Wednesday, August 20, 2003
Bar-ry! Bar-ry! Bar-ry! Bar-ry! Bar-ry! Bar-ry! Bar-ry! Bar-ry! Bar-ry!
A third consecutive MVP award is this much closer following last night's come-from-behind 5-4 win over Atlanta. Barry's walk-off jack, his second in a month, in his first game back with the club after taking a week off, ends an excrutiating losing streak at six games. And nobody please dare say that this guy doesn't deserve the award. Welcome back, Barry. We needed you. Your replacements in left field--Jeffrey Hammonds, Todd Linden, Tony Torcato--went a combined 0-for-15. Oh, and did you see Barry's catch of that sinking line drive off the bat of Rafael Furcal in the fifth? (Take THAT, Phil Rogers.)
The victory now puts the Giants just 6.5 games behind Atlanta for first in the N.L. We--
Oh yeah. Ahem. The win keeps San Francisco's lead at 8.5 over Arizona, while the Braves' lead over Philly remains at a tense, uhh, 11.5 games. Meanwhile three mediocre teams are battling for a weak first-place in something called the Central Division.
As The N.L. Stands: The Giants and Braves have big leads; Houston, Chicago and St. Louis are really close in the Central in what appears to be a second-place-goes-home situation; and the wild-card race has Philadelphia leading Florida by just a half-game.
As The N.L. Should Be: Atlanta's lead in the N.L. West would have shrunk to 6.5 with last night's thriller, and the Giants would have a chance to move even closer today. In the N.L. East, Philadelphia and Florida would still be separated by a half-game, but the race would be not for the wild card but for first place (!!!). Meanwhile, teams with records as unimpressive as the Astros', Cardinals' and Cubs', would rightfully be further back in the pack. None of them is on pace to win even 90 games. Right now, the "exciting" races are for third and fourth place, rather than for two first-place spots. And this is usually how it winds up. Edge to: The Way It Should Be.
Giants Make Trade: San Francisco picked up Eric Young from the Brewers in exchange for minor league pitcher Greg Bruso. It's not a season-breaker, but I like it anyway. I like Young's combination of pop and speed, and he'll do nicely to fill in where there are trouble spots. And we've had many of them lately.
The victory now puts the Giants just 6.5 games behind Atlanta for first in the N.L. We--
Oh yeah. Ahem. The win keeps San Francisco's lead at 8.5 over Arizona, while the Braves' lead over Philly remains at a tense, uhh, 11.5 games. Meanwhile three mediocre teams are battling for a weak first-place in something called the Central Division.
As The N.L. Stands: The Giants and Braves have big leads; Houston, Chicago and St. Louis are really close in the Central in what appears to be a second-place-goes-home situation; and the wild-card race has Philadelphia leading Florida by just a half-game.
As The N.L. Should Be: Atlanta's lead in the N.L. West would have shrunk to 6.5 with last night's thriller, and the Giants would have a chance to move even closer today. In the N.L. East, Philadelphia and Florida would still be separated by a half-game, but the race would be not for the wild card but for first place (!!!). Meanwhile, teams with records as unimpressive as the Astros', Cardinals' and Cubs', would rightfully be further back in the pack. None of them is on pace to win even 90 games. Right now, the "exciting" races are for third and fourth place, rather than for two first-place spots. And this is usually how it winds up. Edge to: The Way It Should Be.
Giants Make Trade: San Francisco picked up Eric Young from the Brewers in exchange for minor league pitcher Greg Bruso. It's not a season-breaker, but I like it anyway. I like Young's combination of pop and speed, and he'll do nicely to fill in where there are trouble spots. And we've had many of them lately.
