Bumgarner Hurls Snot and Other Stuff at Braves

Lets get this out of the way. Madison had 14 snot rockets according to http://bumgarnersnotrockets.com.  

GIF is courtesy of @maltman2010 

Upward and onward!!

As Giants fans we have come to take for granted the art of an ace, and these types of starts from Bumgarner are now expected, as was every start from Mad Bum, Cain, Vogelsong, and Zito in 2012 (feel like I forgot someone).

Grant Brisbee over at McCovey Chronicles nailed it when he discussed the Freddie Freeman AB in the 5th Inning:

In that at-bat, Bumgarner made Freeman look uncomfortable. Freeman's a good hitter. He's still learning, but he's a good hitter. But Bumgarner had him thinking, "Dammit, what now?" They'll have more match-ups over the next 10 years, and Freeman will have at-bats where he has the count-advantage, and he'll make it work. But for tonight, Bumgarner kept calling paper when Freeman was throwing out rock. And Freeman looked uncomfortable.

Now if you kinda follow baseball, which I'd assume if you're on the crappy blog, you follow baseball and the Giants, you know Freeman.  In 2013, Freeman is having and very solid year at the plate. His .368 wOBA and 135 wRC+ rank 3rd amoung qualified 1B.

Type	Count	Selection	Velocity	Vertical	Horizontal	Spin Angle	Spin Rate
SL	49	45.4%	87.0	2.38	-0.34	190	517
FF	24	22.2%	92.1	7.97	5.25	147	1,915
FT	13	12.0%	91.7	7.18	7.54	134	2,082
CH	11	10.2%	83.7	2.65	8.78	107	1,677
CU	11	10.2%	76.6	-5.51	-5.21	316	1,252

Above, look at all the pitches smack centrally in the zone.  Proof, that Atlanta simply had no answer and were sticky and confused after their at bats with MadBum.

Now below you can see why. It's like an LSD acid trip of colors.  He throws all five pitches in his arsenal at any given time and he's all over the map with location to keep opponents "uncomfortable" as Grant Brisbee put it.

Yes Cain has the ability to do this, but he does it differently.

Type	Count	Selection	Strike	Swing	Whiff	Foul	In Play
SL	49	45.4%	71.4%	55.1%	20.4%	14.3%	20.4%
FF	24	22.2%	79.2%	54.2%	16.7%	33.3%	4.2%
FT	13	12.0%	53.8%	30.8%	7.7%	15.4%	7.7%
CH	11	10.2%	45.5%	36.4%	18.2%	18.2%	0.0%
CU	11	10.2%	27.3%	18.2%	18.2%	0.0%	0.0%

That chart from TexasLeaguers.com is Bumgarner from June 1st. The average Whiff rate (according to Fangraphs is approximately 8.5%.  Bumgarner has destroyed that average obviously, but even more important, look at his percentage of Strikes with his Slider and Four Seamer.

See, he is doing what the Giants rotation (Cain appears heading back to Cainary) has failed to do thus far in 2013, and that is getting ahead in counts....Specifically 1st pitch strikes.



Added GIF of Bumgarner getting Uggla looking only because Uggla strikes me as dirty, and for some reason, I'd like to GIF him into submission.

Pine Meat.

Machi the Machine

"If it Bleeds....We Can Kill it...." Butch from Predator.

Just a little Jean "Don't Call Me Ralph Machio" Machi analysis.  Why? Because I am pretty gosh darn sure I'm the only person on the planet talking about the filth that is Jean Machi.  He went viral when he farted in the dugout (literally), but we want to give dude props that aren't due to flatulence.




Look at the nasty swinging strike nearly three feet off of the plate:

Then in the 8th, he totallt freezes Jordy Mercer & Gaby Sanchez with the change after bringing the 4-seamer at 93/94 MPH:

    Machi is my new favorite player....Today.

Couple Great GIFs

GIF's Are Gnarly:

Haven't posted anything in a few days, and I read somewhere on the world wide web, people need to keep their blogs active if they want people to see them because spiders and things crawl into these Google machines, so here you go.  Yu Darvish is filthy and Buster Posey, NL MVP went 4-4 in St. Louis yesterday and his smile is the result of maybe the biggest game in Giants history.

@Fangraphs

@carmenkiew

Fin

Home Run Blast of the Day--May 30th, 2013

You're Not Seeing Things:
Marlon Byrd blasts a 435 ft. HR 


 

Kickham's Pitch F/X

How Much was Kickham to Blame Last Night?

I commented during the game last night that Buster needed to do a better job framing Kickham's pitches.  What I saw from Kickham was really not much different than I anticipated, and to put it simply, he looks like he will fit right in with the rotation.  He nibbled the corners, and the two biggest pitches were the two called balls that were clearly also strikes. The kid was hitting his spots, the ump wasn't calling them. Ben Lindbergh at Baseball Prospectus talks in great length about the importance of framing as a catcher, and I use his GIF from Lucroy as examples because to me he just jumps out as a backstop who "gets it".


That right there, is about as close as we can get to Kickham's called balls.  According to BP and Lindbergh, that pitch was 0.351 feet off the strike zone, and is exactly whay I am referring to when I talk about the catcher framing the pitch for the ump. Below is a pitch chart of Kickham's start from last night.  I count six pitches that were borderline strikes, but were called balls with only one pitch that was outside the zone called in Kickham's favor.

Now here is the pitch he threw to Derek Norris: It actually wasn't as "up in the zone", and Norris just went down and smacked a four-seamer 379 feet. Which can be seen RIGHT HERE

Bottom line is I liked what I saw from Kickham. The Giants don't have an arm that can bring it 94 MPH, and as proven by his 25% Whiff rate when he threw his slider, he has the offspeed stuff of a big league arm.  With a week of grooming, maybe we can get a better start from the Rook.

Lincecum Debut

I used the MLB search feature: "Lincecum Debut", hoping that we could see his first ever start on the national stage of ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball against the filthy Phillies, but instead,  found this, which is better, and made this blog a whole lot more awesome:

Home Run of the Day--Memorial Day Style

The Gambino Goes Old School with a 445 ft blast:

Kickham Where It Hurts

So Mike Kickham makes his MLB debut Tuesday. Doesn't it feel like we've never won in Oakland? Let's check out what the scouting report says on the LHP:

Selected by the Giants in the sixth round of the 2010 draft, the lefthander enjoyed a breakout season in 2012. Pitching for the Richmond Flying Squirrels, Kickham posted a 3.05 ERA and struck out 137 batters in 150.2 innings. His impressive performance earned him Eastern League Postseason All-Star honors.

Kickham has above-average arm strength for a left-handed pitcher. His fastball often sits in the low 90's, and his two-seamer has heavy sink. He also throws two solid offspeed pitches--a plus 84 MPH changeup and a late-breaking power-curve in the low 80's. If he can harness his command and straighten-out his mechanics, Kickham could develop in to a rock-solid mid rotation starter in the big leagues.

Homer of the Day--May 26, 2013

Dan Uggla Blasts One off Marcum

 

Home Run Blast of the Day--May 25, 2013

Adam Jones Orioles OF: 446 Feet

Amazingly off R.A. Dickey and was in Toronto!!

Best Game Ever

Totally saw that coming.

..

Daily Cy Young

Kevin Gausman MLB Debut:

With the small slate of MLB action, WWBD chose to highlight uber stud prospect Kevin Gausman and his debut versus the Blue Jays on Thursday.  Trust us Kevin, as Giant fans, we can relate to Rogers Centre.  Gausman's line in his debut was very "debut like":

Home Run Blast of the Day

Man Crush Edition: Mike Trout OF Angels:
Officially 463 Feet.

Relegation Scenarios for Aston Villa

Well That Sucked and I Just puked in My Mouth Edition:

Go Arsenal!! Oops, I just vomited in my mouth again. Damn!!

Villa fans should had an idea who to cheer for in Sunday's matches. For the most part, nothing went as we'd all like. Norwich, who we would have loved to have seen lose, absolutely demolished West Bromich Albion (AN Albatross) by a final score of 4-0 at Carrow Road. The Canaries now have 41 points and are guaranteed to be back in the Premiership next year.

At Loftus Road, QPR gave us hope by taking an early 1-0 lead on a dubious penalty, but promptly gave Newcastle a penalty back and then conceded a second. Despite going down to 10 men for the final 10 minutes, Newcastle managed to hold on for the win. That's not saying much though, since QPR's attack relied on the creative skill of one Jermaine Jenas. At 41 points the Magpies, too, are safe for the season.

That leaves seven teams sitting at the 40-point or below mark. In order from worst to best: QPR, Reading, Wigan, Sunderland, Aston Villa, Fulham, and Southampton. QPR and Reading are already gone, and barring some freak incident in goal differential, Fulham and Southampton are safe. (And by freak, I mean Fulham would have to lose by 11or more and Southampton would have to lose by 13 or more. Remember, before you cry foul on this math, the only way goal differential would come into play is if Villa lose, so you have to add on -1 to theirs. Also, the next tie-break [goals scored] would likely not break in Villa's favor.)

So all of this leaves three teams eligible for relegation: Wigan, Villa, and Sunderland. Let's look at the scenarios:

Wigan lose to Arsenal on Tuesday

This would be it. They'd be able to get no more than 38 points on the season, and would be the final team relegated from the Premier League.

Safe: Aston Villa, Sunderland
Out: Wigan

Wigan draw Arsenal on Tuesday

This, mathematically, would keep Wigan alive. Unfortunately for Roberto Martinez' team, they'd only have a chance if crazy goal differential things happened in the final weekend. Realistically, a draw ends the race too:

Safe (Mathematically): Aston Villa
Safe (Realistically): Sunderland
Out (Realistically): Wigan

Wigan beat Arsenal on Tuesday

Well this would put a wrench in everything, wouldn't it? If Wigan win on Tuesday, all three teams are still absolutely in danger heading into the weekend. Wigan would be sitting at 38 points. So if this happens, nothing changes from now. So let's be officials with our Safe and Out and then take a look to what would happen on Sunday.

Safe: n/a
Out: n/a
 In danger: oh god, why is this happening!?

If Wigan beat Arsenal on Tuesday: Sunday scenarios

Were Wigan to win on Tuesday, we'd come into the weekend with Wigan and 38, Sunderland at 39, and Aston Villa at 40. Giving us:

Villa's Road to Safety:

Villa would be able to assure themselves of safety with a win or a draw at Wigan. Regardless of what happened elsewhere, this would be enough. If, however, they lost, Villa could still be safe if Sunderland lost at Tottenham, who will be looking to try and sew up a Champions League spot.

Villa are Safe if: they win or draw and/or Sunderland loses
Villa Drop if: they lose and Sunderland draws or wins

Sunderland's Road to Safety:

If Sunderland can get a win or a draw at Tottenham they will not only          make themselves a guaranteed member of the Premier League next season but they'd put some real pressure on Spurs. But for us, we only care about what happens to Sunderland. If they draw at Tottenham and Wigan do the same with Villa, Tottenham would have the goal differential advantage. Should Sunderland draw and Villa lose, Sunderland would have the edge on differential.

Sunderland are Safe if: they win or draw and/or Aston Villa do the same. 
Sunderland Drop if: they lose and Wigan wins

Wigan's Road to Safety:

As much as this has us all worried, even if they win on Tuesday, the only way Wigan can be safe is by following that up with a win on Sunday. This one is simple. I suppose if Tottenham just absolutely demolish Sunderland in an unprecedented fashion (by eleven goals, to be precise), Wigan could stay up with a draw. But that's not happening.

Wigan are Safe if: they win 
Wigan Drop if: they lose or draw

* * * * * *

So there you have it. Aston Villa are still very much in the best position of the teams eligible for relegation. They only way they drop is if Wigan wins on Tuesday and beats Villa on Sunday AND Sunderland manages a win or a draw at Tottenham on Sunday. As much as today's results didn't go how Villa fans wanted, things aren't as bad as they seem. Bottom line: let's all cheer like crazy for Arsenal on Tuesday. That'd put this all behind us.

Let me know in the comments if you find any mistakes here! These sorts of things are always trickier than they seem.