Keys To The Second Half

[love_that_reefer]

The Giants have been playing better than anyone expected so far this season and I read thast since May 20th, the Giants have the best record in the NL West going 23-26 which isn't all that great but better than anyone else in the division. They are at 40-55 right now and on pace for 93 losses. After all that, the Giants are still only seven games back of the first place DBacks. The Giants have got to do a better job in the second half in key areas if they want to contend or simply play spoiler for a lot of teams. Giants have looked awful at times but there is promise and possible light at the end of the tunnel. Here's a list of the good and bad so far.

Good- The Giants have three starting pitchers with 100+ strikeouts before the break which has never happened since the Giants moved out West. One of those guys is the MLB leader and Cy Young contender Tim Lincecum. Lincecum is on pace for 220 innings so the Giants will have to take better care of him in the second half. The starters have also given up the fourth fewest homers in the NL.

Bad- The Giants are 1-16 in games that Kevin Correia or Pat Misch pitched. The Giants have got to find someone to be the fifth starter!! Lowry is not expected back this year and Correia has been plain awful since coming back from the DL. Looks like he might have to rejoin the bullpen and let someone else take the pill on the 5th day. Barry Zito's 4-12 record isn't helping matters much but he has been pitching better and the second half of last year is when he really turned things a round. The Giants rank 10th in the NL in team ERA with a 4.29 ERA and are tied for the league lead in walks. Giants have got to fix this if they are to get their season on some sort of track.

Good- The Giants have a 17-16 record in one run games this season. Brian Wilson is a huge reason for that with a NL leading 25 saves in just 27 chances. His ERA might not look pretty but he is getting the job done. This team winning these close games bodes well for the rest of the season.

Bad- The Giants have a pathetic 17-28 home record this year. Why would Giants fans want to come out and see thier favorite team lose on a regular basis? Giants have got to start getting the home crowd behind them and using the pitcher's park to their advantage. The Giants have a 4.42 ERA at home compared to a 4.17 ERA on the road. This is pathetic and not supposed to happen at AT&T park.

Good- The Giants rank fifth in the NL in fielding percentage. This one really shocked me because of the guys we have. Castillo leads the team in errors at third but the Giants have been solid every where else.

Bad- Omar Vizquel is still getting starts over Emmanuel Burriss. Bochy has always loved the older veterans but this is borderline insanity. No way should a 40 yr old SS hitting .159 with a .228 OBP be playing in today's game. There is no excuse for this nonsense and it has to stop if the Giants want to move forward and improve. Burriss is hitting .286 with a .347 OBP. He even has more steals than Omar in less games. Vizquel is as close to an automatic out as you can get in this lineup.

That was the good and bad so far for this team but here are just a few more extras the Giants need to do in the second half.

1. Giants must find an everyday third baseman. The Giants are hitting a collective .260 with a .308 OBP out of the third base postion. In other words, the Giants are barely getting anything from there. Castillo and Aurilia are not long term solutions and nothing to go home and brag about. I am glad Pedro Feliz is gone but is Castillo any different? If the Giants do not find someone, Aurilia must start getting the bulk of the playing time over there.

2. The Giants must start dumping/trading/sending down the underachievers. They started early this year with Steve Kline and then Vinnie Chulk later on but it shouldn't stop there. Tyler Walker and his wonderful 4.86 ERA needs to go so we can bring up someone else to relieve. He is inconsistant and in no way a setup man. Eugenio Velez has no place on a Major League roster at this point. He has a good arm but can't say the same about his glove. He possesses great speed but doesn't know how to steal a base properly. He needs to be in the minors.

3. Timely hits are key!!! The Giants are one of the worst teams when it comes to clutch hitting. Guys do not know how to move runners over and seem to never know what the situation calls for. Leadoff doubles are just going to waste and Bowker swinging at the first pitch every time he has a RBI opportunity kills this team. Its either that or a inning ending double play. Giants have got to find someone who can get hits when the count! Giants have not hit a homerun since July 6th off the bat of Rich Aurilia. No one on this team has more than 10 homers. Pathetic!!

4. Get back to stealing bases! Giants seem to have started doing this again so I will not get onto them much in this department. But I guess if no one is there to drive you in when you do steal a base, it all becomes moot.

5. Bruce Bochy has just got to get his head out of his ass!! This is the key. He has one more year on is contract after this one and if he gets it, the Giants are dumber than I thought. Here is what Bochy had to say the other day.

Bruce Bochy said, had he been told on Opening Day that the Giants would be 40-55 at the break, "I'd tell you I'd be disappointed. I still think we're a better club than what our record is. This (last) road trip certainly hasn't helped our record, this skid we're in. You're asking me at a bad time."

Are you ****ing kidding me? If you weren't so ****ing retarded, the Giants would be better than 40-55!! If you didn't constantly repeat the same mistakes over and over until its too late, the Giants would be closer to the top of the West! He has done a poor job of managing continuing to stick with players such as Vizquel and Walker in roles they no longer deserve. Bochy and Sabean have made poor moves with the 25 man roster sticking with Velez for way too long and with Hennessey at the beginning of the season. Bochy either needs to be fired or someone needs to politely ask him to refrain from thinking onhis own the rest of the year.

These are all the things the Giants need to continue doing and to start improving on if they think they can get close to top dog in the West. Now I have officially written too much.

[hot_corner_gurl]

Well the Giants have lost the first two games after the break (at home, I might add) to the Brewers. The Brewers did throw out their two best guys in Sabathia and Sheets, but even still they had a tough time keeping it close. Not looking so good right out of the gate. And Vizquel is still the starting shortstop, although that could still change.