Stan McNeal
Sporting NewsARLINGTON, Texas—Before the Giants ruled the baseball world, general manager Brian Sabean had a talk with his pitchers. Call it a pep talk, call it a wake-up call, call it an "animated" meeting.
Whatever you call it, the message sent early in the stretch drive seemed to work.San Francisco Giants Tim
Lincecum Full Button Down Synthetic Replica Batting Practice Jersey,Large
"They were in a position where they had to step up and they knew it," said Sabean, as he sipped on a long neck in the clubhouse of the World Series champions. "We tried to remind them to keep runs off the board early, to put us in a position to give us as many innings as they can, to give us quality starts.
"And oh, by the way, you are the foundation of the organization. Do you want to be remembered for the hype or do you want to be remembered for doing something meaningful, which is get to the playoffs?"
The parting shot, said Sabean: "If we get to the playoffs, it's gonna be because of you. If we don't get to the playoffs, it's going be because of you. You pick."
Well, the Giants did not stop merely at making the playoffs. They rode their young arms all the way to the World Series championship. San Francisco's team ERA during the postseason was 2.47.
In the World Series, the starters were even better. In five games, the foursome combined for a 2.38 ERA. Madison Bumgarner went eight innings without allowing a run, Matt Cain went 7 2/3 innings without giving up a run and Tim Lincecum worked eight innings in the clincher allowing only one run, following a mediocre opener. Only Jonathan Sanchez did not turn in a quality start in the Series (four runs, 4 2/3 innings).
As much as the majors' best-hitting team did not like to admit it, they were shut down by a superior staff.
"To me, the last three of four years they've been brewing up one of the best staffs in baseball," said Rangers right fielder Jeff Francoeur, who has spent most of his career in the National League. "Maybe you don't hear about it because they're out West. I knew how good they were and how good they could be. They pitched about as good as they possibly could pitch at the perfect time for them."
"We were prepared," added David Murphy. "We knew the scouting reports. They executed. They've got great stuff and they control it. In the end, when pitchers do that, it makes it rough on the offense."
This rough:
• The Rangers were held to a .190 average during the World Series. In three of their losses, they totaled one run.
• The All-Star middle of their order—Josh Hamilton (2 for 20), Vlad Guerrero (1 for 14) and Nelson Cruz (4 for 20)—finished at .130 combined. Guerrero looked every bit of his 35 years, striking out three times in Game 4. Then, trying to avoid a repeat performance in Game 5, he made an out on the first pitch in three of his four at-bats—and struck out in the other one. Hamilton did not get the ball out of the infield against Lincecum and struck out twice. Cruz provided the Rangers their only run with a seventh-inning homer, but he also struck out twice.
• During an 19-inning stretch from the sixth inning of Game 3 until the seventh inning of Game 5, the Giants did not allow a Ranger to reach third base, much less score.
• Not since the 1966 Orioles shut out the Dodgers three times did a team pitch multiple shutouts in the World Series.
San Francisco Giants Replica Jersey (X-Large)
You might want to get used to seeing this kind of dominance, too. Sanchez is 27, Lincecum and Cain are 26 and Bumgarner just 21. Just as impressive, all four were drafted and developed by the Giants. And don't forget the 23-year-old rookie catcher, Buster Posey, who took over the starter’s job when Bengie Molina was traded in July and was the catalyst for the team’s surge into the playoffs.
"He put down a lot of right fingers during this whole run," Sabean said. "There weren't many times he was put in a position where people were shaking him off."
When you can pitch like these guys, there's not much need to.
This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.phpSporting NewsWhatever you call it, the message sent early in the stretch drive seemed to work.San Francisco Giants Tim
Lincecum Full Button Down Synthetic Replica Batting Practice Jersey,Large
"They were in a position where they had to step up and they knew it," said Sabean, as he sipped on a long neck in the clubhouse of the World Series champions. "We tried to remind them to keep runs off the board early, to put us in a position to give us as many innings as they can, to give us quality starts.
"And oh, by the way, you are the foundation of the organization. Do you want to be remembered for the hype or do you want to be remembered for doing something meaningful, which is get to the playoffs?"
The parting shot, said Sabean: "If we get to the playoffs, it's gonna be because of you. If we don't get to the playoffs, it's going be because of you. You pick."
Well, the Giants did not stop merely at making the playoffs. They rode their young arms all the way to the World Series championship. San Francisco's team ERA during the postseason was 2.47.
In the World Series, the starters were even better. In five games, the foursome combined for a 2.38 ERA. Madison Bumgarner went eight innings without allowing a run, Matt Cain went 7 2/3 innings without giving up a run and Tim Lincecum worked eight innings in the clincher allowing only one run, following a mediocre opener. Only Jonathan Sanchez did not turn in a quality start in the Series (four runs, 4 2/3 innings).
As much as the majors' best-hitting team did not like to admit it, they were shut down by a superior staff.
"To me, the last three of four years they've been brewing up one of the best staffs in baseball," said Rangers right fielder Jeff Francoeur, who has spent most of his career in the National League. "Maybe you don't hear about it because they're out West. I knew how good they were and how good they could be. They pitched about as good as they possibly could pitch at the perfect time for them."
"We were prepared," added David Murphy. "We knew the scouting reports. They executed. They've got great stuff and they control it. In the end, when pitchers do that, it makes it rough on the offense."
This rough:
• The Rangers were held to a .190 average during the World Series. In three of their losses, they totaled one run.
• The All-Star middle of their order—Josh Hamilton (2 for 20), Vlad Guerrero (1 for 14) and Nelson Cruz (4 for 20)—finished at .130 combined. Guerrero looked every bit of his 35 years, striking out three times in Game 4. Then, trying to avoid a repeat performance in Game 5, he made an out on the first pitch in three of his four at-bats—and struck out in the other one. Hamilton did not get the ball out of the infield against Lincecum and struck out twice. Cruz provided the Rangers their only run with a seventh-inning homer, but he also struck out twice.
• During an 19-inning stretch from the sixth inning of Game 3 until the seventh inning of Game 5, the Giants did not allow a Ranger to reach third base, much less score.
• Not since the 1966 Orioles shut out the Dodgers three times did a team pitch multiple shutouts in the World Series.
San Francisco Giants Replica Jersey (X-Large)
You might want to get used to seeing this kind of dominance, too. Sanchez is 27, Lincecum and Cain are 26 and Bumgarner just 21. Just as impressive, all four were drafted and developed by the Giants. And don't forget the 23-year-old rookie catcher, Buster Posey, who took over the starter’s job when Bengie Molina was traded in July and was the catalyst for the team’s surge into the playoffs.
"He put down a lot of right fingers during this whole run," Sabean said. "There weren't many times he was put in a position where people were shaking him off."
When you can pitch like these guys, there's not much need to.
Five Filters featured article: Beyond Hiroshima - The Non-Reporting of Falluja's Cancer Catastrophe.
Source: "World Series Score" via Glen in Google Reader
No comments:
Post a Comment