11, 11, 11

For the third straight night, The Giants starter struck out 11. Matt Moore, Jeff Samardzija and Johnny Cueto -- first time that's happened in 41 years when Ed Halicki, Pete Falcone and John Montefusco each had double figure strikeouts.

This is the way to end the season - especially with the cheating Cards getting an undeserved vic tonight.

A remarkable game for Cueto, running full speed in the 6th and luring Arenado to make a stupid play -- throwing the ball into right field and letting in 2 runs. Here's the mlb recap --

SAN FRANCISCO -- The San Francisco Giants got everything they needed Thursday night. They reclaimed some of their lost offense, received a strong performance from starter Johnny Cueto and recorded a much-needed victory with a 7-2 decision over the Colorado Rockies.
Cueto's deft bunt single and an accompanying throwing error by Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado accounted for two runs in San Francisco's three-run, sixth-inning outburst that broke a 2-2 tie.
Full Game Coverage
The outcome tightened the National League Wild Card race entering the regular season's final weekend. The idle New York Mets (85-74) continued to hold on to the first Wild Card spot, while the Giants (84-75) possess the second Wild Card berth, a game back of New York. The St. Louis Cardinals (83-76) remained a game behind the Giants with their controversial triumph over Cincinnati.
MOMENTS THAT MATTEREDSmall ball comes up big: Another key bunt besides Cueto's in the Giants' sixth-inning rally was laid down by Angel Pagan, who kept a roller fair up the third-base line. The Giants then loaded the bases on Joe Panik's grounder to first baseman Gerardo Parra, whose throw to third was too late to retire a sliding Brandon Crawford. Conor Gillaspie's sacrifice fly preceded Cueto's bunt.
Another solid swing: Rockies rookie outfielder David Dahl has made his mark during a rough road trip. His first-inning triple off Cueto drove in the Rockies' second run and was his fourth extra-base hit of the trip. He also homered off Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen on Sunday and doubled in each of the first two games against the Giants.
UPON FURTHER REVIEW
The Giants challenged a third-inning ruling at first base, where Daniel Descalso was declared safe on a pickoff attempt by Cueto. A video review confirmed that first baseman Brandon Belt indeed brushed his glove against Descalso before the Rockies baserunner made it back to the bag, and the call was overturned.
The Rockies' challenge, in hopes of getting an out that could have mitigated damage in the sixth, fizzled when a safe call -- Crawford sliding back to third to beat Rockies first baseman Parra's throw -- was ruled to stand after review. Parra had fielded Panik's bouncer.

Gordon Beckham in the Orange and Black?

Grant Bisbee at McCovey Chronicles is perplexed by the front office decision to bring on Gordon Beckham for the last five games of the season in reaction to Eduardo Nunez having a season-ending injury....


Huh. That’s the only possible way to respond. Beckham wouldn’t be eligible for a postseason roster, so huh.
Huh.
Beckham isn’t very good, for one. His .655 OPS (76 OPS+) is bad even by Giants bench standards, and he’s not anything more than an average fielder, at best. There’s a reason why no one tried to recreate the 2013 White Sox piece by piece before this.
As generic depth for six games? Okay, fine. Maybe there’s something we don’t know about Gillaspie, Tomlinson, or Adrianza, if not all three. But if you’re going to go to the trouble to make a 40-man roster move, why not give the gig to someone already in the system? Grant Green, for example.


Dunno. The trade itself isn’t going to hurt, as it’s likely just for cash, but the Giants either have to designate someone for assignment or place someone on the 60-day DL to make room on the roster. If it’s the former, that seems absurd, regardless of the career prospects of the player exposed to waivers. That risk, any risk at all, can’t be worth six games.
If it’s the latter, well, huh.
Huh.
There’s a chance that the Giants make the postseason on the last day of the season, and that Beckham is the one who hits a grand slam to get them there, so don’t equate "ineligible for the postseason roster" with "exempt from even-year shenanigans." There’s a chance we’ll say more than "huh" before the end of the season.
Until then, well ...

16 from 2014

The SF Giants web site points out that 16 of the players on the current roster were also on the 2014 World Series winners

5. Look in the mirror
The Giants have played with virtually no swagger. That comes simply from losing too often. They need to remember that Buster Posey and Hunter Pence remain capable of taking over a game, that Brandon Crawford is a big-time shortstop, that Angel Pagan, Denard Span and Eduardo Nunez (if healthy) are legitimate threats and that Joe Panik is an ideal second baseman.
Among the current Giants, 16 played for the 2014 champions. Dwelling on the past would accomplish nothing. However, figuratively and perhaps even literally, they need to hold their championship rings to the light and let the reflection guide them along this week's path.

Here are the ones that come to mind -- Buster Posey, Madison Bumgarner, Joe Panik, Brandon Crawford, Brandon Belt, Santiago Casilla, Sergio Romo, Javier Lopez, Angel Pagan, Hunter Pence.

Here are the others -- Gregor Blanco, Hunter Strickland, Jake Peavy, Matt Cain, Ehire Adrianza, George Kontos. The last three were not on the 2014 postseason roster