***NL West 2011***

[symple19]

A sad start for the Giants, going down 2-1 to the Dodgers. Kershaw looked like a man.

Thank goodness baseball is here :toast

[The Gemini Method]

A sad start for the Giants, going down 2-1 to the Dodgers. Kershaw looked like a man.

Thank goodness baseball is here :toast

How are you guys going to overcome Tejada's retardation? Panda looks alot better now that he lost 40 lbs.

I think the Rockies are going to take the division, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Giants claim it.

[symple19]

How are you guys going to overcome Tejada's retardation? Panda looks alot better now that he lost 40 lbs.

I think the Rockies are going to take the division, but I wouldn't be surprised if the Giants claim it.

Yeah, I'm worried about Tejada. Just hope the guy's bat doesn't completely disappear and he'll at least earn his salary, which isn't much.

Sucked to see Uribe in dodger blue

[symple19]

On a positive note, the young rook hit a big fly. Look for big things from double B

On a throw things at the television note, more errors doomed the G's. That shit better get cleaned up

[JMarkJohns]

Diamondbacks are going to suck... that is all.

[symple19]

Cain was pimp yesterday. Hopefully the giants can get back to even tonight

[symple19]

Diamondbacks are going to suck... that is all.

are they making any strides toward getting better or is it full-on rebuild mode?

[JMarkJohns]

are they making any strides toward getting better or is it full-on rebuild mode?

They are going to attempt to tread water, but tire and drown.

They spent a good bit of money on mediocre veteran help, continued the practice of selling low on quality talent in trades and just don't have the reserves to acquire a stud prospect or develop one from within.

[symple19]

Giants defense sucks. fuck. It was embarrassing watching huff bumble around in right.

[ducks]

dbacks took 2 out of three at home against reds

are they toying with the dbacks fans ....

they won 13-2 and today 10-8

[The Gemini Method]

Lincecum = class...donates $25K to the family of Brian Stow the paramedic that was viciously attacked by supposed Dodger fans outside of Chavez Ravine on opening day.

[symple19]

Lincecum = class...donates $25K to the family of Brian Stow the paramedic that was viciously attacked by supposed Dodger fans outside of Chavez Ravine on opening day.

whoa! careful throwing around the blank=class statement, lol.

I agree, however

The Dodgers organization has been classy about it too. Just glad to see people coming together to help what appears to be a genuinely good family

[symple19]

Giants are rollin

[symple19]

duckz, post!

[symple19]

crofl

[symple19]

Buster Posey has had one of the toughest stretches for a catcher in recent memory. Hope the dude is okay

Fucking Marlins, lol. It was a clean play at the plate, but damn...

[symple19]

Former and current Giants doing great things for Stow and his family


Donations, contributions and other efforts have poured in after San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow was beaten in a Dodger Stadium parking lot on Opening Day.

But one quiet gesture has especially touched Stow's family, something that will affect his two children years down the line.

Former Giants star and embattled figure Barry Bonds has volunteered to pay for the college education of 12-year-old Tyler and 8-year-old Tabitha.

"It was extraordinary of Barry Bonds, I thought," Stow family attorney Thomas Girardi told NBC Bay Area KNTV. "He didn't say anything about it to the press. This was just a gift he gave the family because he knew that it was going to be pretty important to the kids."

According to KNTV, Bonds spent an hour with Stow on April 22, when the 42-year-old paramedic was still at Los Angeles County-University of Southern California Medical Center. Stow was moved May 16 to San Francisco General Hospital, which is closer to his family and where he remains in critical but stable condition under heavy sedation to prevent seizures caused by the traumatic brain injury.

Bonds also left a signed baseball bat for Stow's children, according to KNTV.

Stow's family filed a civil suit against the Dodgers in Los Angeles Superior Court Tuesday, seeking unspecified damages to cover Stow's future medical care and as compensation for the economic damages to Stow and his children.

The Stow family issued a statement on their website late Wednesday clarifying their "position in regards to recent developments." Their lawyer, Girardi, told ESPNLosAngeles.com on Tuesday they wanted to return money that has been donated to the Bryan Stow fund if they prevailed in the suit versus the Dodgers, but would accept Bonds' gift because it "means so much to them."

In the statement, they wanted to make clear that "there is no contribution that is greater than the other," and that their acceptance of Bonds' donation "was in no way an attempt to diminish other donations or contributions."

Moreover, the Stow family outlined in more detail what they meant when saying they wanted to return money that has been donated to the Bryan Stow fund.

"It has been reported that our family would like to return all donations received in the event of a favorable judgment for Bryan and his children," the statement reads. "We wanted to suggest this as a simple token of appreciation and thought that should such a favorable result occur, that your hard-earned dollars would possibly be able to help other similarly situated families who face similar tragic circumstances. Donations not returned could then be donated to other charities to give support to those families in need. We know that you gave from your hearts and we will forever be thankful."

Other members of the Giants have visited Stow as well, including pitcher Jeremy Affeldt, and Tim Lincecum has given $25,000 to the Bryan Stow fund.

Los Angeles police arrested Giovanni Ramirez, 31, on Sunday but charges have not yet been filed against him. They have not identified a second attacker or a woman suspected of driving the pair from the scene. Los Angeles police chief Charlie Beck called Ramirez the main aggressor.

Ramirez was being detained on a parole hold, with bail set at $1 million. Detectives still had not presented their case to the district attorney's office. Detective Pjai Morris said additional investigative work was being carried out, but he was confident the case would go forward.

Bonds, a seven-time MVP, was convicted April 13 of one count of obstruction of justice for giving an evasive answer in 2003 to a grand jury investigating the distribution of performance-enhancing drugs.

The jury deadlocked on three counts charging Bonds with making false statements when he denied knowingly using performance-enhancing drugs and when he said only his doctors injected him. Prosecutors have not said whether they will retry Bonds on those counts.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=6590118

[symple19]

Yes, I know Barry Bonds head should have it's own zipcode, but the above is why a vast majority of Giants fans still love him, including myself.

He has always done a lot of good in the community and been very loyal to the City of SF. Props to him and the rest of the Giants for going the extra mile to help Mr. Stow's family

[symple19]

also, not that anyone else reads this thread, but do you think the Giants should move Posey to 1B? A lot of people in SF land think so

Me? I'm not so sure. He handles the staff so well, and catchers are inevitably going to have stretches like this. I kinda still want him behind the plate

Giants have a guy in the minors, a catcher, who has a huge bat but is still probably a year or two away from the bigs. I'd probably be willing to revisit this issue when/if this guy, Hector Sanchez (http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110523&content_id=19455122&fext=.jsp&vkey=news_milb / http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?pos=DH&sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=516949), can make it to the majors. His defense and handling of pitchers is where he must make huge strides if he has any hopes of making it to the show

[The Gemini Method]

Great move by Bonds...

Posey has a broken ankle reports say...

[symple19]

Great move by Bonds...

Posey has a broken ankle reports say...

OMFG...

He's out for the rest of the year and into 12'.........
:depressed:(:depressed:(:depressed:(

[John Basedow]

Buster Posey has had one of the toughest stretches for a catcher in recent memory. Hope the dude is okay

Fucking Marlins, lol. It was a clean play at the plate, but damn...

Yup, it was a clean play by Scott Cousins. I'm happy the Fish won (after that turd they laid in the 9th), but I'm sorry about Posey. He's one of my fav players to watch and it sucks to see him go down.

[symple19]

Yup, it was a clean play by Scott Cousins. I'm happy the Fish won (after that turd they laid in the 9th), but I'm sorry about Posey. He's one of my fav players to watch and it sucks to see him go down.

A lot of Giants fans are calling the play dirty, but they're just butthurt because he's injured so bad

[ducks]

posey IQ is pretty stupid
do not have ball MOVE

[symple19]

posey IQ is pretty stupid
do not have ball MOVE

I don't think he knew whether he had the ball or not

[ducks]

dumb sophomores then

[Kyle Orton]

what a shitty ass division, the D-Bags are in 1st :lmao

[John Basedow]

Good outing by Kershaw...the broke-ass Dodgers took 2/3 from us.

[JMarkJohns]

what a shitty ass division, the D-Bags are in 1st :lmao

Yeah... Not sure what to make of this. Granted, their bullpen and offensive strikeouts were historically bad last season, so just getting that back to average would help, but I think this is a product of the Giants and Rockies taking a step back rather than the Diamondbacks taking that many steps forward.

Still... 1st is 1st, and they have been competitive in many of their losses, including upwards of 10 one-run losses. Definitely better than I expected, but the rest of the division is significantly worse than expected as well.

[symple19]

Giants are definitely in some trouble w/o Posey. They've looked morose out there lately

[ducks]

no team ever in the month of may was 6 1/2 games back to get back in first place ever

also dbacks are 15-2 in their last 17 games



Gibson will be the manager of the year if he is not carefully

[ducks]

Yeah... Not sure what to make of this. Granted, their bullpen and offensive strikeouts were historically bad last season, so just getting that back to average would help, but I think this is a product of the Giants and Rockies taking a step back rather than the Diamondbacks taking that many steps forward.

Still... 1st is 1st, and they have been competitive in many of their losses, including upwards of 10 one-run losses. Definitely better than I expected, but the rest of the division is significantly worse than expected as well.

they slaughtered a very good florida marlin team last night
who was 16-9 on the road before last night and won over 30 games



still I am shocked they are this good
I was hoping they would be .500 at the end of the year

[DeadlyDynasty]

they slaughtered a very good florida marlin team last night
who was 16-9 on the road before last night and won over 30 games



still I am shocked they are this good
I was hoping they would be .500 at the end of the year

Yeah, they beat the shit outta my boys:depressed

Volstad was pitching though...that's like spotting the opponent 10 runs

[symple19]

In the larger picture, what exactly does this mean for baseball with teams springing from the ashes like Cleveland and Arizona?

Both aforementioned teams are formerly successful, so it's not shocking per se', but it certainly seems like there is more parity around the league this year than there has been in the past

I realize it's not Pitt or KC doing this, which to me would really signal Baseball becoming healthier as a sport.

[symple19]

Maybe we're finally starting to see what a game this is without as much PEDs

I like the old school game with pitching and small ball more anyway

[ducks]

one reason az is doing as well as they are is running
they stole 9 basses against the rockies and got caught 1 time


ryan roberts scored from second on a wild pitch
they are very aggressive on the bases


I would not count the rockies out yet

their starting pitching is in trouble though
one of their better pitchers also just had to have surgery
rockies always suck in may but hot in september

[symple19]

agreed, I'll never count out the Rocks until they're mathematically eliminated

[Kyle Orton]

JMark did call it ahead of time that Arizona woulda been a .500 team last year if they even had an average bullpen, not having a historically bad bullpen anymore was enough for noticeable improvement.

[JMarkJohns]

The team last year would have been above .500 had their bullpen just been league average. Can't remember the specifics, but it was in an article to drive the nail in the coffin of their season and just how bad their bullpen was.

That said, I liked the Putz signing, but too many of the remainder of their bullpen are holdovers or too untested to put stock in. If they hold, they'll be competitive. They maintain this rate, they'll be a wildcard contender. They hold and Hudson pitches at all like last season, and they'll be in it in September. That's a lot of questions to build upon an iffy rotation and pen.

[spurs777]

Padres play well on the road and in the day.

WTF

[ducks]

heliman needs to go


talked how good they were and then they lost last night
won 19 games in may though
pitcher drove in two runs
.105 hitter

ian usually is better then what he was last night
he has not been that wild this year...


going to the dbacks game saturday...

[ducks]

Padres play well on the road and in the day.

WTF

they are like 14-7 in the day best in the national league
and worse at night



some think since they play where they do that ballpark at night holds the ball up
balls in the day go 386 but at night 366...

[DeadlyDynasty]

they are like 14-7 in the day best in the national league
and worse at night



some think since they play where they do that ballpark at night holds the ball up
balls in the day go 386 but at night 366...

Congrats on the win tonight. Vasquez and his 6.02 ERA are on the mound, so that's pretty much a guaranteed loss for the Fish

[spurs777]

they are like 14-7 in the day best in the national league
and worse at night



some think since they play where they do that ballpark at night holds the ball up
balls in the day go 386 but at night 366...
The ball definitely travels better in the day but both teams play on the same field, its really awkward, got to think Petco is in the players heads with their crazy home/road record splits

[ducks]

Cardinals ask about Padres' BellBy Mark J. Miller
The St. Louis Cardinals started the season with Ryan Franklin(notes) as their closer. That changed when he blew four of his first five opportunities and then went on the disabled list.

The team has been having some luck with Fernando Salas(notes) in the role. As of Tuesday night's victory, he's gone 10 for 10 in all the chances he's gotten.

But that hasn't stopped the Cards from being one of the teams inquiring about what it might take to obtain San Diego Padres closer Heath Bell(notes), according to ESPN.

The 33-year-old Bell will be a free agent at year's end and has 14 saves and a 1.96 ERA this season

[Robz4000]

Padres got this shit on lock. They'll pick up their play at home and once the new pieces get acclimated to the lineup (and re-acclimated coming off the DL), they'll engage beast mode.

[Robz4000]

Cardinals ask about Padres' BellBy Mark J. Miller
The St. Louis Cardinals started the season with Ryan Franklin(notes) as their closer. That changed when he blew four of his first five opportunities and then went on the disabled list.

The team has been having some luck with Fernando Salas(notes) in the role. As of Tuesday night's victory, he's gone 10 for 10 in all the chances he's gotten.

But that hasn't stopped the Cards from being one of the teams inquiring about what it might take to obtain San Diego Padres closer Heath Bell(notes), according to ESPN.

The 33-year-old Bell will be a free agent at year's end and has 14 saves and a 1.96 ERA this season

If the Pads let Bell walk or trade him, I'll lose all faith in the FO.

[Ryan Fitzpatrick]

Nice chokejob by the Marlins

[symple19]

And the fucking Giants are about to lose....again

[spurs777]

Cardinals don't have anyone in their system the Padres would be interested in except for Cardinals untouchables

[symple19]

YAY bad calls!

goddamn blue

[symple19]

fuck


LETS GO GIANTS!

[symple19]

lol intentionally walking cody ross

[symple19]

and being made to pay...........................

[symple19]

wtf is going on at busch? crofl

[ducks]

dbacks come back
record 17 times this year
upton 3 walk offs since may 5

putz first blown save (16 straight)
upton went to him and said we got this
all the team patted his back

great game
marlins

[ducks]

If the Pads let Bell walk or trade him, I'll lose all faith in the FO.

he is gone pads never pay anyone

[symple19]

I think I'm the only giants fan who agrees with Johnny Bench

glad Posey is seemingly already over the incident

lol Sabean

[JMarkJohns]

Slowly but surely, the Diamondbacks bullpen is starting to regain its 2010 form. Twixt Heilman constantly screwing up, the occasional other implosion and Putz's recent blown save, the pen is starting to toss the Diamondbacks right out of games. At least two other losses and tonight's likely loss are a direct result of the pen throwing like shit.

[ducks]

yeah but heilman should be sent down to triple a

so jmarkjohns
do you go get someone and who do you trade to get someone


david has been great though first 8 inning bad outing all year
david sucked on other time but that was in the 9 and he walked batters.


putz one blown save in 19 times is acceptable. it was not like it was a two run blown save.

sam should be back soon. he has pitched well this season.


atleast washington did not blow it tonight
they beat those pusky giants

[mariners]

it was only a matter of time, as i said elsewhere AZ bullpen has pitchers with mediocre track records pitching great that won't hold up

[symple19]

Good ole ducks, what does "pusky" even mean?

lol, I know what you mean though. The Giants run differential is only +3, so they're again winning (and losing) a ton of close games

Eli is handling the staff well, and they seem to have shaken off the loss of Posey, but his bat will be sorely missed if the Gigantes can make the playoffs. Look for the Giants to be players in the mid-season market

[symple19]

I definitely like the Giants first round pick, Joe Panik, a SS with some pop. Apparently he's good with the glove and seems to be a guy they want to develop instead of trade (which Sabean is well known to do, especially with position players).

[DUNCANownsKOBE]

it was only a matter of time, as i said elsewhere AZ bullpen has pitchers with mediocre track records pitching great that won't hold up
Hmmm, Putz was one of the best closers in baseball from 2006-2007 on the Mariners of all teams. You should know how good of a closer he can be.

Sam Demel, doesn't really have a track record at all. He was considered to be a great relief pitching prospect when Arizona got him, so him pitching well isn't really a shock given expectations. No question his injury has hurt their 'pen as he was its best pitcher other than Putz.

David Hernandez has gone from being a starter in the AL East to being a reliever in the NL West, you decide if that might help one's performance, but this "mediocre" track record you speak of doesn't exist for him either as he's untested as a reliever.

Arizona's bullpen might hit a wall at some point this year, but it's not like they're getting surprise performances from guys who always sucked as relievers. Towers was retarded signing useless veterans like Branyan and Mora but he did completely overhaul their bullpen.

[JMarkJohns]

Branyon, Mora, Gallaraga and signing Heilman, thus forfeiting a Level-A compensation pick were his boneheaded moves. Miranda, Reynolds trade, Putz and Bloomquist were all good decisions to this point.

They finally have some strong pitching depth. Twixt Bauer, Parker, Skaggs they have three high-2 starters. If they can sign Bradley, they can make that four.

[symple19]

Starting to hear murmurs from the bay that the Giants are thinking of releasing Tejada with Panda about to come back

What a terrible signing he's been...

OTOH, these Giant's youngsters like Crawford are really stepping up. Speaks to how strong this organization is from top to bottom. I'm stoked

[mariners]

padres bringing up rizzo

[symple19]

padres bringing up rizzo

they must be in big trouble

http://images2.fanpop.com/images/photos/5200000/Deputy-Frank-Rizzo-reno-911-5242835-354-500.jpg

[mariners]

7 runs...

[ducks]

striked out at bad call at first at bat

he hit a triple tonight and in most ballparks it would have been gone
second at bat
third at bat he walked
4 at bat he walked
he has power

[symple19]

striked out at bad call at first at bat

he hit a triple tonight and in most ballparks it would have been gone
second at bat
third at bat he walked
4 at bat he walked
he has power

the fact that you edited this post makes it even better :tu

1-2, R, K, 2 BB. pretty good for a debut.

[ducks]

Justin Upton ARI 455 longest home run

[symple19]

freddy got hurt last night. I just don't know how much more the Giants can take before they start to slip badly :depressed

[ducks]

Anthony Rizzo
2-4, 1 HR
1 RBI
tonight

[ducks]

oh he is .429 so far in three games
has 3 or 4 walks to

[ducks]

freddy got hurt last night. I just don't know how much more the Giants can take before they start to slip badly :depressed

if tim piches like he did today they will slip


he three those 134 pitches and the last three outings he has sucked
today he got tagged for 7

Kennedy threw 113 pitches and has thrown at least 100 in 11 straight starts for the dbacks


I hope that does not bite gibson in aug or sept

[ducks]

Lincecum now has a 7.66 ERA in four starts since throwing 133 pitches in a shutout victory against Oakland last month

[symple19]

Lincecum now has a 7.66 ERA in four starts since throwing 133 pitches in a shutout victory against Oakland last month

yeah, I watched the shellacking today.

It definitely worries me, but he's had periods like this where he's just bad. (like last august)

Might be time for Bochy to let him skip a start. He's up against those same A's next, would be a good time to rest him

Good thing Cain and Vogelsong have been so solid lately

Big three game set coming up, ducks. looking forward to it

[ducks]

Yeah I wish it was in the weekend I would go to the games

[ducks]

cain vs josh

be intersting
josh second time against a team....


be tough cain to me is the giants best pitcher the last two years

[symple19]

man, it's good to have Panda back. Cain pitching well, but still a lot of game left.

Freddy out for the year.........Fuck

I guess it's good that position players are the ones dropping like flies, and not the pitching staff.

[symple19]

imagine that, another close game.

Brian Wilson is gonna give me a heart attack someday

[ducks]

umpire opened the strike zone for brian
good game though giants

[ducks]

dbacks 1-7 against giants now
FUCK
lost 5-6 by one run
they can not play a perfect game to beat them

wilson always makes it intersting

[symple19]

Brian Wilson is gonna give me a heart attack someday

[symple19]

Still, the D'backs are legit.

Another good pitching matchup tomorrow night. Vogelsong has been crazy good, but it's going to be hard to beat Kennedy

[symple19]

Rocks are picking it up lately too. I fully expect this to be a three team race for the duration

[ducks]

hopefully you are right
I was sick of the announcers last night
sanders did well I am like he was ok but giants do not score
he gave up 3 runs
they thought he was great


I think giants are confident against the dbacks and they hit will
alot of baseball is mental
lots of giants in the past have done well against the dbacks

giants do all the small things
great manager for the giants
hopefully gibby will learn from him
gibby has been pretty good though

dbacks need one more good reliever though

[symple19]

hopefully you are right
I was sick of the announcers last night
sanders did well I am like he was ok but giants do not score
he gave up 3 runs
they thought he was great


I think giants are confident against the dbacks and they hit will
alot of baseball is mental
lots of giants in the past have done well against the dbacks

giants do all the small things
great manager for the giants
hopefully gibby will learn from him
gibby has been pretty good though

dbacks need one more good reliever though

Nice words, and you're right about Bochy, he doesn't get enough credit from anyone, including myself.

What's the chatter in Phoenix about getting relief help, either via FA or from the minors?

[symple19]

I fully expect this to be a three team race for the duration

The reason I say this is because the Giants don't score enough runs or beat the Eastern division enough to pull away. The Giants have the least runs scored in the league, but luckily are only behind Philly and the Braves in runs allowed.

Zona can really hit, and just needs more consistency in the pen (as you and JMark have addressed). Another great stat, Zona is 14-9 in one run games, which usually indicates a good team

The Rocks are the Rocks and so long as they are around you can pretty much book em' for a late run. It's mostly their starting pitching which has let them down this year. Jimenez has been AWFUL. Dude is 1-7. :wow Worrisome (for their fans) as well is that they are terrible in close games (worst in the west), 8-13 in one run games and 0-4 in extra innings.

[ducks]

some speculation that dbacks could trade para
he is ok on the o
left handers he still struggles with
he is by far the best outfielder the dbacks have though

they like Paul Goldschmidt, 1B(minors now) KT said they have talked internally about calling him up


they also like Colin Cowgill, OF


they was talk if they called up Colin Cowgill and Paul KT wanted them to play everyday
they like b allen also not so much talk about him right now though



sam dempel is still hurt should be back soon
he has pitched well for the dbacks


I have not heard rumors about dbacks
I know that gibby said heilman is starting to pitch better after monday
managers confidence boost means he is on thin ice to me
fans are sick of heilman...

I think Josh Collmenter without a 3 pitch (curve is still in process) will have to go to the pen
2 straight outing with Josh that they just foul off pitches and he can not get them out

so dbacks could use another starter

Josh was deadly in the pen when he was in the pen....

Ownings is not a starter in my mind either

[symple19]

:tu

thanks

[ducks]

I think with allen they think he strikes out to much
plays 1 base and lf
mostly first though

[symple19]

Burrell did his job. Extras!

[ducks]

I hate the giants

upton is looked in
last 18 games he is .429
drew was .299 before the giants

he needs to get back in the groove

don baylor is a great hitting coach
dbacks finally have someone they can trust


giants play fundmentally basebally
para with the failed sac bunt
upton bails the dbacks out

[ducks]

oh and gibby gets in the pile first manager I ever saw do that

[symple19]

oh and gibby gets in the pile first manager I ever saw do that

wtf happened? I'm only watching the game-cast on ESPN... Brawl?

[symple19]

or a walk-off?

[symple19]

ahhh, okay. Upton went deep

[symple19]

stupid game-cast froze up I guess

[symple19]

Kennedy was dominant. GG

[ducks]

announcers for dbacks are funny does M Montero deserve to go to allstar game
dude HE HAS COMMITED 9 errors
on a pitch out he does not look the runner back on third before throwing to second
threw the ball bad to third tonight cost the dbacks a run
MONTERO no allstar worthy

J. Miranda is 1-72 with runners in scoring postion
Paul Goldschmidt has power numbers !

[ducks]

or a walk-off?

homerun
:flag:

[ducks]

Kennedy was dominant. GG

yeah he owns the giants
7 starts his era is 1.29

this year I think 2 starts no decision 16 innings 1 unearned run

dbacks lost the other game he pitched 1-0 in 10

[ducks]

WP: M. Scherzer (9-2) former dbacks is 9-2 WOW

[ducks]

be a intersting game tomorrow
hudson vs edward jackson

dback traded edward for hudson last year

[ducks]

be a intersting game tomorrow
hudson vs edward jackson

dback traded edward for hudson last year

[symple19]

WP: M. Scherzer (9-2) former dbacks is 9-2 WOW

Yeah, he's been amazing.

Detroit is solid, don't know how long the Indians can hang around

[symple19]

And it always sucks seeing former players for your team go on to be awesome. Joe Nathan is a former Giant who comes to mind. Francisco Liriano was also part of that deal that brought AJ Pierzynski to the Giants. One of the worst deals of all time, imo

[ducks]

mora for the dbacks needs to go
roberts is better
george blum is still hurt
blum get called up we have 3 third basemen

[ducks]

hudson complete game against his former team
first career complete
double to drive in a run
11 assist from drew
15 ground ball outs for a fly out pitcher

[ducks]

Arizona’s Justin Upton(notes) singled three times, his fifth straight multihit game. Upton, whose first career game-ending home run gave Arizona a 3-2 victory over San Francisco in 10 innings the Thursday night, singled in a run in the first inning, then scored from first on Miguel Montero’s(notes) two-out double.

Upton has hit .591 (13 of 22) during that five-game span. He reached base for the fourth time when he walked in the eighth, then stole second.

Upton has 33 hits since May 29

[symple19]

Stupid A's

[ducks]

bob is helping the dbacks
but the dbacks blew it last night
kurt blew it he stuck with ownings to hit
and he should have pitched hit for him

[symple19]

Stupid A's

Giants are sliding. Great opportunity for the D'backs and the Rocks

[ducks]

well the bullpen for dbacks has a era of about 5.29 since may 29

the good news is dempel is going to be ready when dbacks face the indians
6 games



dbacks are about .500 this month


but atleast the giants are not much better right now


if dbacks are not high on allen time to trade him for a pitcher

the other dbacks pitcher will be back in about 2 weeks
right now he is 14 pounds lighter maybe he will pitch better then!

[ducks]

I really want drew and upton to make the allstar team

Ian would be nice to
he is really pitching

drew is BETTER THEN Troy at shortstop
TROY MAYBE BETTER ON THE O but not the d

[symple19]

Giants get the red-hot twins at home. Time to get back to winning

[ducks]

ouch one out 9 hits what a frogetable outing


I think the giants will lose tonight
dbacks back in first place

[symple19]

ouch one out 9 hits what a frogetable outing


I think the giants will lose tonight
dbacks back in first place

Vogelsong has to stop this skid. Means the giants have to score some runs....

[symple19]

Arizona winning. Looking at the BS, their bottom of the order is doing work

[ducks]

I rember the game that dbacks put 7 on dempster
that that was amazing

Dbacks win tonight

[symple19]

Vogelsong's ERA is 1.73. Would be MLB best if he had enough innings pitched, which could happen next start

Oh, and the Giants scored more than 2 runs...Yay!

[symple19]

Freak sighting

[ducks]

dbacks have now won 14 out of 19 on the road
WOW

saturday they get the best pitcher in baseball though

[symple19]

dbacks have now won 14 out of 19 on the road
WOW



that's impressive

[ducks]

DAMM 16 road wins out of 20
7 in a row
GO DBACKS

[ducks]

tomorrow will be tough best pitcher in baseball

[ducks]

J. Verlander owned the dbacks but the ump opened the strike zone for them

dbacks had a couple chances and could not get it done

[symple19]

Giants won ugly last night. Cain still dominating.

lol Schierholtz stumbling on the way to 3rd

They are streaky as hell of late.

[ducks]

dbacks need sam back
he has closed before
putz not avaible puts dbacks in trouble

david is very good but he has to start the inning
inhertited runners score
and he is not a closer
good 8 inning guy this year

[ducks]

Giants won ugly last night. Cain still dominating.

lol Schierholtz stumbling on the way to 3rd

They are streaky as hell of late.

I will so mad
I smelled a giants loss
dbacks have three at home (indians)
then 10 straight road games

[ducks]

The Padres have told teams that they’re ready to take offers for Heath Bell and Mike Adams. Rival clubs believe Adams will be harder to obtain than Ryan Ludwick.
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/arizona_diamondbacks/

adams in a dbacks uniform would be great
he could then next year be the closer

[ducks]

D'Backs Will Be Able To Add Payroll At Deadline
By Mike Axisa [June 28, 2011 at 6:49pm CST]
The Diamondbacks are 2.5 games back of the Giants in the NL West and two back of the NL Wildcard, and they'll be able to add reinforcements at the trade dealine. Team president/CEO Derrick Hall told Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports that GM Kevin Towers will have the flexibility to add payroll in a midseason trade.

"We’ve got the flexibility," said Hall. "Our ownership group is willing to invest in this team. We've told KT, 'If we're in it, we'll do whatever it takes to support you.'"

For now, the D'Backs are hopeful that recent callups Yhency Brazoban and Alberto Castillo can improve the bullpen. They will continue to monitor outside options, and Morosi notes the team with the most available bullpen help is Towers' former team, the Padres. He also mentioned Matt Capps as a name to keep in mind. Arizona started the season with a $53.6MM payroll, the sixth smallest in the game.

[ducks]

wilson getting calls like that tonight
he should not haver any blown saves
unreal

[symple19]

sup ducks, been on vacation.

[ducks]

oh giants have a 3 game lead now
sam is back thank God
he has only been scored on one time in 22 games
and the one team was against the st lousis and they lost
but it was a 7 -8 pitch at bat and he left the ball up on a 3-2 count
cost the dbacks the game

be intersting to see what dbacks do
towers only has a 2 year contract. will he give up alot of future to try to make a run this season

[ducks]

I think dbacks have 3 good prospects for being good starters next year
parker,skaggs and the number three pick

hudson,ian are locks
saunders has been great since May
saunders is a question mark next year
I think a vet starter would be nice not a big joe fan but he is starting to get my respect lately


could dbacks try to make colementer,enright bullpen material instead of starters?


duke needs to go if dbacks make a run
they can not have colementer and duke starters
colementer might get you 6 innings
duke might get you 6-7 but he will give up 4-6 runs then

dbacks with those good prospects coming in as starters next year you do not to trade for a starter and destroy your farm system for 4 months of baseball

[ducks]

sup ducks, been on vacation.

hope you had fun

[ducks]

D’Backs Hope To Add Established Reliever
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 8, 2011 at 9:03am CST]
The Diamondbacks are exploring the trade market for an established reliever who can handle a late-inning role, according to Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic. But CEO Derrick Hall says he’s not interested in dealing top prospects for a quick fix.

"I think fans always get a little impatient, and I don't blame them," Hall said. "They want to win. They can taste it and they can smell it. But we want to have some sustainability, and in order to do so, we've got to keep those guys."

GM Kevin Towers has scouts watching the organization’s minor league affiliates to assess prospects' ability to make an impact in the Major Leagues. The goal is to accurately evaluate Arizona’s minor leaguers and ensure that the best ones stay put.

“We don't want to move the wrong prospect, someone that has a lot of upside and we think could be a core player for us in the future," Towers said.

Tyler Skaggs, Jarrod Parker and Pat Corbin are likely some of the prospects that are off the trade market this summer, as Piecoro points out. The Diamondbacks will be able to add payroll, which could prevent them from having to surrender top young talent.

[ducks]

Extension Candidate: Ian Kennedy
By Mike Axisa [July 7, 2011 at 10:04pm CST]
It's not often that we see a trade where both sides end up happy, so a three-team trade where all parties end up pleased with their end are rare. A year and a half later, I think it's safe to the say the Diamondbacks, Tigers, and Yankees are all happy with their haul from last winter's Curtis Granderson-Max Scherzer-Ian Kennedy-Edwin Jackson (plus others) swap. Many questioned Arizona's motives behind the trade, but as Joe Pawlikowski of FanGraphs recently explained, it's the deal that keeps on giving for them.

Kennedy was everything the Diamondbacks could have hoped for in the first year after the trade, giving them 32 starts and 194 innings with a 3.80 ERA last season. His peripheral stats were strong as well: 7.79 K/9, 3.25 BB/9, 4.33 FIP, and 2.4 wins above replacement. Kennedy's second year in Arizona has gone even better; his 3.38 ERA is supported by a 3.50 FIP, and he's maintained a similar strikeout rate (7.58 K/9) while lowering his walk rate (2.35 BB/9) and increasing his ground ball rate (40.5%). After just 112 1/3 innings, he's already provided his team 2.3 wins above replacement.

Let's compare Kennedy to one of his peers at a similar point of their career...


Romero signed a five-year contract worth $30.1MM last August, a deal that also includes an option for a sixth year. It bought out his last remaining pre-arbitration year, all three arbitration-eligible seasons, and at least one free agent season. The Diamondbacks have Kennedy under team control through 2015, and he won't be eligible for arbitration until the 2013 season. A five-year deal would buy out the same years of his career as Romero's deal, and it would still allow Kennedy to hit the free agent market at age 31, young enough to land one more big contract.

It's worth mentioning that both Yovani Gallardo and Jon Lester received similar five-year contracts worth $30MM or so, the kind of deal Kennedy has set himself up for when you adjust for inflation. There's no pressure on the D'Backs to sign their young right-hander to a long-term deal now, but doing so could save the team some major bucks down the line.

[ducks]

Arizona Diamondbacks Rumors


Selig On Draft, Playoffs, Realignment, Replay
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [July 12, 2011 at 7:20pm CST]
Commissioner Bud Selig held a chat with fans yesterday and he touched on a number of issues that we focus on here at MLBTR, plus some other items of interest. Here are some highlights from Selig’s chat at MLB.com:

Collective bargaining between the players and the owners has been “constructive” so far, but it’s still early.
Not surprisingly, there’s no chance of a salary cap in the upcoming collective bargaining agreement.
Selig repeated his support for slotting and a worldwide draft and said the sides are discussing both possibilities at the bargaining table.
Stories about realignment are somewhat premature, according to Selig. He has had realignment on his mind for a while, but nothing is imminent.
The Diamondbacks have been told that they will be able to stay in the NL West and that the Astros will ultimately be asked to move to the AL West in realignment, according to Jack Magruder of FOXSportsArizona.com (on Twitter).
The commissioner would like to see two additional playoff teams in the near future.
There are no plans to remove the designated hitter or expand the role of the DH.
There’s not much of an appetite for expanding instant replay within the game, according to Selig. However, MLB is considering “significant adjustments” to baseball’s current instant replay rules.
Selig told reporters today that he remains firm on his decision to retire after 2012, according to Troy Renck of the Denver Post.

[ducks]

allen called up first basemen
pena gone
blum activated 3 and 1 base

worth noting gibson has not said who will start after the first three games. (sanders,hudson, kenedy)some speculation is dbacks will have a new starter



ugly win for giants last night but a win

[JMarkJohns]

Hudson and Kennedy are the long-term 1/2 for a year or two. When Parker finds his groove at the big-league level, he'll be the 3 or bump one of the others down. The Diamondbacks have a ton of arms, assuming they sign their picks from this year.

Beyond next season, my guess is they make a run at a top-flight, team-controlled pitcher like they did with Haren a few years back, and with Kennedy, Hudson, Parker, fill out the rotation with one of their prospects like Skaggs or Bauer, or, more long-term, but higher ceilinged types like Holmberg or Bradley.

Collmentor has great set-up stuff. He's unhittable first time through the order, and then falls apart. For one inning as a 7th/8th guy, he'd be great. Long term I don't think Enright sticks with the team.

Keepers include: STARTERS: Hudson, Kennedy; RELIEVERS: Patterson, Hernandez, Collmentor, and, maybe, Vasquez (stuff is so damn good. Gotta give time).

Saunders is a FA after this season, I believe. I think Owings takes his spot short-term and, maybe, becomes the Diamondbacks' 5th for a full season or two. I think the Diamondbacks have learned from their mistakes and aren't going to waste the compensation draft picks by re-signing Saunders. His production isn't that good to keep him, and if you lose a 1st/2nd/3rd-type pick or two, he's really not worth it. They should have let Heilman walk last season. He'd have brought in an additional 1st/comp package in a draft the Diamondbacks used to stockpile high level prospects.

Throw in their prospects, a strategic trade and a quality signing or two and they have strong potential going forward.

[ducks]

HEILMAN NEEDS TO GO
he blew the game again tonight
I think he is realeased finally



do you think they should extention ian

[JMarkJohns]

Heilman should have been waived a while ago. Problem is, he could still fetch some compensation picks when let go in the offseason. IMO, I think it's more important to waive his cancerous production that discourages winning attitudes than keep it for the afterward compensation.

And, yes, extend Kennedy NOW.

[ducks]

no heliman dbacks win
allen with the bomb
uptown this month has been average at best after a great june

[ducks]

drew has been bad on o for the last 3 weeks also

[symple19]

Buzz around SF is growing for a move on Beltran. That would be awesome, depending on who they give up

[ducks]

mets want top prospects for him

[symple19]

mets want top prospects for him

yep, and i've also heard Sanchez's name thrown about.

[ducks]

heilman GONE THANK GOD!

[JMarkJohns]

With Drew out for the season, time to sell off some of the veterans like Saunders, Johnson and Putz (through waivers after he proves worth acquiring again).

[ducks]

johnson sucks will not get much

gibby should have put in dempel first in the tenth
cook 11 or 12 inning
should have scored in 9
uptown on 3 with no outs

[ducks]

para hopefully will get back on track by playing all the time
willie will play short
blum is old but he is much better at the plate then "the all star"
his swing is way to big

[ducks]

david hernanex since putz went on the dl in 8 appearances has not allowed a hit

[ducks]

upton is now 10 for his last 19
11 rbs combinned for him and Montero most combinned in mlb this season

[ducks]

ESPN's Buster Olney reports (on Twitter) that the Diamondbacks have made progress in negotiations with first round pick Trevor Bauer. The third overall pick comes with a slot recommendation of $3MM.

[ducks]

dbacks have 6 players with more then 40 rbs most in mlb
boston has 5

[JMarkJohns]

Not worried about them signing Bauer. He really wants to be a Diamondback. I want to know about Bradley. He's the lynch pin in all this. His selection spot isn't protected like Bauer's, since it was a compensation pick from their wasted pick the season prior. They don't sign Bradley, they don't get the pick back.

[JMarkJohns]

Bauer signed. Gotta get Bradley next.

[ducks]

yes
jd drew got hurt to
strange


big series coming up against giants at the begining of the month

[ducks]

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Breaking-news-Justin-Upton-tough-on-Rockies-to?urn=mlb-wp13780
upton triple with a broken bat

[symple19]

Giants may have some interest in Willy Mo Pena'

[symple19]

Also, the Giants reportedly have interest in Cuddyer and BJ Upton

[symple19]

from SI


• The Diamondbacks "need a shortstop,'' one scout said. With Stephen Drew out, they are using Willie Bloomquist with Cody Ransom as the backup. Possible trade targets could include the Dodgers' Rafael Furcal and Jamey Carroll and the Nationals' Ian Desmond.

Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/jon_heyman/07/26/beltran.pence.jimenez/index.html#ixzz1TGtTxdnM

[ducks]

Giants may have some interest in Willy Mo Pena'

I think given regular playing time he would learn to layoff pitches

kt does not like strike outs and only has a 2 year contract
he wants to win now

[symple19]

Giants got Beltrannnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn nnnnnnnnnnnnn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[symple19]

Giants give up Single A Zach Wheeler, a top prospect. He's not a sure thing though (like Cain, Lincecum, Bumgarner etc) so I think I can deal with this


BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL LLLLLLLLLTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR RRAAAAAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN

[symple19]

I am fucking stoked

[ducks]

Giants may have some interest in Willy Mo Pena'

he went to seatle

[symple19]

he went to seatle

He was probably only an option if the Beltran deal didn't go through

[symple19]

A great quote from Charlie Manuel
"We can beat them," Phillies manager Charlie Manuel said. "I know we can. They're not in our head."


As soon as you say this, it confirms the other team is in your head.

[symple19]

Giants get Cabrera from the Indians for a triple A outfielder, then...

Rockies deal Jimenez to the Indians (although Cleveland came off a bunch to get him, may turn out good for both)

[IronMexican]

Kemp is such a beast. Worth watching this shitty team for him.

[ducks]

adams went to texas
dumb move for paddress
adams is a future closer

[ducks]

giants and dbacks big three game series

[symple19]

giants and dbacks big three game series

HUGE

especially with the Giants on a skid

[ducks]

paul is getting pitched like he is a pro
he still homered off of tim
paul made it possible to trade allen

[ducks]

that is 2
atleast the giants after this series will not be creeping away

[ducks]

With Drew out for the season, time to sell off some of the veterans like Saunders, Johnson and Putz (through waivers after he proves worth acquiring again).

still think so?
dbacks are tied with the giants

[ducks]

dbacks just need kelly johnson to bat 7 not 2

[JMarkJohns]

still think so?
dbacks are tied with the giants

Nobody could have imagined the tear Upton is on coupled with a the bench hustle bums in Bloomquist and Roberts more than picking up the slack. Two weeks ago, Diamondbacks were playing mediocre to average and suffered a devastating injury, and didn't appear motivated to go get a replacement. Didn't need the trade replacement, obviously.

I like their deals at the deadline. Allen is a loss but he brought in another righty I trust vs. 3-4-5 parts of the orders beyond Hernandez. Plus, he was always bait with the way Schmitty has been raking. Glad they got value for him. Marquis is the wild card. If he comes in and shores up the 4th spot with a sub-4 ERA, Diamondbacks will be in it for the long run. He struggles, then they'll probably fall back at some point again. Giants just have too many great pitchers to struggle for more than a week. Diamondbacks need to compete 4/5 consistently.

I hope Collmentor goes to the pen. He's built for it. Pitch Owings as the 5th starter with Duke or Collmentor as the 2-inning relievers who come in after the 5th/6th for Owings. Collmentor should only see the order once. He's too great a liability the 2nd time through. Eventually I'd like to see him groomed into the set-up roll for Hernandez, the obvious long-term closer solution.

With Schmitty and Upton, Arizona has a set of Bash Brothers. Those were bombs last night. If Johnson and/or Young can pick it up, this team can be dangerous, even without Drew (which sucks, because his defense is amazing).

[ducks]

Yeah drew d is amazing
they are skipping collmentor this tiem thru
hopefully his curve ball will improve the three outings before that one
his curve ball was good
last time he threw his curve ball maybe once

marquis is a wilcard
I did read that he struggles during the second half so I am keeping my fingures crossed
schmitty d is great
I kind of like commentor thru 4 or 5 and zuke 6-8
right hander then throw a left hander out there

[JMarkJohns]

Marquis with a terrible outing. Hopefully a fluke and nothing to be worried about. At least the prospect given up was a 30-40 ranger and no one of note. Tough day...

[ducks]

willie getting picked off killed the dbacks today
not a very well played game today
yesterday much better


marquis was suppose to pitch sat and did not
he might have been to well rested

[symple19]

The new guys stepped up BIG

And what can you say about Vogelsong? Dude has been ridiculous.

lol, 8 runs is the most the Giants have scored at home all year.

[ducks]

I would rather it be a blow away last game with errors then with a one run loss
I like GIbby
but I thought he gave the game away before it started with that lineup
wanting to play all 25 games
let them play against houston at HOME next week
GO FOR THE WIN AGAINST THE GIANTS

I do not understand not playing parra against left handers
the game he hit two homeruns ONE was a against a lefthander
his average is 292. The best other then upton. HE has a cannon for an arm.
he also is starting to drive the ball more with power. Heck is is 23 still. PLAY HIM.

good road trip for dbacks 6-3
should have swepts the paddress though

[symple19]

Nice brawl last night

[TIMMYtoZO]

Nice to see the Phillies dominating the Giants in their own house. This series has shown how much better this years Phillies are. They have top notch pitching and Hunter Pence is a stud. He will help make up for Ryan Howard choking in the postseason.

[JMarkJohns]

Nice to see the Phillies dominating the Giants in their own house. This series has shown how much better this years Phillies are. They have top notch pitching and Hunter Pence is a stud. He will help make up for Ryan Howard choking in the postseason.

Wasn't it just like 10 days ago where San Francisco waltzed out of Philly with 2/3? Can't get a read on the series. Giants are slumping a bit of late while the Phillies are hot. That's all I can judge from this current series.

[symple19]

Giants are still trying to get their chemistry back after adding the new guys. Props to Philly on taking care of business so far

Scary thing for me is that it's entirely possible the Giants will be unable to gel around Beltran and Cabrera. Their recent slide has been historically bad. Check this out:


From Elias: Cole Hamels went the distance in a 2-1 victory in San Francisco as the Giants' hitting woes approached historic proportions. Saturday's game marked the 12th time in the last 16 games that the Giants had been held to fewer than three runs - the first time that the Giants had suffered through such a stretch in the last 102 years, since John McGraw's squad scored two-or-fewer runs 12 times in a 16-game stretch early in the 1909 season. Over the Giants' last 16 games, they have batted .215 with eight home runs. With runners in scoring position, the Giants are batting .157 (16 for 102) over that span, and they are hitless in their last 21 at-bats in those situations.

[symple19]

Bochy needs to look long and hard at getting a new hitting coach. Not this year, but certainly this offseason.

[ducks]

giants era in their lossing streak is over 5
it is not just their o
it is everything
and one game before today win was the dbacks played their-0 third string and beat them and blew them out 8
so it made their era better then it really was

the bad news is the dbacks failed to capitalize against the dodgers the first two games

[symple19]

trust me ducks, i'm not worried about the pitching

Beltran got booed today after hitting into a dp

[symple19]

Giants down early, Beltran not in lineup with injured hand. Dude is made from fucking glass

[ducks]

Giants down early, Beltran not in lineup with injured hand. Dude is made from fucking glass

that is what sf gets for booing him sunday

[symple19]

that is what sf gets for booing him sunday

Is it karma, ducks?

The one thing that bothered me about the trade is how injury prone he is. He may sit again tonight

Bochy need to right the ship before the D'backs go zooming by

[JMarkJohns]

Diamondbacks have their own issues. Nobody is hot at the plate anymore, and, in most every case, everyone is pretty cold. Couple that with some sub-par pitching, and and attitude, I believe, of finally making it after taking 2/3 on the road from San Francisco (and beating Timmy and Cain), and they seem to be spiraling downward.

Doesn't mean it can't be fixed, but they have really blown a great opportunity to seize control of the division by two or more games this last week. They have got killed in really every game since that get-away game vs. San Francisco, save for Sunday's win.

Factor in sticking with Collmentor, and I'm not sure what to expect.

[symple19]

Diamondbacks have their own issues. Nobody is hot at the plate anymore, and, in most every case, everyone is pretty cold. Couple that with some sub-par pitching, and and attitude, I believe, of finally making it after taking 2/3 on the road from San Francisco (and beating Timmy and Cain), and they seem to be spiraling downward.

Doesn't mean it can't be fixed, but they have really blown a great opportunity to seize control of the division by two or more games this last week. They have got killed in really every game since that get-away game vs. San Francisco, save for Sunday's win.

Factor in sticking with Collmentor, and I'm not sure what to expect.

Very true, the Giants have been fortunate. I rarely get to see any games because I'm on the east coast, so I wake up every day and am shocked the Giants are hanging on to the lead

Will be interesting to see which team can grab the momentum. Both squads could also peak too early and falter in September. Imo, the Giants are probably better equipped for the late charge because of pitching, but in no way am I discounting the Dbacks.

Gotta love a late season pennant race

[ducks]

young hand is hurt he should SIT
I wonder if other players besides gibby is sick..
last night was the first night it seemed the dbacks gave up after 2 innings
they had some chances early in the game and could not get someone home
I am wondering if the young players are pressing knowing they are in the pennant race

atleast the dbacks have not fallen like the pirates yet.

[ducks]

Is it karma, ducks?

The one thing that bothered me about the trade is how injury prone he is. He may sit again tonight

Bochy need to right the ship before the D'backs go zooming by

yeah
but again 5 rans given up by the giants "great pitching" last night

[ducks]

what is frusting is the dbacks should be atleast 3 games ahead of the giants right now!

[symple19]

yeah
but again 5 rans given up by the giants "great pitching" last night

There's no question they're slumping. Can't argue there

But at this point their recent performance is an exception and not a rule, so go easy on the quotation marks :lol

[JMarkJohns]

Most pitching hits a wall in late July/early August. The good staffs/pitchers recover. Giants have proven it. They get the edge. There's something not quite right with the team right now. They are playing defeated from opening pitch. Like I said, at first I thought it was a sense of accomplishment after finally winning a series vs. the Giants, and doing so by beating their top two pitchers. Maybe it's just that stretch of the season, but one week ago several players were playing/pitching well. Now, almost all at once, nobody seems to be.

[gaKNOW!blee]

Lol whoever said Beltran was a better pickup than pence.

[ducks]

Most pitching hits a wall in late July/early August. The good staffs/pitchers recover. Giants have proven it. They get the edge. There's something not quite right with the team right now. They are playing defeated from opening pitch. Like I said, at first I thought it was a sense of accomplishment after finally winning a series vs. the Giants, and doing so by beating their top two pitchers. Maybe it's just that stretch of the season, but one week ago several players were playing/pitching well. Now, almost all at once, nobody seems to be.

roberts and that is it
j-up got ticked tonight at the ump and then drove in 4 runs
hopefully he fires the team up

[crc21209]

That Beltran trade is looking like a big flop for the Giants so far. And the D-Backs are right on their ass too....

[symple19]

still only a few weeks in, but yeah, it's looking like the trade nuked the Giants chemistry. I'm willing to give it a bit more time before I call the trade a bad one.

And even if it does turn out to be a disaster, I can't get mad at Sabean for doing exactly what I would have done. I'll reserve all my anger for Beltran for not getting it done

[JMarkJohns]

Hello, old friend! Nice to be back! ;)

[symple19]

Hello, old friend! Nice to be back! ;)

:cry

the Giants bed is filled with poo. Hopefully they don't let you guys get too far ahead

[JMarkJohns]

Unbelievable comeback last night, keyed by rookie Goldschmidt and a slumping Young.

[ducks]

para put a good at bat on him before though

can para hit 300 for the year?
upton is still on a tear on the o
around 390 last 22 games
I hope he works on fielding this offseason though

[symple19]

yeah, was a dramatic finish for the 'backs last night

[ducks]

Unbelievable comeback last night, keyed by rookie Goldschmidt and a slumping Young.

first home run since july 2

I think his hand is bothering him
he does not have the power

[ducks]

still only a few weeks in, but yeah, it's looking like the trade nuked the Giants chemistry. I'm willing to give it a bit more time before I call the trade a bad one.

And even if it does turn out to be a disaster, I can't get mad at Sabean for doing exactly what I would have done. I'll reserve all my anger for Beltran for not getting it done

trade nuked the pirates to

you could say the trade hurt dbacks to
this two new pitchers are ground ball pitchers and they are still working to get people in the right spot for them

[symple19]

Giants are in freefall

[symple19]

Freak comes up big tonight. 7ip 10ks 0er

[JMarkJohns]

All the Diamondbacks need to do is just keep winning. They need to push the lead to 3/4 games this next series.

[JMarkJohns]

Forgot... Diamondbacks next series is at Philly vs. their stacked staff. Need to win today to maintain the 2 games in case of getting swept.

[JMarkJohns]

Diamondbacks lost Nady and Marquis this series, both likely for the remainder of the season. Sucks. Overbay was signed to fill Nady's veteran spot. Maybe Wade Miley or Jarrod Parker time for Marquis'? Might scour the waiver wire for veterans from shitty teams who can be had via trade (Rodrigo Lopez/Jeff Francis?)...

My guess is Owings or Duke go into the rotation with either Miley or Parker up for bullpen relief.

[symple19]

Tough losses

[JMarkJohns]

Well, they sucked, but factor in Drew and it gets significant quickly.

If Diamondbacks can get Capuano or Lilly, they can keep on without really missing anything lost. If not, things could get interesting.

[JMarkJohns]

Diamondbacks have some work to do to continue to be considered winners of the draft. Many publications said Arizona had a top-3 draft. Problem is, of their top-4 picks, only Bauer is signed. Very little word on Bradley of late, of which I am very concerned because it's an unprotected pick, and it would be a HUGE hit to the system to fail to sign both Chafin and Meo as well. Each has significant potential as relievers.

Get it done, no matter the cost. Stockpile while the rights are owned. Take a breather next year and draft signable players only, but break the bank this year, DAMN IT!

[JMarkJohns]

Chafin and Meo now signed. Bradley is being worked on and some think may already have agreed to terms, but MLB doesn't like to announce above-slot terms until right around the deadline for fear it radically alters how teams negotiate or the hand they have.

Would be nice.

Also, sounds like Wade Miley might get a call up to take Marquis' spot in the rotation.

[JMarkJohns]

Bradley is signed. Only big time prospect from their top-10 picks gone unsigned is Price (IMO), and with Bauer, Bradley, Chafin, Meo, Marshall and Winkler joining Parker, Skaggs, Holmberg and Miley, this team's farm is stocked with arms. Of them, Parker, Skaggs, Bauer and Bradley are all top-2-types and Holmberg, Chafin and Winkler aren't far behind.

[JMarkJohns]

Oh. Hell. Yeah!

[symple19]

The Giants are having all kinds of injury problems. It's been a really tough stretch

[JMarkJohns]

Diamondbacks too...

Drew, Lopez, Nady and Marquis at the moment after Enright for the season effectively early and Putz for a while.

The teams that survives, I guess.

Sucks that Beltran is already injured.

[symple19]

Sucks that Beltran is already injured.

:lol That was the one thing I knew could be an issue, and lo and behold, it is.

You're absolutely right about it being a survival contest.

One valid question is, will whichever team emerges have enough left in the tank for the playoffs?

[JMarkJohns]

wow, what a horrible collapse in an otherwise well-played game... Goldschmidt with another bomb.

[JMarkJohns]

I'm starting to think neither team really wants to be in the driver's seat for the division. Each team seems to play best when chasing.

[ducks]

yeah
they are not hitting

it was nice upton got a break
sunday some

[JMarkJohns]

I've heard Diamondbacks have traded 2B Kelly Johnson to Blue Jays for 2B Aaron Hill and INF John McDonald. The latter player is a backup at 2B, SS and 3B, so he'll likely replace Ransom. Hill is a wildcard, and an interesting one at that, as he strikes out at half the rate of Johnson, and, in the past, has shown comparable pop. He's having a down year, but going from a pitcher's park to a hitter's park could bring some production up. I'm not expecting the 30+ HR/100+ RBI guy of 2009, but just last season he hit 25+ HR with 70 RBI, and if his average can rebound to his career average (in plenty of at-bats) of .265, he'll be a very welcome improvement.

Not sure about his defense, and, chances are this trade is effectively a wash, but it's a low risk/solid upside deal that brings depth and comparable offensive skills with better overall contact rates.

[ducks]

http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/blog/big_league_stew/post/Five-reasons-why-the-D-backs-will-beat-out-the-G?urn=mlb-wp16308

intersting stuff about uptown d!

[ducks]

now if they can get rid of pop out stike out young...

[JMarkJohns]

now if they can get rid of pop out stike out young...

He's injured, and still is a plus on defense. I'll give him another year. I'm sick of the Diamondbacks selling low. Johnson this offseason could have fetched way more than he did yesterday. Reynolds the offseason prior to this would have fetched way more than a quality set-up guy. Haren, any other year would have fetched way more than one top prospect and a quality veteran pitcher (maybe a second quality prospect if Corbin keeps pitching well).

Seeing the trend? I can't remember the last trade where the Diamondbacks sold high on a player and got the most for the prospect.

Same with Young, who, coming off an All-Star birth would have fetched more this past offseason than right now in the middle of his struggles. Get him healthy and see if he can't find his stroke again, which, at roughly .250-270/.300-320/.800-850 and 60+ XBH, 20 SB is very solid for a plus defender. He was that for all of last season, and half of this.

[ducks]

I agree I think he is hurt
I just do not see him playing as much with him hurt
cowgill is not ready though
so maybe with the trade willie can play lf and para at center

[JMarkJohns]

Young is valuable because of his defense. The Diamondbacks outfield of Parra/Young/Upton is one of the best defensive outfields in baseball. It saves runs. Yeah, it'd be nice for Young to get hot with Upton for a 5/6-series stretch this last month. If not, just keep playing defense and doing your best to get on, get over, get in.

[TheMACHINE]

Heath Bell to the giants.

[JMarkJohns]

Heath Bell to the giants.

Claimed. No trade worked out yet. The claim may not be a move to get said player, but block said player from a team like Arizona, or, more likely, Philadelphia.

[ducks]

only if giants give paddress alot

[JMarkJohns]

only if giants give paddress alot

And the Giants don't really have too many high-end prospects at the moment. Could happen, but relief pitching isn't what the Giants need, but it is what the Phillies need (after Bastardo), and the Phillies have shown a willingness to acquire even at a high price, so, my guess is its a block and not a pickup claim.

[ducks]

time is about out. on this waiver claim

[ducks]

Padres not dealing Bell to Giants
http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/rumors;_ylt=AqgBw9xdvu3XTItVDkVoVKOpu7YF

[ducks]

http://www.fangraphs.com/blogs/index.php/kelly-johnsons-trade-kevin-towers-and-strikeouts/

so is it gibson or towers that hates strike outs?

I think mark got traded because he did not like to change his stance or anything gibson wanted him to do

[JMarkJohns]

You can have two or three 150+ K players, but no more. It's too much of an undercutting to the offense to have empty at bats. At least with a ball in play there's opportunity for hit-n-runs, moving the runner up on FC, sacrifices, etc... I'm wholeheartedly OK with Upton, Young and Goldschmidt being the 150+ K members of the team. I'm not OK with bums like Johnson and LaRoche. They just don't offer the same wham for the whiff.

[JMarkJohns]

Hopefully that homerun from Upton sparks a 10 game stretch where he is unstoppable. Gonna be tough to beat San Francisco in San Francisco vs. Cain, Lincecum and Vogelsong without Upton swinging a hot bat.

[ducks]

upton is getting drilled
atleast he is walking in this winning streak
nice they are winning without his big big bat

dbacks can really put them away with a yes sweep

one more in a row kt and hall shave heads

[JMarkJohns]

Gibson needs to start throwing at the pitchers who hit Upton. Hit 'em hard. Pitchers might be less apt to chuck it at Up' if they know a beanball has their name on it.

Enough with the bend-over-n-take-it stuff. I'm glad Parra has laid some lumber on the catchers a few time over this series. He reminds me of Danny Bautista. I think he leveled both Ianetta and Alfonso for being the battery mate of the offending pitcher in the Upton HBPs...