The division might as well belong to the Dodgers, but the SF Giants now sit just 6.5 games out of a wild-card spot. Is that enough to avoid a massive fire sale?
June was easily the best month of SF Giants baseball this season. Though a 14-13 record is nothing to celebrate about, if your team is in last place, it evokes enjoyment for even the most fair-weather fan.
During the month, the Giants swept a two-game series against the San Diego Padres, took two of three from the Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers, and won four of seven games against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
There were certainly some ugly losses, including three straight to a Los Angeles Dodgers team that plated a total 27 runs in those games, but there is a lot of positive resulting from the month.
The recent pickup of Alex Dickerson has paid off immediately.
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In just 12 games with the orange and black, Dickerson has seven extra-base hits, 12 RBI, and a slash line of .353/.436/.706.
Add to it the bullpen has been one of the best bullpens in all of baseball. The Giants posted the sixth-best ERA from a bullpen at 3.77. In the full season, the Giants’ pen has a 3.88 ERA; fifth-best in the league.
Their all-star closer Will Smith has converted all 21 of his save opportunities entering Wednesday night. He also has an astounding 51:8 strikeout to walk ratio.
That ratio of 6.38 is tied with Blue Jays’ closer Ken Giles and 11th best among qualified relievers.
It has been an exciting month of baseball for a fan base that has seen a massive decline in wins since their 2016 playoff push.
But is it enough to prevent the fire sale?
If we consider the SF Giants placement right now, last in the NL West, they have no shot of winning the division.
The Los Angeles Dodgers (58-29) have a 13 game lead over the next closest opponent the Colorado Rockies (44-41). So it is safe to declare the division is lost.
But what about the wild card?
I mentioned 6.5 games is the separation for the Giants to reach the second wild-card spot; currently held by the Chicago Cubs (45-41).
The Giants, now two games into July, hold a 38-47 record, but 6.5 back says a lot about how competitive the National League has become.
Even the hapless Marlins at 32-51 are just 11.5 games out of that spot, but they are in the last place in the league and right behind the Giants for the worst record.
On paper, the Giants still don’t intimidate the division, let alone the entire League, and the recent front office change is likely to be unaffected by the recent string of success.
There are still problems with this team. The aging core of the Giants’ three titles has been struggling.
Last year’s NL all-star starters Brandon Crawford and Buster Posey have failed to replicate that success.
On pace for his worst season, Crawford has a paltry slash line of .223/.289/.343 and has been practically replaced by Donovan Solano; who in 28 games has 23 hits and OPS about 100 points higher than Crawford.
Posey isn’t the hitter he used to be either. His slash line of .250/.314/.380 is far off pace from his previous seasons as a near .300 hitter with an OPS in the mid to high .800s.
While there is a clear future lined up for Posey in Joey Bart, there isn’t a true heir to Crawford’s spot.
There are plenty of exciting to-be SF Giants in the minors at the moment like Bart, Heliot Ramos and Melvin Adon, but those are at least a few years away.
So the Giants are likely to stick to the course of a fire sale in the assets of Madison Bumgarner and bullpen arms like Sam Dyson, Tony Watson, and Smith.
Their wild card is Pablo Sandoval, who has revived his career as he finishes his five-year deal he signed with the Red Sox back in 2015. The Giants are tied at the corners with Tyler Austin, Brandon Belt, Evan Longoria, and Sandoval, and even Posey has been linked to getting some starts at first base.
The Giants front office may think that this season is lost, but the team isn’t playing like it is.
Farhan Zaidi was brought in to rebuild the SF Giants and bring them back to a high-caliber level, and with only a month left to make trade decisions, will he wait it out as long as possible, or will he pull the trigger as soon as he gets a good grip?