June Swoon

“Just Thinking"

It’s the middle of June, and for the Giants this is usually when the annual “June Swoon” sets in, but this year, it raises a different question: how do you swoon in June when the entire season has already felt like one long swoon?

And yet, I’ll admit, I’ve been sucked in at times. I’ve let myself believe a stretch of decent baseball meant something was turning. Only to get pulled right back to reality, like so many fans, with another gut-punch loss just when it felt like things might finally be different.

My hook on changing the channel is way quicker than Tony Vitello’s hook with the bullpen and honestly, that’s burned me more than once this year. I’m thinking of June 10^th, the Giants-Nationals game. I bailed early when they were down 9–1, like second inning, I figured I’d seen enough.

To be fair, I had an appointment during the later innings, so I was unable to watch anyway, but while in my meeting my Giants app on my phone started blowing up, notifications going crazy, one after another. It got so crazy that I just silenced it, assuming it was more of the same. Turns out, it was quite the opposite, the Giants turned it on, dropping five runs in the 8th, including back-to-back bombs from Chapman and Devers, and suddenly it’s 9–6. Then comes the 9^th, Arraez gets it started, Chapman, Devers, and Jung Hoo Lee all reach, and just like that its bases loaded, nobody out. Enter 21-year-old Bryce Eldridge. One swing later, walk-off grand slam. Game over. Giants win 11–10.

I felt terrible missing it, this was one of those games. Not just a comeback, but history. The Giants hung 10 runs in the final two innings, erasing an eight-run deficit. That’s not something you just casually miss. It was the first time since 1947 that the Giants have come back to win a game when trailing by that much that late.

And then there’s the kid. Bryce Eldridge, 21 years old, steps in and delivers the kind of moment you dream about. Youngest player in MLB history to hit a walk-off grand slam. It’s not just the walk-off win, it’s the ultimate grand slam, down three, bases loaded, game on the line, and one swing ends it. It’s one of the rarest plays in baseball.

I was a little slow on the trigger for this one, May 29th in Arizona. The Giants had a 3–1 lead heading into the 9th, exactly where you want to be on the road. Bullpen comes in, just needs three outs, a classic “finish the job” situation. The first two guys reach base, and the anxiety builds and sure enough, Ketel Marte steps in and absolutely launches a 3-run homer, game over. It was one of those occasions where a scream snuck out as it happened.

That inning, honestly, sums up the whole season. They’re good enough to grab a lead late, but not consistent enough to slam the door. It’s the same script on repeat, tight game, slim lead, bullpen starts to wobble, and then one big swing flips it. You can almost feel it coming now, which is the worst part.

So here we are, halfway through June and the question is, can the G-men find some consistency? I’ll say this I like a lot of the young pieces, and I want to see them play. Because right now, I’m not sold on some of the big-money guys.

Devers and Adames? I’m just not seeing the return. Devers came in as the franchise bat, the guy you build around and at $27 million this year, a .235 average with 9 homers and 33 RBIs just isn’t cutting it. That’s supposed to be your anchor, and right now it feels like we’re waiting for him to become that guy. Adames, same story in a different way. There’s some power there, sure, but the on-base struggles and low average drag everything down. Too many strikeouts, not enough impact. For a long-term $182 million deal, that’s a tough pill to swallow.

I don’t get the Harrison Bader deal, two years, $20 million, give me Drew Gilbert every day, he’s got the glove, he’s got an upside with the bat and will only get better.

I’m loving what I’m seeing lately from Matt Chapman and Jung Hoo Lee, they’re heating up, Casey Schmitt carried the early load, he has cooled off a bit, but he’s steady and can play pretty much anywhere, first, second, third, short, even left field.

I was disappointed when they traded away Patrick Bailey, but I get it, the bat just never came around, and with Susac and Jesús Rodríguez coming up they made the move. I enjoy watching Luis Arraez hit, there is an old-school feel too him, he reminds me of Tito Fuentes. Then there’s the kid, you can see it already. Hopefully he will be holding down first base for a long time, like Stretch and the Thrill.

The starting pitching is solid, with Logan Webb, Robbie Ray and the crew. The bullpen needs help, too many games where it just can’t hold up.

I didn’t plan on a full Giants rant, this week, but here we are. Chasing Da Bums and Padres is a tall order. At this point, I’d take some consistency and some .500 baseball. 

Let me know what you think.

 

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