javier Lopez in the eighth, and Jimmy Rollins almost took closer Brian Wilson over the wall in the ninth but had to settle for a long single.  To typify the futility of the two-time defending NL champions on an otherwise beautiful day in San Francisco, Raul Ibanez followed Rollins’ near-homer with a game-ending 4-6-3 double play ball.

So what does all of this mean?  The Giants, to borrow tennis parlance, held serve in a game that was probably more important to them than to the Phils.  Now, skipper Charlie Manuel will apparently take Joe Blanton (9-6, 4.82) out of storage to oppose the 21 year-old Bumgarner (7-6, 3.00), who won the NLDS clincher in Atlanta.

If the Phillies win Game Four, they tie the series at 2-2, and have their ace Roy Halladay for one more game in San Francisco before heading back home.

If the Giants win, they take a 3-1 lead with their ace Tim Lincecum pitching at home with a chance to shock the baseball world and win the series in five.

No matter what Blanton gives them in Game Four, Phillies Nation is praying that their offense–whether carried by Utley, Ryan Howard, Jayson Werth  or their own version of Babe Ross–finally shows up.

GOLD NOTES

Two notes on Matt Cain.  Although he just turned 26, he is the longest-tenured Giant.  He also entered the game with an 0-3 career record, and a high ERA versus the Phillies. So much for that precursor.

Barry Bonds got a huge ovation when he was introduced (in uniform) before the game.  AT&T Park may be the only ballpark in America that Bonds would not have been booed off the field.

The last time the Phils were blanked in a postseason game was Game 5 of the 1983 World Series when Scott McGregor started for the Orioles.

For my money, the singing of both the national anthem and God Bless America (seventh inning stretch) were as lame and ineffective as the Fightins’ bats.

Despite a great flyover and a majestic U.S. flag, someone named Ben Gibbard, from some indie band called Death Cab For Cutie, sleepsang his way through the national anthem, while Zooey Deschanel gave us a flaccid, brutal God Bless America.

A tough night for Phillies and music fans. 

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The star-studded staffs of the Giants and the Phillies have been largely dominant in the series so far, despite Roy Halladay’s ho-hum performance in Game 1; but Game 3 has the potential to become an offensive shootout even though a pair of elite pitchers are involved. 

Matt Cain (13-11, 3.14 ERA in the regular season) has to face a veteran Philadelphia lineup that is looking to reverse a growing trend of stranding runners on base. The Phillies can find solace in the fact that opposing hitters are batting, an unusually high, .267 with RISP and two outs against Cain (compared with fellow teammate Tim Lincecum’s .228 in similar situations) and that he has the propensity to give up home runs, a specialty of the power-laden Phillies lineup.

In his only start against Philadelphia this year, the Giants right-hander gave up a three-run homer to Jimmy Rollins that was set up by a Mike Fontenot error three plays prior. Cain would give up five runs (two earned) on the day en route to an 8-2 Phillies’ drubbing at Citizens Bank Park August 18th. 

Though the circumstances may be a bit different this time around for Cain, the Phillies offense has too much firepower to stay quiet for another game. The Giants’ right-hander is prone to the occasional pounding (he gave up six or more runs three times this season) and the middle infielders of the Phillies seem to have his number.

Rollins and Chase Utley have hit .600 and .467, respectively, over their careers against Cain, and the Phillies’ shortstop has had five of his six hits go for extra bases, including the aforementioned blast from earlier this year. 

On the flip side, Cole Hamels has been lights-out this postseason, as he looks to return to form since a rough performance last October

Hamels, though, has been historically sub-par against the Giants, especially at AT&T Park where he sports a 6.12 career ERA.

This year, the former World Series MVP, has been roughed up both times he has faced San Francisco, squeaking out a no-decision in their first meeting (he went 6 IP, 4 ER, but SF went 5 for 21 with RISP) and losing in their most recent matchup after giving up five runs in five innings pitched.

The scorching-hot Cody Ross murders Hamels with four home runs in his 30 at-bats against the lefty, and Buster Posey hit him hard in their first meeting with two doubles and two RBIs in the Giants’ 5-2 win.

Hamels’ penchant for giving up the long ball bodes well for a Giants’ offense that hit the sixth-most home runs in the National League and with 26 homers allowed on the season, the Phillies’ left-hander was tied for seventh in the NL, just in front of the WPIB (Worst Pitcher In Baseball) Zach Dukes. 

Game 3 will no doubt be a must-watch affair, whether the offensive fireworks are set off in this NLDS mathcup looks to fall on the shoulders of the game’s starting pitchers.  

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Due to timely hitting and a dominating pitching performance by Roy Oswalt, the Philadelphia Phillies defeated the San Francisco Giants 6-1 in Game 2 of the 2010 NLCS.  

Cole Hamels and the Philadelphia Phillies now need to focus on how to defeat the Giants in San Francisco in Game 3.   

Matt Cain will get the start for the home team, as he will try and lead the Giants to a 2-1 series lead. 

With the series tied 1-1, Game 3 may determine the winner of the series.  The losing team will face some daunting questions.  

If the Phillies lose, will Roy Halladay get the start in Game 4?  If the Giants lose, will Tim Lincecum get the start in Game 4? 

If the San Francisco Giants can defeat another member of “H2O”, the series may take a turn for the worst for the Phillies.  

Here are five keys for victory for the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 3 of the NLCS.  

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I have heard too many analysts, as well as Giant fans, tell me how good this team is. How they are going to defy the odds, how “deserving” they are of this, when the fact of the matter is they aren’t.

Although the bulk of this is based upon my opinion, this article is well-researched and formulated. Like it or not, you can’t ignore these numbers.

The first comment I usually (and will) get by the Giants faithful is the fact that San Francisco won the NL West…to which my response is usually… and? Somebody had to win it.

Their next comment is usually along the lines of their 92-70 record, which again, appears impressive. Lets examine that.

Now before I get too deep, the main purpose of this article is to explain why the Giants have no business making it to the World Series, and whether or not they beat the Braves doesn’t really matter.

If the Braves had advanced it would be almost the exact same scenario. Before you go look at my profile and determine I’m a Padres fan…that doesn’t matter either.

Had the Padres advanced to the playoffs, they would not have had any more of a chance than the Giants or Braves. They too had no business being here.

I’m aware of that, you should be too. So why do the Giants have no chance? Why aren’t they as good as everyone thinks? Why won’t they win the NLCS and eventually the series?

They can’t hit. They can’t score runs. but more specifically here are five reasons the bus stops here.

1. Cody Ross is not your (and never will be) NLCS/World Series MVP. Sorry.

Yes, he is having an unreal streak of at-bats for the Giants this postseason, but lets look at the big picture…after Burrell, nobody else is doing squat. You don’t pitch to one/both of them, and one/both has a bad game, the rest of the lineup is averaging .66 RBI’s per game.

That’s right, the other seven are driving in LESS THAN A RUN PER GAME…and you want to compete with the No. 2 offense in the NL.

Tim Lincecum will be our MVP!! No, he won’t.

You guys will not consistently score enough runs for him to keep winning games. He isn’t going to strike out 14 guys every game, which is what you needed to beat the Braves and their horrid offense.

He also needed Cody Ross to man up against Halladay, and he did…but there’s nobody else there to back him up.

If we look back at the last six years NLCS/ALCS MVP’s we have:

Ryan Howard, CC Sabathia, Cole Hamels, Matt Garza, Matt Holiday, Josh Beckett, Jeff Suppan, Placido Polanco, Roy Oswalt, Paul Konerko, Albert Pujols and David Ortiz.

The first thing we notice? six pitchers, six hitters, so we’re fairly balanced. The next thing? I don’t see any Cody Ross caliber players?

The worst player on that list is Jeff Suppan, and he’s a pitcher, not an 8-hole hitter. Most of those guys are perennial MVP/Cy Young candidates.

The next (and probably most important thing) we notice? Ryan Howard, Cole Hamels, Placido Polanco and Roy Oswalt are on that list….and they’re also on the Phillies. Not only that, Hamels was a World Series MVP as well (and he’s the number THREE starter).

To further emphasize the talent on the Phillies roster, Jimmy Rollins and Ryan Howard are regular season MVPs…and we haven’t even mentioned the Phillies best hitter in Chase Utley. Oh…and somebody named Roy Halladay…who had a fairly decent postseason debut.

2. Their regular season record IS 22 games above .500, but their record against teams that can score runs is not. If we take the top three NL teams in runs we get the Reds, Phillies, and Rockies.

If we examine the Giants record against these teams, we see they are a very average 18-15. If we include the Red Sox (No, 2 in the AL) in interleague play we get to 19-17.

The Giants record against teams that can score runs tells us all we need to know about what kind of club they are…and they showcased that in the NLDS against the Braves.

After they won that series a lot of Giants fans began running their mouth about how they’re the underdog, and nobody is taking them seriously, insert final cliche here. Who cares?

Your team is built around a bunch of misfits, has-beens, and never was players, anchored by a dominant starting rotation in Timmy, Cain, and Sanchez (which I will not discount…they’re solid).

3. Playoff experience. This won’t require too much explanation for the bulk of you that have watched what the Phil’s have done in the last few years. They’re the real deal, and they’re only getting better.

When was the last time a ROOKIE CATCHER led his team to a world series? 1966. We have already seen a no-hitter this postseason, so you never know.

4. Home field advantage for San Francisco doesn’t exist. Moving from the Cracker Jack Box that is Citizens Bank Park to AT & T Park is only going to make it even more difficult to score runs.

Citizens bank was 10th in baseball with 1.125 HR allowed per game, while AT & T was 20th in the league with .885 homeruns allowed per game…and that was during the summer. Few balls will leave the Giants bats and make it through the thick October nights and into the bleachers.

If the Giants team was built on speed that would be one thing, but nothing could be further from the truth. No team in the Major Leagues stole fewer bases than the San Francisco Giants.

They tied the Chicago Cubs for the fewest steals in the league with a whopping 55. The Phillies on the other hand,  finished the regular season with 108 steals. Advantage: Philly.

5. The Phillies starting three are too good. Halladay will pitch on short rest, meaning a seven game schedule would consist of Halladay three times, Oswalt twice and Hamels twice. You beat Halladay once, what are the odds on beating him again…or two more times?

He lost 10 games in 33 starts…so on average he will lose one of the three games he pitches…and he’s already done that. Will one of the worst offenses in recent playoff memory be the team to knock Halladay around three times in a row?

I’m shaking my head because I know there are Giants fans that are claiming they can do it.

“SAN FRANCISCO OWNS HALLADAY!! HE IS 0-2 AGAINST US THIS YEAR!!” True, but that’s very flawed logic. First, the regular season game he lost didn’t feature Cody Ross. Meaning this second go around didn’t have the same players as did the first one.

Not to mention that game was only Halladay’s fifth start of the year. Lets look at who did the damage that game. Halladay allowed five runs in a 5-1 loss. So who tagged Halladay for those five runs? Two of them were driven in by Whiteside, two by DeRosa. Correct me if I’m wrong, but I haven’t seen their names on any lineups thus far in the postseason.

Of the 10 hits allowed by Halladay that first game, two were from Sandoval, two were from Renteria, two from Whiteside, and one each from Bowker, Torres, Huff, and DeRosa.

How many of these players were even in the lineup against Halladay the second go around? Torres and Huff. How much did they benefit from seeing him a second time around? 2-9, zero RBI’s. So take that “favorable” matchup for what it’s worth.

You want to focus on matchups? Cain lost his only start versus Philly this year by a score of 2-8. Bumgarner was 0-4 against the top three scoring NL teams I mentioned earlier.

Congratulations on making it this far, the Giants have clearly demonstrated they are the best of the worst teams eligible to fill this slot in the postseason. It would have been difficult to write this about the Padres, but they would have been swept in the first round before I even got around to it.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t go out there and cheer for your team, just be a little more humble about it. You’re fortunate enough to have gotten this far.

The Giants pitching staff should keep them competitive for the next few years, and Buster Posey caliber players will continue to emerge from a strong farm system that continues to develop talent.

If you guys pull it out, good for you. If not, try not to blame the umps.

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Surprise, surprise.  A 2010 playoff game ended up being all about pitching.

Game 2 of the National League Championship Series between the Philadelphia Phillies and San Francisco Giants ended up being a story of the two starting pitchers:  Roy Oswalt and Jonathan Sanchez.

Oswalt pitched an absolute gem, throwing eight innings of three-hit baseball, allowing only one run while striking out nine and walking three.

It was just what the Phillies needed to even up the series after the Giants did the unthinkable by beating Roy Halladay in Game 1.

Sanchez didn’t pitch poorly for the Giants, but he was still out-dueled by Oswalt.

In the first inning, Sanchez was wild.  He struck out the side, but only after three walks and an error, leading to an unearned run.

Sanchez then settled down and started mowing down Phillies batters, and his teammates eventually rewarded him when Cody Ross launched a home run off Oswalt in the fifth.

But the Phillies immediately retook the lead in the bottom of the fifth after a leadoff double and two sacrifice flies.

Philadelphia would hold on to the lead and extend it, eventually winning the game, 6-1.

So, what does this mean for each team?

San Francisco Giants

This certainly isn’t the end of the world for San Francisco.  They are still in very good shape.  At the start of the series, the Phillies had Hallday, Oswalt and Cole Hamels lined up to start the first three games. 

Staring down that murderer’s row of pitchers, the Giants teed off on Halladay in Game 1, earning the win and establishing confidence.

If they can hit Halladay, they can hit anyone.  Though they didn’t hit Oswalt last night, they should still be confident when they have to face him again.

Also, the Giants went into Philly and earned a split.  That’s about as good of an outcome as they could have hoped for.  Now the pressure is on the Phillies to win a game in San Francisco.

Philadelphia Phillies

That win was just what the doctor ordered for the Phillies.  Game 2 is too early for a must-win game in most playoff series, but it was just that for Philadelphia.

You can’t go down 2-0 heading to San Francisco and hope to win two ballgames against the Giants’ young arms.

Cole Hamels vs. Matt Cain in Game 3 on Tuesday afternoon will be the pivotal matchup in this year’s NLCS.

Whoever wins that game will be in the driver’s seat for the rest of the series.

While the matchup appears to be about pitching, it’s more about the offenses.

Can the Phillies build off their offensive success in Game 2, or will the Giants’ young arms return to form and shut them down.

Also, how will the lefty Hamels fare against the right-handed bats the Giants bring to the table.

Game 3 Prediction

Matt Cain and the San Francisco Giants will take their first home game in this series, 3-2.  San Francisco’s offense will do just enough against Hamels to earn a victory, while Cain will hold Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and the Philadelphia offense to few enough runs to get the win.

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Torture. That is what the Giants like to do to their fans.

Although the Giants took the NLDS 3-1 against the Atlanta Braves, there was no absence of nail-biting, heart-stopping moments. Each game was decided by one run, and one of the four games went into extra innings.

Now with a few days to rest, the Giants will need to continue to dominate on the mound and have some good old luck if they are to win the National League pennant from the Philadelphia Phillies. 

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Yesterday the San Francisco Giants came from behind to beat the Braves 3-2 and advance to the National League Championship Series. It was their second such victory in as many days and the fourth one run game of the four game series.

The path for the Philadelphia Phillies was far smoother. Roy Halladay threw the second post-season no-hitter of all-time, and Cole Hamels tossed a five-hit shutout as the Phillies easily swept the Cincinnati Reds.

This series will mark the first time these two teams have met in the playoffs and we should be in for fireworks. Both teams have deep rotations filled with proven pitchers, and both teams have areas of weakness.

While San Francisco’s line-up produced the fewest runs of any playoff team and lack a true middle of the order presence, Philadelphia has a bullpen full of talented pitchers who have struggled in the clutch. So who will win this epic match up? Read on for a game by game analysis.

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Here we are once again. There is really nothing quite like October baseball. We spent all summer weeding out the undeserving teams and went from 30 to what will soon be four. 

With the National League series all set and ready to roll, the Giants and Phillies pose some interesting matchups.

The dominance established by the three Philly starters against the Reds could force Bruce Bochy to become more aggressive in trying to push any runs across.

Philly certainly looks like the class of the NL this year. I have scoured the National League and found only two teams that could matchup against the Phillies: the Rockies and the Cardinals. Luckily for the Phillies, neither made the Playoffs. 

The Giants did, however, and after dispatching the Braves in four games with some help from the umpiring crew and Brooks Conrad, they stare at the best team they’ve played all year.

Oh yeah, and the Phillies are also playing their best ball of the year. Poor Giants.

And with that, let’s dive in to the five bold predictions…

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They say, rightfully so, that pitching decides the postseason.

In the NLCS this year, pitching will almost certainly have a direct impact on who goes to the World Series, and who goes home until spring training in 2011. 

The San Francisco Giants beat the Atlanta Braves Monday night to advance to the National League Championship Series where they will face the Philadelphia Phillies, who shrugged off the Cincinnati Reds in their first-round matchup.  The Phillies are looking to become the first team since the St. Louis Cardinals of 1942-44 to win the National League pennant three straight seasons. The Giants are making their first NLCS appearance since 2002, when they defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in five games to advance to the Fall Classic.

Both teams have outstanding pitching staffs.  The Giants ERA was the best in baseball in the regular season, with a 3.36. A September in which their team ERA was a minuscule 1.78 was what propelled them over the San Diego Padres in that final month of the season.

The Phillies made the top 10 with a 3.67, good for sixth in all of baseball. 

Honestly, it’s hard to fathom that either of these teams could go home because one team out-pitched the other, especially San Francisco.  But that could absolutely happen, as Philadelphia has some dangerous arms on their staff. 

Here’s the breakdown:

San Francisco Giants:

Starting Pitching: Madison Bumgarner, Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, Jonathan Sanchez.

Outlook: In the NLDS, the rotation went Lincecum-Cain-Sanchez-Bumgarner.  Considering the Giants only allowed nine runs in the four games total, why mess with success?  Expect the same four-man rotation in the next round. 

It’s interesting, to say the least, that Barry Zito could technically be put back on the postseason roster to face the Phillies lineup, which is loaded with left-handed sluggers like Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Raul Ibanez that the left-handed Zito could neutralize. 

But over his last seven starts, Zito’s ERA is over six.  For the Giants to take one of their starting pitchers out on the off-chance that Zito might be effective against the Phillies would be them taking a risk that is not a smart one against a Philadelphia team that is a few wins away from being a dynasty.  Not to mention, the only two that you could fathom being replaced for Zito, Sanchez and Bumgarner, are left-handed as well.  (On a side note: In Zito’s only start against the Phillies this year, he allowed four runs on eight hits in five innings).

Bullpen: Jeremy Affeldt, Santiago Casilla, Javier Lopez, Guillermo Mota, Ramon Ramirez, Sergio Romo, Brian Wilson.

Outlook: The San Fran ‘pen has two lefties (Affeldt and Lopez) to neutralize the Phillies left-handed sluggers.  Closer Brian Wilson led the majors with 48 saves in the regular season.  Sergio Romo, Ramon Ramirez and Santiago Casilla had a fantastic 2010.  This bullpen is set up for success right now, especially if the Giants starters can continue to go deep into games. 

They could fall into trouble if their starters are pulled early or if tight games go into extra innings, though.  The last thing you want to do is send a right-handed reliever into a tie game to face Howard, Utley or Ibanez, because the game more than likely won’t be tied afterward.  Knowing the proper times to use his left-handed relievers will be critical for Giants manager Bruce Bochy in this series.

Philadelphia Phillies:

Starting Pitching: Joe Blanton, Roy Halladay, Cole Hamels, Roy Oswalt.

Outlook: That 1-2-3 punch of Halladay, Hamels and Oswalt is the best remaining in the playoffs.  That alone gives them a significant advantage over a San Francisco team that only scored 11 runs in their four-game series with the Braves.

Blanton will more than likely make his 2010 postseason debut in Game 4.  The Phillies could opt to use Halladay in Games 1, 4 and 7, Oswalt in Games 2 and 5 and Hamels in Games 3 and 6.  But me thinks Phillies skipper Charlie Manuel would rather that his big ace gets that extra day of rest and goes in Game 5.

With Blanton in the mix, expect Halladay to start Game 1 and Game 5, Oswalt to start Game 2 and Game 6, Hamels to start Game 3 and a possible Game 7, with Blanton splitting the big 3 with his Game 4 start.

Bullpen: Antonio Bastardo, Jose Contreras, Chad Durbin, Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson, J.C. Romero.

Outlook: The Phillies bullpen ERA was 4.48 since September 1st.  The Phillies are coming out looking like roses after sweeping the Reds, but their biggest weakness, their bullpen, was never showcased in a huge spot.  Halladay and Hamels both threw complete games, so the Phillies’ bullpen only had to pitch four innings total in the three game series.

Hard to overlook the experience in this bullpen, though.  The Phillies have won the NLCS the past two years with Chad Durbin, Brad Lidge, Ryan Madson and J.C. Romero in their bullpen.  Philadelphia has enough right-handers to deal with Buster Posey late in a game, and the left-handed J.C. Romero will probably get to know Aubrey Huff pretty well by the time this series is over.

It looks as if San Francisco has the edge when it comes to relief pitching, but Philadelphia may have the edge in their starting pitching, no matter what the Giants ERA was in the stretch run of September.  This could be one of the more evenly matched NLCS (pitching-wise) that we’ve seen in a long time.   

What do you think?  Do you think the Giants starting pitching is enough to match up with the Phillies?  Do you think the Phillies bullpen’s experience alone will be enough to stand with the Giants ‘pen? 

One thing’s for sure: If both teams pitch how they’re capable of, don’t expect a lot of runs.

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Are the 2010 San Francisco Giants the new “Atlanta Braves” of the 90s and early 2000’s? 

Maybe. Think about these:

1.) Buster Posey could potentially be the Giants‘ version of “Chipper Jones.”

2.) Tim Lincecum could potentially be the Giants’ version of “John Smoltz.”

3.) Matt Cain could potentially be the Giants’ version of “Gred Maddux.”

4.) Barry Zito could potentially be the Giants’ version of “Tom Glavine.”

5.) Jonathan Sanchez could potentially be the Giants’ version of “Steve Avery.”

What a foundation?  The Giants management of the late 90s, including Brian Sabean, Ned Coletti, Dick Tidrow, and Dusty Baker, were eyeing the Braves and looking to rebuild, but couldn’t with Barry Bonds’ contract and a gutted farm system. 

So they hired former MLB pitcher and player developer Dick Tidrow to be the Giants VP of Player Personnel and Development. All the players above except for Zito are home-grown Giants players, and the beginnings of a new foundation similar to the Braves blueprint of the late 90s into the early 2000s. 

Of course, the above does not include promising young starting pitcher Madison Bumgarner. Additionally, the other differences between the 90s Braves and today’s Giants is that Cain and Sanchez are even more power-oriented arms than their Braves counterparts.  And power arms succeed in the postseason, according to many experts. 

So maybe the Giants will set forth on a winning tradition, beyond just division or even League pennant championships.  Maybe they’ll somehow succeed at winning a World Series or two or more. 

Right now, the Giants are in a real dog fight for their lives in the dirty south with these Atlanta Braves.  Although they are quite shorthanded by injuries, the Braves and Manager Bobby Cox still have a tradition of winning.  While it may not be the impressive team they once had, the aura and confidence that the Braves and Cox still have is not to be underestimated.

Look for this series to come down to a Game 5.  I think the Giants should be able to edge out the Braves in five games, but it could go either way.  The Giants still lack some key postseason experience in their bullpen, and the offense is not quite where it should be to be a champion.

By the way, LF Pat Burrell should be in the lineup ’til the end of the game, unless the Giants are up by two runs or more late. He reminds me of a modern-day Bobby Thomson (of 1951’s “Shot Heard ‘Round the World fame).

Anyways, if the Giants somehow get past these Braves, that would be a nice feather in their cap at this stage of their development.  The Giants vs. the Phillies quite honestly will be a mismatch.  While the pitching is about even, with maybe a slight edge to the Giants, the Phillies offense, recent postseason experience, and the rest they are now getting after dispatching the Reds will be too much to overcome for the Giants, imho. 

2010 NLDS:  Giants win 3-2 over Braves

2010 NLCS:  Giants lose 2-4 to Phillies

I’m a Giants fan, but this is the likely reality.  We’ll see, of course.   But the good news, this experience will be good for the long-term, as they build on an already excellent young foundation for the next few years to come. 

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