Why?

Why do we live and die when the Giants lose a lead and flail away at the ball as it wiffles past their bats?

Why does it cloud the day from the sun when the Giants lose or make for sunny skies when they win?

Do we not have lives? I'm beginning to wonder.

The little things always matter. The inconsistent strike zone of home plate umpires is always HUGE when the Giants are playing because they have such a difficult, struggle of a time scoring runs. I mean, phew, listening to the broadcast of Giants games is excruciating.

Oh well, I was just wondering about the Giants players Bruce Bochy thinks will give them the best chance to win and how they continue to come up short. Eugenio "Brain Spasm Pharoah" Velez is a guy who hits with some pop and has blazing speed but he's not a thinker. And to play ball you have got to know every situation as it arises and what is the best way to get the most out of it and in these instances this guy is clueless.

Maybe I need a life because listening to Dave Fleming's negative-ridden play-by-play is killing my thirst for the game of baseball. It may have something to do with the teams' inability to manufacture runs. Making supposed "no-name" pitchers look like all-stars. (On that note, I saw a trivia question asking Who played Adam on Bonanza? And I immediately thought Bobby Parnell, the NY Met pitcher who has spoon fed the toothless, bib-adorned Giants on two separate occasions. But in actuality the correct answer was Pernell Roberts. Not Bobby Parnell.) I just think most people don't like hearing someone state the obvious over and over and over again, the way Dave F-f-f-f-leming is wont to do.

Kevin Marquez

Not Nate the Great, Yet

Those of us who have lived in San Francisco for over a quarter of a century know that Nate the Great was what all-time great announcer Bill King called the center of the San Francisco/Golden State Warriors', Nate Thurmond. His relentless defense and slick play with the number 42 on his cable car adorned jersey is neither lost nor forgotten.

Now as we slip into 2009, the Giants have a Nate, on their team, who is raising some eyebrows with his play between the foul lines.

You can listen to sports talk radio until the cows come home and somebody somewhere will ask why Nate Schierholtz isn't in the every day starting lineup and it's hard not to agree. He has the best arm, has excellent mobility and is a hitter who shows occasional pop.

Now, in defense of Randy Winn, I can see where Manager Bruce Bochy has this feeling Winn will come out of his funk. And he does play a good outfield. But the need to play Aaron Rowand may be losing it's purpose, since Nate needs to be in the lineup every day. So if it's a toss up between Nate and Aaron, c'mon man! Give it to the guy who brings something to the table not the guy struggling.

George Carlin once said: Swimming isn't a sport, it's a way to keep from drowning, well if the Giants continue to play Aaron Rowand their season most certainly will sink into the drink.

Kevin Marquez

Amazing Barry Zito Statistic

After coming from behind to beat the 2008 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies, Barry Zito had this to say about newest teammate Freddy Sanchez: "The guy just knows how to find barrel."

Not done passing out the compliments, Zito then turned to Eugenio Velez, dubbed the Pharaoh by beat writer Henry Schulman, and offered: "I don't know what adjustments he made in Triple A, but he has...been a huge part of this team for the last week. I think he's on a mission."

Speaking of on a mission, did you know that when Barry Zito gets 4 or more runs his won/loss record is 104-6. (15-2 as a Giant.)

Seems to me a statistic so glaringly incandescent as the aforementioned had to be known by those wanting to sign Mr. Zito. Not to take away from Barry Zito but the fact that Zito had to learn the basics of hitting had to be a concern as well (because in the National League pitchers who have the most success often help themselves with the glove and bat aside from how they throw on a given day).

You can definitely see Zito get into a zone when given the support of some runs scored. Zito is a starter for the San Francisco Giants who on 7 occasions got ZERO runs scored for him and he's still hanging in there with a 7-10 record. He's proven to be durable over his career and I can sense a coming out for the San Francisco hurler.

He's been the butt of jokes and on the short end of any compliments but it looks as if he'll be a bigtime contributor down the stretch. With the injury to Randy Johnson and the overall consistency of Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain, a third and fourth starter who can rise to the occasion will be a much needed tonic for the Giants to reach the post season and then succeed once the playoffs begin.

Jonathan Sanchez is the other hurler, also a left-hander, who will get the good look by Manager Bruce Bochy and his staff. He's shown what he can do when he puts it all together but he still has a matter of consistency to address. I have faith in 26-year old Sanchez and 33-year old Zito. There's no reason why they can't pitch well enough for the Giants to continue on this glorious ride to post-season play.

All aboard the bandwagon. Next stop, at a non-believer's house near you!

Kevin Marquez