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ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Their best player can't get a strike thrown within his cell phone coverage area. Their right fielder has fewer October hits than the WB Network. Their most experienced starter posted more losses than the airline industry. And the last time they played in this ballpark, the Rally Monkey made his debut and sent them to defeat.
So there is absolutely no way the Giants can win the World Series, right? Think again. They will. And here's why:
1. Barry Bonds. Whether he is as productive as he was during the regular season or whether he slumps as he did in previous postseasons, Bonds is going to have a major impact on the series and a positive one for the Giants. Why? Because opponents not only respect him, they fear him. They treat him differently than any player has been treated since Babe Ruth. Opponents not only walked Bonds 198 times this season, they intentionally walked him 68 times, which is more than any other Giant walked unintentionally. They've walked him 14 times in 10 games this postseason.
How much do the Angels respect Bonds? Here's what manager Mike Scioscia said: "There's nobody that can look at his numbers -- on-base percentage, slugging percentage, home run, the impact he's had on games -- and say that anyone has had a better season in the history of the game.''
Even if Bonds isn't swinging as well as normal, his presence will force the Angels to pitch defensively. And if he swings as well as normal, he'll do some major damage when they finally throw him a strike.
2. The rotation. Sure, there's no one that scares you the way Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling did last year. But the Giants' rotation is deep, balanced and reliable. San Francisco used only six starters all season and had five pitchers win at least a dozen games. The Angels can't match that -- and they'll have to if this series goes six or seven games.
3. Livan Hernandez. The biggest man in the rotation may be the guy who lost 16 games in the regular season. Big deal. After you watch the Hernandez brothers pitch in the postseason for seven years, you realize it isn't just a fluke. These guys DO pitch better in big games than they do any other time and they DO pitch better than anyone else in October. Livan is 6-0 in the postseason and he and his half-brother, El Duque, are a combined 15-3. That's a better record than Bob Gibson and Christy Mathewson combined (12-7).
"In Cuba, I pitched lots of big games. I started at a young age pitching at a high level,'' said Livan, whose Game 4 performance in the division series kept the Giants alive. "You learn a lot about the game and how to prepare. I pitched in two championship games when I was 17, 18 years old. You do that in Cuba, and when I got to the United States, I was pitching at this level aleady.''
And why wouldn't he be able to handle the pressure? After you pitch for Castro, pitching against Kennedy (Adam) is no big deal. Once you risk everything to come to America, not even the Rally Monkey inspires fear.
4. The infield. Even with all the home runs and the great pitchers, the World Series usually comes down to who makes the little plays and who doesn't. The Giants will. Particularly in the infield. Anaheim's defense isn't bad but it doesn't match San Framcisco's. Third baseman David Bell is a terrific fielder, first baseman J.T. Snow is one of the best in the game and shortstop Rich Aurilia and second baseman Jeff Kent are solid.
5. Big Daddy Mo. Sure, the Angels looked mighty impressive while whipping the Yankees and Twins, but no one has been playing better than the Giants. They've lost only four games since Sept. 17. They won't lose another four before April.
Jim Caple is a senior writer for ESPN.com. He can be reached at cuffscaple@hotmail.com.
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