Magowan -- the handwriting's on the wall

Ray Ratto of the SF Chronicle tries to interpret what's going on with Magowan possibly dis-owning the Giants and concludes that the lack of response from Magowan and Baer is quite indicative that the rumors are true. I've bashed Ratto in the past but I think he's on the right track here -- particularly in noting that Magowan wasn't even there today.

One thing's certain -- the team's revenues are going down. People are not going to pay good money to see a crappy team despite the occasional win here and there, not after eight years of the Barry Bonds Show. Here you have the best player on the team (Lincecum) going up against one of the best teams in MLB (the Phils) on a Saturday afternoon -- and only 34,000 tickets get sold.

I wish I'd been there. It sounds like Tim was great, Omar was great, even Castillo was great. In short -- it was a great great day that Magowan missed. I never get tired of going to the park, even when the Giants get hammered.

Only Baseball Matters already has a fascinating discussion about the Magowan Era with a few silly dingbats asserting that Magowan shouldn't be given credit for all the good things that happened (keeping the Giants in SF, signing Bonds, the new park, the World Series).

The hits just keep on not coming

The Giants have now lost five in a row. They haven't won in a week. The only guy who was hitting well tonight was Emmanuel Burris, with a 3-for-4 night and 2 RBIs, probably ensuring that the Brian Bocock experiment is over. Perhaps they've told him he gets to stay now that Omar is back.

Burris is probably not ready for the MLB either, but he's much better than Bocock -- who's way overmatched with 10 singles and a double in 77 ABs. Even with 12 walks, his OBP is a pathetic .258. I remain baffled as to why any MLB team would allow this kind of non-functioning guy on the roster for over a month, particularly when Ivan Ochoa at Fresno is putting up decent AAA numbers with 34 hits in 123 ABs, including three doubles, four triples, a homer and 11 RBIs. Then I remember that there's an idiot named Sabean in charge.

Projected record -- 64-98

Fortunately, the Padres are even worse than the Giants and have only won 12 games, so they're projected to go 54-108. And the Dodgers got buttkicked.

Edmonds hits the wall

The Padres have let Jim Edmonds go. He's only 37 but looked damn unimpressive when I saw him last month. The Giants used to LOVE to get guys like this but not so much anymore. He may be done.

Is Magowan running away?

Now that the Giants' franchise has become a laughingstock ("Will Barry Zito EVER win another game?"), the rumors are out that Peter Magowan's thinking of "retiring" at age 66. Because it must be SO HARD and time-consuming to make these genius personnel decisions (signing Zito, Klesko, Roberts, Blownitez, Alfonzo, Durham, Tucker, trading Joe Nathan for Pierzitsky, trading for Ponson...).

Still, Giants fans remain grateful that you kept the team in San Francisco and got the team out of The Stick. And the new ballpark is damn nice. How about if you did something smart and named the park after this guy?

In case, you're wondering -- The source for this isn't the SF Chronicle or the San Jose Merc-News, of course. It's Mark Gonzalez of the Chicago Trib. I guess that all the efforts of hacks like Bruce Jenkins, Ray Ratto and Tim Kawakami to get in bed with Brian Sabean didn't really pay off when it comes to a big story.

Kevin Gibbs at Giants Cove has already said "Sayanora" to Magowan. I can't argue with his point -- Despite his many successes, Magowen has always represented a bastion of conservative thought. It was under his guidance that the Giants squandered a golden opportunity with Bonds and, far more damningly, fell behind the learning curve of modern roster construction.

Searching for scraps of positive news

After getting swept by the Pirates, the Giants now actually have to play a good team -- the Phillies -- as the 2008 season continues to devolve. Projected record is 65-97. But we're always on the lookout at Giants Win for positive news, so here goes --

-- Pedro Feliz is still delivering marginal production for a third baseman. He hasn't morphed into Mike Schmidt. His OBP's still under .300; even with a 2-run HR today, he's got 5 HRs and 15 RBIs and will probably wind up with 20 HRs and 60 RBIs.

-- Barry Bonds has just updated his Web site and lets the world that he's a big supporter of what sounds like a fine charity -- the UCSF Children’s Hospital in San Francisco. He attended the annual “Snuggly Soiree” event at the Getty Mansion which raises money for the Teddy Bear Rescue Fund for food, transportation, housing, medication, tutors and amenities that insurance and government funds cannot provide. He also says he's still ready to play: "I do want to thank all of my fans and the people I see around town, at social events or at various basketball games. Your continued support and kind words really do mean a lot to me. Other than that, I’ve been hanging out with my family and staying in shape."

-- Omar's finally coming back, which will help the defense and offense. It's been embarrassing to be playing two guys who obviously don't belong in the bigs.

-- A poster at McCovey Chronicles says: "Tell me why I shouldn't become an A's fan." Some of the more excellent responses:
-- Because there are no four words uglier than: Now batting, designated hitter
-- Because you should never cheat on your first love, no matter how badly (s)he screws you
-- Two words: white shoes
-- FACT: People who commit treason ended up in the ninth circle of hell… or was that LA? I can’t tell the difference.
-- I feel you should pick one team and stick with them. It makes it that much more enjoyable when they win again (even if that time is 50 years from now). Sure, the Giants are a bad team, but they’re our bad team, damnit! Just remember, whichever side you choose, Giants or A’s, stay on one side. Don’t be that guy with the godawful half-and-half cap.
-- Lincecum

A little slice of hell

It just seems that the Giants are destined to lose to the Pirates. They've now gone 2-13 against the Buccos, who have been awful pretty much since Barry Bonds left. Today's 5-4 loss, according to Chris Haft of MLB.com, appears to be partly due to crappy umpiring by the crappy Ron Kulpa. That said, bad calls tend to even out for both teams.

Though it's 20-20 hindsight for me to point this out, it does feel like a bit of a bonehead move that Bochy decided to let Cain throw 113 pitches and into the 7th on a rainy day.

Zito doesn't suck but still goes to 0-7

This is what passes for good news with the 2008 Giants -- Barry Zito wasn't horrible and managed to strike out five Pirates tonight. Unfortunately, the offense was a joke against the immortal Phil Dumatrait.

Zito now has 16 strikeouts this year; Lincecum has 45 and Cain has 44.

Brad Hennessey may have finally pitched himself out of the bigs with a plus 12 ERA. The Giants brought up Billy Sadler.

Projected Giants record -- 67-95

What took you so long?

It's about damn time -- The MLB Players Assn. is looking into collusion between the owners over the lack of offers to Barry Bonds.

Tim Kawakami is an idiot

No wonder people don't trust newspaper reporters, when they put out garbage stories and blog posts like this one. The San Jose Mercury-News' Tim Kawakami -- who's been on the Barry Bonds Hate Train for years -- argues that Fred Lewis is a better player than Barry Bonds would be this year because Lewis had better numbers in April than Bonds had in September.

What a damn idiot. Fred Lewis seems like a decent enough fourth outfielder but would he have a realistic shot of starting for any team other than the Giants? He's got an OBP of .398, 3 HRs and 8 RBIs in 104 ABs. That's marginally acceptable on a team but the Giants.

In case you're wondering, Fred didn't even start tonight during the 12-6 debacle in Pittsburgh against the immortal Zach Duke, who happens be a lefty. Dan Ortmeier started in left and went 2-for-4. So it's not as Bruce Bochy's been blown away by Fred's offensive prowess.

Fortunately, the folks at Fire Joe Morgan -- "where bad sports journalism comes to die" -- take the time to dissect what an idiot Kawakami is.

Here comes an 0-7 record for Zito

I have to give credit to Bochy for finding a way to put a positive spin on demoting Zito to the pen and then not using him for 10 days. And I hate to be negative, but I also will be stunned if Barry Zito can pull it together in Pittsburgh tomorrow night.

Happy birthday, Willie Mays

Photo by foggydave

The greatest Giant turns 77 today.

Fun with All-Star voting

My friend Dan had a great way to take the edge off watching the Dodgers hammer the Mets at Chavez Latrine tonight by filling out an All-Star ballot with the least deserving players or the occasional pain in the neck guy like a certain White Sox catcher.

The class-free Dodger fans, in between batting around beach balls and delaying the game six times as balls went on to the field, booed Andruw Jones relentlessly. Jones is probably damn glad that Zito is the guy identified as the biggest free agent bust but Jones has completely forgotten how to hit. Anyhow, here are Dan's selections:

National League
1B Joey Votto Reds
2B Ray Durham Giants
SS Jeff Keppinger Reds
3B Jorge Cantu Marlins
C J.R. Towles Astros
OF Andruw Jones Dodgers
OF Carlos Beltran Mets
OF Dave Roberts Giants

American League
1B Richie Sexson Mariners
2B Mark Grudzielanek Royals
SS L. Hernandez Orioles
3B Eric Chavez Athletics
C AJ Pierzitsky White Sox
DH Frank Catalanotto Rangers
OF Brad Wilkerson Mariners/Released
OF Matt Stairs Blue Jays
OF David DeJesus Royals

My suggestion -- Go ahead and write this guy in

The one SF Giant going to the All-Star game

That would be Tim Lincecum. I suppose Brian Wilson could get named too if he doesn't rack up any more blown saves.

The SF Chron's Henry Schulman does a nice job of pointing out that it's been a year since Tim's MLB debut and that the 365-day period's been bracketed by no-decisions to the Phils.

Start stuffing those All Star ballots

All Star game ballots available online. http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/all_star/y2008/ballot_reg.html

I am tempted to write in this guy.

I love how the Reds fans stuffed the ballot box in 1957, which led to the vote being taken away from the fans for the next decade. Here was the starting lineup, with Mays and Aaron named by the commissioner instead of Gus Bell and Wally Post. Stan Musial was the only non-Red voted into the lineup.

1 Johnny Temple Reds 2B
2 Hank Aaron Braves RF
3 Stan Musial Cardinals 1B
4 Willie Mays Giants CF
5 Ed Bailey Reds C
6 Frank Robinson Reds LF
7 Don Hoak Reds 3B
8 Roy McMillan Reds SS
9 Curt Simmons Phillies P

The Cincinnati Enquirer had printed up pre-marked ballots and distributed them with the Sunday newspaper to make it easy for Reds fans to vote often. There were even stories of bars in Cincinnati not serving alcohol to customers until they filled out a ballot.

Giants lose another winnable game

Eugenio Velez' error leads to the Giants giving up the winning run in the bottom of the 9th in Philly after Tim the Enchanter has what has to be a subpar game for him -- even though all 4 runs were unearned, but two came in via wild pitches. It's the second walk-off 6-5 win for the Phils in three days. Projected record is now 71-91. The only good news is that the Dodgers finally lost, getting buttkicked by the Rox.

As much as I try not to be bitter, as a Giants fan, it kills me to watch the offense not have quite enough to win close games like this while Barry Bonds sits at home. Art Spander, who worked at the SF Chronicle for many years, has an open letter to Billy Beane to sign Bonds. Here are some of his key arguments --

-- So, get that bat. It comes with a lot of baggage, but it also comes with a lot of benefits. The shock value alone is worth the deal. The man still can put balls in the seats and no less importantly put butts in the seats. As opposed to you putting a tarp over them. The A's have to stop being a secret and start becoming an attraction.

-- You know the word "coup"? That's what bringing in Barry Bonds would be. How about Bonds and Frank Thomas 3-4 in the batting order? Defense might be a worry, but you and Bob Geren would figure out something. The way you guys mishandled chances the last few days, Frank or Barry might be an improvement.

-- Your announced attendance for the series opener against the Rangers on Friday night was a bit above 15,000, but that was tickets sold. It was lonely at McAfee Coliseum, reminiscent of the Charlie Finley days when Sal Bando nicknamed the place the "Mausoleum." You might understand a bad turnout for a bad club, but the A's were coming home in first place. To be blunt, nobody cares. It's time to be aggressive, to make people care.

-- For too long the A's have been the other team, No. 2 to that club across the Bay. The Giants might not have much on the field, especially since they gave Bonds the back of the hand, but they have the ballpark, the 10-year jump in history, and the connection to that city with the cable cars and panhandlers. It's not your fault. Just the way things are.

-- This is a perfect year. The Giants are down. Now's the time to put your foot on their throat by putting Bonds on the roster. Those legal problems? The federal government is having more difficulty building a perjury case against Barry than it is in keeping gasoline affordable. If Barry ever comes to trial, and that's doubtful, it won't be for at least a year.

-- Bonds is going to end up someplace this season. Could any place be more perfect than Oakland? Barry knows the territory. The A's fans know Barry. True, they haven't liked him, but loyalty in sports is little more than the letters on the front of a uniform. Let Barry pop a couple against the Yankees or Angels, and you'll be amazed by his popularity.