But at least they’re bad.
The San Francisco Giants are about to host the Colorado Rockies for four games and I’m sorry, but I have nothing interesting to say. The Rockies are boring. They are so boring. They’re the most boring team, I’m convinced of it, though I’m not including American League teams which, by definition, are automatically more boring.
The Rockies are not good, but they’re not bad enough — like, say, the Arizona Diamondbacks — to be entertaining. The closest thing they have to star position player is Trevor Story, and he’s been essentially a league-average hitter this year. They have some good pitchers, but rule 517.B states that you are never allowed to be excited by a pitcher in a Rockies jersey.
Honestly, the most interesting thing about the Rockies might be that Connor Joe is playing for them, and regularly.
I’m not complaining, though. The Giants have four straight home games against the Rockies while the Dodgers will spend that time on the road, playing one game against the Philadelphia Phillies and three against the New York Mets. The Giants have a darn good chance of starting next week with a bigger lead in the NL West than they currently have.
Series details
Who: San Francisco Giants vs. Colorado Rockies
Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California
When: Thursday (6:45 p.m.), Friday (6:45 p.m.), Saturday (6:05 p.m.), and Sunday (1:05 p.m.)
National broadcasts: None
Where they stand
San Francisco Giants
Record: 73-41, 1st in the NL West
Run differential: +136, 2nd in the NL
Postseason standing: 1st seed
Momentum: 4-game winning streak, 8-2 in their last 10 games
Colorado Rockies
Record: 51-63, 4th in the NL West
Run differential: -39, 11th in the NL
Postseason standing: 14 games out of the Wild Card, 22 games out of the NL West
Momentum: 2-game losing streak, 6-4 in their last 10 games
Season series: Giants lead 6-3
Three Giants to watch
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Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
Evan Longoria: Longoria is expected to be activated sometime during this series, and it will be great to see him. Sure, the Giants offense has been stellar in his absence. And yeah, they acquired an MVP at his position while he was away. But even though Longo hasn’t played since the first week of June — he’s spent well over two months on the IL — he’s been the fifth most valuable position player on the team, per Fangraphs, behind only Buster Posey, Brandon Crawford, Darin Ruf, and Steven Duggar. He has a wRC+ of 140, has played strong defense, and has been one of the best hitters in all of baseball against left-handed pitchers. It will be great to see him back.
Logan Webb: The Giants rotation has been sputtering a tiny bit as of late, but Webb didn’t get the memo. The young righty — who admittedly missed all of June on the IL — hasn’t allowed more than 2 earned runs in an outing since May 5. He’s had nine starts during that time, and has allowed just 32 hits and 10 walks in 47 innings, with 49 strikeouts.
Buster Posey: Posey has been the Giants best player this season, and he seems to only be heating up as the season goes on. He’s hit safely in the last eight games that he’s started, and during that span is 13-32 with 2 home runs, 3 doubles, 7 walks to just 7 strikeouts, and a 1.200 OPS. He’s an absolute weapon right now.
Three Rockies to watch
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Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images
Germán Márquez: The Rockies are sorely lacking in good players, but it’s through no fault of Márquez, who is an excellent pitcher. The righty has a 3.30 FIP on the year, with 141 strikeouts to 49 walks in 136.2 innings. He also recently hit a home run, and not even at Coors Field! He’s good.
Connor Joe: Remember when Joe made his MLB debut as a starting outfielder on Opening Day for the 2019 Giants? That sure was a time. I felt bad for Joe, he had a very strong Minor League track record, but was designated for assignment after just 16 plate appearances. Seemed a little harsh. He’s back in the Majors this year, and I’m happy to report that he’s playing quite well, with a .290/.358/.477 slash line (115 OPS+) in 120 plate appearances.
Kyle Freeland: If you’re looking for the Giants to tag a pitcher in this series, look no further than Freeland, who’s allowed 12 home runs in 71.2 innings, with a 4.65 ERA, 4.72 FIP, and 1.437 WHIP. The Giants haven’t faced him yet this year, and I’m sure they’re excited to change that.