That was about as bad a road trip as you could have with 64 games left in the season, but all things considered, you would still rather be the Giants than the Dodgers.
At the start of the month, San Francisco was six games up on the Dodgers, and amidst all the injuries suffered, by both teams, they only dropped three games to Los Angeles. The Dodgers have a favorable schedule the next week or so and if those next few games go well, that could put an added emphasis on their front office to be more active and try to take the division.
But yes 1-7 is 1-7, if you want to sweat, you have the right to do it. The Giants haven’t put together a real solid game since before the All-Star break. The starting pitching faltered through the first turn of the rotation and then the defense and bullpen let them down later in the trip in New York. The offense has been nonexistent, scoring the fewest runs in the majors since the mid-summer classic. All this talk about relievers and needing an upgrade in the bullpen, maybe Bruce Bochy needs some offensive help.
Perhaps I underestimated the impact of Hunter Pence on this roster. He played in only 52 games last season and they missed the playoffs. So far in 2016, he’s only played in 50 contests despite being the iron man of the league in years prior — consistently playing 150 games plus year-in and year-out. While Buster Posey is the face of the franchise, he leads by example. He’s the silent leader. Pence is the guy that can kick you in the butt and get you going — very much the vocal, emotional leader of the team.
If Clayton Kershaw is indeed in dire straits and could be lost for the season, then you have to think the Giants are the favorite to win the division. Whenever you take the best pitcher in baseball off the roster, that’s a tremendous loss. The Giants are hoping that Matt Duffy and Pence can come back and pick up where they left off. Joe Panik has been out longer than expected, so you are not sure what you can get from him and concussions are a very tricky thing.
Once both teams are near full strength, it’s going to be an interesting race. All-in-all when it comes down to the NL West, I’d still rather be the Giants.
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