Owner Fisher doesn’t like us using their city name in their name, so we will just do that. This team is a bit revived this year, at 22-21, which is good for first place in the AL West. They dropped a series to the Redbirds this week, 1 win, 2 losses. Let’s meet them:
🐘 1B Nick Kurtz (26), 2B Jeff McNeil (12), SS Darell Hernaiz (5), 3B Zack Gelof (13)
🐘 RF Carlos Cortes (15), CF Lawrence Butler (12), LF Tyler Soderstrom (20)
🐘 C Shea Langeliers (27, 12 HR), DH Brent Rooker (18)
🐘 bench: C Jonah Heim, IF Michael Stefanic, OF Henry Bolte, OF Colby Thomas
🐘 rotation: Severino, Springs, J. T. Ginn (2-1, 3.12), Jacob Lopez (3-2, 5.80), Civale
🐘 co-closers: Jack Perkins, Hogan Harris, Joel Kuhnel
With the release of Austin Wynns on the 12th, this team has no former Giants. Regular SS Jacob Wilson dislocated his shoulder on Sunday, he’ll be out for a while. And the other Max Muncy, not belonging to Order Anura, broke his pinky at the end of April.
Here are the games in the weekend series,
• Friday, 6:40, Tyler Mahle (1-4, 5.18) vs. RHP Aaron Civale (4-1, 2.59)
• Saturday, 6:40, Trevor McDonald (1-0, 2.92) vs. RHP Luis Severino (2-4, 4.07)
• Sunday, 1:05, Adrian Houser (1-4, 5.79) vs. LHP Jeffrey Springs (3-3, 4.22)
On Monday, the three city road trip will move to Arizona.
The Athletics were under pressure to spend some money this winter, since they’ve been receiving payouts from the “luxury tax” slush fund. A little bit went into free agents, Civale came on a 1/$6M contract, and smaller sums went to relievers Mark Leiter and Scott Barlow. They got Jeff McNeil by trade, with the Mets paying part of his salary. So, the main expenditures were extensions of young players: 7/$86M to Tyler Soderstrom and 7/$70M to Jacob Wilson. That brings their “luxury tax” computation to $146M, beyond the required $105M. They also took an unsuccessful run at landing Nolan Arenado by trade and made a 4/$48M offer to Ha-Seong Kim he didn’t take. It is working: they were 69-93 their last year in Oakland, and 76-86 their first year in Sacramento, and voila are in first place now.
One move they made last winter seems not so hot: leaving Daniel Susac unprotected from the Rule Five draft.
During the Phillies series, Jung Hoo Lee went off: 9-12 (triple, homer) with a walk, 4 runs scored and an RBI, as well as two very difficult catches in the foul ground of right. But for all that, he didn’t win Picture of the Post, since Casey Schmitt got 5 RBI that series. However, ever since, the hard working PotP department has been looking for any excuse to award JHL one. And being the first Giant ever to hit an inside the park home run at The Latrine is quite good enough! Note that it was also the very first inside the park homer for Lee in his entire life, including little league days. Grandson of the Wind, flying! For those who missed it:
https://twitter.com/hoohooya51/status/2055128804176351709/video/1?
At the time, it tied the game, raising our hopes for a series win in LA, but instead the Giants limped to a series split, after winning the first two.
