San Francisco Giants Morning Minute: Thank You Matt Duffy, and Hello Matt Moore

On this edition of the San Francisco Giants Morning Minute, we say farewell and thank you to Matt Duffy, and welcome new Giant Matt Moore.

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Good morning, San Francisco Giants’ fans, and welcome to another edition of the Giants Morning Minute. On Monday, the Giants had an off-day, but there was still plenty of action. Monday’s trade deadline brought a flurry of action, and the Giants were smack dab in the middle of things. They completed two trades to bring in new major league talent, but also lost a good share.

The Los Angeles Dodgers were also off on Monday, so the Giants’ lead int he National League West went unchanged. It stays at two games. The Colorado Rockies are one game under .500, and 9.5 games back, having won eight of 10 games and 12 of 17 games since the All-Star break.

Here’s some thoughts before the Giants take the field again on Tuesday.

1 – Thank You, Matt Duffy

Matt Duffy was a Giant for less than two seasons, but to say he was a Good Giant would be a vast understatement. Sometimes, players come along and from the very moment you watch them play for the first time, you can tell that they absolutely love the game of baseball. Duffy was one of those guys.

Duffy was a tireless worker, and every time he stepped out there wearing the orange and black, he left it all on the field. Those are the ones that can grow on you very quickly. And personally, Duffy grew on me faster than Joe Panik turning the double play at second base. Never once did Duffy leave anyone questioning whether or not he gave everything he had. Guys like that are easy to love.

It’s easy to root for the underdog, and Duffy fit the bill. He became a Giant straight from Double-A, and worked his way onto the postseason roster in 2014. In 2015, he forced his way onto the opening day roster, and then into the starting lineup. But he didn’t stop working, never took a minute off. He kept working, and became one of the team’s biggest contributors, a Gold Glove finalist at third base, a brand new position for him, and the first ever rookie to win the coveted Willie Mac Award.

It’s hard not to grow attached to guys like that. The ones that don’t look like big leaguers because he’s too skinny, or too awkward like Hunter Pence or Brandon Belt, or not fast enough, or strong enough. Seeing them make it is gratifying.

Thank you, Matt Duffy, and best of luck in Tampa Bay. Keep being you.

2 – Matt Moore, the Game-Changer?

The Giants got themselves a pretty good pitcher in return for Duffy, picking up left-hander Matt Moore from the Rays. The numbers aren’t that pretty for Moore, as he own a 4.08 ERA, 1.269 WHIP, 7.5 strikeouts per nine inning, and has allowed 20 home runs in 130 innings pitched. But there’s plenty of reasons to like Moore.

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At 27 years old, the former top prospect in baseball is still quite young. And he’s only 33 starts removed from the dreaded Tommy John surgery, which forced him to miss most of the 2014 and 2015 seasons. Things have started to come around for Moore, and he’s beginning to look more like the pitcher that was one of the most coveted youngsters in the game, and a top-10 finisher in the 2013 American League Cy Young race.

Over his last nine starts, Moore has a 2.39 ERA and 1.028 WHIP, and opponents are hitting just .199 against him. In 60.1 innings, he’s allowed six home runs (0.9 per nine innings), a far cry from the 1.8 home runs per nine innings he was allowing in his first 12 starts. His 2.8 walks per nine innings so far over the entire year is the lowest of his career to this point. In his final start for Tampa Bay before he was traded, he allowed one run in 6.2 innings while beating the Los Angeles Dodgers. That’s already a notch on his orange-and-black belt.

FanGraph’s Eno Sarris has an excellent piece on Moore, which takes in-depth look at Moore’s actual pitches. His stuff has taken a hefty uptick lately, and if Sarris’ analytical analysis is to be believed, the Moore that’s shown up in the most recent months in much closer to the real Moore than the one who started the year.

Another point in Moore’s favor is his team-friendly contract. He has very cheap team options (compared to the exorbitant contracts that will be given to free agent pitchers in a very weak market next offseason) for the next three seasons. Placed with Madison Bumgarner and Johnny Cueto, Moore could be a huge addition to the pitching staff.

Next: Giants Trade for Now, and for Future

And that will do it for this edition of the Giants Morning Minute. Up next, the Giants open a three-game set with the Philadelphia Phillies on the road. The roster will look quite different with all the moves that must be made prior to the game, but Madison Bumgarner will be taking the mound. Zach Eflin will go for the Phillies.

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