Righthander Matt Cain pumps mid-90s heat, slider, change-up and a 12-6 Charlie to ERAs of 2.89, 3.14 and 2.86 the last three years. Fat lot of good it's doing him.
Cain pitches in San Francisco, in front of the worst offense in the National League, and as a result he's only 10-9 this year and was only 13-11 last year. Through 26 starts in 2011, feckless Giant swingers have provided him with two runs or fewer in 12, three runs in five more, and more than three just nine times.
For context, the Red Sox average more than five runs per. In his 27 lifetime starts, Ivan Nova's run support has topped two runs 23 times. In other words, Cain is absolutely snakebit, which is a good description of a Giants team that falls farther behind the Diamondback in the standings.
The reason is obvious: Scott Cousins. The Marlins' utility outfielder broke Buster Posey's leg in a home plate collision earlier this season, robbing the Giants of a goodly portion of their offense. Besides Posey and Pablo Sandoval (.308/.350/.512), the Giant lineup rattles in a paper cup. Their three top-paid regulars sport OBPs of .274 .284. and .298. Trade deadline coup Carlos Beltran went directly to the DL without passing GO, contributing exactly three extra base hits to his team, or the same number as pitcher Madison Bumgarner.
Speaking of Bumgarner, he's continued tearing up NL batters this year as part of the manly rotation the includes Cain, Tim Lincecum, Walter Johnson posing as Ryan Vogelsong, and Jonathan Sanchez. Alas, Bumgarner's 3.49 ERA and 4-1 K-BB ratio are not getting the job done with this sorry batting order. With sub-three run support in 11 of his 25 starts this season, his 7-11 record is hardly surprising. Nor is Tim Lincecum's 2.53 ERA and 10 Ks per game. The Freak sports an 11-10 record thanks to two-or-fewer runs of support in 12 of his 26 starts.
Giant brass can lament the parade of DL visits visited upon them, but it's not like much quality has been lost to injury beyond Posey and Kung Fu Panda's lost six weeks early in the season. Moreover, the franchise made a conscious decision not to seek a replacement for their broken backstop and the result has been a pair of backups vying to become the dictionary definition for offensive futility (225/.300/.352 from Eli Whiteside and .216/.286/.294 from backup Chris Stewart.)
The Big'uns recently snapped a record streak of 21 solo homers over five weeks, which was surprising only in that they had mustered that many big flies in 30 games. The team is on pace to finish 2011 without a single 20-HR hitter. Or 30 doubles. Or 20 steals. Or two wins above replacement, other than Sandoval.
Giant brass can lament the parade of DL visits visited upon them, but it's not like much quality has been lost to injury beyond Posey and Kung Fu Panda's lost six weeks early in the season. Moreover, the franchise made a conscious decision not to seek a replacement for their broken backstop and the result has been a pair of backups vying to become the dictionary definition for offensive futility (225/.300/.352 from Eli Whiteside and .216/.286/.294 from backup Chris Stewart.)
The Big'uns recently snapped a record streak of 21 solo homers over five weeks, which was surprising only in that they had mustered that many big flies in 30 games. The team is on pace to finish 2011 without a single 20-HR hitter. Or 30 doubles. Or 20 steals. Or two wins above replacement, other than Sandoval.
The bottom line is that the World Champs have managed to under-score their competition despite the second best pitching in baseball and one of the best mound corps in Major League history. An amazing starting staff bolstered by a solid relief corps starring Brian Wilson (3.19 ERA), Sergio Romo (1.67) and Ramon Ramirez (2.89) should be lapping the feckless NL West. Instead, they've shifted into reverse and are now breathing Diamondback exhaust. If Tim Lincecum isn't in the playoffs this year, he and his pitching mates will know exactly whom to blame.
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