Actually, he got three of 'em last night vs. the San Diego Padres. His SLG went from the same as his average (.333) to .434 in just one game. Nice.
I would've posted a bit more on last night's game, but Blogger was down for most of the day until this point, and today's game is in the 8th inning as I'm writing this. As I also am watching today's game and did not get to see last night's game, this ought to work out a bit better.
Thus far in today's game (which actually just ended):
- Yorvit Torrealba had himself another nice game. A spectacular defensive play in the 1st inning on a bunt by Mark Loretta -- Torry had to sprint about 8 feet out from the plate to grab the ball, and as he's right handed, had to make a near-180 degree turn to fire and nail the speedy Loretta at first base by...1/235th's of a step. Also, Torry's 2 for 3 at the plate with a walk, a double, two runs scored, a stolen base, and an RBI. He even threw out Dave Roberts at 2nd, though that looked to be a missed hit-and-run; Roberts is never thrown out by that much if he's thrown out at all. Torry's making the most of his playing time, but for those of us who were a bit confused at the Mike Matheny signing, we have to realize that this won't mean anything in regards to Yorvit's playing time. Matheny would have to suck defensively as well as offensively for anything to change.
- Jason Ellison is had himself a nice one, too. Already with an OPS of 1.092 in limited playing time, Elly will add to that with what looks to end up as a 3 for 3 day, with an infield single, a walk, and a triple to go along with three runs scored. The man is very fast. Again, he won't have lots of opportunities to get more playing time unless Marquis Grissom is either hurt or plays horribly over an extended stretch.
- Kirk Reuter won't be ashamed at his day, either. Only giving up four hits and one run through 5 2/3 innings pitched, he was fairly efficient. He even got a punch-bunt single and scored a run.
- Al Levine also got it done on the mound, and is continuing his scoreless streak from the spring. He even got a couple of at-bats in, something he's never done at the major league level. No, no hits for Levine. Sorry, you can't have it all.
- Say what you will about Pedro Feliz (and I've said plenty), but the man does find ways to contribute, and does seem to find ways to maximize his strengths. With a 3-run jack that opened up scoring for the Giants today, he's now got 21 RBI in 21 games played. He's even drawing a walk every now and then. It was also Feliz' 30th birthday today, which makes Brian Sabean much more comfortable.
Well, it ended up being a 10-3 Giants victory, giving them a much-needed series victory not only over a division rival in the Padres, but against a team other than the Colorado Rockies.
Sidenote: this was just the day for former Royals, as the Padres sent both Darrel May and Dennys Reyes to the mound in relief of Tim Redding, and the Giants had Michael Tucker and Al Levine. Move along, nothing to see here.
4 comments:
Matheny looked horrible last night, putting his 220 pounds into dribbler groundouts, and sitting on the plate (I suppose it's one way to block) on a close play. Yorvit looks good EVERY time he's in. I hope Felipe notices... I've certainly noticed that the pitching looks better when he's in.
I'll take the wins, but the Padres seem to be the only competitors the Giants have in the division for untimely errors and bonehead plays. I keep thinking the Padres will have a good year, and they keep bumbling around.
Now, I'm just waiting for the strains of Tom Sawyer to announce the new closer...
Well, we both know just inserting Torrealba into the lineup won't happen, as we also know that even if he played every day, Torry wouldn't be putting up a 1.000 plus OPS.
But I still believe he'd put up comparable defense to Matheny, and that in the long run would provide significantly more offense.
In the meantime, though, I'll continue to root for Matheny when he plays -- it's just that I'll root for Yorvit just a wee bit harder.
Yes, he's no Johnny Bench with the bat, but unless Matheny discovers Weight Watchers, he won't hit his weight this year.
Can't wait to see what you have to say about the Tendonator tomorrow... who'sa gonna close-a the games-a?
Man, you're psychic, because that's EXACTLY what my post tomorrow will be about.
Heh. The Tendonator. Heh.
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