Panic comes easy when expectations are high and division races are ultra tight.
So it would be understandable if it was coming from a Giants fan base that has been spoiled with three World Series titles over the last five falls. Suddenly, the Giants can’t hit, and Matt Cain’s return or Jake Peavy’s return or a blockbuster pitching trade won’t solve the problem.
Those are the quick reactions to the Giants’ 4-2 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday at AT&T Park, costing them the series as they’ve dropped the first two games on a meager total of six hits in 18 innings.
“The offense right now, we’re out of sync,” manager Bruce Bochy said. “We’ve been swinging the bats so well, but this was a similar game to last night. … We couldn’t put pressure on them. It’s tough when you’re not doing much offensively.”
Of course, it doesn’t help when your starting pitcher Ryan Vogelsong, in this case, walks four in the first inning and never makes it out of the fourth after allowing all four of Arizona’s runs.
The truth is this is a mini offensive funk. Before these last two against the Diamondbacks, the Giants were plenty fine in the offensive categories. In their 26 previous games leading into this series, the offense produced a .293/.346/.454 slash line and averaged more than five runs a game.
Those kinds of numbers are hard to beat, hence their 17-9 record in that stretch.
The more recent numbers — 6 for 58 (.103) and two runs in two games — can be attributed to the team recovering from a night game in New York on Thursday, according to Bochy.
“We’re just out of sync,” Bochy said. “I don’t know if it’s the travel. It might have taken a little life out of them, but we need to bounce back.”Arizona DiamondbacksBruce BochyMLBRyan VogelsongSan Francisco Giants
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