It's over......2007 a season of frustration......
At times they could look so good, almost like a tease, but most of the times would drive you crazy. Like all Giants teams here since 2003 there just isn't much hitting. It's usually one or two guys at best providing the runs and you're hoping for the best. This year it was John Bowker head and shoulders season long above everyone else. TSV and Randy Ruiz gave us some late season power but the team had to finish winning 12 out of 16 to stay out of the Eastern Division cellar.
Eugenio Velez provided speed and excitment and finds himself a Sept. callup with the Giants because of it. Velez is still very much a work in progress.
The pitching staff never had a stopper. A couple of converted relievers (Geno and Brooks), a season long tough luck loser in GB, and a couple of guys you never were really sure which version would show up in Nick P. (who finshed strong) and McKae. Cox and Sack washed out as starter and found themselves back in SJ. Chris Begg left early to go to Triple A.
Never got a feel for the bullpen as the player shuffle was in effect season long. Brian Anderson tested your heart as a closer. Yet if you look at it from a team pitching staff performance against the league it was a successful year but looking at those stats and seeing it live were two different things for sure.
Who's back next year and who's coming here in 2008? Bowker, Velez, Geno and I guess Anderson should be in Fresno. I figure Hinshaw will begin the season in CT. I don't follow Augusta and San Jose so I don't know who is likely to show up here. I think some guys will make decisions about their playing days and I think others will have those decisions made for them. Wouldn't surprise me to see about 10-12 guys from this year's edition back in 2008.
I don't want to see EME back here never and TI can go directly to Fresno if he is still with the Giants thru the off season.
The fences will come in for 2008 (see below) and run production will go up. It's effect on the team's win loss record remains to be seen as does it's effect on player performance.
posted by greg8370 at 12:34 PM
3 Comments:
Well pardner, your on the money in your year end assessment, but something no one has mentioned at all; I thought this was one of the best defensive teams we've ever seen at Dodd.
I do follow the A teams a bit and next year doesn't look very rosy. I'm sure a bunch of this years edition will be gone, but I hope Trey Webb and Dayton Buller are back. They seem to have some upside.
Just one comment on the p[itching. Yes the team ERA was #2 in the league, but these guys had a habit of screwing up at the wrong time all year and that caused a lot of losses. Too often an ill advised walk or getting behind in the pitch count was a road to disater.
I can't let this go by either. Why does the New London Day scoop the Norwich Bulletin on the commissions meeting? Is the city of Norwich behind this team or not? I've really begun to question the Bulletins committment to the Defenders.
Whatever we get next year for players will be better then the alternative, so without wishing my life away, HURRY APRIL 3.
2:39 PM
Excellent points about team defense and the Day vs Bulletin observation.
8:02 PM
The Bulletin article appears on 9/5/07. The whole Web site has been revamped and the Blog portion has disappeared. Has anyone found it?
8:00 AM
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