[ctownboy]

itj,

It might be nice to be hanging on to first place by your fingernails but think how much nicer it would be if the Giants were in first place by five or six games?

Just think how much less pressure would be on your pitching staff if they didn't think they HAD to throw a Shut Out each and every game.

As a former Reds fan, I know what that type of pressure is like on a pitcher.

Aaron Harang was the ace of their staff in 2006 and 2007 but starting in 2008, he became the Pitcher that the team didn't score any Runs for. Game after game was an offensive drought for him and even though his peripheral stats (WHIP, K/9, BB/9, K to BB ratio) were just as good and sometimes even better than in 2006 and 2007 (when he won 16 Games each year) his Won - Loss record was bad.

At one point he even got so frustrated he came out and said it was mentally tiring to know that going to the mound each start he would have to basically throw a Shut Out to have a chance to win. Then, of course, Dusty Baker misused him in both 2008 and 2009 and he suffered arm injuries which didn't help his cause.

But the point is, your Pitchers, even as good as they are, are going to start having mental letdowns because of the stess your impotent offense is causing them. Having players making Outs because of being overly aggressive or having Bochy giving away Outs because of Bunting too much is not going to help.

Once the starting Pitchers start having these mental letdowns, they are going to start giving up more Runs and leaving Games earlier. This will lead to the Bull Pen being used too much and the Giants losing more Games. Then, all of a sudden, you will find your team has a losing record and being eight or 10 Games behind in the standings.

If I were the Giants Manager or Hitting Coach, I would tell the position players to STOP trying to Bunt and STOP swinging from the heels trying to hit Home Runs. I would instead tell them to focus on making contact and hitting the ball gap to gap.

In your home ball park this would lead to a LOT more Doubles and Triples and on the road in smaller ball parks (places like Cincinnati and Philadelphia) some of those line drives would go over the fences for Home Runs.

David