Giants Talk: Why San Francisco's 2026 MLB season has become ‘hard to watch'
Giants Talk: Why San Francisco's 2026 MLB season has become 'hard to watch' originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Video Transcript
Hey, what's up Giants fans?
Welcome to another episode of Giants Talk.
I'm Cole Kuiper, here with Giants insider Alex Pavlovic.
The Giants drop another series, this time to the lowly Colorado Rockies.
Is this rock bottom or is this exactly what we should expect after selling at the deadline?
We'll dive into this disappointing series, news from around the league and the Giants.
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All right.
Alex, the Rockies come to town and the Giants lose both the series this weekend and the season series to the Rockies, which is not a formula to put together a successful season.
No.
First time since 2018.
I mean, 2020, but that was a shortened season.
Yeah.
So don't totally count it.
First time since 2018 they've lost a full season series to the Rockies.
Um- Oof lost it in incredible fashion on Sunday.
We'll get to that.
But just, yeah, you know, like w- we used to make so many Rockies jokes on this podcast and we would We had a running bit for, what, three years where it was like, "We don't ever wanna say you have to sweep somebody, but you have to sweep the Rockies."
Yep.
And now it's like that's just all out the window until further notice.
Yeah.
I think the Rockies jokes have to go on hiatus or at the very least be made under the understanding that anything that we say about them fully applies to the San Francisco Giants as well.
Yeah.
Rockies talk, like send it right back.
Yeah.
It's, I'm rubber, you're glue.
This is the fifth straight series dropped by the Giants, which is every series since the trade deadline.
Which I guess brings me to a big point I think worth bringing up, which is are we experiencing exactly why this ML- this Giants leadership has been so hesitant to rebuild, fully, quote unquote, "rebuild" here in San Francisco?
Because what we're seeing right now would be a year or two of this for a true rebuild.
Yeah.
That's a great point.
One of the few highlights this week was Lo- Logan Webb and, you know, imagine this situation, but not Logan starting every five days.
Exactly.
Like, you don't even You're not even guaranteed you have like an actual You know, that trade could've been for couple A ball stud pitchers.
Mm-hmm.
So, and another like 18-year-old shortstop.
Yeah, it could've been like this for like two years.
Um- Yes no, I think that's A- and look, that's part of it.
It is really like You can look around the seats the last three days.
Did you go to any of the games?
I, I did not in this series, no.
You could see it on TV.
You could look around and, it's hard to watch.
And it is This is what happens.
Like when you say rebuild you are And if you say like the, you know, teams that have done this where it's like, "We're gonna take three or four years off and aim for the number one pick in the draft."
Now there's draft rules now and there's lottery stuff and you can't be Giants couldn't draft first back to back years or something like that.
But the concept of doing this and being like, "We're gonna throw a bunch of young guys out there and we're gonna," you know.
And if somebody gets hurt and there's no young guy to fill in, then it's somebody who's really struggling and- Playing out of position or- Yeah.
So it This is, this is part of it.
Um- Yeah and this is part of their fear is it's really hard to watch.
And- Yeah even the last few years, for the most part, like it wasn't It was bad, but it wasn't as bad as like the last month has been.
And- Mm-hmm you know, I don't even really know what to s- like people don't even really complain when I post the lineup anymore.
'Cause it's like there's some very specific complaints, like I wanna see Jonah Cox or- Yeah you know, why s- for the most part I think everyone's just been like, "Okay, yeah, it's, it's the river cap at the back end of the thing."
And, yeah, at this point it's that would be like complaining water's wet, you know?
Yeah.
Like we know what is going on.
You look at Sunday's lineup that was basically just built out of rookies with Lee and Devers, and i- I guess ignoring what was going on on the mound.
And Sunday was a disaster of a game.
Yeah.
And just complete disaster.
And, yeah, it's I think that's a You nailed it there.
We should remember this and w- Yeah we'll tell people listening to the August 16th podcast next time someone recommends a, a full tear down rebuild.
Like the people who say, "Yeah, we'll be okay for two years."
It'll- Yeah I'll, I'll be okay wa- you know.
The- I won't complain.
I know what, what we asked for.
Do we?
There's sun shine at the end of this.
Yeah, it's hard to watch and I, I think, you know, you In your head you always think like, like there's gonna be a top prospect here and a top prospect there- Mm-hmm and a guy coming up.
Like that's not actually what really happens.
And also, by the way, sometimes the end result is like the current Baltimore Orio- Orioles where Ruchman's gone.
Yeah.
A bunch of other guys have been disappointments.
Connor Norby's on the Rockies now.
So like, yeah, I think this is a, this has been a big reason they've been worried the last few years.
Yeah.
Not, well the last 25 years really since they moved to Oracle, 26.
We mentioned Sunday's game.
I guess we should talk a little bit about that, the final game of the series, which arguably one of the worst games of the year.
Also arguably one of the worst innings in the past decade.
Whew.
That, that top of the sixth was something else.
Um- Walk, walk, wild pitch, walk, walk, hit by pitch, single.
Most of which happened with two outs.
So easily escapable.
And also multiple escape hatches there.
Like- Yes you know, I That's a tough one for Kavanagh.
Like that's a I think Mike did a good job on the broadcast to just- kind of being like that happens and it's the worst feeling in the world 'cause you have no idea where the ball is.
Yeah.
So that's a tough one.
And then there's also the missed challenge there, which is a very, very, very close play, but that's also a miscarried catch in that inning.
But the I think it was through six innings, the Rockies had 10 runs and five hits, which I can't remember really seeing.
And- Yeah some of the quotes, I mean, I half expected Tony to just explode after the game.
He did say they had- a team meeting and did say it was basically JUCO ball.
Um- Yeah.
He's not wrong.
And yeah.
And I think the other interesting thing he said was like, "People paid to come to this game."
so yeah, that was a Look, there's, there's a difference between, like And I, I think this is something that like Buster has to consider as well and, and this was a big talking point last year in the second half, like play cleaner baseball.
Don't have embarrassing stretches like that.
Yeah.
And I, I'm not saying this goes, you know, certainly part of this goes to Tony, but I don't he'll be back next year.
This is a learning year for him.
But I do think generally when Buster steps back and looks at the second half, there, there is an element of like, yeah, you guys have the River Cats out there.
Yeah.
But also, like this is really bad.
Like an inning like that, a game like this, walking 10 batters, basically everybody walking multiple batters.
Like there has to be some middle ground where y- you know, y- it, it's, it's a team that is missing a ton of talent.
It's also like, that is not Tony said it.
That's junior college.
It's not even really junior college baseball.
Like that's- Yes.
So I, I think this is one where they have to step back a little bit too and be like, "I don't know.
What kind of preparation's going on here?"
And I There are moments, I think Tony's been frustrated the last few weeks.
Sometimes he's like, something gets mentioned in a meeting and you go out in the game and literally it doesn't happen.
Like it Or the guy does the opposite.
Yeah.
But I think that also comes down to something you and I have talked about a lot this year, which is accountability.
And it's a little bit hard when like everybody in your bullpen's walking two guys to say, how do you hold them accountable?
Yeah.
But I think there are other mistakes and other things that happen and, where it is It should be a little bit easier now that you're headed towards 30 games under .500 to like, to lay into a guy or, or sit a guy for a couple days and- Yeah it, it should be easier now than it was in April and May when you're still trying to climb back into this thing.
Yeah.
A, punishments don't really matter beyond personal individually stuff at this point.
Yeah, we're They're not truly trying to win games, at least not so much in the sense that playoffs are in play.
Obviously all MLB managers, especially first year guys, are trying to win every game they can.
But seeing the way this series went, p- particularly Sunday's game, we're, we're less than half a month into this post trade deadline rebuild team.
Yeah.
And it is a tough watch.
Well, and I, I think, look, the last few years I'd see a lot of like Gabe did this, Justin Vielhe did this, Bob Melvin, Matt Williams, Ryne Christensen.
Like, yeah, a season like this, like it, it's gonna have, there's gonna have to be some tough conversations at the end of it with everybody.
Yeah.
Like, 'cause you are responsible for the guys on the field.
So, and I don't think they'll make a lot of changes, but it is just like this is This was as ugly as I can remember, today's game.
Yeah.
And that includes some stretches the last few years where people were sitting there screaming for everyone to get fired after games.
So, I don't know.
I, I, I don't know what you do to get out of something like this, but needs to not look like this for, for the next six to seven weeks.
Yeah.
We got another look at Blade Tidwell, who coming into Sunday's game had a stretch of at least a pair of solid appearances- Yeah with, you know, one or two earned runs, plenty innings pitched.
But, on Sunday, four and change innings, six earned runs.
Did not have it.
Gotta be his worst start in a Giants uniform, right?
Yeah, I mean this goes back to what you said of like, you know, you run guys out there who are And I, I think Blade should start every five days the rest of the year.
Oh, definitely.
And I thought the first two starts were really encouraging, but this is, this is gonna happen with I mean, this happens with veteran pitchers, but this is gonna happen quite often with There's gonna be some real bumps and bruises the rest of the way with, with Tidwell and Wiesenhunt, and you hope that there's more positive than negative and that you feel good about one if not both of them going into the off season.
But- Yeah.
We- there's gonna be days like this for these guys.
Totally.
We've talked a lot about how this season is now like see what you have kind of season.
Play these guys, see what they've got.
But I guess I never really wrapped my head around, well, what if that is what you have?
Yeah.
You know?
Yeah.
I think the frustrating thing is, and this was staff wide today, but also Landon's struggled with this a lot recently, is like- Totally walks are really just like kinda over- overwhelming some of these games.
Yeah.
And this is a team that doesn't draw walks on the other side for the most part.
Exactly the problem.
So there, you have these innings where these guys are just standing flat-footed for 10 minutes.
So, it's kind of a staff wide problem in a lot of ways, and something they need to figure out with some of these guys.
'Cause it is something they preach quite often, like at least I, I know it's one of Tony's main tenets, and he's a former pitching coach, is be aggressive in the strike zone, and they've had a real problem with that.
Would like to give special shout out to Logan Webb and the rest of Saturday's staff.
Zero walks on Saturday.
Love that.
It's funny, like s- so much of the talk after Saturday's game with Tony, but also with Logan, was kind of, you know, setting the tone, um- showing everybody, and this is why Buster, he, he said it here on this podcast.
Like, one of the reasons to keep Logan Webb is that he is, he is the mentor for the next generation.
Totally.
You know, I hope guys are paying close attention to the way he's doing it, 'cause he's throwing 92, 93 and- Yep he has some, you know, certainly some of his stuff is excellent.
But, like, there's, there's a path there that I think Logan is trying to show, and, hasn't totally rubbed off yet on, on everyone else.
When you're young like that, it's just all about blowing it by guys, Alex.
Yeah, they're not even really fully good at that.
So, I mean, what- Not really, no.
These young guys are learning.
But I, I do think this was a weekend where I almost feel like on the flight to Cleveland you just tell everybody, like, "Hey, you have to re-watch Saturday's game."
Yeah.
And just emulate that.
And every- like everybody.
Young pitchers, relievers.
Like, throw more strikes, be in the zone.
Yeah.
A lot of you guys have better stuff than Logan Webb, but look what he's doing.
Look at the way he's attacking.
Look at the way he's competing.
Yeah.
They need to get more guys on, on that page.
I guess that's why he's Logan Webb and they aren't.
Logan Webb now at 1,100 career strikeouts.
We had a Jean Segura moment.
Or, or.
Did you see this?
I don't think they put the graphic on social media.
I love it, Alex.
I love it.
We had- We deserve it we literally had a Jean Segura moment, and it was my favorite because Logan's laughing and then covers his mouth with his glove.
And I was like, he, he thinks the same thing.
And he got after after He got asked afterwards and he went, "Yeah, I was a little confused by that, to be honest."
"I saw it on the board and was like, 'No way they're going to do this right now.'"
There was some clapping.
It was Norby.
Norby was in the box and Vogan said, he was like, "What's going on?"
And I'm like, "No, no.
Just get in the box.
We're fine."
So not quite.
Jean Segura did it to himself, but this was a, a celebration of it.
I, I've never I've covered this game for, since 2012.
120, 130, 140 games a year.
I've never seen the celebration of 1,100 strikeouts.
It's a real magical number for strikeouts, Alex.
It I think we're I get it.
We are This is tough on everybody.
Yeah.
This is tough on in-stadium people.
This is tough on the poor Giants social media people who are having to tweet through these games.
I get it.
You and I are podcasting twice a week.
Yep.
About this team.
They're- It's the best we gotta set a bar somewhere.
You know what?
I think that's fun enough though to I lower the bar now.
I lower the bar.
We're lowering it to- Yeah okay.
114 doubles.
Great work.
Light it up on the scoreboard.
Well, then- Take a moment then San Francisco Giants need to lean into this.
Yeah.
And I need a graphic for Logan Webb reaching 1,140 strikeouts.
Yeah, exactly.
Yeah.
I know they're waiting.
I think Willy's one homer away from 200.
There's some big ones out there, but.
Okay.
Yeah, maybe you just lean into this.
I think you ought to lean into it.
Bryce Eldridge now has 18 doubles in the big leagues.
Take a bow, Bryce.
Yeah.
Mid-game.
Let's go.
You could've been- 'Cause after a series like this, I am grasping for joy.
You could've been Honestly.
So.
Yes.
Yes.
Absolutely.
Other silver, not silver lining.
Other glowing moment, I guess, was Turner Hill got his first career hit in a soft line drive to right field.
It was one of those hits that when I used to play my, Ken Griffey Jr.
Baseball N64 game, you'd get thrown out at first.
Hitting into right field like that, and it always infuriated me.
Turner's speedy.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It, it was cool.
I, you know, he's gonna get a chance here.
I, they really like him.
Good story.
27 years old.
We talked about him a couple weeks ago here 'cause someone asked.
A, a very prescient, Giants talk listener said, "What can you tell me about Turner Hill?"
Yeah.
And I can tell you nobody else was asking that question.
And- We got a guy.
Yeah.
We got a guy.
Saw it coming.
We'll see where this goes with him.
I mean, it, it's There's some fit probably here with like It, it's not exact- exactly similar to Drew Gilbert, who's been really good the last few days.
It, it is a, a little bit similar.
Like, you're not gonna get a ton of power out of these guys.
You're, pretty good idea of the strike zone.
Left-handed hitters.
So we'll see what, what Turner brings to the table that's a little bit different.
But they really like him and wanna take a look here and, you know, it's the flip side of our whole first conversation about rebuild.
You do have these opportunities for guys like this that did not exist two months ago.
Yeah.
Yeah.
And I guess if we're going around to shout out more, shining moments for the young talent amidst a rough series.
Drew Gilbert, excellent game on Saturday.
Bryce Eldridge, fabulous home run.
Yeah.
There were moments.
The moments just didn't add up to nearly enough against a team that is embarrassing to lose to.
Yeah.
You know what's funny is I think we anticipated the entire season, like every Bryce homer would be thrown into this podcast and- Yeah every series would be analyzing.
He's, in very quick time, just become like, okay, Bryce is over there with Jung-hoo Lee and Rafe Devers.
Exactly.
And they're in the lineup every day.
It's scary.
I almost didn't wanna bring him up when we're talking about rookies.
Yeah.
No, who's in the bottom five?
No.
You know?
Like it's- Exactly he's, I mean, he's hitting third and it's like, yeah, no, obviously.
Yeah.
So.
Yeah.
Good for him.
Interesting, like, he's alternately never kind of became the rookie of the year candidate, but also is like pretty elevated now with the Giants, so.
Mm-hmm.
As he should be.
Fantastic.
Fantastic.
All right.
Well, I There's only so much you can dwell on losing a series to the Rockies at a point in the season where wins don't matter.
So we've, we've said a lot.
Again, this is kind of what to be expected after a sub, a well, well under 500 team trades away almost all of their productive assets at the trade deadline to invest in the future.
So we're looking ahead, um- But a tough look.
And again, we're what?
One game up from last place in the National League West?
It's separated by a game.
I think the Mets have pulled away a little bit, so it's a two-team race.
And I, you know, I do think there is something to be said for, this is an obvious point, but not finishing last in the division.
So- That's now the goal, right?
Yeah, and I, I do think it's actually like this was kind of a, a, a big swing game.
Um- Yeah there's the tiebreaker obviously, but you know, you could've got an extra game on them.
And also this game was, was there for them.
Yeah.
Like to your point, there were multiple outs in that inning and they were- Mm-hmm leading seven to six and, you know, that's certainly a team you're, you're not worried about even with the struggles the Giants bullpen has had.
Like, you can get in a bullpen battle with the Rockies and, and be okay, but- Yeah just kinda gave it away.
Yeah.
Yeah.
All right.
Let's talk, Giants news and roster moves.
First up, if you watched this series, you obviously saw Christian Koss at shortstop for three games as Willy Adames missed the whole series and might not even be ready for the first game as the Giants head to Cleveland.
This obviously is the lingering back injury we've been talking about- Yeah quite a bit on this podcast.
But now that he's off the field, does kind of raise some discussions about how long he had been on the field.
Yeah, and I, I think I have not gotten a good answer for why he's not on the injured list right now.
Yeah.
And I, I mean there's not like, there's not a lotta options.
Um- It's as easy as that just being, just being honest.
Like, there's not a lotta options, so it's not like you're, you know, uh- Now when you say that, do you mean the literal option, uppercase O or lowercase O?
No, I mean like, this is no knock 'cause I like Nate Freiman, but like Nate Freiman's probably the next man up if they- Yeah have to make a move, right?
And like he wasn't even really playing when he was here.
So, and I don't know that that changes much of what they do during games right now.
Yeah.
So maybe the, it's just an, an element of like if Willy misses seven days and you get him back for three, that's probably doesn't change the math anyway.
But- Yeah it is also weird 'cause he's getting Like this was like the old Angel Pagan move where he'd, his hamstring would be tight and he'd hang out, you know.
And, and now hang out's the wrong word.
Like he would, he'd fight the IL thing for like six, seven days and then- Yeah go on the IL.
Willy's gonna get pretty close to the 10 days.
So- Yeah it does feel like they should've just made it really easy, much clearer for everybody and just put him on the IL and said, "Hey, take the 10 days.
Get right."
It does sound like he should be okay with like just a little bit of rest and treatment here.
Yeah.
But it, it's a weird one 'cause also there's like not great options.
But I alm- I think this is a situation where it almost needs to be forced to be like take the 10 and then come back feeling right and like, you know, be able to help out a little bit.
Like, you know, come back looking more like yourself and- Yeah and you know, maybe they have a little bit more of a chance in some of these games.
'Cause a- as much as he's had a bad year, he's certainly still one of their best hitters in this situation and, and still capable of hitting the ball out and, and helping you out.
So, it's, it's kind of a strange one.
Yeah.
And I've gotten a lot of questions from listeners about, you know, the guys, veterans especially playing through injuries, being gritty, who makes that call?
Is that a leadership thing?
Obviously this is a problem that extends to Matt Chapman this season as well.
Yeah.
Yeah.
What, where do you stand on this?
What do you have to say to questions like that?
'Cause I'm certain you're getting them as well.
I have two very I get a ton of this.
I, I have two very different thoughts on this.
One, I do think this is Tony's biggest area for growth is, moving forward, is just a little bit more, you know, "I make the decision."
I- Yeah I am making this decision.
Like you need a couple.
And we were talking about this in April, like just the fact that like you need to get your bench involved.
You need to give- Mm-hmm some of these slumping guys the day off and just whether it's to clear their head for two days, get the bench involved.
Just mix it up a little bit.
We've been talking about this the entire season.
I think this is his main, for me, I think this is the main thing I've noticed watching him manage is like there needs to be a little bit more of, And I, I think this even extended to the lineup at times when they were trying- Yeah to stay alive.
Like you could tell there were days where you're like he only wants to move some of these guys down so far, and it took a while to just be like, "You know what?
We're ripping the Band-Aid off.
Bryce Elder just hitting second."
And- Yeah or we're moving this or moving this around.
Like remember how hot Jung Hoo Lee was and he was still behind some guys?
Yeah.
So I, I think there's probably a little bit more, a little bit more command that needs to be taken next year, in some of these situations.
I think that's something we've talked about all year and has been glaring all year, and I know even behind the scenes the Giants talk about it.
Like, "Hey, next year the, year two, like a little bit more, kick some ass a little bit more."
Yeah.
Um- It's that easy, right?
Yeah, but I mean you're, that's, that's the job.
Uh- 100%.
Now the flip s- the other side of that, I, I put Matt Chapman to the side because his thing was, I think his thing is weird in that there w- 10 days on IL wasn't gonna help him.
He needed- Yes surgery.
It's Yes.
It's a lingering either you're out out, or you can take it through the whole year and do your surgery in the off-season.
Yeah.
And surgery's eight to 12 weeks of rehab, which- Yeah you know, he got hurt in mid-April.
Didn't think it was that bad for a while, but let's say like you look up in May and you're like, "Eh, this isn't, this isn't great."
surgery almost ends your season from that point.
Yeah.
And at the very least it knocks you out as a team leader and as, you know, someone who's supposed to be one of this team's best players.
Knocks you out basically- until they're, this thing's decided.
Like- Mm-hmm you know, he's trying to help them stay around.
And the other interesting thing about Matt Chapman's season is he is defensively, like, well ahead of the field in defensive runs saved at third base.
You look at Out's Above Average, he's been really good.
Like, if he had played 120 games even this year instead of 84, I think he, like, pretty easily wins the Gold Glove at third base in the National League.
He still has, like a, he still could be a finalist just 'cause he has so many defensive runs saved.
So I, the, the defense was there every single day and I, I think he ends up being right around, right a tick below league average by WRC+ but ends up still being a useful player, and- Mm-hmm just someone who the, the IL was never gonna help him.
And so yeah, there was no point in doing, like, the 12-week surgery for him.
And it, and the last thing I'll tell you about the Chapman thing, I got this question a lot f- and I think it was, like, sarcastic people saying, like, "If only they had an in-house replacement right there in Casey Schmitt."
And it's like, yes.
Obviously.
Casey Schmitt was right there the whole time, and he could've played third, and we've seen that.
But they also needed him in left field for a stretch when, when Elliott went down.
And we've also seen what has happened when Casey got hurt, which maybe that doesn't happen, maybe it does happen, maybe it happens earlier.
We've seen what's behind those guys just- Yeah generally, and it's tough.
So it's, I, I think committing to a Chapman surgery and being like, "Casey Schmitt will handle it for 12 weeks," is, it sounds a lot better maybe in some people's heads than it actually is in practice or in reality.
Well, obviously Casey's off the board, but it sounds like reinforcements are on the way in the form of Marcelo Mayer, who's finally ready.
Giants' recent acquisition from the Red Sox.
Do you think we get a look at him in the Cleveland series?
Tony said back end of Cleveland is possible.
Okay.
We'll, we'll check what he did tonight.
He was playing third base tonight.
But it, it kind of like- Now, that lines him up very nicely for what comes next.
Yeah.
Yes.
It, it I don't see any reason why he wouldn't be in Boston on Friday.
That's fun.
You know, if you wanna have him play a couple more games in triple A and then travel on Thursday, I don't see any reason why he wouldn't be in Boston on Friday, given how much time he will have at that point, in the minor league.
I mean, not a whole lot, but as you and I are talking here, he got five at bats tonight in triple A- Mm-hmm at third base, and then he got six yesterday.
So he's, he's gonna, he's up around 13 at bats just in triple A, probably up around 20 when you count his time at Papago.
So, he should be there on Friday.
Okay.
Is that, I, it, I'm very excited about him heading straight to play the Red Sox.
Obviously he was a top prospect of theirs, didn't work out.
Early chance for, for something fun narrative-wise, for a redemption game.
But is that the kind of thing that gets in the head of a young player?
Or just like, whatever, it's all, it's all noise, let him play.
I don't think it'll get in his head.
Just- Mm-hmm I've, I've only met him a couple times, but just f- what I've heard about him, what I know about him, I think he's a very confident young man.
He obviously is a f- you know, fourth overall pick.
He's been a star his whole life.
Yep.
So, I, I don't think that'll be a problem.
I think probably logistically, I don't know if he left anything in Boston, but probably would like to go back.
Like- Oh, that's smart.
Feed the cat he, he got traded.
Like, I mean, probably wants some guys he wants to see.
Mm-hmm.
But just to the point, like, I had this conversation with a few people today.
I mean, some people on social media, but also at the ballpark talking about it.
You sh- you want him to go to Boston.
Yeah.
And, and be like, "I am going to show you guys that you made a huge mistake."
Yeah.
And if someone doesn't want to be in that situation, I don't think you want, you want them to be a future star anyway.
Like, it's- Exactly.
So I, I think the guys who are good are built this way, that they wanna g- you, I, you know, you know even though Rafael Devers doesn't talk to us very often, like, you know he's excited about going back on Friday.
Mm-hmm.
And trying to hit four home runs over three games.
Like- Yeah yeah, I don't really see I know some people are, like, nervous.
I don't really see the downside.
I mean, if he has a bad series, he has a bad series.
Whatever.
So it's, he's out there anyway.
I think there's upside and I think there's a chance for him to go out there and, and, and, give this team some energy and, and also maybe feed off of going back to Boston and hit the ground running.
That, it's, it's really fun.
I kind of had almost forgot with the Mayer angle, the, the Devers angle.
Good Red Sox team vying for a playoff spot.
All of a sudden, the Giants come in with, with two guys that, I don't know, potentially could, could have series to show them that they've been burned by the Red Sox.
That's fun.
Yeah.
That's real fun.
And also, I mean, the, the, the Mayer angle would be a lot bigger if Devers was not coming back.
Yeah.
Like, he is gonna be wildly overshadowed by Rafael Devers returning.
Yes, that's true.
So I don't think there's much concern there.
I, I, I hope he's on the field on Friday.
All right.
I'm in.
I love that.
Another big news in the Giants world is the MLB pipeline rankings and Baseball America rankings have been updated.
And to fulfill your pre-season bold prediction, Giants are number five.
Alex, we almost got skunked here on Giants Talk in our bold predictions.
I'm not gonna reread them because they are so embarrassingly bad.
Maybe we'll go over them at the end of the year again.
But hey, we got one.
You got one.
Did I make this an official bold prediction, or did I do, like, a- It was like a, a rider.
It was an add-on.
But we're gonna give it to you 'cause we need it.
We did so bad, we're, we're counting this.
So, yeah.
Top five.
You know what?
The, the p- MLB pipeline, board about him was really interesting.
Said this is the highest they've ever had him- Mm-hmm since they started doing it in 2015.
Previous high was number eight.
They jumped from 19 to five.
Over the course of the year.
Which they said was the second highest in-season jump they've had in their rankings.
And they also mentioned it's, like, basically unprecedented in their rankings for someone to go from 28 at the start of last year to five by the end of this year.
So good job, everybody.
Um- Okay.
Yeah.
It's the It is the biggest bright spot of this season for the organization is, is, this farm system.
Now, could you imagine if they were playing like this and we were in this situation and didn't have the future looking the way it did?
You and I might have to have a serious discussion about how much longer this podcast goes in that case.
I would be posting myself for free agency, yeah.
Yeah.
This would be Demanding a trade.
You'd be calling Rocky's Talk.
Exactly.
Exactly.
A- I wanna pepper in a question here, think it's a good fit, from listener Sally, related to the farm system.
Who gets the credit for the Giants being a top five farm system according to Baseball America?
Buster Posey?
Randy Winn?
Someone else?
This is obviously a, a lot of flack thrown towards Buster Posey in the past few years.
A lot of it well deserved.
But as you just said, astounding turnaround of the farm system.
I'm gonna somewhat cheat, but I also think this is the true answer, is everybody.
And this is a lot of people.
You should be a politician.
I- but, like, you know, Kyle Haynes has been through the ups and downs with this group.
And so- Mm-hmm like, he's, he's right there alongside Randy Winn and all of their guys in the minors.
They've The development this year, I think that the key thing is not the fact that they acquired, what?
Seven prospects at the deadline, and they had a good draft and had the number four ov- overall pick.
You go down the line of their top guys.
Joshua Gonzalez having an excellent season.
Luis Hernandez having an excellent season.
Johnny Lovell having an unbelievable season.
Gavin Ceelean having a great season.
Dakota Jordan, Parks Harbor, Bo Davidson, they all, all got promoted.
Jacob Bresnahan's been really good.
Like, it You go down the line and basically to a man, they've shown improvement, they've shown what you wanna see.
So I, I give a lot of credit to everybody in that department.
I think a lot of credit to Joe Salermo and his group in international scouting, because you look at, like, their top three on Baseball America's list, it is Gonzalez, Hernandez, and Johnny Lovell.
And those are international additions.
A couple- Yeah very expensive.
Johnny Lovell, less expensive.
But to get the number one player in back to back years, we podcasted very excitingly about that in December, and it has come to fruition that these guys are who they thought.
Yep.
Buster and, and his whole group, they've done a good job at the deadlines.
They did a good job in the draft with Michael Holmes and all those guys.
And then I think you have to mention Farhan Zaidi and some of the guys who are no longer here.
Because you go through, like, their top 10.
Joshua was signed.
He was That was done basically before- Before Buster came in.
Luis Hernandez is technically a Buster addition, but we do know these international guys are years in advance.
Johnny Lovell was here before.
Bo Davidson.
Jacob Bresnahan was in a trade, the Alex Cobb trade.
So it's a pretty even split actually when you look at, like, their top 10 of guys who are post-Buster taking over and guys who are pre-Buster.
So- All right they've developed them very well.
But I think you also have to, you know, a little bit of a tip of the cap to some of the guys who aren't here.
Bryce Eldridge was a, was drafted under Farhan.
Mm-hmm.
So, they left, you know, this, as is often the case, they've left a little bit more, uh- Yeah behind than, than people thought at the time.
They left the house not in horrible order- Yes for the new regime.
All right.
Well, whoever gets the credit, maybe it's everyone, it's super exciting that it's official.
We've been touting it for a while that they're gonna have one of the best farm systems, one of the best prospect lists in baseball.
And seeing that number five, seeing that number four feels real, man.
Did you see who's number one?
I Don't.
Don't you.
Don't you.
It's fake number one.
They've been skulking lately though, right?
Fake number one.
Asterisk number one.
Dodgers.
For those, for those listening, the Dodgers are number one, because why wouldn't they be?
They have 17, top 100 outfielders on their double-A team, but somehow can't score three runs a game right now, so.
I don't know.
Yes.
Dude, Dodgers fans are going insane right now.
I, at the same time that Tony was angry at the podium, Dave Roberts was ripping into- his team.
It, it's- Yep truly incredible.
Um- Yeah yeah.
They're But they do this every year.
They really do.
Like- They have this every year, right?
And then they get in the postseason and they're like, "Hey, guess what?
Tyler Glasnow's our long reliever."
Yeah.
So.
It's basically what, what my, my Dodgers fan friends are like texting me freaking out.
Like, just I'm gonna mute you.
Why are you I, we know how this works, man.
You, we did this last year.
Stop freaking out.
Yeah.
I will say, did you get a little preview of postseason?
Like, I mean, you're gonna be all on, like, the Miz train, right?
Just watching him throw 104 past Ohtani.
It- That's my guy now.
Wear a Milwaukee T-shirt.
So- Yep.
I've got a Brewers hat.
You know I got a Brewers hat.
It was a little like I was thinking about it.
I'm like, I, can you imagine Giants fans watching, like, Kyle Harrison against the Dodgers in the postseason?
The- That gives th- certainly an easy route right there.
Yeah.
So that would be fun.
Yeah.
Well, as we talk about looking forward to the future, let's throw in one more piece of Giants news.
Something we, I, I think we talked about already on this podcast when it was rumored or, or- Yeah unconfirmed.
But 2028, we officially are bringing the MLB All-Star Game back to Oracle Park.
A quote from Rob Manfred in a press release, "With its a passionate fan base, world-class ballpark, and rich baseball history, San Francisco will be an outstanding host for All-Star Week, which culminates in one of Major League Baseball's best traditions, the Midsummer Classic."
So that's exciting.
What was it?
'07 was the last one.
It was a lot of fun.
Barry Bonds' last, All-Star Game.
The, the Ichiro moment.
Very upset.
It was a fun game.
The Home Run Derby.
So it's gonna be good to have it back.
What did Rob call the ballpark?
A world-class ballpark.
Not according to USA Today.
What?
Did you see the rankings?
No.
I think they were, like, number six or s- Fake news.
It was, it was a hilarious, great- Fake news.
Clickbait.
Lists are clickbait, Alex.
It was.
It got me.
It got everybody.
It was a hilarious ranking.
It's infuriating.
Yeah.
'Cause it, it had the Giants, I think, number six, and the complaint was that it's starting to show its age.
Which, look, fair in some respects.
Number one and number two were Wrigley and Fenway, so.
They, they look as beautiful- Yeah as the day they were built, Alex.
You can't write a whole paragraph about the Giants' ballpark showing its age.
I'm gonna be honest, I, I might have done this on the podcast already, but I can't give my Wrigley takes because I'll get canceled as a baseball fan.
Like- Yeah I am not a Wrigley guy at all.
I do love Wrigley.
Exactly.
But it was, like, complaining about the size of the Giants' concourses and I'm like, "Have you tried to walk around Wrigley?"
Like, what are we- Yes what are we talking about?
You're not allowed to.
You can't move, so.
Yes.
Yes.
Can't move.
And look, there are certainly complaints about Oracle Park.
We talk about them all the time here.
Yes.
But it's showing its age is not one of them.
Yeah.
If you wanna say they're number six because I do not like the size of my crispy chicken, you know what?
Maybe I'll give that to you.
Fair.
Yeah.
Fair.
But not it's showing its age.
We've, we've gone off But yes, i- kind of an open secret the last year the Giants would host the All-Star Game.
Mm-hmm.
Very cool.
I hadn't thought about it until just now, but I guess you and I, if we're still doing this, are still allowed to do this, need to I don't know.
Are we setting up a booth there?
Like, it'll be like- I'm, I'm in like, fair territory and then Giants talk right next to it or something.
So.
You and I, podcasting from center field during the Home Run Derby.
Yeah.
Will do.
I'm excited.
I'm, I've actually never covered an All-Star Game, so.
I haven't either.
When the Giants were hosting the All-Star Game in '07, one of the Kruko boys was getting married and we were all at that wedding and I didn't get to go to the game.
It was a lovely wedding, I'm not complaining.
Congrats to you guys, but- Yeah I did not get to go.
Yeah, sorry.
We'll, we'll run it.
We- we'll go big in two years.
So.
Yes.
I'm in.
and it, it really is, like, just a fantastic derby spot.
And- Yeah.
It's good you know, Bryce Eldridge is probably a no-brainer at that point, so.
You'd hope so.
Yeah.
Should be fun.
Yeah.
Should be fun.
Yeah.
All right.
Let's transition to a quick remembering of some guys before we do mail bag questions and preview Giants heading to Cleveland.
Up top, Elliot Ramos, now a New York Yankee and I'm gonna say not yet a beloved New York Yankee.
He has not earned his pinstripes yet.
Nope.
In that they're letting him know.
Three for 36?
Three for 36.
That is tough.
Lowest average in the first 10 games by a New York Yankee since 1915.
That is really rough.
And I don't Did you see the clip of they were like, "Yeah, it doesn't look like he's running that hard down the first baseline."
I did.
And inexcusable- Yeah to be in this situation and not just busting ass every play.
Yeah.
I One, I don't think the Yankees are gonna trade with Buster again for, like, five years 'cause- that's the two, like, all-stars that have gone over there and.
But t- I honestly am a little surprised because Elliot's such an energetic guy and such a, you know- Mm-hmm feeds off the crowd and, like, I thought he would, he'd just really feed into being a New York Yankee and, um- Built for a ballpark like that.
Yeah.
And then, Camilo Doval looked bored all the time and I- Yep I thought that's impossible at Yankee Stadium and, and when you're back in the race, and he was horrible there.
So.
Yeah.
I don't know.
This I, I honestly would've thought both those guys would succeed.
It's early for Elliot.
Um- Yeah but I would've thought both those guys would do pretty well there.
Yeah.
And m- kind of a remembering some guy.
We've certainly seen him on television, at Giants games, but Stryker Pence, nephew of Hunter Pence.
One of the top prospects for next year's MLB draft.
Impressed at the high school All-American Game.
The kid's a stud.
I met him.
He's massive.
He's, like, this huge left-handed hitter who throws 100.
So.
Whoo.
yeah.
He, he is It, it's gonna Look, w- the Giants have a, a Bonds coming, a Kent coming.
There's a Kemp.
Matt Kemp's nephew in the system now.
Mm-hmm.
So can Hunter's nephew get in the system?
Maybe.
I have to imagine there's no way he falls to a- Yeah spot the Giants could get.
If they got, if they were picking fourth next year, he still might not fall to the spot the Giants can get.
Yeah.
I'm curious to see where he ends up.
'cause he's been throwing 100 for, I think, for a couple years.
Yeah.
So he's, he's very impressive.
Good.
Good for him.
If you see his, his highlights come across your timeline and you're like, "Pence," yeah, no, that's, that's Hunter's nephew.
Hunter's nephew, Stryker.
All right.
Mail bag questions from listeners up next, Alex.
We always We're gonna have our, our Kruko memory we've been doing every episode since his retirement was announced, plus Giants at Guardians.
But before we go any further, Giants Talk is presented by Mancini's Sleepworld.
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Okay, let's rattle off a couple of mailbag questions from Giants Talk listeners.
If you're listening to this and would like a question answered by me and Alex, mostly Alex, go ahead and send them to us wherever you can find us on social media.
We'll go ahead and add them to our list.
Yeah, what's up?
Can I give you our first ever live mailbag question?
I want it.
You and I Someone just sent us a message and said, "Please mention what Josh Vargas Gonzalez just did."
So I pulled up- Okay Twitter, and he hit a walk-off ball off the wall in left field for the San Jose Giants.
So.
Love it.
Number five farm system.
Might be number four by the time we, we podcast.
Yeah.
Redo the episode.
The numbers are bumping.
All right.
Fantastic.
Once again, the future is coming.
Our first non-live, our first pre-recorded, pre-listed Giants Talk question is from AJ.
AJ says, "As cool as the Eddie's Leonard story is, why is, or was, now he getting at-bats over Jonah Cox, who's completely tearing it up in Triple A?
On that same note, why wouldn't they want to see Parks Harbor over Buddy Kennedy?
Seems like such a great opportunity to see these guys who could have a real future here to get some great experience in these next few weeks."
We had a lot of Buddy Kennedy questions.
Yes.
These are two different cases.
I, I think in Jonah's case, you know, he missed some time.
He never played in Triple A. I do think- Yeah they wanted him to get- Honestly, I'd kind of forgotten.
We talked about it when he first came up obviously, but I forgot he made that big jump.
And when it first happened- Yeah we were kind of like, "Wow, is this gonna be only for a week or two?"
And look, I, I wish they would find a way to play him every day, but they're gonna play Drew Gilbert a lot.
He has earned that.
They need to take a look at Barracodo as well.
Now Turner Hill's here.
They're not gonna play Jonah Cox at second base a whole lot.
Mm-hmm.
So I do think there was an element of like, "Let's get him some more at-bats in Triple A."
I, I think that's fine.
The Buddy Kennedy thing is very specific and it's one of those weird ones where the Giants can't come out and say this, but they're waiting for Marcelo Meyer to be ready.
And in the meantime, they don't really have And Willy Adames is on, on the bench.
They don't really have many options on the left side of their infield.
Yeah.
And Christian Cox can play both those positions, but he's playing shortstop right now 'cause Willy's not ready.
They played Basabe at third base for one game in San Diego, and it was not great.
So Furman was purely a second baseman when he was here.
Jonah Cox can't play.
So they're waiting for Meyer.
They're waiting for Jesus Rodriguez, who is gonna play a lot of infield whenever he returns from the injured list.
I think the plan is for him to play a fair amount of third base if he can handle that as well.
And, you know, in the meantime, they're Someone has to play and they're not gonna add someone to the 40-man roster- Mm-hmm Parks Harbor, and potentially keep him from playing in the minor leagues for two or three months next season just to fill in a few games while they wait for Marcelo Meyer and, you know, Willy Adames and Jesus Rodriguez and all these guys to get healthy and, and get back.
So this is a stopgap.
I know it was like the numbers were really bad the last few weeks.
We had a better weekend than you did, you know, the previous games.
But like, sometimes you just kind of need to They're making the right decision here I think with the Parks Harbor thing.
Like it's- Yeah.
That last part you said, we talked about in either the last episode of Giants Talk or the one before that, about how next season's lockout is gonna impact, guys on the 40-man and Minor League Baseball, and that has to be one of the biggest parts of this equation.
Yeah.
I mean, it's not the only thing, but it, it is part of this.
And I, I think the other element here is like they really Meyer's gonna play every day.
Yeah.
Like, whether it's second or third, he's gonna play every day.
They still wanna see a little bit of Basabe.
And then they wanna see more of Rodriguez.
So there's not a whole lot of at-bats when guys get healthy, but there's this little gap here where because of Adames' injury and because Meyer needed a little bit more time, there's this gap and it's having to be filled by other guys.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So.
All right.
Next question is from Ren.
"When Tony was hired, you talked about how his college roots would make him well-versed on college players in upcoming drafts.
Was Tony consulted on at all for this draft?
Did he try to recruit any players the Giants took when they were in high school, like Eldridge?
Did he coach against any of them?"
Um- yeah I don't think.
Does UCSB play Tennessee?
I, I've lost track.
College, like I don't Schools are like in the Big 10 when they're in college.
I was gonna say.
At first I was about to do like a snarky, "Well, obviously-" Yeah "the Gauchos aren't..." But now I don't know.
I think Flora was not on his radar to come to Tennessee.
Okay.
So he was, he was like, he was always going to UCSB to pitch for Checketts, and he knew about him obviously.
Mm-hmm.
He was consulted.
He did a fair amount of, of, chipping in before the draft.
A lot of the guys he saw, a lot of the last few years.
I, I don't think ultimately the guys they drafted were that It doesn't sound like they were that connected to him.
Mm-hmm.
And it's, it's Flora who he was really, you know, didn't think was ever gonna have a chance to come to Tennessee, so didn't really recruit him.
And then it was two high school pitchers after that.
So like it wasn't and then, you know, even like Peyton Bonds, as cool a story as that, like he's kind of He's at Rutgers, not Right?
Like, he's not at- Yeah at Tennessee.
So, I don't think he was actually that connected to their draft class other than like, you know.
Like this isn't draft class, this is trade deadline.
But like Caden Kent wanted to play for him.
So he, he has all these connections, but I don't think this class in particular ended up with many, if any guys who were like Vitello guys a year ago.
Yeah.
But he did know a lot of the guys who were in the mix in the first round and I, I think was involved quite a bit.
Yeah.
Now it might not have been any Giants, but I did see six Tennessee volunteers were drafted with the highest being St. Louis Cardinals with the 32nd pick in the first round.
So we, we do have Tony guys in the league.
That'll be fun story, assuming he manages long enough to have those guys make it up and have reunions like that.
But yeah.
Like you said, the guys they ended up picking don't really overlap with- Yeah his experience in, in college managing.
Yeah.
Next question is from Ernie.
"Why trade for Marcelo Mayer?
Seems like he'll have a lot of roadblocks at third or anywhere in the field."
Why trade for anybody?
No, I don't- Best player you can get, I guess.
Yeah, no.
I t- I mean, look, he's at like a top 15 prospect a year ago.
Like they were- Yeah they were thrilled when that was put on the table.
Mm-hmm.
And, you make that move every time, and you figure it out later.
Now, the interesting one for me is like six months from now, eight, whatever, whenever we're having this conversation, whenever this lockout ends or we're talking positional previews and all that, what does it mean for Mayer and Schmidt?
'Cause we had just given second base to Casey Schmidt.
I- Yeah I think odds are decent one of them ends up in left field.
Okay.
Like next year if both these guys are s- still here, and, if Mayer's good the rest of this year and they feel good about him.
So, which we've seen Casey can do already.
But you get the talented 23-year-old in here and you figure it out, you know, a few months from now, so.
I welcome our new opening day left fielder.
Maybe someone yeah, start a new streak.
Or maybe someone's traded for a pitcher in January- Yeah or something, you know?
But they, they got it.
By all I haven't seen, I haven't talked to a single person in the game who was like, "I don't know about that trade."
It was like a no-brainer for everyone I've talked to.
Yeah.
Our next one is from Tom.
Tom says, "You guys talk about next year's rotation and mention many guys coming back from injury, but I haven't heard anything about Birdsong lately.
How's his rehab coming along, and is he a contender for the big league team next year?"
Yeah.
The, the problem for Hayden is he had surgery March 25th.
So you're looking at usually closer to a year and a half for this one before you're like fully back.
I mean it He'll be back on the mound early next year.
He'll be rehabbing, but probably more of a realistic second half option.
Mm-hmm.
And then we'll see where he's at.
Like the last time we really saw him he, he had real trouble s- throwing strikes, and we were like, "Is Hayden Birdsong the closer?
Is he..." You know?
So I, I don't know.
I, I think you go into next year with, with the th- Randy Rodriguez should be totally fine, but you go into the next year I think with the thought that if Hayden comes back healthy and is ready to help you in the rotation, that's awesome.
Yeah.
Is ready to be a big part of the bullpen, that's awesome as well.
But it's, it's hard when a guy's coming back from surgery and he had it, you know, to the point where he's gonna miss the start of next year.
Although maybe not.
We'll see when, when next year starts.
But it's hard to count on him too much.
But he's doing fine.
He's doing everything.
Just, just the, the math is what it is on those surgeries.
Yeah.
Next question is from Robert.
"SFGate is reporting that the Giants and KNBR's relationship is fraying.
Is there any credence to this?
I know they have a few more years left on their recent deal, but with all these media juggernauts taking over local media, is KNBR the next to go?"
Alex, I'll let you start with this.
I don't know that I wanna get dragged down into this.
This, this sounds tricky.
Don't ever say we don't answer mail bag.
You send us a mail bag question- Ah we'll put it on here.
I read the article.
I did as well.
I read that article.
I, I saw it come across my feed and, and I am not ashamed to say I was like, "Oh, juicy.
Let me see."
And I'm gonna be honest, I didn't get much juice from it.
I don't think there was much juice.
Yeah.
And I, I, I, I took a bite of that article and was like, "Oh, yeah.
Okay."
They've had some very public- Gaffes notable Yeah.
And we always talk about Giants' unforced errors.
There have been some unforced errors there as well.
Totally.
So yeah, is the relationship rocky?
Stronger than ever?
Stronger than ever?
But I They'll be fine.
Yeah.
So everyone, everyone shows up next spring happy.
So everyone's- Yeah everyone's annoyed right now at everything, so.
Exactly.
Nerves are raw.
Tensions are high.
It is what it is.
It'll be fine.
I also don't Like I, I can't imagine that changing.
And w- we'll see what the CBA does to media rights and all that, but.
Mm-hmm.
No, I think they'll be fine.
Yeah.
So.
I'd agree with you there.
Uh- Yeah.
Maybe just the, you know I, it, I give credit to Buster, like throwing a little dig in the last time he was on, like make sure your mics are off.
So.
I liked that a lot.
Yeah.
That, it kinda You end up with the upper hand there.
It's, it's a- Yeah.
It's all good it's a good move.
Look, the games aren't gonna be on Giants talk, so we're- Yeah they, they gotta be, they'll be okay anyway.
They gotta be somewhere.
Yeah.
Next one from Nick.
"Having both Frank Anderson and Justin Message as pitching coaches seems redundant.
I rarely hear them mentioned post-game from the pitchers, which is odd compared to years past.
Do you think both will return next year?"
Good.
You're just backing up awkward questions here.
Like.
Yeah.
I don't even know if we are allowed to answer things like this.
I don't think it's redundant.
I think, you know, Frank's more of like a, I mean, he does some stuff with prospects.
He does some stuff, more stuff behind the scenes.
Like Justin Message is the traditional pitching coach, the mound meeting guy.
So I, I don't think that's a factor.
I, I think they've had that, they've had that template here before, and it has worked.
Mm-hmm.
What I will say is I think it's fair to say it has not been a good season for the pitching staff.
Yeah.
I don't think we've seen notable growth, from a lot of guys.
So I do think that'll be And this is not, We can answer this.
Like I, this is- I'm sure this is gonna be discussed at length the first couple weeks of October.
Yeah.
And the last couple weeks of the season.
Like, this is just, it's part of the reality of that job, and you and I hate talking about coaches' jobs because those guys grind and they, they make less money than everyone there.
And, um- It worked hard but it is part of the reality, is that seasons like this generally lead to some coaching changes, and I think they're gonna take a You know, they, I, I mean Buster and Zach and, and their front office, and Tony are gonna have to take a long look at everybody, and, and, you know, figure out what This goes back to what we talked about at the beginning.
This, this has been a mess at times.
Like- Yeah let's take a long look at everybody.
I don't think anyone should feel I don't think there's gonna be a lot of changes, but I also just, having been around coaches for 15 years, like, none of them feel comfortable in September of a season like this.
Yeah, I, that's the biggest part.
I think any changes that happen will be more to do with the results of 2026 than any redundancies on the staff.
I have no problem with big coaching squads on a big league team.
Throw bodies at that.
Get specialized guys duplicating efforts.
That's fine- Yeah with me.
Pretty sure the Dodgers have a massive group of coaches.
Yeah, and look, they're Like, I saw tweets today about firing their hitting coach.
Yeah.
So, it's part of it.
I think it's been a tough year for a lot of those guys.
And, I do think we'll see some changes to the staff because the Giants are gonna finish, like, 25 games under 500.
And- Yeah this is the old thing.
Like, they're not gonna change Tony out, and you can't fire the players.
So, who usually takes the fall after a season like this?
It's some other pieces usually.
Yeah.
So.
The hosts of Giants Talk.
But, yeah, one of us.
Guess who?
All right, one more question.
Maybe should've put this one up with Striker Pence.
From Cam, "Assuming there are no changes to the draft rules in the new CBA, do you know the highest the Giants can select in the 2027 MLB draft?
I know there are anti-tanking rules that prohibit teams of certain market sizes from picking within a certain range in consecutive years."
Yeah, the highest they can pick is 10th.
Um- Okay I tried to go through today some of the teams that are around them in the standings and what their, you know, some are There's different situations for teams based on market sizes, and it was like, it got too messy, and I'm like, "We'll see where this is at the end of the year."
Like, the- Yeah the Royals, the A's, the teams like that.
But, the highest they can pick is 10th, unless this gets changed in the new CBA, which they're- All right expensive, but probably not a huge chance.
Yeah.
All right, before we move on to Giants and Guardians, we're gonna do our new every episode tradition, a Mike Krukow memory from a listener.
From Tom.
Tom says, "I'm a retired firefighter, and my coworker's son is an ex-MLB player, Jason Castro.
Me and two fire department buddies went to Houston to see his debut.
Just happened it was Giants, it was versus Giants and Lincecum in 2010.
He had a great game, single in his first at bat and threw out a runner, but the Giants won the game.
The next day, we're killing time in a mall with the Castro family, and we run into Krukow.
One of us said hello and explained why we were there.
I'll never forget him saying, 'I love Jason Castro fans because they're also Giants fans.'
That night he talked about meeting all of us on the broadcast, so when we got home late that night and walked into the fire station, the guys on duty said, 'You met Krukow, huh?'
I said, 'Yeah, how do you know that?'
And they told me he talked about it on the air."
That's an awesome story.
That is a great story.
Awesome story, and I think anyone who ever watched Jason Castro face the Giants knows that they gave him special shout-outs every single time.
So, now it makes sense.
Now, now we know the origin of that.
Thanks for the story, Tom.
If you have a Mike Krukow story, just like a mailbag question, send it our way.
We'd love to share it in an upcoming episode of Giants Talk.
Before we wrap this up, Alex, the Giants are hopping on a plane heading to my birth city, Cleveland, Ohio, to take on the Cleveland Guardians, who are 60 and 65 and a game and a half out of a playoff spot in the American League.
What a league.
I, I, w- I, I mean, I, we don't need to spend too much time on this because we are running long, but is this year's AL, like, exposing how bad of an idea it was to add that extra wild card?
Possibly.
We were never- If they, if a, if a sub 500 team makes it, does that just show obviously to everyone that it was a bad idea?
Well, the crazy thing is the Central sucks.
'Cause we, we realize that every time the Giants face one of them and we do the preview.
Yes.
And then we've seen some of the West teams recently, and they suck as well.
They're awful.
So, like, two-thirds of that league is horrible.
It's horrible.
But, like, four of those teams are gonna be in Or two, two or s- two of those teams are gonna be in the playoffs.
Yes.
It is, it is crazy what's going on over there m- over there in the American League.
But Giants are heading to Cleveland.
Who do we have on the mound?
It is Carson Whisenhunt versus Foster Griffin.
TBD versus Parker Messick, and Landon Root versus Gavin Williams.
Good pitchers on Cleveland's side.
It sh- should be Hauser.
We'll see what they- Okay what they do there.
The big story here, there's a couple old friends.
Stephen Vogt, Alyssa Nakken is, is in their front office.
Great.
But the big story is Giants versus Patrick Bailey.
So- All right.
Reunion or reunion.
Patrick knows this team very well, although they also have like 12 new guys, so maybe he doesn't know them that well.
So has a little bit of an advantage there.
But, I do think, like, we'll, you know, I'm gonna write this and we'll do it on the pregame show and all that, but this is a, I think a time to, like, everyone's gonna look back and be like, "Where did this end up?"
Um- Yeah and it's weird because the Giants are all banged up right now at catcher, but I actually think they ended up okay.
Yeah.
W- when we see Patrick Bailey this series, I'm sure there will be big moments.
We're gonna get maybe not much on offense, but someone thrown out, some pitches framed, some things that make you say, "Wow, I miss him on the Giants."
Yeah.
We can miss him and also think the Giants made the right call there.
Yeah.
I mean, offensively, Giants catchers since Bailey got traded, 65 WRC plus.
Patrick's at 71 in Cleveland, which is way better than he was here earlier in the year, but still not really a huge difference.
Giants catchers have eight homers.
That includes Eric Haase, who went crazy for, like, two days at Dodger Stadium.
Bailey has five.
And then Bailey's at .3 F war, which is much lower than it's been in the past, where remember he was always still so valuable.
Mm-hmm.
Even when he wasn't hitting.
And Giants catchers since the trade are at .2.
So it, it's somewhat of a wash.
I s- I think the Giants pitchers have missed Patrick's game calling- Yeah at times.
I also think Daniel Suzuk came a long way over the course of the year, and he looks like someone who can really be part of the solution going forward.
But the main thing for me is, you know, they ended up with pretty good high school pitching prospect in Bolaman.
Yeah.
And we'll see what happens with Tugboat, but that 29th pick might end up being a pretty good, pretty good player for them.
So that's, that might be the real win from this trade is, like, kind of being okay at catcher and then getting someone who now is, is a, a good left-handed pitching prospect in your system.
And the other thing- Yeah that I think got missed at the time, which I, I didn't realize until the last few days just talking to some people about it, was they got that pool money, but also you can go 5% over your pool money.
So that kind of multiplied, like added like $160,000 extra- Oh addition to the pool money to what they could spend.
And the Giants ended up spending every single dollar that they- Mm-hmm were allowed to spend.
So I You can't make an exact connection to, like, were they able to get Wechter done because they had the extra money?
Were they able to get somebody done later in the draft 'cause Like, that money gets spread around.
But it did help them ultimately sign 19 of 21 draft picks.
Yeah.
So for this year alone, I think, you know, obviously I think I'd still prefer Patrick Bailey.
But I think down the line they might look back and go, "We, we did okay here."
Yeah, it was an investment.
All right.
Well, you already mentioned Steven Vogt.
You mentioned Alyssa Nakken.
I also want to shout out Giants, former Giants PR intern, now Guardians PR staff member, Sam Stack.
F- old former friend of mine.
And then we started doing something, I don't remember if we dropped it off, just kind of previewing the opposing team's stadium for fans visiting.
So I looked into Progressive Field in Cleveland a little bit, and it seems like they specialize in wacky hot dogs.
Alex, have you had any of the wacky hot dogs in Cleveland?
I don't think so.
We were there two or three years ago.
I'm talking a slider dog with pimento mac and cheese, bacon, and Froot Loops on it.
I'm talking they used to have one with, like, sriracha and, and food dye, bright green relish, and som- and PB&J on it.
Stuff like that.
Novelty dogs, I guess one would say.
I'm obviously the novelty ballpark food guy.
I, I have not had a lot of success with novelty hot dogs.
They're- Yeah, that doesn't sound great to me.
It's Yeah.
It's not The Alex Eats of hot dogs were not my favorite episodes.
So.
I will say, not as part of the novelty dogs, just also in the park, they apparently have a Aladdin's dog that is a Lebanese hot dog with hummus, and that has rave reviews as well.
So I would probably pick that rather than the Froot Loop dog if you're traveling.
But if you do get a wacky dog, I would love you s- to send a picture to me or Alex.
Yeah.
No, this, that one sounds good.
But- Yeah, that one sounds really good.
Some of the other novelty dogs I've had.
You know, had the Seattle dog a month ago.
It's horrible.
Yeah.
So.
Yep.
Not a lot of success there.
Yeah.
All right.
Well, after Cleveland, the Giants head to Boston.
Giants Talk will be there for that.
Actually, both of us on site.
Oh, boy.
So that'll be fun.
until then, don't forget to subscribe to Giants Talk wherever you listen to your podcasts.
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