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SF Giants Press Clips

Friday, May 19, 2017

San Francisco Chronicle

After terrible start, have the Giants turned the corner?

Henry Schulman

At long last, the sun has broken through the fog at 24 Willie Mays Plaza. It took until Mother’s

Day, but the Giants finally found a way to play winning baseball.

Giants fans could not be blamed if they took winning for granted. Their team had done a lot of

it over the past eight seasons. Then came 2017, which started with them blowing a ninth-inning

lead on Opening Day and losing at Arizona, a bleak harbinger for the local nine.

The first quarter of the season, which the Giants completed Tuesday, looked like the start of

an annus horribilis on and off the field for a team that was crowned a dynasty after winning the

2010, 2012 and 2014 World Series. The usual spring optimism turned to disbelief as many of

the faithful and others within the game wondered if the Giants’ championship window had

slammed shut.

The view is a lot crisper now for the Giants, who won five games in a row before their streak

was broken Wednesday. As recently as last week, they had the worst record of the 30 major-

league teams at 12-24.

“We had a six-week stretch that has been, if you combine on the field and off the field, like no

other,” Giants President and Chief Executive Officer Larry Baer said.

The losses on the field were only part of the misery.

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The Giants were smacked with a numbing array of injuries. Two starting outfielders, Jarrett

Parker and Denard Span, got hurt crashing into walls. Buster Posey, the franchise’s most

important position player, suffered a concussion when hit in the helmet by a fastball in his first

home at-bat of the season April 10.

Worse yet, 2014 World Series hero Madison Bumgarner separated his pitching shoulder and

bruised some ribs while riding a dirt bike during an April 20 day off near Denver, which will keep

him off the mound until roughly Aug. 1.

Bruce Bochy, the manager who guided the Giants to those three titles, needed a minor

procedure last month to eliminate an abnormal heart rhythm, the third time since February

2016 he was forced to leave the team briefly to tend to his heart.

In a realm that superseded baseball, three women who were part of what the organization calls

the “Giants family” died unexpectedly over a 12-day stretch in April.

Katy Feeney, a former Major League Baseball official and daughter of onetime Giants general

manager Chub Feeney, died in her sleep at 68 on the eve of Opening Day. Mirian Cepeda, the

wife of Giants Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda, died at 62 of pneumonia on April 12. The same

day, Jennifer Pippin, a sister-in-law of shortstop Brandon Crawford, died of an asthma attack at

38.

After news of Pippin’s death spread through AT&T Park, Giants Executive Vice President of

Communications Staci Slaughter walked into the dugout shell-shocked and said, “I’m afraid to

answer my phone.”

Social media buzzed with calls for the Giants to “blow it up,” baseball parlance for a losing team

to sell off expensive players and rebuild for the future. Giants officials, noting the vast number

of games remaining on the 162-game schedule, have insisted they are not thinking that way.

“I cannot say we will never in our lifetime have a year like that, but what I can say is that’s not

how we went into the season looking at it, and that’s not how we look at it today,” Baer said

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Tuesday.

“Obviously, this is a challenging stretch. Whether it’s the beginning, the middle or the end of

the season, what gives me comfort is falling back on the Giants’ DNA, the DNA of the team, the

guys on the field, Bochy and his coaching staff. They’ve had a find-a-way mentality for the

better part of a decade.”

Some of the “end of an era” talk is fueled by a belief that Bochy, at 62, will tire of losing, retire

or move to a less stressful job upstairs to protect his heart, a notion that he dismisses out of

hand.

His most serious ailment emerged in February 2016, in the first days of spring training, when he

had two stents inserted into a blocked artery. Twice since, including last month, Bochy was

treated for an arrhythmia, a condition considered more a nuisance than a threat to his long-

term health.

Bochy increasingly is getting more annoyed with questions about his heart and any insinuation

that his health or the team’s record has diminished his desire to run the team.

“I’m not talking about that,” he said emphatically during an interview last week. “I’m fine.

There’s nothing wrong with me. I’m here. I’m ready to go. There’s fire here. I wouldn’t stay if I

didn’t think we could win another championship.”

Injuries have taken a toll, but even the players who remained healthy underperformed over the

first six weeks, especially for a team with a payroll approaching $205 million, about the fifth-

highest in baseball.

Fans also have criticized the front office for not spending more to acquire a left fielder to

replace Angel Pagan, who left as a free agent.

After committing $470 million since the end of the 2015 season on long-term contracts for

pitchers Johnny Cueto and Jeff Samardzija, the center fielder Span, new closer Mark Melancon,

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and extensions for infielders Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt, the Giants decided to hand

left field this year to an inexpensive homegrown player, Parker, and a journeyman who had not

played in the majors since 2013, Chris Marrero.

After Parker broke his collarbone crashing into the left-field wall in the 13th game of the

season, and Span sprained his shoulder in the same manner a week later, the Giants threw a

carousel of journeymen into the outfield, which continues to rank last among the 30 big-league

teams in offensive production.

Just when it seemed the Giants might not find a way to stop their free fall, they got a jolt of

production and youthful exuberance from 21-year-old infielder Christian Arroyo, their top

offensive prospect, whom they promoted from Triple-A on April 24.

The Giants also benefited from a power resurgence from Posey, which began during a series in

New York on the last trip, and the return of Span and Crawford from the disabled list.

On Friday night — actually Saturday morning — Posey homered to end a 17-inning game. The

Giants also won the next four before losing to the Dodgers on Wednesday.

Notwithstanding the Bumgarner injury, the Giants are as healthy as they have been in a while

as they open a three-game series in St. Louis on Friday night.

“Now, there are definitely no excuses,” second baseman Joe Panik said. “With the talent in this

clubhouse, we definitely should be playing better baseball. It doesn’t mean at the end of

September we’re going to be where we are now. I don’t think anybody in this clubhouse

believes that.”

Even with their recent spate of winning, the Giants are 17-25 and a long shot to reach the

playoffs. No team since the 1989 Toronto Blue Jays has reached the playoffs after losing 24 of

its first 36 games.

Bochy is the last person who cares about a statistic like that.

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“We can make this a great story,” he said. “This is our decision how we want this to go. I hope

we look at it that way.”

San Francisco Chronicle

Giants’ Christian Arroyo dealing with first major slump

Henry Schulman

If Christian Arroyo were any other 21-year-old, the Giants might be tempted to send him back

to Triple-A amid a 3-for-24 slump to regain his stroke in a less pressurized environment and

prevent his dauber from getting down.

Because Arroyo is Arroyo, he is staying where he is, enjoying the confidence of a staff that sees

a mature rookie who simply needs to adjust at the plate, as all hitters do.

“He’s a quick learner,” batting coach Hensley Meulens said. “Hopefully, it’s not a long struggle.”

When Arroyo arrived, he proved he could turn on inside fastballs, so right-handed pitchers have

been throwing everything on the outside corner or outside, period. Meulens is getting Arroyo

to move closer to the plate so he can reach those pitches.

Arroyo’s mental state is not an issue. He proved that Tuesday night when he played second

base for the first time in the majors and made several good plays, including a throw home to

nail Justin Turner.

Arroyo is “doing fine,” Meulens said. “He’s going through that first rough patch. We’ve basically

got to keep things simple for him. He understands that he’s learning and he understands that

he’s got to make some kind of adjustments to produce. He did in his last at-bat. He got a base

hit.”

That was Tuesday night. On Wednesday, he took an 0-for-4 but had a good third at-bat

against Clayton Kershaw and lined out.

Closer back: Mark Melancon was throwing in the bullpen in the ninth inning with the Giants

down 6-0. It was not a burst of Giants optimism. Melancon had not thrown since Monday and

was going to get in his work one way or the other after he was activated from the disabled list

before the game.

Melancon said he feels no discomfort after rehabbing a strained right pronator, a forearm

muscle.

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The Giants optioned infielder Kelby Tomlinson and restored an eight-man bullpen.

Briefly: Eduardo Nuñez’s first homer of the year, against Sergio Romo in the ninth, extended

the Giants’ streak of homering to 10 games. Their past 13 have been solos. ... The Giants fell to

6-4 against the Dodgers this season.

Henry Schulman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.

On deck

Thursday

Off

Friday

at Cardinals

5:15 p.m. NBCSBA

Moore (2-4) vs. Wacha (2-1)

Saturday

at Cardinals

4:15 p.m. Channel: 2 Channel: 40

Samardzija (1-5) vs. Martinez (3-3)

Leading off

Dodgers beater: Ty Blach earned his first two big-league wins against the Dodgers, the first

Giants pitcher to do so since Harry Gumbert in 1935-36.

San Francisco Chronicle

Giants’ win streak ends at hands of Clayton Kershaw

Hernry Schulman

The biggest enemy of a win streak is a Lurch-sized Texan who takes the mound with great

enough stuff to make a hitter wish he chose professional tennis.

As the Giants showered and dressed after Wednesday’s 6-1 loss to the Dodgers ended San

Francisco’s win streak at five games, they could not be too distressed, because it died at the

hands of Clayton Kershaw.

When Kershaw retired the first 10 hitters with what seemed like zero exertion, a boisterous

crowd at AT&T Park had to know the Giants were not going to complete a three-game sweep of

Los Angeles. He held them to three singles in seven innings.

Eduardo Nuñez’s homer off Sergio Romo in the ninth prevented a three-pitcher shutout.

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At least the Giants did not lose their bid for a 6-1 homestand to the only pitcher who owns

them more than Kershaw, a guy by the name of Soft-Throwing Lefty the Giants Have Not Seen

Before.

“Great homestand,” Buster Posey said, quite satisfied with going 5-2. “We’ve got to be happy

with it. We won the series. Obviously, we’d have liked to win this one, too, but we have to be

happy going into the off day with the way things went at home.”

In taking three of four from the Reds and two of three from the Dodgers, the Giants prevented

a tumble into complete irrelevance. Their 17-25 record still looks homely, but at least they can

start believing that October baseball is not out of reach if they continue along the same trend

line.

The Giants’ next challenge is taking their new and improved product on the road, where they

are 6-15 with a 5.82 ERA.

Matt Moore gets the first crack at lowering it in the opener of a three-game series at St. Louis

on Friday night. Manager Bruce Bochy put the onus on the pitching staff.

“We just want them to do close to what they’ve done here at home,” Bochy said. “We’re not

asking them to throw shutouts. Just give us a quality start and a chance to win. Stay away from

the big inning, the three-, four-, five-, six-run innings. That’s what’s killed us.”

On Wednesday, the Giants were all but done after Yasmani Grandal golfed a two-run double to

right in the first off a less-than-crisp Johnny Cueto, which gave Kershaw the support he

required and set off a chain of events that led to a brief clearing of benches in the third inning.

The 0-2 pitch that Grandal hit was so close to the dirt, Posey went into his wild-pitch blocking

mode before Grandal made contact, as if Grandal knew what pitch was coming.

Indeed, Cueto thought the Dodgers were relaying signs from second base and jawed with

Grandal after the double. When Grandal batted in the third, Cueto’s first pitch was so high and

tight that Posey could not catch it. It went to the backstop and Chase Utley scored the third

Dodgers run.

Bochy suggested the benches cleared after someone in the Dodgers’ dugout started chirping.

Cueto and Grandal continued their discussion when Cueto batted in the bottom of the inning

and made nice.

“I explained to him the pitch slipped out of my hand and I was not intentionally throwing at his

head,” Cueto said through interpreter Erwin Higueros. “I told him if I was going to hit him, I

would hit him below.”

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts did not exactly deny Cueto’s charge, saying, “He obviously

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didn’t appreciate if we were doing something like that. If we were, that’s a part of the game.”

Nothing more came of it. Cueto ended a five-run outing after six innings and lost a rematch

with Kershaw, whom he beat at Dodger Stadium on May 1.

Kershaw improved 12-4 with a 1.31 ERA in 20 starts at AT&T Park.

Henry Schulman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer.

Email: hschulman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hankschulman

Bonds’ ceremony set for July 8

The Giants announced Wednesday that Barry Bonds will be enshrined on their Wall of Fame at

3:30 p.m. July 8, before a game against the Miami Marlins.

Bonds will become the 49th player to be honored. The Giants also are expected to retire Bonds’

No. 25, though not this year, as part of his agreement to serve as a special adviser to CEO Larry

Baer. Bonds would be the first player who is not in the Hall of Fame to get that honor.

San Francisco Chronicle

Giants’ Bumgarner getting closer to throwing again

John Shea

Madison Bumgarner is feeling significant improvement and has a date in mind for when he

hopes to begin a throwing program.

“I’m shooting for two weeks from Thursday,” Bumgarner said. “That’ll be six weeks out.”

That would be June 1, though it’s possible he could start playing catch at some point in late

May.

One sign reaffirming Bumgarner’s improved health is that he’ll be on the Giants’ upcoming trip

to St. Louis and Chicago to resume his rehab. He didn’t go on the previous trip (Los Angeles,

Cincinnati, New York) because it was too soon after his April 20 dirt-bike accident that left him

with a Grade 2 sprain in the AC joint in his left shoulder and bruised ribs.

Of the two injuries, the shoulder ailment obviously is the bigger concern. As for the ribs,

Bumgarner said, “I still feel them, for sure, but they’ve gotten quite a bit better.”

The Giants initially said Bumgarner could return to the team shortly after the All-Star break but

have since suggested a target of early August, though it’s largely guesswork for now.

Bumgarner wouldn’t predict when he could rejoin the rotation, saying, “I never went through

anything like this. We’ll just play it out.”

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San Francisco Chronicle

This season may be Cueto’s last with Giants

Scott Ostler

Johnny Cueto is a fun guy to have around, but how much longer will he be around?

That’s a question hanging over the Giants this season, adding intrigue to Cueto’s every outing.

On Wednesday, Cueto and the dreaded Clayton Kershaw locked up in a classic pitchers’ duel

that was classic until the second batter of the game pulled the thread that started the

unraveling of Cueto’s sweater.

The Dodgers won 6-1 to snap the Giants’ five-game winning streak. Cueto took the loss, giving

up five runs in a subpar outing.

“I don’t think he was his sharpest,” catcher Buster Posey shrugged, noting that Cueto got beat

on some good pitches and got stronger as the game went on. But when you’re going against

Kershaw, you don’t have the luxury of easing into the game.

It was an important day for the Giants. Had the Giants been able to beat the Dodgers and the

mighty Kershaw at sunswept AT&T, hope would have grown that the Giants truly have risen

from the dead and are ready to make a playoff run.

It’s early, but six wins in a row, and seven in eight games, would have been a powerful

statement.

But Clayton gonna Clayton, and he weed-whacked the Giants’ hitters, allowing three singles in

seven innings and creating a lot of awkward at-bats.

The only excitement Cueto stirred was when he and Dodgers catcher Yasmani Grandal had

words on the field, emptying both dugouts. No physical contact occurred, but it was a nice

show of the love these two teams have for one another.

The minor incident was a good sign for the Giants, a reminder that though Cueto sometimes

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looks like he’s having fun, and he is, he’s there to battle. Don’t try to steal the signs on his

pitches.

Cueto wasn’t at his best Wednesday, but when he is, he’s as entertaining to watch as any

pitcher in the game.

Enjoy him while you can, Giants fans. Not to be Debbie Downer, but there’s a good chance this

is Cueto’s last season here. It’s the second season of his six-year contract and he can opt out

after this season.

Of course, Cueto’s not going to say anything about any plans. Anything he would say now about

his future can and will be held against him in a court of free-agency negotiation. And if he

merely says he wants to keep his options open, he looks like a man with one foot out the door.

Cueto’s six-year deal is for $130 million. After this season, he’ll have four years and $84 million

remaining on the contract.

If he winds up with a season similar to the last one, Cueto’s market value will be high, even

though he will be 32 next year. Rough guess, if he’s solid this season, he could opt out and sign

for five years and $120 mil.

Should Cueto opt out, the Giants could bid to re-sign him. But it’s doubtful he would give the

Giants a hometown discount. Cueto has said he fancies the idea of finishing his career in the

American League. So if he opts out, the Giants could well wind up bidding against the Red Sox

and Yankees.

This is all going to depend on how Cueto pitches the rest of the season. After Wednesday, he’s

4-3 with a 4.50 ERA. The Giants are 6-3 in his starts. Last season, a splendid one, Cueto was 18-5

with a 2.79 ERA and started the All-Star Game. His .783 winning percentage was the best of his

nine-season career.

If Cueto struggles enough this season to lower his market value below $20 million a year, he

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might decide to stick around. Problem is, even if he’s not lights-out the rest of the season, elite

starting pitchers command crazy money, and a team like the Yankees can afford to roll the dice

on Cueto, despite his age.

Why worry about that now? Because losing Cueto would/will leave a big hole in the ballclub.

If and when he leaves, Giants fans will miss Cueto’s style and his exuberance. If he doesn’t have

more fun pitching than any pitcher alive, he acts like he does. As the Warriors continue to

demonstrate, sports is a lot more fun when you’re watching a game played joyfully.

Cueto’s good vibes seem to play well in the clubhouse, too. Baseball players say they strive to

avoid the highs and the lows, and Cueto seems to have appointed himself the team leader in

avoiding the lows.

And it’s always good for team morale when a pitcher wins three out of every four games and is

considered a battler.

Now forget all this and enjoy the rest of the season.

San Francisco Chronicle

Inside Buster Posey’s power surge for the improved Giants

John Shea

Buster Posey does big things.

In the wee hours last Saturday morning, exhausted and eager to go home in the 17th inning, he

swung at a first-pitch, up-in-the-zone fastball and cleared the left-field wall for a game-ending

home run.

Buster Posey does little things, too.

In a Tuesday at-bat, he was pitched away and got nothing to drive. He worked the count to 2-2

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and grounded out to the right side, moving Brandon Belt to third base.

One pitch later, with the infield in, Brandon Crawford singled home Belt with the game’s

deciding run.

It’s the beauty of Posey, the Giants’ cleanup hitter who has a tendency of morphing into

whatever’s necessary in the moment. If he’s not slugging, he’s still hitting. If he’s not hitting,

he’s still adjusting.

The Giants begin a weeklong trip Friday night in St. Louis after winning six of eight games, which

somewhat corresponds with Posey regaining his power stroke, which somewhat corresponds

with the All-Star catcher abandoning his high leg kick at the plate.

With the Giants playing their best ball of the season, it’s not a case of how Posey goes, so go

the Giants. But a Posey power surge certainly can’t hurt.

“It’s like it’s a dance up there,” teammate Michael Morse said. “Buster gets in a rhythm with

the pitcher, and sometimes that rhythm might be a leg kick, sometimes it might be a step,

sometimes it might be a toe tap.

“A lot of us keep it one way and try to make it work, while he does whatever is more effective

against that pitcher.”

Posey hit .354 in April but had just one home run. This month, he has six homers, starting with

his May 1 shot off Clayton Kershaw and including five in his past eight starts.

The streak started May 8 when the Giants were in New York and the Mets started Jacob

deGrom, whose pitches can be difficult to detect.

Posey simplified his approach and avoided his normal high leg kick. He barely lifted his front

foot, more of a toe tap, before swinging. With fewer moving parts, he was shorter to the ball

while maintaining good hip rotation. It’s an approach Posey had used here and there in the past

to see the ball better, and now he’s using it regularly.

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He homered against deGrom and each of the next two games, against Zach Wheeler and

Tommy Milone. Two days later, he ended the 17-inning classic by homering off Cincinnati’s

Robert Stephenson.

In Monday’s opener of the Dodgers series, Posey homered off Grant Dayton.

The mechanical tweak and homer surge aren’t hurting Posey’s average. Perhaps they might be

helping it. He’s hitting .407 in May, and his season average is .378, ranking third behind

Washington teammates Bryce Harper and Ryan Zimmerman.

“Right now, what I’m doing feels good,” Posey said. “Hopefully it continues that way.”

Posey said he felt good in April, too, even after returning from his week on the concussion

disabled list following his April 10 beaning.

Then why the drastic change in power month to month?

“Some of it can be the type of pitches you’re getting,” Posey said. “It can be the difference

between a ball being a single and a ball being driven. I felt good in April as well. I think the

biggest thing is, regardless of how things are going, try to be you. Not try to do more than that.”

Posey said he’s not afraid to alter his approach at the plate, and batting coach Hensley Meulens

said adjustments are frequent for many players including Hunter Pence and Brandon Belt.

Meulens noted that Posey already was hitting well north of .300 before the modification. “You

can’t really argue with that,” Meulens said. “This has kind of woken up the power. That’s good

to see as well.”

It hasn’t gone unnoticed among Posey’s teammates.

“He’s strong enough to do a little tap and shorten up and still have the power he does,” second

baseman Joe Panik said. “It makes him that much better of a hitter, if that’s possible.”

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Morse added, “If you watch how Buster hits, he picks when he needs to drive the ball or needs

to get on base or needs to give himself up. When you’re that good of a hitter, you can make

those adjustments at the plate.”

It appeared Posey gave himself up — making an out to move a runner over — when grounding

to first base in Tuesday’s game and setting up the winning run, but he said it wasn’t necessarily

the case.

“With two strikes, the thought of moving a guy over kind of goes out the window,” Posey said.

“With two strikes, you’re battling and trying to maybe see the ball a little bit deeper than

normal. Fortunately, it worked out that way.

“You can get in trouble trying to manipulate the ball with two strikes. But you can still have an

approach that might give you a chance to succeed and move the runner over.”

The Giants’ recent run isn’t all about Posey, of course. The rotation compiled six straight quality

starts before Johnny Cueto yielded five runs to the Dodgers on Wednesday. Newcomer

Christian Arroyo ignited the surge with a three-run, ninth-inning double in New York, Crawford

and Denard Span came off the disabled list to upgrade both the offense and defense and Belt

hit four homers.

The Giants have homered in 10 straight games, though their last 13 homers have been solo

shots, starting with Posey’s against deGrom. In fact, all seven of Posey’s have come with no one

on base, one reason he has just 11 RBIs.

That pace likely won’t continue, just like the home run pace in April didn’t continue. As Panik

said, “I’ve come to learn it’s a long year, and for guys who have hit home runs in the past, they

will come. It’s a matter of when, not if. I don’t worry about Buster.”

Morse added, “Baseball’s a crazy game. Everything always equals out in the end. Buster’s going

to be there at the end of the season with all his numbers because of the work he puts in.”

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Aside from his .378 average, Posey has a .452 on-base percentage and .588 slugging

percentage. All higher figures than in any of his seven previous seasons.

He has reached base via a hit, walk or plunking in 31 of his 33 games, and he’s one of three

National Leaguers with more walks than strikeouts, joining Joey Votto and Harper.

Through it all, Posey’s keeping it simple.

“Just being ready early,” he said, “and trying to see the ball as well as possible.”

San Francisco Chronicle

Giants set date for Barry Bonds Wall of fame ceremony

Henry Schulman

Nearly 10 years after he played his final major-league game, the Giants finally set a date to

enshrine Barry Bonds on their Wall of Fame.

The club announced Wednesday that Bonds will get a plaque on the brick wall on Saturday July

8, at 3:30 p.m., before a game against the Miami Marlins.

Bonds will become the 49th Giant to be honored on wall, along King Street. Anyone who played

nine seasons with the Giants, or five seasons with at least one All-Star selection as a Giant, is

eligible.

Bonds’ placement on the Wall of Fame was part of a deal that he reached this spring to work

for the Giants as a special advisor to Chief Executive Officer Larry Baer. Bonds’ role is

representing the Giants at community events and helping instruct minor-leaguers.

The Giants also are expected to retire Bonds’ number, 25, as part of the agreement, but not this

year. Bonds would be the first player who is not in the Hall of Fame to get that honor.

Bonds broke Henry Aaron’s all-time home-run record of 755 in August, 2007. The Giants

declined to invite him back for the 2008 season, ending his 22-year big-league career.

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San Jose Mercury News

Q&A with Giants announcer Mike Krukow:

Andrew Baggarly

SAN FRANCISCO – The Giants were headed to the 17th inning last Friday – their longest game

by innings in nearly 16 years – and up in the broadcast booth, Mike Krukow empathized with

catcher Buster Posey.

“I think there’s a numbness going on in Buster Posey’s body right now, below the belt,” Krukow

said. “He’s probably more comfortable in the squat than standing up.”

So in the bottom of the 17th, when Posey ripped a game-winning home run into the left field

bleachers, viewers didn’t need to see his comically relieved expression as he tossed his bat to

understand how he felt in that moment. Krukow already had let them into Posey’s mind.

That is what the Giants’ longtime TV analyst loves most about his job. Krukow doesn’t need to

assemble reams of anecdotes or obscure statistics to fill time during the broadcast. He lets the

game tell the story. He lets the players slide into their moments. And he reminds you that this is

a hard game that will wring out every bit of the emotional spectrum.

And if that game lasts 17 innings? Well, where else would you rather be than at the ballpark?

Krukow has cut back on his travel this season and wasn’t on the team flight as the Giants get set

for a weekend series in St. Louis, a begrudging concession to the muscle condition (inclusion

body myositis) that makes travel difficult and stairs impossible. He doesn’t go east of Denver

any longer, and will be watching along with the rest of the TV audience when the Giants play

seven games against the Cardinals and Chicago Cubs.

The last thing he wants to do is grab some pine. But cutting back to 120 games will allow him to

continue with Duane Kuiper, Jon Miller and Dave Flemming for many more seasons, and tell

many more stories.

We caught up with Krukow after the Giants completed a successful, 5-2 homestand that got

them within eight games of the .500 mark:

Q: What is it like to broadcast a 17-inning game? Do you run out of anecdotes? Is it as

fatiguing for you as it is for the players?

A:Here’s one of the real pet peeves we have as a crew, and I’m sure you’ve heard it: we’ll walk

by a writer or visiting broadcaster and they’ll say, `Hey, we hope we get a quick one today.’ Our

response is, `Well, where else would you rather be?’ That’s a feeling we all have, Duane and Jon

and Dave and I: there is no place that we would rather be. The charm of baseball is there’s no

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clock on it, and to be honest, we never look at the clock during a game. That’s no exaggeration.

We really don’t. Sure you prepare with some stories for a long inning or a boring game, like a 9-

1 laugher. But even in a game like that, the games dictate what you talk about. A 17-inning

game is a great game to win because it involves everyone on your team. I mean, it has to. So

you try to put your viewer into the mindset of the manager, or of the starting pitcher who

might have his spikes on and might have to pitch or pinch hit or even play left field, who

knows? We feel like those games are so rare that the mindset of both teams becomes the story

in itself. But whatever is happening, we try to find the story in the game, every time.

I’ll give you an example from (last Saturday): Matt Moore was coming off two outings when he

didn’t pitch well, and both times the team gave him a lead early and he blew it. So now he’s out

there Saturday after the 17-inning game the night before, and he absolutely has to get them

deep into that game. If you’re Matt Moore, you’re worried about that and you’re thinking you

can’t blow a lead again. So getting into Matt Moore’s mind, to me, is the story of the game. He

faced up to a giant he had to beat, those doubts he had, and he had to cut that giant down. He

had to step up and give his team innings.

Now, in a 17-inning game, the story is how a manager is going to get through it. If you go back

to most games that last that long, it turns into a home run derby. Everyone is trying to end it

with one swing. So you end up getting a lot of quick, 1-2-3 innings. It’s long, but it doesn’t drag.

But it doesn’t matter. You’re not going to hear us bitch for four-plus hours because nobody

wants to hear that, and because we know we’re the luckiest guys in the world. There’s a

conscious effort to appreciate what our season is all about. It’s a collection of moments like

those.

Q: It’s been awhile since the Giants have struggled as badly as they did in April. After one of

these ugly losses, how the heck do you find someone to pick as your player of the game on

the postgame wrap?

A: Well, you look at (Wednesday’s loss to the Dodgers). It was a stinker game, not a lot of

highlights. I mean, you cannot pick a Dodger. So I went with Mark Melancon. He had activated

himself prior to the first pitch, he’s active and back, and there he is warming up in the ninth

inning. That means a lot to the club, just to see that, so he was my pick. There’s always

something. We’ll pick the ball dude because he made a great play.

Q: Do you think this will be a lost year for the Giants?

A: Every year is intriguing, especially the first couple months because you’re so vulnerable. It’s

one thing if you lose when you have an announced rebuild. But everyone’s expectations were

high for the Giants this year, and that’s what makes it difficult for the fans. We think it’s an

intriguing story, though, because of the pedigree of the clubhouse and how hard they work. So

the story is, `You know they’re going to think of something. What will it be?’ There’s no talk of a

fire sale or a rebuild. All the talk is, `Let’s get guys healthy and get back to being who we are.’

18

From our standpoint sitting behind the microphone, there’s an anticipation that they’ll snap out

of this and start playing good baseball. And it really seems like in the last nine games here it’s

starting to happen.

Q: If they can focus on getting as close as possible to .500 by the All-Star break, they’ll have a

chance. I mean, they open the second half at San Diego and then play 20 of their next 23 in

the Bay Area. So if they…

A: I don’t think they’re thinking 500. They’re thinking, `Let’s fix what we don’t have.’ If you start

winning games, it can happen quickly. So if you’re thinking, `OK, let’s get to .500,’ then that

becomes acceptable. I don’t think that’s their mindset or what this club is all about.

They have some problems in their bullpen, but you’ve seen in the time that they lost Melancon,

some guys are stepping up. We saw one the other night in a 2-1 ballgame with (Hunter)

Strickland and (Derek) Law, with a setup guy and a closer each throwing a whole inning. How

many times have we seen that? I think that’s a confidence builder. They have guys down there

who are not holding their weight, and that’s got to be resolved. They’re catching the ball better

and hitting for more power, but I do believe it all turns around with that bullpen. I’m absolutely

convinced the key to this team is the bullpen.

Q: What has it been like to miss the trips to the NL Central and NL East? Weird? Relaxing? Do

you watch every game when you’re not traveling, or take a break?

A: I watch all of them. That was my biggest concern: I felt you had to be there every day to

maintain your finger on the pulse of the team. You see how guys take their at-bats, how they’re

throwing. You know who’s hot and who’s not. I’ve talked to broadcasters who became national

guys that do two or three games a week, and you can tell. So I’m watching every game, every

pitch, and to be honest, it’s odd. I feel guilty not being there. It’s a weird transition, but it is

what it is. And you know, I was talking to (Reds announcer) Thom Brennaman about cutting

back and he said he’s doing 110 games. Ron Darling and Keith Hernandez have schedules

similar to mine. So that helped me look at it a little differently.

It is going to be a good thing, because I don’t know if I could go too many more years at 160

games a year. But this is doable, and from that long-haul perspective, it’s great.

Q: What are your impressions of your replacements, Jeremy Affeldt and Javier Lopez, thus

far?

A: Oh, they’re doing great. They’re fun and interesting people. They’ve got great insights.

They’re also new to this, and you’ve got to give them time. It’s a matter of small details you

learn over time, and we’ve got great play-by-play guys who will teach them the ropes. So the

game’s in good hands.

Q: Of all the great moments in franchise history that you have witnessed, does anything

stand out as the most euphoric?

A: Well, the very first time winning it all in 2010, that was just remarkable. We had to wait so

19

long, and when you finally sensed it was going to happen, there was an absolute awe at work. It

was the simplicity in which it happened and the beauty in which it all came together and the

way the region melds with a group of guys and how it transcends all the things that divide us on

a daily basis. We were all united under one flag, and we’ve gotten to witness it three times.

Usually what brings a community together is a tragedy or an earthquake, and we set everything

aside like we did in 1989 to rebuild our lives. That was powerful and I know it changed my life

to see that. But winning the World Series is bringing us together and rallying around something

positive. We’ve watched the Warriors do it now, too. We became a family together and it’s very

powerful.

Q: You know, that 2010 team was in fourth place at the All-Star break. So you never know

where the story will turn next.

A: That’s right. You never know. Let’s get back to playing baseball. Let’s get back to being

confident on the field. That’s when you start winning and make your move. And when that

clicks, you get the biggest element going in your direction, and that’s chemistry. Once you have

that, you’re unbeatable.

San Jose Mercury News

Clayton Kershaw’s mastery of Giants continues

Jeff Faraudo

SAN FRANCISCO — Clayton Kershaw became a career 20-game winner against the Giants,

whose five-game win streak wilted Wednesday afternoon against the ace left-hander in a 6-1

Dodgers win at AT&T Park.

The three-time Cy Young Award winner allowed just three singles in seven shutout innings, and

the Dodgers scored five times in six innings against Johnny Cueto to derail San Francisco’s

hopes of its first series sweep this season.

Kershaw began the day 19-9 with a 1.66 earned run average — 1.36 at AT&T — in 38 outings

against the Giants. San Francisco beat him May 1, getting home runs from Buster Posey and

Hunter Pence in a 4-3 win at Dodger Stadium.

The rematch was a mismatch.

Posey managed a seventh-inning single, Pence is on the disabled list, and the Giants never got a

runner to second base against Kershaw. Justin Ruggiano dropped a soft line drive into left field

with one out in the fourth for the Giants’ first hit, but Kershaw (7-2) was in control throughout.

He faced the minimum 15 hitters through five innings, threw 63 strikes among 89 pitches and

and finished with five strikeouts and no walks.

20

The home team didn’t break the ice until Eduardo Nunez hit his first home of the season off

former Giants reliever Sergio Romo with one out in the ninth.

Things didn’t go nearly as smoothly for Cueto, who lost at home for the first time since Aug. 30.

After seven straight quality starts by Giants pitchers, Cueto (4-3) struggled early and often.

The Dodgers got to him for two runs in the first. Corey Seager singled, Justin Turner doubled

and, with two out and facing an 0-2 count, Yasmani Grandal drove in both with a well-hit

double to right.

The Dodgers’ lead grew to 3-0 in the third. Chase Uttey reached safely when second baseman

Joe Panik had to double-clutch before throwing to first because Michael Morse hadn’t gotten to

the bag. Seager then singled and Turner advanced both runners with a sacrifice bunt.

Morse redeemed himself by making a nice diving stab of Cody Bellinger’s line drive, but Cueto

threw a wild pitch on his first delivery to Grandal, allowing Utley to score.

Grandal then flied out to center to end the inning . . . almost. Cueto and Grandal exchanged

glares and both dugouts emptied onto the infield. The umpires quickly calmed things and the

excitement ended before anything tangible happened.

Cueto settled down and retired the Dodgers in order the next two innings before trouble

erupted in the sixth. A single by Turner, a double by Bellinger and a walk to Chris Taylor loaded

the bases. Cueto struck out Joc Pederson, but Yasiel Puig delivered a two-run single to left

making it 5-0.

* The Giants activated closer Mark Melancon (right pronator strain) two days ahead of

schedule, but didn’t need him.

“He’s ready to go and he’s our closer,” manager Bruce Bochy said before the game. “So why

wouldn’t we go ahead and activate him?”

Reliever Derek Law had pitched four times in the previous five games, so Bochy reasoned he’d

need a day off, anyway.

To make room on the roster for Melancon, the Giants optioned infielder Kelby Tomlinson to

Triple-A Sacramento.

* The Giants will unveil a plaque honoring seven-time MVP Barry Bonds on the team’s Wall of

Fame on July 8 before facing the Miami Marlins. Bonds will join 48 other former Giants players

recognized on the brick wall of AT&T Park along King Street. The ceremony will take place at

3:30 p.m.

21

* Bochy was still beaming about the play rookie Christian Arroyo made Tuesday night in his

major-league debut at second base, when he threw out Justin Turner trying to score on an

infield grounder in the fourth inning. The Giants wound up winning 2-1.

“As much as the talent, the kid’s mental toughness has allowed him to deal with everything,”

said Bochy, noting that Arroyo’s .161 batting average over nine games entering Wednesday had

not impacted his defense.

“A lot of second basemen would have gone the safety route to first base. He’s got great

instincts. He read it well, made a perfect throw and helped us win a ballgame.”

* As expected, the Giants gave days off to regulars Denard Span, Brandon Belt and Brandon

Crawford. Belt is 3 for 51 career against Kershaw. Crawford pinch-hit in the eighth, grounding

out against Pedro Baez.

* Bochy said he doesn’t expect Conor Gillaspie’s rehab stint with Triple-A Sacramento to last

more than a few days. He said Gillaspie, on the DL with back spasms, simply needs to get a

rhythm at the plate and he’ll be recalled.

* Aaron Hill (right forearm strain) went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in a rehab assignment

Tuesday night with the Class A San Jose Giants at Visalia. Hill, who is batting .120 (3 or 25) in 12

games for the Giants, has not played since April 22.

MLB.com

Should Belt try to beat the shift?

Chris Haft

It seems opposing teams are shifting their defenses more and more these days, especially

against Brandon Belt. From the stands, it seems the more teams employ the shift, the more

Belt tries to thread the needle in the overcrowded right side of the infield. I understand he is

a natural pull hitter with the bulk of his power available when he does so, but if he would

learn to slap a grounder to left field here and there, singles would be abundant, his average

would grow and the shift would probably disappear. Am I missing something?

-- Robert N., San Mateo, Calif.

Not totally. I share a similar perception. Many times I'd like to see Belt lay down a bunt toward

third base. He'd come close to hitting a double. However, bear in mind that the Giants gave Belt

72.8 million reasons to believe that he's maintaining a sound offensive approach. That figure, of

22

course, is the number of dollars that the Giants will pay him through 2021. Few players

receiving that kind of positive reinforcement would dramatically alter their mindset.

Yet Belt isn't as stubborn as many observers might think. Check out his spray charts. Though he

pulls most grounders, he's making a conscious effort to use the whole field. Those efforts might

pay off if he remains persistent.

• Submit an Inbox question

Does the tough start to the season affect manager Bruce Bochy or the coaching staff's job

security? Have there been any rumblings in the front office about making a change?

-- Bill P., Salinas, Calif.

No, as far as I can tell. Baseball operations czar Brian Sabean, general manager Bobby Evans and

Bochy remain united. They earned an almost limitless supply of credibility with those three

World Series titles. I think it would require, at minimum, an awful finish -- about 88 losses or

more -- and an equally dreadful start to the 2018 season before we might even begin to hear

rumors about significant changes to the front-office or field staffs.

Why doesn't the Giants' front office address weaknesses beforehand? They spend $60 million

for a closer [Mark Melancon] instead of spending it on outfield needs. They haven't been

proactive enough to fix problems when they arise.

-- Eddie D., Maricopa, Ariz.

You probably won't want to hear the explanation I repeatedly received, publicly and privately,

when the subject of upgrading left field arose. Obtaining a quality free-agent outfielder -- either

a center fielder who might have prompted Denard Span to move to left or a proven left fielder,

period -- would have cost extra, so to speak, since the Giants would have exceeded the

competitive balance tax. I'll give the Giants credit for making some effort in this area. They

reportedly were deeply involved in talks with Franklin Gutierrez before he signed with the

Dodgers. Remember, free-agent hitters are reluctant to come here, because AT&T Park mutes

their production.

Instead of launching or rehashing the what-should-the-Giants-have-done-with-left-field debate,

I'll close with something that an extremely wise (and World Series-winning) baseball lifer told

me nearly 20 years ago: You either run a team to win, or you run a team to make money.

Having it both ways is difficult, and this year, I think that's what the Giants tried to do.

Why have there been no talks about putting Michael Morse in left field? He did just fine in

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2014 and couldn't do any worse than who has been there this year. We need his bat more

frequently in the lineup.

-- Greg B., Tracy, Calif.

I have no idea what the front office's stance is regarding Morse. I will hazard this guess: Either

he'll receive increased chances to play, as you urged, or the Giants will release him, as harsh as

that sounds. The latter would be unfortunate, because Morse is the kind of guy who's good for

a ballclub even when he's not playing.

MLB.com

Giants to add Bonds to Wall of Fame in July

Chris Haft

SAN FRANCISCO -- Barry Bonds, baseball's all-time home run leader whose impact upon the

Giants transcended statistics, will be honored with a spot on the club's Wall of Fame on July 8.

Bonds, who had 762 home runs when his career ended following the 2007 season, will become

the 49th player to be immortalized with a plaque on AT&T Park's brick King Street wall. Those

who receive this distinction must have performed for the San Francisco Giants for at least nine

seasons, or for five years with at least one All-Star selection.

Full Game Coverage

Bonds, 52, rejoined the organization in March when he was named special advisor to club

president and chief executive officer Larry Baer. Possibly the most productive player obtained

through free agency in professional sports history, Bonds signed with the Giants in the 1992-93

offseason and spent his final 15 seasons with them after beginning his Major League career

with Pittsburgh.

Acquiring Bonds, which occurred after a group led by Peter Magowan purchased the franchise

and prevented it from moving to Tampa-St. Petersburg, demonstrated that the new ownership

was serious about upgrading the organization.

The combination of the energy sustained by the new ownership and Bonds' Most Valuable

24

Player-level skills "really did revitalize interest in baseball," Magowan said.

With San Francisco, Bonds hit .312 with 586 home runs and 1,440 RBIs in 1,976 games. During

the franchise's West Coast era, which began in 1958, he ranks among the top 10 in batting

average (first), games (third), at-bats (third, 6,263), runs (first, 1,555), hits (third, 1,951),

doubles (first, 381), triples (fourth, 41), home runs (first), RBIs (first), stolen bases (first, 263)

and walks (first, 1,947).

In Bonds' 22 big league seasons, he won seven National League Most Valuable Player Awards

and eight Gold Glove Awards, and he was a 14-time All-Star. He's the only player ever to exceed

500 home runs and 500 stolen bases.

"I think he was the greatest player I may have ever seen, short of Willie Mays," Magowan said.

MLB.com

Homestand builds SF’s confidence, momentum

Chris Haft

SAN FRANCISCO -- Almost lost in the fuss over the Johnny Cueto-Yasmani Grandal heavyweight

bout that never developed was one simple fact:

The Giants finished 5-2 on their homestand, building a five-game winning streak that ended

with Wednesday's 6-1 defeat at the hands of the Dodgers.

Full Game Coverage

Over the course of a season, this surge would be a modest achievement. Yet given the depth

and breadth of its struggles entering the past week, manager Bruce Bochy's club could

legitimately feel relieved while packing for the upcoming seven-game trip to St. Louis and

Chicago.

The Giants (17-25) can't entertain ambitious goals such as returning to the postseason until

they climb to the .500 mark. At least for now, they bore a passing resemblance to a contender.

"It was a really nice homestand for us," Bochy said. "It's a start. The thing I do like about this

25

team is the sense of confidence. Despite some injuries, we've had some guys fill in and do a

nice job."

Consistency remains elusive for the Giants, especially among the starting pitchers. San

Francisco owns a 3.12 ERA at home, third-best in the National League. But its 5.82 road ERA

ranks next-to-last in the NL.

Bochy hopes that the members of the pitching staff can do whatever's necessary to bring their

home success with them on the road. "We're not asking [pitchers] to shut them out," Bochy

said, but he did caution, "Stay away from the big innings." That was a particular shortcoming

from May 2-6, when the Giants allowed 13 runs or more in three of four games.

San Francisco's offense remains a work in progress. The Giants mustered 27 runs in six games

during the homestand, barely reaching the per-game average of four that separates success

from failure. They're 12-6 when they score four runs or more.

The Giants still aren't producing runs steadily. They scored 16 runs in two games, eight each

night, but they eked out 11 runs in the other five games.

The Giants' upcoming trip offers them an opportunity to prove themselves against quality

pitching. St. Louis, which ranks second in the NL in ERA, and Chicago, fourth in the league in

that category, are guaranteed to test San Francisco's hitters.

MLB.com

Nunez homers, but Giants can’t solve Kershaw

Chris Haft and Ken Gurnick

SAN FRANCISCO -- Clayton Kershaw sustained his typical excellence against the Giants

with seven dominant innings Wednesday afternoon as the Dodgers recorded a 6-1 victory to

avoid a three-game series sweep.

Kershaw, who joined Houston's Dallas Keuchel as the second seven-game winner in the Major

Leagues, did not allow a single Giant past first base while yielding three hits. He improved to 20-

9 with a 1.62 ERA lifetime against San Francisco, including 12-4 with a 1.29 ERA at AT&T Park, as

26

the Giants' five-game winning streak dissolved.

Full Game Coverage

"It was a good day," said Kershaw. "Good to get those runs early off [Giants starter Johnny]

Cueto and try to make those hold up. A good win, and we needed it today after losing three in a

row. It's never easy to win here, so it feels good."

The Dodgers established control immediately on Yasmani Grandal's two-run double in the first

inning off Johnny Cueto. Yasiel Puig's bases-loaded two-run single in the sixth inning widened

the Dodgers' lead to 5-0. Both hits came with two outs on two-strike counts. "It's a fine line

between winning and losing," Giants manager Bruce Bochy said. "They got the key hits. But the

bats were quiet. Kershaw was his usual good self."

Cueto matched a season-high by allowing eight hits while surrendering five runs in six innings.

Giants third baseman Eduardo Nunez launched his first homer of the year, a solo shot, off

Dodgers reliever and former Giant Sergio Romo in the ninth inning. Nunez's long ball extended

the Giants' streak of consecutive solo home runs to 13. San Francisco has homered in 10

consecutive games, matching its longest streak since April 4-14, 2016.

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED

Tension overflows: Both benches emptied, though no punches were thrown. But a little

hostility was in the air during the third inning as Cueto threw up and in to Grandal. It turned out

to be a wild pitch that allowed Chase Utley to score a run. Cueto and Grandal ultimately

exchanged words, which prompted players to leave the dugouts.

"It was just, the game within the game," said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. "With guys on

second base, Cueto thought we were relaying signs. He let us know. He didn't appreciate the

thought we might be doing something like that. If we were, it's part of the game." Said Bochy,

"There was a little jawing going on. That's not uncommon in our game. Johnny's very animated,

he's a competitor. … It really wasn't a big deal. It's just two teams that have had some good

battles. It really wasn't much of an issue."

Settling the outcome: The Giants were one strike away from having a chance to reclaim some

momentum when Puig lashed Cueto's 1-2 pitch to left field in the sixth inning. That widened Los

Angeles' lead to 5-0. Cueto entered Wednesday with a five-game unbeaten streak at AT&T Park

and a 3-0 record and a 2.68 ERA in that span.

27

"I don't think he was as sharp as he usually is," Giants catcher Buster Posey said of Cueto.

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS

The Dodgers are 94-5 when they score at least four runs in Kershaw starts, according to the

Elias Sports Bureau.

QUOTABLE

"He just said that wasn't his intention, so, great. I'm glad that wasn't his intention. At that point

in time, it looked a little different." -- Grandal, on the high-and-tight pitch Cueto threw past him

WHAT'S NEXT

Dodgers: The Dodgers open a 10-game homestand Thursday night at 7:10 p.m. PT on MLB.TV,

with Hyun-Jin Ryu coming off a loss at Coors Field and possibly pitching to keep his spot in the

overloaded rotation while Los Angeles faces former manager Don Mattingly. Ryu hasn't pitched

against the Marlins since Aug. 19, 2013.

Giants: San Francisco has a scheduled off-day Thursday before starting a two-city, seven-game

trip Friday at St. Louis. Game time for that opener is 5:15 p.m. PT on MLB.TV, with Giants left-

hander Matt Moore opposing Cardinals righty Michael Wacha.

MLB.com

Benches clear after Grandal-Cueto exchange

Chris Haft and Ken Gurnick

Following one of his least effective starts of the season, Cueto accused the Dodgers of tipping

pitch locations through runners at second base during Los Angeles' 6-1 victoryWednesday

afternoon. Naturally, none of the Dodgers admitted to such gamesmanship. But the difference

of opinion led to a benches-emptying incident in which no punches were thrown.

Full Game Coverage

Trouble began in Los Angeles' half of the first inning, with Corey Seager on third base and Justin

Turner on second. Grandal golfed an 0-2 breaking ball at his shoetops down the right-field line

for a two-run double. At that point, Cueto pointed at Grandal and had some words.

Initially during his postgame address, Cueto said nothing about the Dodgers' stealing signs.

Referring to the 0-2 pitch that Grandal crushed, Cueto said through interpreter Erwin Higueros,

"It was a good pitch, and Grandal bit me on that one. I didn't think he was going to be able to

hit that ball."

28

Later during the interview, however, Cueto said, "I'm not going to use that as an excuse, but

they were relaying signs" -- implying that only with assistance could Grandal have hit such an

impossible pitch.

Facing Grandal in the third inning, Cueto threw up and in. The delivery eluded catcher Buster

Posey for a wild pitch that scored Chase Utley from third base. Cueto retired Grandal on a fly

ball to end the inning, and the two then exchanged words, which brought everybody out of

both dugouts.

When peace was restored, the umpires huddled, but there were no ejections.

"I just threw the pitch, and the ball slipped out of my hand," said Cueto, who allowed five runs

on eight hits in six innings. "I told him that it was not my intention to throw at his head, that if I

was going to hit him, I was going to hit him below."

Said Grandal, "We hashed it, talked about it and apologized for it. Let's not make it a bigger deal

than it really is."

Grandal related that Cueto mentioned his sign-stealing accusation to him.

"That's why it caught me by surprise," Grandal said. "I'm trying to get a walking lead because

I'm slow. He thought I was giving out signs. If he refers to the pitch I hit [for] a double, he made

a pretty good pitch, and I put a pretty good swing on it. The second pitch of the at-bat was the

same. I took a pretty good swing on it. Making contact has nothing to do with knowing it was

coming. I probably wouldn't have swung at it if I had known where it was. We talked about it.

The big thing was that we won, concentrate on that."

As for Cueto's high-and-tight fastball, Grandal said, "He just said that wasn't his intention, so,

great. I'm glad that wasn't his intention. At that point in time, it looked a little different."

29

MLB.com

Moore, Giants begin road trip vs. Cards

Chris Haft

The stakes won't be as high as the last time these two teams met, when a National League Wild

Card berth was at stake in September 2016. But with the Giants playing better as of late and

the Cardinals trying to hold their ground atop the National League Central, the series won't lack

intrigue.

It will be left-hander Matt Moore going against right-hander Michael Wacha in the series

opener on Friday. For Wacha, the appearance will be his first since May 7. The Cardinals opted

to skip him in the rotation the last time through to try and prevent against shoulder

complications later in the season.

Full Game Coverage

Lifetime at Busch Stadium, Wacha is 18-8 with a 3.61 ERA. This year, though, he's been even

better. In four home starts, Wacha is 2-0 with a 2.92 ERA and .218 opponents' batting average.

Conversely, Moore has struggled in four road starts, compiling an 0-3 record with a .370

opponents' batting average and a 10.50 ERA. But he will enter the series opener feeling a bit

more well-armed than usual.

According to Statcast, Moore's average exit velocity of approximately 90 mph ranks as one of

the highest in the Major Leagues. However, on Saturday against Cincinnati, Moore's average

exit velocity dwindled to 83.3 mph, which helped him last 7 1/3 innings in a 3-1 victory over the

Reds.

Moore will face a Cardinals team that is likely to get third baseman Jhonny Peralta back in

advance of the series opener. Peralta, who went on the 10-day disabled list on April 17 with an

upper respiratory illness, wrapped up a rehab stint with Triple-A Memphis on Wednesday. He'll

assume a bench role upon returning.

Things to know about this game

• The Giants have homered in 10 straight games and enter the weekend series having won five

of their last six. During that stretch, they have posted a 2.47 team ERA.

30

• The Cardinals may reduce their bullpen from eight relievers to seven on Friday in order to

make roster room for Peralta. St. Louis has been carrying eight relievers most of the season,

partly because of questions about Trevor Rosenthal's ability to pitch on consecutive days. That

is no longer a concern.

• This series will feature two of the Majors' top catchers, San Francisco's Buster Posey and St.

Louis' Yadier Molina. Posey won the National League Gold Glove Award this past season, ending

Molina's eight-year run of capturing the honor.

• Molina (eight games) and Magneuris Sierra (seven) will enter the series with hitting streaks. If

he were to get a hit on Friday, Sierra would become the first player in franchise history to hit

safely in eight consecutive games to open his career.

CSNbayarea.com

A familiar story: Kersahw brings an end to Giants’ winning streak

Alex Pavlovic

SAN FRANCISCO — Johnny Cueto and Yasmani Grandal started jawing at each other at the end

of the top of the third inning Wednesday, and as they do, the benches cleared. As coaches tried

to calm the two and players glared at the other side, Clayton Kershaw burst from the visiting

dugout. He did not join the fray.

Kershaw pounded his fist into his glove as he crossed onto the grass. He split the crowds and

went straight to the mound, where he started warming up as players filed off the field. He

wasn’t here to argue. He was here to end a winning streak.

The Giants, winners of five straight, ran into a familiar buzzsaw. There’s nothing you can do

when Kershaw is on his game, and with Cueto off his, this one was over early. Kershaw threw

seven shutout innings in a 6-1 Dodgers win. He lowered his career ERA against the Giants to

1.62.

“I think pretty good might be an understatement,” catcher Buster Posey said of Kershaw's day.

The Giants had three hits — all singles — before Eduardo Nuñez took old friend Sergio Romo

deep in the ninth. This one was over long before that. Given the way Kershaw pitched, it was

just about decided when Grandal smoked a two-run double in the first.

Cueto gave up a single and double with one out. He got Cody Bellinger swinging with a good

changeup and he went down in the zone again with two strikes on Grandal. As Buster Posey

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spread his legs out and got ready to block a scud, Grandal found a way to turn on the slider and

knock it off the wall.

“It was a good pitch,” Cueto said. “Grandal beat me on that one. I didn’t think he was going to

be able to hit that ball.”

The two were in the middle of most of Wednesday’s drama. When Grandal came up in the

third, a fastball flew up and in for a run-scoring wild pitch. Cueto said the ball slipped, but the

two exchanged words after Grandal’s flyout.

“I explained that the pitch slipped,” Cueto said through interpreter Erwin Higueros. “I told him I

wasn’t trying to throw at his head. I told him that if I’m going to hit him, I’ll do it low.”

The two spoke during Cueto’s first at-bat, and all was fine. They were sorry for the

misunderstanding, Cueto said. There was one other aspect of the incident where there was no

misunderstanding for Cueto. Asked if he might have been annoyed with the Dodgers for

stealing signs, he paused.

“What I’ll say is not to use that as an excuse, but they were relaying signs (from second),” he

said.

To do that, you need a runner on second, and the Giants never made Kershaw sweat. The win

was his 20th over the Giants.

“He was right on today,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “Very tough. We had mostly right-handed

bats out there but he had great stuff. We couldn’t put any pressure on him.”

The Giants have gotten used to these games. It was a bit easier to take because of what

happened on the rest of the homestand. The Giants went 5-2, taking series from the Reds and

Dodgers. They’re 17-25, which is nowhere near good, but they finally feel headed in the right

direction.

“We’ve got to be happy with it,” Posey said. “Obviously we would have liked to win today, but

you have to be happy going into the off day.”

CSNbayarea.com

Instant Replay

Alex Pavlovic

SAN FRANCISCO — On Sept. 29, 2015, with the Giants threatening to get back into a division

race that had seemed lost, Clayton Kershaw took the mound at AT&T Park. He pitched a

shutout, struck out 13, and clinched an NL West crown.

The stakes were nowhere near that high Wednesday, but Kershaw once again put his spikes

down on the throat of his surging rival. He threw seven shutout innings, allowing just three

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singles and leading the Dodgers to a 6-1 win that snapped the Giants’ season-long five-game

winning streak.

The win was Kershaw’s 20th against the Giants and 12th in 19 career starts at AT&T Park. He

has a 1.29 ERA here.

There is no margin for error against Kershaw, and Johnny Cueto couldn’t keep the Dodgers off

the board early. With two on and two outs in the first, he threw a good two-strike slider to

Yasmani Grandal. Buster Posey spread out in the dirt, preparing to block strike three, but

Grandal somehow drilled it off the wall for a 2-0 lead.

Cueto and Grandal chirped at each other in the third and the benches cleared. By that point it

was 3-0 thanks to a pair of Giants mistakes. Michael Morse didn’t get back to first fast enough

on Chase Utley’s grounder to second, and Joe Panik had no throw. Later in the inning, Utley

scored on a wild pitch. The Dodgers tacked on two more in the sixth before Cueto’s day was

done.

Starting pitching report: Cueto was charged with five earned runs on eight hits and a walk. He’s

been better of late, but still, he’ll take a 4.50 ERA into his next start.

Bullpen report: Bryan Morris continues to show he might be here for good. He pitched a

perfect eighth.

At the plate: Eduardo Nuñez took Sergio Romo deep in the ninth.

In the field: Morse played left field for the first time since returning. He got turned around on

Cody Bellinger’s fly to the track that went for an RBI double.

Attendance: The Giants announced a crowd of 41,588 human beings who chose the wrong

game to attend this week.

Up next: A day off! The Giants fly to St. Louis on Thursday and start a three-game set there

Friday. It’s a HUGE trip.

USAtoday.com

For struggling San Francisco Giants, now-or-never time is approaching

Jorge Ortiz

SAN FRANCISCO - A five-game winning streak that had breathed some life into the San

Francisco Giants’ moribund season expired Wednesday at the hands of Clayton

Kershaw, who toyed with them for seven scoreless innings as the Los Angeles Dodgers

cruised to a 6-1 victory.

Losing to their longtime tormentor and the consensus top pitcher in the major leagues

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won’t bring the Giants much shame. Their status as a fourth-place team desperately

scrambling to regain their footing is a different story.

Even after the recent surge, San Francisco passed the one-quarter mark of the season

on pace to finish 67-95, which would be its worst record in more than three decades.

That’s a precipitous drop for a club that had climbed to the upper levels of the game’s

elite with three World Series crowns this decade, not to mention a string of 510

consecutive regular-season sellouts that dates to 2010.

Those crowds have been nurtured by consistently competitive and compelling teams.

Only once since 2009 have the Giants failed to post a winning record, and they wound

up first or second in the National League West six times in that span.

Houston Astros win for ninth time in 10 games as best start ever continues

Tebow-time a success, but the player is a work in progress

MLB legends Miguel Cabrera, Albert Pujols out to prove age is no burden

But this season’s unexpectedly woeful performance, exacerbated by the extended loss

of staff ace Madison Bumgarner to a dirt-bike accident April 20, has raised the

question of which direction they should take. After all, according to Baseball-

reference.com, only three teams have ever lost 24 of their first 36 games — as San

Francisco did before the streak — and recovered to make the playoffs. The last time it

happened was in 1989.

Should San Francisco consider moving assets such as right-hander Johnny Cueto, who

can opt out of his contract after this season, and utilityman Eduardo Nunez, who’s a

pending free agent?

Naturally, neither the players nor the club’s brass is publicly ready to pondering such

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possibilities.

“We’re still two months away from even thinking about that. We’ve got a lot of

baseball we have to play before we get to that point,” general manager Bobby Evans

said. “We’ve let ourselves get beaten in a number of different ways, so our focus is to

continue to try to play better baseball.”

The Giants (17-25) have shown a knack for wrecking a season that began amid high

expectations of a fifth playoff appearance since 2010. Their offense is averaging 3.38

runs per game, second lowest in majors, and the pitching staff ERA of 4.39 ranks 10th

in the NL. Even their vaunted fielding unit has failed to live up to its reputation, with a

-6 Defensive Runs Saved figure that rates 10th in the league.

New closer Mark Melancon, signed to a $62 million contract to address a vital need,

blew the save in an opening-day loss, then served up a tying two-run homer to former

Giant Hector Sanchez in a ninth-inning meltdown that resulted in a loss to the lowly

San Diego Padres. He was just activated from the disabled list.

Perhaps the nadir came on the first weekend of May, when the Giants were outscored

31-5 at Great American Ball Park while getting swept by the Cincinnati Reds as part of

a five-game skid that cemented them as the majors’ worst team at the time.

Right when they seemed primed for burial, though, the Giants showed gumption in

outlasting the Reds in a 17-inning win Friday at AT&T Park that became the genesis of

their longest stretch of success this season and only the second time they won as

many as two games in a row.

“That 17-inning game was really big for us,” said All-Star catcher Buster Posey, batting

.378 with seven homers but only 11 RBI. “That would have been a haymaker to the gut

to lose that one. So hopefully we can get on a roll.”

The roll did materialize until Wednesday, most of it propelled by a rotation that

delivered quality starts in all five victories. But now comes a challenging trip that

should serve as a better gauge of where San Francisco truly stands as it goes up

against the NL Central-leading St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs over seven

games beginning Friday. The Giants are 6-15 on the road, where the staff holds a

dreadful 5.82 ERA.

Evans points out the club still relies on a core of players — among them Posey,

Brandon Crawford, Brandon Belt and Joe Panik — who are in their prime. The club also

has gotten a spark from top prospect Christian Arroyo, a versatile infielder whose .209

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batting average belies his impact.

But with Bumgarner not due to return until August and Cueto’s ERA rising to 4.50 after

the Dodgers beat him Wednesday, it’s not clear San Francisco has the tools to climb

out of its crater in a division that has become much more balanced with the

emergence of the Colorado Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks as contenders.

Their improvement makes it even more imperative for the Giants to parlay their

recent hot spell into an extended turnaround and play with a sense of urgency, even

in mid-May.

Manager Bruce Bochy doesn’t want to see the same mind-set as last season, when San

Francisco entered the All-Star break with the best record in the majors, then went into

a prolonged slump that nearly cost it a playoff spot.

“I learned from last year that when you’re going through struggles, you have to be

careful that you don’t say, ‘We’ll be OK, we’ll be fine. There’s a lot of baseball left,’”

Bochy said. “We don’t want to get that mentality. That’s not going to be the thing that

stops it. What stops it is your sense of determination and how bad you want it.”

The next few weeks will provide a measure of those.

ESPN.com

The bullpen revolution has not been televised

Sam Miller

There comes a point each spring when the buds of a bullpen revolution seem to be everywhere.

One team's closer competition between two great relievers inspires a managerial pledge to

"play matchups" and get both pitchers saves. Another team's "fluid" situation suggests a

possible closer by committee. A surplus starter might be used in a hybrid role, pitching long

relief and high-leverage like the firemen of yore. And the memories of the previous October --

when some team probably got knocked out because it held its closer back for a save situation

that never came; or when some team's dominant closer undoubtedly nailed a series of five- and

six-out saves to become a legend -- encourage all of us to imagine the possibilities of a less

restrained bullpen ace.

And then, the regular season -- and the exhausting demands of reality -- hits. We realize how

hard it is to run an experiment in the middle of a season. Everybody mostly falls in line.

With nearly a quarter of the season complete, it's a good time to check in on the offseason and

36

spring training hopes that the revolution might, finally, this time be nigh. Here's a State of the

Bullpen in 2017: All 30 teams, ordered by loyalty to convention so far.

1. Cubs

Oh, that kooky Joe Maddon. Nothing he won't try, no unconventional strategy he won't

employ. Like, check my dude out: Maddon's closer, Wade Davis, hasn't appeared in a game

before the ninth inning all season. When the score is tied and Maddon is on the road, he goes

to a series of setup men before bringing in his best reliever, who hasn't been asked to get more

than three outs in a game yet. Nobody else on the roster has a save, while Davis has done

basically nothing but get saves, in the most conventional way possible.

EDITOR'S PICKS

•

The 10-day DL and the starting pitcher apocalypse

Like velociraptors testing the fences, the Dodgers are finding ways to exploit baseball's new rule

-- and hasten the demise of the old-school ace.

•

Baseball without injured aces? Be careful what you wish for

It would be great to see Noah Syndergaard healthy and throwing thunder. But there's actually

an awkward truth: MLB kind of needs pitchers to get hurt.

•

For the same two minutes every game, Yu Darvish is an awful pitcher

The ace of the Texas Rangers is very, very good. But he has a singular weakness -- and you can

set your watch by it.

This might surprise you, because Joe Maddon. But Maddon did this with infield shifts, too: He

was at the cutting edge of extreme infield defense, the manager most responsible for turning

the shift into a routine strategy against even marginal hitters. Then, when the rest of the league

had adopted this "progressive" tactic, Maddon more or less retreated, using the shift less than

any manager in the game last year. (While still maintaining an elite defense, one of the best

we've ever seen, thanks in part to a number of factors harder for the competition to replicate.)

We point this out to note that articles like this one often start with a premise a given strategy is

"good" or "bad" or "progressive" or "traditional." We will probably even use some of those

labels in this article. But (A) context is everything, and (B) public perception of what's

progressive is often outdated. Maddon's clubs remain selectively wild and innovative. The way

Maddon's first baseman, Anthony Rizzo, charges sacrifice bunts, to my eye, is as aggressive and

imaginative as anything any team is doing on the field. That this imaginativeness can coexist

with "traditional" bullpen usage should tell us that "traditional" bullpen usage is not a moral

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outrage.

2. Braves

For example, it might seem unforgivable for a team like the Atlanta Braves, with a closer

like Jim Johnson, to be as conventional as they've been. The Braves, while more respectable

than they were last year, remain in basically rebuilding (or, at best, consolidation) mode. Rather

than use this period to experiment with new processes, new philosophies, new personnel in

new roles -- which they head-feinted toward last season -- they've run their campaign like a

candidate with a 30-point lead in the polls: safe, boring.

They gave the closer job to Johnson, a veteran with plenty of past closing experience but

limited upside, declining velocity and fairly recent experience with being quite terrible. They've

given him every save so far and used him almost exclusively in the ninth inning and in save

situations. Nothing will be discovered from this. And while Johnson is signed through next

season -- when the Braves might plausibly be good -- the nature of relievers in their mid-30s

suggests he's a bad bet to be closing games for them in the 2018 postseason.

And yet, the Braves' hewing to tradition makes sense, and the sense that it makes speaks

directly to the continuing reign of tradition: Johnson will probably be on the trade market this

July, and the Braves know he'll be worth more if he's successfully closing. Because they've used

him in a traditional manner, he has been protected as much as possible from uncertainty,

irregularity or excessive demands. Coddling a closer like this might not be the very best way to

win games, but it's probably the best way to win a Jim Johnson trade on July 31.

3. Rockies

In all honesty, Greg Holland's game log is probably the most extreme picture of regimentation

in the stack:

But I had less I wanted to say about the Rockies, so they're third.

The lefty set-up man Jake McGee got one save, when the Dodgers sent two lefties and switch-

hitter-but-better-against-righties Yasmani Grandal up in the ninth. I got excited thinking the

Rockies were managing to the matchups, but nope. Holland was just unavailable that day.

4-6. Orioles, Royals, Phillies

These teams are lumped together mostly to demonstrate that, in the vast majority of cases,

managers make their decisions based on roles more than on personnel. Remember when Buck

Showalter didn't use Zach Britton with the score tied on the road in last year's wild-card game?

He used, among other pitchers, Brad Brach instead? Of course you do. I've already linked to it

38

three times in this article. Well, Showalter still wouldn't use his closer with the score tied on the

road this year, against the Reds on April 20. His closer this year, though, is Brad Brach, the guy

Showalter did use in the same situation last year. Brach had been the closer for exactly five

days, after Britton went on the disabled list. He had one save on the season, four in his entire

career. But on that day he was the closer, and the closer closes, so Showalter kept him out until

the Orioles had a lead to protect.

See also the Royals, where Kelvin Herrera, after years as a set-up man, is now the Royals' closer.

He got the job by pitching so effectively in the seventh and eighth innings, but now that he's the

closer he pitches the ninth, and only the ninth. Jeanmar Gomez, meanwhile, was the Phillies'

closer until he wasn't. In the former role, he was kept out of games with the score tied. In the

latter role -- which he got because he wasn't pitching well -- he pitches in the ninth inning of tie

games on the road. It seems weird. It is weird. But we're pointing it out not to indict their

managers but to demonstrate how central to bullpen strategy the role is. Not the pitcher. Not

how good the pitcher is and what he throws and what his experience is, but the role he's in that

day. We ignore managers' insistence on this philosophy at our own peril.

7-14. Giants, Mets, Diamondbacks, Yankees, Rangers, Twins, Brewers, Marlins

The bulk of teams remain here, or around here: mostly traditional, with an occasional surprise

or a brief flirtation with something interesting.

When I profiled Andrew Miller this winter, he repeatedly brought up Dellin Betances as the

throwback fireman who deserves more attention than he does. But even before he replaced

the injured Aroldis Chapman in the closer's role, Betances was used like a pretty typical set-up

guy this year, only once bridging innings, never appearing before the seventh, and so on. He

also has been wild, and his pitch counts have been high, which might have preempted any hope

of using him the way Miller is used.

The Rangers might be slightly notable for how quickly they'll replace the guy in the closer's

job. Sam Dyson learned the same lesson Shawn Tolleson did a year ago: It doesn't matter how

good you were the year before, and it doesn't matter how "proven" you are. The Rangers will

replace you in the second week of the season if you're bad.

The Diamondbacks might be slightly notable for how long they've let Fernando Rodney get

bombed in the role.

The Marlins sort of promised to pull their starters more quickly and use their bullpen more in

the middle innings. It's hard to say whether they have, or whether their starters have just been

terrible. For what it's worth, their rotation leads the league in starts facing exactly 18, 19 or 20

batters -- in other words, pitchers who get pulled in anticipation of the crucial third time

through the lineup. But it's not overwhelming statistical evidence. They've otherwise been so

wedded to the traditional closer model that, in the absence of save opportunities, they've used

their best reliever (A.J. Ramos) less than almost any other reliever on the staff:

• Ramos: 13 innings, 2.77 ERA

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• David Phelps: 20 innings, 4.05

• Kyle Barraclough: 17.1 innings, 3.12

• Brad Ziegler: 16.1 innings, 6.61

• Junichi Tazawa: 15 innings, 6.60

• Dustin McGowan: 20.2 innings, 4.35

• Nick Wittgren: 15.1 innings, 4.11

Alex Wilson got a rare save in April when the Tigers' closer and setup man were both

unavailable. Leon Halip/Getty Images

15. Tigers

They get this spot instead of being lumped in with the teams above based on one game: April

12, against the Twins. Manager Brad Ausmus was without his regular closer and his regular set-

up man that day. He sent Alex Wilson out to pitch the eighth, and, according to the game story,

"while Wilson was working the eighth, Ausmus pondered whether Shane Greene or Anibal

Sanchez would be his ninth-inning guy. But before he could make a decision, Wilson already

had breezed through the eighth, and was the pick to go back out there." Wilson got the save.

Nothing about that might seem all the important -- it was a weird day, with weird bullpen

limitations -- but the fact that Ausmus went into a game, went into the eighth inning even,

without a declared "closer" is notable.

They've otherwise been traditional. This is the median baseball bullpen usage in the year 2017:

traditional, with a little weirdness once.

16. Blue Jays

In April, Joe Biagini pitched very well in something slightly resembling an Andrew Miller role,

merging high-leverage and multiple innings. But it's not clear how intentional that was -- Biagini

was nobody's idea of a relief ace entering the season -- and he has been moved to the rotation

now. Otherwise, no surprises.

17-19. A's, Mariners, Nationals

The term "closer by committee" actually covers two very different situations. In one, there's no

good option, so the manager mixes and matches until somebody gets hot or the mess gets so

hot an outsider is brought in. That's the Nationals, who have struggled along with a bunch of

different closers but with mostly involuntary uncertainty. Manager Dusty Baker said as much in

spring training: "I just noticed that closer-by-committee really doesn't really work."

In the other, there's a whole bunch of good relievers, and a team shows willingness to use

different closers on different nights depending on the matchups, the situation and which

resources were burned up in the preceding eight innings. This is what the A's seemed to have,

and they embraced it:

40

Along with (Ryan) Madson, Santiago Casilla has extensive experience closing. Sean

Doolittle and John Axford are capable of the job as well. The A's also have a pair of more-than-

capable setup men in Ryan Dull and Liam Hendriks. ...

"We'll have that conversation with the guys in the bullpen a little bit later on," [manager Bob]

Melvin said. "Even when I do have the conversation with them, I don't know that there will be

an exact science to that either."

After getting the first save of the season, Casilla spent a week pitching in the eighth inning. But

this is the classic example of a fluid situation quickly becoming frozen: Casilla got his second

save of the season on April 18 and hasn't done anything but close -- one-inning appearances

only -- since.

That the A's stayed "fluid" for even two weeks is surprising. In most cases, the "committee"

collapses upon the first successful save, whereupon whomever got that save gets the next and

the next and the one after that.

The Mariners find themselves in a committee situation now, after Edwin Diaz lost the job.

Tuesday was the first game under the committee plan. Steve Cishek -- just off the disabled list,

having pitched the day before, and having lost the closing job last year -- got the first crack.

("He's been out there before," manager Scott Servais explained.) The Mariners had said they

would play matchups and "use multiple relievers to piece together the ninth," but Cishek was

allowed to face four batters, the first three of whom reached against him, two of whom were

lefties, one of whom hit a winning home run. Nobody was warming up in the Mariners' bullpen.

Now, the Mariners relief corps was taxed, and not everybody was available that night. Going to

Cishek and staying with him might have been the best move. On another night, the Mariners

might really have used multiple relievers to piece together the ninth, like they said. More likely,

though, that game was a glimpse at the actual reality: The Mariners have a closer, and they're

going to use him like a traditional closer. They're just trying to figure out who it is.

20-22. Padres, White Sox, Pirates

Padres manager Andy Green hinted during the spring that he might try using an "opener," a

reliever who would start the game before giving way to the "starter," thus preventing his

opponents from loading up on lefties or righties. Was he serious? Probably not. The

conversation was oddly coy, with lots of "said with a grin" in the recounting of it. Needless to

say, the Padres have not done this. They have used their closer as the first choice in the ninth

inning of tie games on the road though.

Even after the Showalter/Britton debacle in last year's wild-card game, holding the closer back

for a possible save remains the default. We count 61 games this year that had a tie score at the

start of the bottom of the ninth; we count only 10 times when the closer pitched that inning.

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Generously, we might throw five more into the tally if we include "co-closers," or pitchers who

were part of a committee at the time. Even with that, three-quarters of the time managers

have opted to make the same move Showalter did.

The Padres, White Sox and Pirates have gone the other way, though not all the time. It's really

not much, but there are arguably 19 other teams that have done less.

23. Cardinals

With Trevor Rosenthal pitching well again, the Cardinals have two qualified closers. They

haven't used either one very imaginatively -- there was lots of winter talk that Rosenthal could

be stretched out and work more like Andrew Miller, but stretching Rosenthal out in the spring

led to problems. So, on the surface, the Cardinals have what lots of teams have: a closer

(Seung-hwan Oh) and a set-up man who is also really good (Rosenthal). However, by treating

Rosenthal as slightly more than that, they've given Oh more rest than the normal closer gets.

Oh has pitched three days in a row only once. Rosenthal, meanwhile, has collected three saves.

A small thing, which is part of the point: We're at No. 23 and talking about really small things.

24. Angels

There was a point early in the season when Cam Bedrosian was pretty obviously Mike Scioscia's

closer, but Scioscia wouldn't say it, and then you'd look down at the bullpen and see Bedrosian

warming up in the seventh inning, and you could see why Scioscia wouldn't say the word

"closer." It let him use Bedrosian in the seventh if he needed to. Or the ninth if he wanted to.

This is really the secret to using a closer flexibly: avoid saying the word. Scioscia would call him

"the lead dog," which everybody knows means the same thing, but the language of these things

matters.

Anyway, then Bud Norris became the closer and everything is back to being totally

uninteresting.

Sometimes when you're used in the eighth inning, you'll come out in the eighth as Alex

Colome did in April. Kevin Sousa/USA TODAY Sports

25-27. Rays, Red Sox and Dodgers

Closer Alex Colome has come into the eighth inning of a save opportunity five times

already. Kenley Jansen has done so four times for the Dodgers. Craig Kimbrel has entered one

save situation in the eighth and entered with the score tied in the eighth. The year Francisco

Rodriguez set a record with 62 saves, he didn't pitch in the eighth inning even once.

Through teams' first 35 games this season, there have been 28 saves of four outs or more.

That's the most (in the first 35 games of a season) since 2007, seven more than last year and

double the number we saw in 2014, 2013 and 2012. It's not a big difference in raw numbers,

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but it falls under our purview today.

It's worth wondering whether Colome is pitching in this more aggressive closer mode for the

same reason Johnson of the Braves isn't: to boost his trade value. While the Braves might just

love to get to the deadline with Johnson still looking like a plausible closer, the Rays might be

positioning Colome to be this postseason's Andrew Miller or Kenley Jansen: multiple innings,

extended saves.

28. Indians

We keep talking about teams using, or not using pitchers like the Indians use Andrew Miller, but

it was, of course, an open question whether the Indians would once again use Andrew Miller

like Andrew Miller. They obviously wouldn't use him the way they did in the postseason, when

all questions of fatigue and stamina and pacing get tossed out. Would they use him the way

they did last summer, bringing him into tight spots early in games and to bridge innings, as a

less-established reliever would expect to be used?

The answer is yes, with two caveats. As for the yes: Miller has already made six appearances

that bridged innings. When he was the Yankees' set-up man last year, he did this only twice,

over about double the time period. He is averaging more than an inning per appearance, which

he told me is something he keeps an eye on with pride. Thanks to this -- and to how well he has

pitched -- he's fourth among all relievers in win probability added, despite appearing in the

ninth inning only once.

As to the two caveats: Four of his past five outings have been three-out jobs in the eighth

inning, the sorts of outings that regular set-up men do in their regular set-up jobs. So he might

be slowly falling into a more orthodox set-up role. More disappointing, though, is how little his

presence has affected the way the Indians use their closer Cody Allen. Having Miller around

should free them up to use Allen more expansively, knowing that if he pitches two innings one

night, Miller will be there to carry the load the next night. The opposite has happened: Allen

has been asked to get four outs only once. On the other hand, it's a long season.

29. Astros

The more pressing Andrew Miller question wasn't whether the Indians would use Andrew

Miller like Andrew Miller, but whether Andrew Millers would pop up all over the place. Mostly,

no. In Houston, yes, where Chris Devenski has thrown 24 innings in 14 games, appearing in

close games as early as the fifth, throwing as many as four frames in an outing, collecting two

saves, and pitching in extremely high-leverage situations. (Higher, even, than Miller has this

year.)

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Devenski and Miller aren't alone. Mostly they are, but not entirely. There have been 46 outings

this year in which a reliever has recorded five or more outs in a high-leverage situation in the

ninth inning or earlier. Or, in other words, there have been 46 outings that resembled the old

"fireman" outings. There were 33 during the first quarter of last season.

There's also their closer, Ken Giles, who has twice come into games in the eighth and then given

way to other pitchers. Once, it was because Mike Trout and Albert Pujols were coming up; Giles

got through them and let Will Harris face the bottom of the order in the ninth. The other time

was also interesting:

The Astros were trailing 5-4 in the top of the eighth, and manager A.J. Hinch decided to get

Giles warm and use him in the bottom of the inning. The Astros scored four runs while Giles

was warming up, and now it was a save situation. Hinch stuck with his plan -- Giles pitched, got

the hold, then gave way to Luke Gregerson.

"[Hinch] has said since spring training he reserves the right to use Giles in high-leverage

situations ahead of the ninth inning," the game story reported. "'I've said time and time again I

don't really care what the order is. Ken's still going to finish most of the games. But that's what I

mean by 'most of the games.' "

30. Reds

The Reds aren't afraid of using Raisel Iglesias for multiple innings in a game. Thearon W.

Henderson/Getty Images

The committee that actually stuck. Four relievers have saves for the Reds, and while Raisel

Iglesias is clearly the closer (with seven saves), the "committee" has made it possible for the

Reds to do all sorts of fun things with him. He has three six-out saves, which is almost unheard

of from closers, because managers don't want to be without their closer the next day. On April

15, he entered a game in the fifth inning, pitched two innings and got the win; Michael

Lorenzen ended up with the save.

In 15 games, Iglesias has thrown 21⅓ innings. That's more than 40 percent more innings than

appearances. In the past decade, only three pitchers have collected 20 or more saves while

throwing even 20 percent more innings than appearances. In two cases, the relievers racked up

innings in very different roles before or after closing: Jenrry Mejia started seven games, Alfredo

Aceves lost the ninth-inning job and worked in long relief to close out the season. The

third, Andrew Bailey, threw 55 innings in 48 appearances after taking over as closer.

Which all means this: Raisel Iglesias is new. What the Reds are doing is new. This is new. It

might not last, but for now we can say that 2017 is not all more of the same. Whether or not

bullpens are changing, this bullpen has changed.