Schmile! You're Unbeatable

Coors Field. In a slugfest more akin to a video game than a Major League contest, the Giants and the Rockies combined for eight home runs, and nineteen runs on Friday night.

It is, therefore, somewhat surprising therefore that the most spectacular abuse of the evening was reserved for the Colorado batters who, over the course of six sumptuous courses of Jason Schimdt, struck out nine times and failed to log an extra base hit in a game that saw eleven of them. The Giants used three relievers, who combined to give up four home runs. Schmidt's performance, by contrast, was all the more impressive on the back of a first inning that took him 36 pitches to complete.

Attributing his Rocky start to "Trying to be too pin-point", Schmidt proceeded to mow down the next eight Colorado batters, striking out five. In doing so, he demonstrated-and not for the first time-those battle instincts that only Cy Young candidates are capable of mustering. His WHIP(walks+hits/innings pitched) is the third lowest among starting pitchers in the Major Leagues, at 0.98--less than one baserunner per inning.

If only Schmidt's exploits were backed up by his team-mates. Yet the Giant's pitching staff are safe in knowledge that there is usually someone worse: Sure enough, the Rockie's pitching staff is borderline diabolical. But the Giants have done their best thus far to match them, appearing among the league leaders in almost every significant category, including hits allowed, fewest strikeouts, bullpen apprearances and ERA. Giant's fans might be used to seeing Barry Bonds humiliate opponents-and teammates-with his swing, but on this day, Schmidt stood out like a sore thumb on a broken hand.

With seven wins in his last eight starts, 69 strikeouts and an ERA of 1.86 in those games, Schmidt-and Schmidt alone-has kept this sodden ship from sinking. If that seems unbelievable, take a look across the Bay: There's a difference between winning ballgames, and not losing them.

A Closer look at Mediocrity

Matt Herges mas 16 saves, the third most in the National League. Unfortunately, that doesn't make him the third best closer. Saves indicate only the ballgames that have been relatively close. At the same time, some saves are clearly tougher than others: Finishing a 3-2 game with runners on the corners and no outs is worth no more than a 3-0 game with no men on and two outs. In short, saves are not a good yardstick for performance.

And just in case you would be led to believe that, overall, the total number of saves can provide a guide to who's hot and who's not, take a quick glimpse at the leaderboard. Danny Graves leads the majors with 21. Eric Gagne, on the other hand, has only 13. Keith Foulke has pitched scoreless ball on 21 out of 23 appearances for the Red Sox, but has only 10 saves.

The numbers however, as they often do, present something of a double-edged sword. For Herges has done a lot more than blow four saves in seventeen chances this season. When the rejoicing over his worlds' strongest man celebration has abated, take a closer look at the Giant's closer. I've thrown in two other soft-tossing closers for contrast: Jose Mesa, the pundits' perennial whipping boy; and Tim Worrell, another player whom the Giant's couldn't afford to keep, and couldn't afford to lose.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Matt Herges . . . Jose Mesa . . . Tim Worrell . . .
Opp. On Base Ave: . . . . . .370 . . . . . . . . . . 274 . . . . . . . . . 289 . . . . . . .
Hits per 9 Innings: . . . . . . 14.2 . . . . . . . . . 8.14 . . . . . . . . . 7.65 . . . . . .
Strikeouts per 9: . . . . . . . 4.94 . . . . . . . . . . 5.70 . . . . . . . . . 6.21 . . . . .
Strikeout/BB Ratio: . . . . . 1.50 . . . . . . . . . . 3.15 . . . . . . . . . 1.92 . . . . .
Pitches per Inning: . . . . . .17.3 . . . . . . . . . . 14.6 . . . . . . . . . 14.8 . . . . .
E.R.A: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5.93 . . . . . . . . . . 1.30 . . . . . . . . . 3.04 . . . . .

It is imperative that borderline contenders like the Giants capitalize on their opportunities. For them, because of the lack of depth in the rotation, opportunities to win games will be fewer and further between. With Herges on the mound in 2004, there is a 38% chance that any hitter will reach base. That's beyond precarious. It's suicidal.

Ghosts Among Men

Wednesday--a tale of two matchups. On the face of it, few would argue that Barry Bonds squaring off against Randy Johnson is tantamount to baseball in a nutshell. On the one hand, five Cy Young awards, a perfect game and 94 strikeouts this season. On the other seven MVP awards, 63 walks and an eight game Home Run streak in 2004. Men like these are modern gladiators. And it's a travesty that they're not fighting for anything except the wooden spoon.

Instead then, I watched the rising, brightly shining stars of the game as they clashed in a flurry of noise, energy and expectation. Anaheim, CA, and not for the first time. Despite the slow-motion feats of Mr. Bonds and his underlings, the Giants are simply not an exciting team to watch. Casey Kotchman and Pedro Martinez on the other hand duelled for five whole minutes--and sixteen pitches--as if their very salaries depended on it. Vladimir Guerrero, whose 9 RBIs set a new franchise record, is without doubt the most precocious talent in the game: A man whose reach defies the laws of the strike zone, and a superior athlete who strains to hide his boyish delight as he huddles in the dugout to the acclaim of his team mates. These guys seem a lot more excited than San Francisco and their aloof, sullen contingent. Manny Ramirez meanwhile adds a more textbook interpretation to the proceedings, golfing a ball in a glorious arc to center field.

The list goes on, all to the sounds (and cheers, unlike SBC) of fans who have come not only to be entertained, but to enjoy the game in all its joyous unpredictability. Joe Morgan adds depth and dignity to the play. In Arizona on the other hand, to the testosterone-fueled sounds of Krukow and Kuiper, nothing is learned--and even less is worth watching as two teetering franchises rest uneasily on the laurels of their respective unholy player.

Aged 81 between them, this is the summation not only of these teams collective talent, but their collective charm. Dressed in grey, playing to an audience either unwilling or uncaring, these poor fellows look like ghosts among ordinary men. It seems these are the games decided not by great feats of skill, but by mistakes. It's sad to say, but I'm tired of waiting to see whose day it won't be.

Ace in the Hole: Schmidt MVP caliber

In Texas Hold'em, an Ace is often enough to win on its own. In baseball, most of the time you'll also need a king, a queen and a host of deuces that are wild. Not in the case of Jason Schmidt. The anchor of the Giant's starting rotation Schmidt--despite shoulder surgery--has all the credentials an Ace should need. These include:

* Throwing long: At least six innings every start. Schmidt has averaged 7.8 this season, third most in the National League.
* Throwing well, and often: Quality Starts (six innings, three or fewer earned runs) in over 75% of games.
* Intimidating the opposition: see below.
* Winning: Regardless of No-Decisions, the team should win two out of three games in which the Ace takes to the mound. Since joining the Giants, San Francisco have won 74% (58-20) of the games Schmidt has started--the best ratio in the majors. This season in nine starts, Schmidt has six wins: In 26 starts Kirk Reuter, Brett Tomko and Dustin Hermanson have three between them.

Schmidt indeed does all the above, with aplomb. To boot, he strikes out more opposing hitters than he allows hits and walks combined (65 vs. 63). His fastball is a model of consistency, yet witness the Padres, whom he beat with only his curve and changeup in April. And anyone who saw Schmidt's ruthless demolition of the Rockies on Sunday needn't ask MLB Home Run leader Jeromy Burnitz if he's intimidating ... .

If there was any question as to who is the Giants most valuable player, let that claim be put to rest. Barry Bonds might well be the most accomplished hitter in the history of the game. The problem is, if he's not on the line up, he can't hit--no matter how good he is.

Jason Schmidt, of course, appears only every fifth game. Yet his impact is felt quite literally by the beleaguered bullpen, who usually are spared the standard four-inning outing that follows the rest of the rotation. By the same token, his every start takes pressure off the offense, which has up this point failed to score consistently. In spite of the recent upturn, only the Expos have scored fewer runs than the Giants in the National League. Furthermore, the outlook for offense is cloudy, even bleak. Thus it is essential that the hitters can reassure themselves that, on any given Schmidt-day, two or three runs will be sufficient.

Come October, there may not be any baseball in the Bay Area, even if the A's win 90 games. It will be, in that very likely case, a travesty--and a telling one at that. Before the Marlins, on their World Championship run, ran all over their big-name opponents Schmidt, with an ruptured elbow, threw a three-hit shutout to open the NLDS series. His opponent on that day? A hitherto unheralded stud, Josh Beckett. "The Ace of the future," someone said--and everyone agreed. Three weeks later, he was picking up his World Series ring, and MVP award. Schmidt, by contrast, will be remembered as the man who seldom lost: and never really won.