San Francisco Giants Off-Day Offerings: Monday April 17th
The San Francisco Giants have an off-day, giving the fans a lot of time to sit on some thoughts before they begin a two-game series in Kansas City.
On Monday, the San Francisco Giants are enjoying their second off-day of the season before beginning a five-game road trip. After two games with the Kansas City Royals, they head to Coors Field for three games with the Colorado Rockies. With no Giants’ baseball to watch, here’s some off-day thoughts.
- Off-days are always nice, especially after the Giants have played 13 days in a row, but having two days off in a four-day span like they’re about to have seems like a bit much. Those off-days would probably be better served to have in August or September, when the team has 100-plus games played under their belts.
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- After such a slow, inconsistent start to the season, though, maybe these off-days are just what the doctor ordered. Some Giants’ players, including Mark Melancon, Cory Gearrin, Derek Law, Joe Panik, and the injured Will Smith were able to take in the San Jose Sharks’ game last night, so getting a chance to get away from the ball-field and watch someone else play can help clear their minds and relieve some self-applied pressure. Maybe those two days off in four days can lead to some good nights worth of sleep.
- What to do about left field? Jarrett Parker was off to a slow start, but was still the best option for the team. He wasn’t going to be that bad all season, but now we will never know. Chris Marrero, Aaron Hill, and Gorkys Hernandez are the options for now, but that will change soon.
- Buster Posey will be activated soon, hopefully ahead of the Kansas City series, but the Giants might be best served keeping Steven Okert on the roster for the time being. With a series in Colorado looming, having an extra arm in the bullpen is never a bad thing with that potential for big offensive days.
- Michael Morse is getting close. According to Joe Ritzo, Morse begins his rehab stint tonight with the San Jose Giants, and is batting third and playing left field. If Morse looks good at the plate and in the field, he could be the next stopgap in left field.
- On the topic of left fielders, Mac Williamson‘s quad injury was initially said to a couple week thing. That was about a month ago. Hopefully he gets healthy soon, his bat could be a big boost in the Giants’ lineup.
- Get Mark Melancon some meaningful innings. He pitched Sunday with the Giants behind by a run, but it was a maintenance inning more than anything. He’s only made four appearances so far, saving both chances since his opening day snafu.
- Speaking of relievers, the Giants aren’t really riding any particular reliever very hard so far. The team leaders in appearances are Hunter Strickland and Derek Law, who’ve pitched six times in 14 games. That puts them on pace for 69 appearances this season, and if they stay on that pace (they almost certainly won’t), it’ll be the first time since 2013 that no Giants’ pitcher reaches 70 appearances.
Next: Giants 3 Up, 3 Down: 4 with Colorado
- Has anyone mentioned that Madison Bumgarner is returning to Kansas City for the first time since his game seven heroics in the 2014 World Series? Everyone has mentioned that? Oh, okay. Well, hopefully the team can ride him to another victory and break this 0-3 record they have in Bumgarner’s starts this season.