The San Francisco Giants' (84-75) reign as World Champions will sadly come to an end. The Giants were officially eliminated from playoff contention with a 15-2 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks (93-66), who won the National League West.
It's been a rough season for the Orange and Black on a lot of fronts, most notably that of the offense. Giving up 15 runs, as they did last night, was the extreme exception, not the norm. If the pitching had gone like last night, as Giants beat writer Andy Baggarly pointed out, the team could easily have lost 100 games this year.
The offense was that bad. First baseman Aubrey Huff was named the Least Valuable Player in the National League by a New York Times article after having a great season a year ago. Also performing worse than last year were, well, a number of players on offense.
Another big part of things was the injury bug, most notably affecting reigning Rookie of the Year Buster Posey, who was injured after being bowled over by Scott Cousins of the Florida Marlins (71-88) in May. But Posey was only one of several injuries, Huff was the only regular not to miss significant time due to injuries.
Despite everything, it's been a fun run as World Champions. I have thoroughly enjoyed referring to my team as the World Champion San Francisco Giants throughout this season. Winning the World Series is an incredible thing, and I'm glad my team was able to win it all. I'm also glad that I was able to thoroughly soak it up. Hopefully they will have another good run next year (with an improved offense).
Showing posts with label Florida Marlins. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Florida Marlins. Show all posts
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Buster Posey's injury
Buster Posey, catcher for the World Champion San Francisco Giants (27-22), was injured in an ugly collision in the 12th inning of last night's game with the Florida Marlins (29-19). Scott Cousins of the Marlins was attempting to score on a sacrifice fly ahead of the throw from Giants right fielder Nate Schierholtz. Posey couldn't handle the throw on a hop, and Cousins ran over him. Posey suffered a broken fibula as well as strained ligaments in his left ankle. It is estimated he will be out six to eight weeks, and possibly longer.
Posey, the reigning National League Rookie of the Year, would be a huge loss for the Giants on a number of different levels. He is a great hitter who is smart and hits for average and has a little pop in his bat. He is also a great catcher, doing a great job of calling pitches and knowing the tendencies of hitters. And as if that wasn't enough, he is a great clubhouse presence and a leader on the team at a young age.
Posey should be able to spend time with the team as he rehabilitates and still contribute in leadership roles, but he will be immensely missed on the field, especially as he was just starting to find his groove offensively and was in the midst of a double digit game hitting streak. Eli Whiteside will take over behind the plate in the interim. Whiteside is a solid catcher defensively and can hit occasionally, but his offensive skills are not that of Posey.
Hopefully the Giants can ride out this injury and stay in the race; I think they are capable of doing this for at least a little while. Despite the Marlins finishing off the three game sweep this afternoon at AT&T Park, the Giants still lead the National League West by 2 games over the Arizona Diamondbacks (25-24) and 2.5 games over the Colorado Rockies (24-24), who are playing right now (the Diamondbacks lead 3-1 in the top of the 6th inning in Denver).
A lot of people were proclaiming that the Rockies were going to run away with the division after they got off to such a hot start, but they have cooled off considerably since then and recently lost starting pitcher Jorge De La Rosa for the season to an injury. The Diamondbacks have been playing very well lately, but I still think they lack the pitching depth to stay in the race all year. The Posey injury hurts the Giants' chances, no question about it, but I still think it could be a close race in the West. Hopefully he isn't out for too long. The Giants travel to Milwaukee to face the Brewers (27-23), who are riding a six game winning streak, for three games this weekend.
Posey, the reigning National League Rookie of the Year, would be a huge loss for the Giants on a number of different levels. He is a great hitter who is smart and hits for average and has a little pop in his bat. He is also a great catcher, doing a great job of calling pitches and knowing the tendencies of hitters. And as if that wasn't enough, he is a great clubhouse presence and a leader on the team at a young age.
Posey should be able to spend time with the team as he rehabilitates and still contribute in leadership roles, but he will be immensely missed on the field, especially as he was just starting to find his groove offensively and was in the midst of a double digit game hitting streak. Eli Whiteside will take over behind the plate in the interim. Whiteside is a solid catcher defensively and can hit occasionally, but his offensive skills are not that of Posey.
Hopefully the Giants can ride out this injury and stay in the race; I think they are capable of doing this for at least a little while. Despite the Marlins finishing off the three game sweep this afternoon at AT&T Park, the Giants still lead the National League West by 2 games over the Arizona Diamondbacks (25-24) and 2.5 games over the Colorado Rockies (24-24), who are playing right now (the Diamondbacks lead 3-1 in the top of the 6th inning in Denver).
A lot of people were proclaiming that the Rockies were going to run away with the division after they got off to such a hot start, but they have cooled off considerably since then and recently lost starting pitcher Jorge De La Rosa for the season to an injury. The Diamondbacks have been playing very well lately, but I still think they lack the pitching depth to stay in the race all year. The Posey injury hurts the Giants' chances, no question about it, but I still think it could be a close race in the West. Hopefully he isn't out for too long. The Giants travel to Milwaukee to face the Brewers (27-23), who are riding a six game winning streak, for three games this weekend.
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