It is time to douse the theory about the Giants that has lasted since the 1997 season, when they joined the 1984 Mets as the only teams in history to win 90 games while getting outscored. Ever since, most believe the Giants win because they're a gritty bunch of overachievers who play really hard, as so inspired by their marvelous manager.
|  | | Livan Hernandez is 11-5 since he lost his first four starts of the season. |
That's only part of it. "But that's slighting these guys, that's slighting the GM (Brian Sabean) who brought these guys here and put this team together," says Giants manager Dusty Baker. "All I do is direct these guys. I just write the lineup. There's great talent on this club."
Indeed. Baker gets the most out of his guys, but he has a destructive lineup led by Barry Bonds, Jeff Kent and Ellis Burks in the middle of the order. Baker has six major-league starting pitchers, none of whom is great, but all of whom have good stuff. He has a deep bullpen, led by closer Robb Nen. The Giants play good defense. And they have a good bench.
"They have no weaknesses," says Mets manager Bobby Valentine.
Few listened in spring training when the Giants said their pitching was their deepest in years, but their pitching -- led by starters Livan Hernandez, Shawn Estes and Kirk Rueter -- has been terrific of late. Since the All-Star break, the Giants have an ERA of 3.15, by far the lowest in the major leagues (the Braves are second at 3.41). In a recent eight-game stretch, they allowed only 15 runs. This season, the Giants are tied with the Mets for the most shutouts in the National League (8). They have no pitcher in the top five in victories, but their rotation has combined for 48 wins. Only the Braves (55), Cardinals (55) and Diamondbacks (50) have more in the NL.
"They have really, really, good pitching," says Rockies catcher Brent Mayne.
Their rotation is mostly unknown, sometimes erratic and eclectic. They have no ace, a duty that seems to rotate among Estes, Hernandez, Rueter, Russ Ortiz and recently, Mark Gardner. And their best starter may someday be former shortstop Joe Nathan, who throws in the mid-90s. Nathan is due off the disabled list shortly. "And someone has to go to the bullpen," says Baker. That's depth other managers would love to have.
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Inside the numbers
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All five Giants' starters have pitched better in the second half:
Kirk Rueter
8-7, 3.72 ERA (7th in NL)
3.38 ERA since All-Star break
Shawn Estes
11-3, 3.77 ERA (10th in NL)
3.51 ERA since All-Star break
Livan Hernandez
11-9, 3.93 ERA (13th in NL)
3.06 ERA since All-Star break
Mark Gardner
8-6, 4.57 ERA
3.63 ERA since All-Star break
Russ Ortiz
8-10, 5.57 ERA
2.66 ERA since All-Star break
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Estes (11-3, 3.77 ERA) was a 4.0 student in high school who struggles only when he overanalyzes, but never labors when that marvelous 12-to-6 curveball is cracking. Ortiz, another who tends to think too much, has terrific stuff, including a hard sinker that ties up right-handed hitters. Last year, he walked the most hitters (125) of any NL 18-game winner since J.R. Richard in 1978, and he's had similar control problems this year. But he's starting to rebound from an awful start, mostly because he's throwing more strikes with his four quality pitches.
Rueter (3.72 ERA) is the opposite of Estes, as he takes the ball and throws it, challenging hitters without dominant stuff. Hernandez had dominant staff with the Marlins back in 1997, but has been pitching more in his last few starts, using more off-speed pitches early in the count, then throwing his hardest stuff with two strikes. Gardner (8-6) won again Wednesday night, and has a 3.63 ERA in seven starts since the All-Star break. "We'd be up the creek without him," says Baker.
The bullpen has been so good lately because Nen has been fabulous. And when he's right, there is no more unhittable reliever in the game. He essentially has canned his splitter and is going mainly with his 90-plus fastball and hard slider that has the same, downward bite that Kevin Appier had in his prime. The key to the Giants bullpen is setup man Felix Rodriguez, who throws 97 mph. When he's right and can bring the ball to Nen, the Giants are very hard to beat.
But even when Rodriguez stumbles, newly acquired Doug Henry and left-hander Alan Embree can pitch the seventh or eighth. Baker says Henry was "a huge pickup. He and Rodriguez are better against lefties then righties, so I can leave them in." And when one of the starters goes to the pen, and John Johnstone is soon activated, the pen will be even stronger.
"(Dave) Righetti deserves a lot of credit," says Baker.
Righetti, in his first year as pitching coach, has brought a new, aggressive attitude, stressing getting ahead in the count. He has also worked with the Giants' young catchers, Doug Mirabelli and Bobby Estalella, neither of whom had played a full season in the big leagues.
"We've gone from 12th (earlier in the season) to fifth in pitching -- that's hard to do this late in the season," says Baker. And they've gone from from 38-38 -- fourth place, 6½ games out -- to 67-51 and one game ahead of the Diamondbacks. The Giants have become the team to beat in the West. They play Arizona eight of the final 12 games of the season, including the last three. And San Francisco will enter that stretch with the deepest pitching that it has had since perhaps the 1987 division winners led the NL in ERA.
ESPN The Magazine's Tim Kurkjian writes a weekly column for ESPN.com. | |
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