Well, here we are just one win away from a second championship in three years. This team has been dominant for the past week and I am going to keep this preview simple. The message is the same and the result should be as well. The Tigers, at this point, seem uninterested and the Giants are on a mission for another parade. Matt Cain, fittingly, gets the ball in a few hours to try and get us there.
After the Giants final home game of the regular season, it was Matt Cain that said the goal was to play for another month and then have a parade. Expect him to be focused and ready for tonight's game, with the chance to finish on a high note. Let's not forget, he has been here before. After the epic comeback in Cincinnati, it was Matt who took the ball in game five and shutdown the Reds until the bats busted it open off of Latos. After another comeback against the Cardinals, the Giants turned to Matt again in game seven. Despite not having his best stuff that night, he battled through it and shut out the Cardinals for 5 and two thirds. Well, we ask him to do it one more time tonight. He has become the guy we turn to when it is time for the kill.
The Tigers are ready, their fans have given up and their players look shell shocked. Now, it is just a matter of finishing the job. There maybe no pitcher better qualified for the job. Cain will go to the hill tonight with a strong postseason resume. When he starts the game he will have just a 4-2 career postseason record but he will also bring in an amazing era of 1.83 in 44 and a third career postseason innings. Matt has been our guy for years, often in the shadow of Tim Lincecum, and this game is all about him and his moment in the spotlight. The drama of this series is over, we know the end result already, so now it is all about cementing the legacy of the great Matt Cain.
Showing posts with label Game Preview. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Game Preview. Show all posts
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Game 3 Preview
With a 2-0 lead in the World Series, Giant fans are feeling very confident. The Giants have dominated the Tigers bullpen, knocked out their ace and silenced their bats. However, the enthusiasm should be tempered slightly. In any series, their is never a real advantage until one team loses at home. That has yet to happen here but tonight is the Giants first opportunity to change that in Detroit against Anibal Sanchez and the Tigers.
Sanchez is a guy that should concern Giants fans because of his career numbers against them, in 5 starts he has an E.R.A. of under 2 and has shut them out in 2 of those. That is some own-age and it certainly grabs your attention. If his slider is sharp and he settles into a rhythm then it could really be a tough test for the Giants hot lineup. The Giants will need to get after him early and make sure he doesn't settle in.
Meanwhile the Giants will hand the ball to the steady Ryan Vogelsong who has allowed one run over seven innings in all three of his starts this postseason. Vogelsong has been the most reliable arm for the Giants this postseason. He pitches with a chip on his shoulder and I am sure he will go out there thinking about all the people who never thought that he would get to this spot in his career. It will be interesting to see how the Tiger hitters do against Vogelsong because they have been much better all year against right handed starters.
This is easily the biggest game of the series and I expect it to look much more like game two than game one. Both pitchers should be able to contain the offenses and the game would then come down to execution and maximizing opportunities. The Giants are in for a dog fight, I don't like the prospects of facing Sanchez at all but the Giants have shown that they can turn around numbers all year long. Here are my keys to a Giants victory.
1) Don't Allow Sanchez to Settle in
If Sanchez gets his slider working and has success early, it will be a very tough test for the Giants hitters. They really need to find a way to get to him in the first couple of innings.
2) Rally Vogey
If Sanchez does what I think we should expect him to, it would be essential for Vogelsong to deliver another stellar start. Just keep pace and keep the Giants in the game.
3) Get into and Feed on Their Bullpen
Even if the Giants can't score much off of Sanchez, they can get him out of the game by running up the pitch count, much like they did against Fister in game two. If they can get that done, they will get much better pitches to hit against the Tigers pen.
That is what I think the Giants need to do to try to get this series to 3-0 but I must emphasize that this is the toughest matchup the Giants have had in this series and it should be a great test for the best team in baseball.
Sanchez is a guy that should concern Giants fans because of his career numbers against them, in 5 starts he has an E.R.A. of under 2 and has shut them out in 2 of those. That is some own-age and it certainly grabs your attention. If his slider is sharp and he settles into a rhythm then it could really be a tough test for the Giants hot lineup. The Giants will need to get after him early and make sure he doesn't settle in.
Meanwhile the Giants will hand the ball to the steady Ryan Vogelsong who has allowed one run over seven innings in all three of his starts this postseason. Vogelsong has been the most reliable arm for the Giants this postseason. He pitches with a chip on his shoulder and I am sure he will go out there thinking about all the people who never thought that he would get to this spot in his career. It will be interesting to see how the Tiger hitters do against Vogelsong because they have been much better all year against right handed starters.
This is easily the biggest game of the series and I expect it to look much more like game two than game one. Both pitchers should be able to contain the offenses and the game would then come down to execution and maximizing opportunities. The Giants are in for a dog fight, I don't like the prospects of facing Sanchez at all but the Giants have shown that they can turn around numbers all year long. Here are my keys to a Giants victory.
1) Don't Allow Sanchez to Settle in
If Sanchez gets his slider working and has success early, it will be a very tough test for the Giants hitters. They really need to find a way to get to him in the first couple of innings.
2) Rally Vogey
If Sanchez does what I think we should expect him to, it would be essential for Vogelsong to deliver another stellar start. Just keep pace and keep the Giants in the game.
3) Get into and Feed on Their Bullpen
Even if the Giants can't score much off of Sanchez, they can get him out of the game by running up the pitch count, much like they did against Fister in game two. If they can get that done, they will get much better pitches to hit against the Tigers pen.
That is what I think the Giants need to do to try to get this series to 3-0 but I must emphasize that this is the toughest matchup the Giants have had in this series and it should be a great test for the best team in baseball.
The Weather Factor
News flash, Detroit tends to be cold this time of year. Right now it is 50 degrees and it is expected to be 46 by the time the game starts. Tomorrows forecast is similar and Monday it will be about 5 degrees less. So, that will certainly impact play this weekend but it will impact both teams. I don't really see it as a big advantage for either side. A lot will be made of it by the media but it is something that none of these players are particularly used to. It is cold and baseball is more of a summer game.
From the pitching side of things, the thing they will worry about the most is their grip. The cold, dry temperature could make it difficult for both sides and that will impact breaking balls much more than fastballs. Anibal Sanchez, the Tigers starter, relies heavily on his slider so this will be a point of emphasis for him. While Ryan Vogelsong relies much more on his fastball than his offspead stuff. From an offensive stand point, the cold temperatures could impact the carry of the baseball and take away some power from the teams.
The weather is what it is and at this level you just have to play through whatever the conditions are. I don't expect the players to worry about the cold at all. They all know what is at stake this weekend and that will be their focus. While the media will want to remind you how cold they are, the heat of whats at stake should be more than enough to warm the players. At least it will be dry the entire time the series is there. At this time of year, that is all you really hope for.
From the pitching side of things, the thing they will worry about the most is their grip. The cold, dry temperature could make it difficult for both sides and that will impact breaking balls much more than fastballs. Anibal Sanchez, the Tigers starter, relies heavily on his slider so this will be a point of emphasis for him. While Ryan Vogelsong relies much more on his fastball than his offspead stuff. From an offensive stand point, the cold temperatures could impact the carry of the baseball and take away some power from the teams.
The weather is what it is and at this level you just have to play through whatever the conditions are. I don't expect the players to worry about the cold at all. They all know what is at stake this weekend and that will be their focus. While the media will want to remind you how cold they are, the heat of whats at stake should be more than enough to warm the players. At least it will be dry the entire time the series is there. At this time of year, that is all you really hope for.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Giants Name Posey Game 3 DH
As most expected, Bruce Bochy has named Hector Sanchez as the game 3 starting catcher and Buster Bosey will get a day off from the field as the teams designated hitter. Other candidates for the DH spot could have included Aubrey Huff, Xavier Nady or Joaquin Arias playing third and Pablo Sandoval serving as the DH. However, Huff has chronically bad knees and Arias has hit much better off of lefties than righties. With Anibal Sanchez, another right hander starting for the Tigers, this looks to be another rather easy and smart choice for the Giants skipper who has not had many mistakes this postseason.
Road Warriors-World Series Edition
Well, each series the Giants have started at home and each round they have gotten a little better. Against the Reds, they lost the first two, then they split with the Cardinals and now they head to Detroit with a 2-0 lead. Momentum is clearly on the Giants side and, with the next 3 games in Detroit, they need to capitalize on it. While the numbers suggest that the Giants are in firm control, only 11 out of 52 teams has overcome an 0-2 hole to win the world series, the Giants should know how quickly that can all change.
The Giants have dominated the Tigers hitters thus far in the series but the Tigers have played much better at home all year including these playoffs. They are yet to lose a game at home and that is the test that the Giants face. Detroit is now 54-31 at home for the year and 41-46 on the road. Clearly they are looking forward to turning the tide of this series in their own ballpark. So, we won't see anymore embarrassing outfield throws by Delmon Young for a while and we will have to find a DH for up to the next three games.
As impressive as the Tigers are at home, the Giants may be more impressive on the road. They finished the regular season winning 26 out of their last 37. In the postseason, they became the first team all year to sweep three games in Cincinatti (who had the same home record as these Tigers) and took just one out of three in St. Louis. So, they head into this winning 30 out of their last 43 away from AT&T park and that is something they can take a lot of confidence in. Detroit is not a friendly place for visitors to play but the Giants don't really seem to mind hostile environments.
The goal is to win two games and not worry about coming back home for anything more than a parade. However, if they fail to do so, they do have homefield on their side again for game 6 and 7 if necessary. The Tigers are the ones who have to make a statement now. At this point, they know what the Giants are all about and they should come out ready to make a statement tomorrow night. Tomorrow nights game is huge for this series, if the Tigers lose they would face a near impossible 3-0 deficit with Matt Cain due to throw the clincher. If the Tigers win tomorrow, no matter what, they get Verlander back on the hill for game five in front of the home crowd. While the Giants want to end this series in Detroit, the Tigers just want to extend it back to San Francisco. It should be fun to watch the Giants momentum battling a raucous Tiger fan base and a rejuvenated Tiger team.
The Giants have dominated the Tigers hitters thus far in the series but the Tigers have played much better at home all year including these playoffs. They are yet to lose a game at home and that is the test that the Giants face. Detroit is now 54-31 at home for the year and 41-46 on the road. Clearly they are looking forward to turning the tide of this series in their own ballpark. So, we won't see anymore embarrassing outfield throws by Delmon Young for a while and we will have to find a DH for up to the next three games.
As impressive as the Tigers are at home, the Giants may be more impressive on the road. They finished the regular season winning 26 out of their last 37. In the postseason, they became the first team all year to sweep three games in Cincinatti (who had the same home record as these Tigers) and took just one out of three in St. Louis. So, they head into this winning 30 out of their last 43 away from AT&T park and that is something they can take a lot of confidence in. Detroit is not a friendly place for visitors to play but the Giants don't really seem to mind hostile environments.
The goal is to win two games and not worry about coming back home for anything more than a parade. However, if they fail to do so, they do have homefield on their side again for game 6 and 7 if necessary. The Tigers are the ones who have to make a statement now. At this point, they know what the Giants are all about and they should come out ready to make a statement tomorrow night. Tomorrow nights game is huge for this series, if the Tigers lose they would face a near impossible 3-0 deficit with Matt Cain due to throw the clincher. If the Tigers win tomorrow, no matter what, they get Verlander back on the hill for game five in front of the home crowd. While the Giants want to end this series in Detroit, the Tigers just want to extend it back to San Francisco. It should be fun to watch the Giants momentum battling a raucous Tiger fan base and a rejuvenated Tiger team.
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