TortureCast (SF Giants Podcast): Recent Episodes
TortureCast
After a break in recording, we come back to the mic to find the Giants buried in the NL West, but still firmly in the wild card race. With a 7-11 record in August, and the Dodgers going 17-2 during that same period, the Giants are now 11.5 games back with 38 to play, so they can kiss the division title goodbye. That said, the playoffs are still within reach, as they currently hold the second wild card. BUT, 5 teams are all within 1.5 games of each other for the second and third spots, and the Phillies are 2 ahead of that. Speaking of, the Giants have a huge series in Philly, as they try and take advantage of a wild card competitor. After losing 5 consecutive series, and going 2-14 over their last 16 road games, the Giants desperately need some road magic. Kyle Harrison finally gets the call up and will start in Philly on Tuesday...just don't walk half the lineup, kid.
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on Threads and Instagram...sort of....
During our show today, the Giants made a trade for AJ Pollock and Mark Mathias from the Mariners for our favorite "player to be named later." Other than that, the Giants have less than 24 hours to pull off additional trades, and this one certainly doesn't move the needle with an aging 35-year-old Pollock hitting under .200 on the year and currently on the IL. What is surprising, is despite the 6-game losing streak, the Giants won 4 of 5 and have the third best record in the NL, hold the first wild card spot, and are only 2 games behind the Dodgers. That's a great position to be in. That said, we looked forward to August and what lies ahead is gonna be tough with two series against the Braves, and series against the Rays, Phillies, and Reds. Lots of winning teams coming up, but the Giants have to stay at or above .500 to keep in the race. It's gonna be an interesting month.
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Ok, we're borrowing this title from our friends over at Giants Chatter, sue us! The Giants are riding a 5-game winning streak after a sweep of Pittsburgh, and they'll continue their road trip into Cincinnati, DC, and Detroit. During this streak, the Giants have come within 1 1/2 games of the first place Dodgers and have passed the Diamondbacks into second place, while leading the wild card race. This team surprisingly has the second-best record in the majors since May 1. Yeah, April was that bad. Eric and Chad talk about this, the All Star game and break, the MLB draft (Giants had a good one!) and some rumors flying around that Ohtani could land in San Francisco. Oh please, don't get our hope up.
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@torturecast and on Threads!
The Giants have cooled off considerably after their 10 game winning streak. They've lost 7 of 10, and although they're currently just outside of a wild card spot, they are only 2.5 games back of Arizona for the NL West...with the Dodgers in between. Eric and Chad chat about the lack of offense over the last 10 games, and look forward to the All Star Break. Although some fans think some Giants were snubbed for the All Star Game, we break it down and come to the conclusion of...not really. Who might the Giants target before the trade deadline? Stroman, Giolito, an empanada?
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Since the Giants have won 12 of 14 (including 10 in a row!), they have surged into second place in the NL West, a mere 2.5 games back of Arizona and ahead of the Dodgers. They currently hold a wild card spot, and the 4th best record in the bigs. Eric and Chad review what was the catalyst to this amazing surge, and can the Giants actually sustain it and possibly take the division?
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Eric, Willie, and Chad review the last week in Giants' baseball, and they are HOT and in the hunt. Now 3 games over .500 and holding a wild card spot, the Giants are poised to make a run at the postseason. The bad news is that Mitch Haniger will be out for a couple of months with a broken right forearm, and moments before he was hit by a pitch, J.D. Davis went out with a sprained ankle. The silver lining is the call up of phenom Luis Matos, who made his MLB debut today in St. Louis by lining a single in his first AB. He's the youngest Giant to make his debut since Madison Bumgarner. Keaton Winn made his MLB debut in St. Louis with a 4-inning save, but what's odd is that was the first MLB park he ever set foot in. Should Crawford be the new set up man? Speaking of hot, Pederson is hitting .480 over the past week plus, Doval is a perfect 14/14 in saves, Taylor Rogers has allowed only 1 ER in his last 18.2 IP, and his twin brother Tyler is down to a 1.71 ERA. We also chat about what Joey Bart's future is after being demoted to AAA. Barring injury or a trade, we all agree that he may stay there for the year.
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Two months into the season, and the Giants are hanging around .500, which honestly, is good enough by the time you hit September. They are still relevant in the West, but more so in the NL Wild Card race, where they briefly held the third spot for a couple of days (now 2.5 GB). The rookies Schmitt and Bailey have cooled off, but have earned a lot of respect from the veterans, and they could be here to stay. This begs the question of what to do with Joey Bart? They're going to kick that can down a long road with his "injuries." The bullpen is performing more like we thought, and Camilo Doval was named NL Reliever of the Month, converting all 11 saves, which was the most since Brian Wilson had 11 in September 2010. Zaidi said they will be "aggressive" at the trade deadline, we revisit two ex-Giants who are doing well, and we pay tribute to the "Humm Baby" himself, former Giants manager Roger Craig, who died earlier this week at the ripe age of 93. I was 12 years old when he commanded the 1986 club, famously known for "Humm Baby," and "You Gotta Like These Kids."
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Dusty Baker finally got the monkey off his back and won his first ring as a manger as the Houston Astros defeated the Philadelphia Phillies 4 games to 2. Jeremy Pena won the first World Series MVP by a position player rookie, along with ALCS MVP and a gold glove. Yes, we talk a little Judge, since the hot stove is LIT! And, Carlos Rodon officially declined his $22.5m option, as expected. Barry Bonds will have another shot at the Hall of Fame in December. Also, who do you think will be the Giants' uniform sponsor in 2023? And, why do we have to have a goddamn patch on these clean unis?!
All three hosts have a very lively conversation about the Astros and Phillies in the World Series, and how the Phillies' run is reminiscent of the 2014 Giants. Eric really, really hates the Astros, btw. Bruce Bochy comes out of retirement to become the next manager of the Texas Rangers (BTW, Rangers visit Oracle next Aug 11-13). Pete Putila is the new Giants' GM, and Zaidi promises to be "very active" this offseason, with reports that they are targeting Aaron Judge and Trea Turner. This and Eric's epic entry and run in a World Poker Tour 5 Diamond tournament at the Bellagio last week!
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It's time to bust out the scalpel and open up the body of the Giants' 2022 season to determine what went wrong with the team that won a franchise-record 107 games just a season ago. Eric, Willie, and Chad put their gloves on and dig deep into the mediocrity of their offense, the sub-average bullpen, and bad defense that was countered by their excellent starting pitching. They also put out their Christmas shopping list for Zaidi, take a look at how their pre-season predictions went, and forecast the 2022 MLB Playoffs. It's a full one! Enjoy!
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Giants went 6-1 this week, making a .500 season possible if they go 6-3 the rest of the way. Buster Posey owns the Giants (partially)! Aaron Judge is going to be very expensive, no matter if he hits 60 or 63. Albert Pujols crosses 700 homers. The Giants' pen is hot, and is it ok to wear your name on the back of a jersey?
Don't forget, you can access the video of this episode on our Facebook page!
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The Giants had another disappointing week, and concluded their season series with their bitter rivals, the Dodgers, who took 15 of 19 games this year, the most losses to the Dodgers in a year since moving to San Francisco. We talk about Hunter Pence going on the wall of fame, Aaron Judge, selling Dodgers gear INSIDE Oracle Park, and notable happenings from around baseball.
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The Giants are humming along in their mediocrity, battling it out with Arizona for third place. In the meantime, we've seen some sparks from some young talent. Eric and Chad reveal what they would like to see over the Giants' last 22 games, and they dissected the new and controversial rule changes approved for 2023.
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Not a good week. At all. The Giants are in the midst of a 7-game losing streak, including sweeps at Minnesota and at home against the Padres. At 10 1/2 games back of a playoff spot, tied with Arizona now, with 32 games left, the season is over. What went wrong? Who's to blame? What can they do? The only goals left are to have a winning month, get close to .500, and see what the young bucks have in their tanks. 2022 is turning out to be an extremely disappointing season for a team that set a franchise record with 107 wins last year. Come commiserate with us!
No video stream this week.
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Join Chad and Willie as they talked about the last 2 weeks in Giants baseball, where they went 7-6 since we last recorded and didn't make up any ground. They need a miracle to get back in the race, even IF the 2 teams they're chasing falter. Tatis and the PEDres. 2012 Reunion. Upcoming games: 2 @ DET, 3 @ MIN.
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The Giants have one of the worst records after the All Star Break at 5-12 and are almost completely out of the playoff picture. That said, they are getting a lot of their regular roster back and can make ground against the Padres starting tonight. The boys also talk about what the Giants did and didn't do at the trade deadline, and how they may hope to compete with the Dodgers and Padres rosters in the future. Plus, Hunter Pence is going on the Giants' "Wall of Fame" on 9/17! Remember, you can catch us live most Mondays at 12:15 pm PDT.
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The boys talk about Will Clark's #22 retirement ceremony, the Giants' recent skid, Chad's interview with Logan Webb, who's game to be acquired or traded away by tomorrow, and should the Giants buy or sell or do nothing? We also take a look at the Dodgers series and the final 60 games of the season.
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Chad interviewed Giants starting pitcher Logan Webb in the Giants clubhouse prior Will Clark's number retirement ceremony. Logan revealed his favorite players growing up, and the wisdom he gained from conversations with legends Will Clark, Barry Bonds, and Buster Posey. Logan also discusses what it will take for the team to turn it around to get into the playoffs.
Be sure to catch us live for our next podcast on Monday, August 1!
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Willie and Chad discuss the last week of Giants baseball, the playoff picture, the All-Star Game, Homerun Derby, the MLB draft, Juan Soto, and more
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We talk about the absolute thud of a sound that the Giants made over the last two weeks. They have completely fallen out of the NL West race and now are on the outside looking in at the wild card race. What happened? Can they fix it? How did 107 happen last year? We also discuss the Giants All-Star selections of Joc Pederson and Carlos Rodon, and will the Giants be sellers at the trade deadline? Plus, what we think the chance are that the Giants sign Aaron Judge this offseason. This and more!
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The Giants' hot streak has been muffled by losing 4 of their last 5, all by 1 run and 3 by walk-off. Although they are still in contention, they can't afford to continue to lose these close games. Eric and Chad talk about the last 2 weeks of Giants baseball, a trade, injuries and more!
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Chad and Eric discuss the last week in Giants' baseball, including a trade for a catcher and the demotion of Joey Bart to Sacramento. Also, their defense is at the bottom of the league and we explore why. Chad also asks the question, is it ok for a grown man to wear a baseball jersey at a game?
You can join us for every episode with our live stream on Facebook. A recording of this episode's video is embedded below. Our next episode will stream around noon pacific on Thursday, June 23. We will be missing one week due to summer vacations.
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The Giants finished May with a 13-14 record, their first losing month since 2020. Despite producing more runs per game in May than they did in April, they also finished the month with an MLB-worst 6.26 reliever ERA, and a 5.44 staff ERA. Clearly, the pitching is holding them back. Eric and Chad talk about this hopeful outlier of a month, the best Giants for the first third of the season, the "slap" by Tommy Pham on Joc Pederson, and where the Giants hope to go from here.
You can join us for every episode with our live stream on Facebook. A recording of this episode's video is embedded at www.torturecast.com.
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The Giants are having a rough week and a rough month, but the last two games have given us a respite from the storm. Will Joctober's 3 home run performance be the Tauchman-like catalyst they need? We discuss this and more in episode 253.
You can join us for every episode with our live stream on Facebook. A recording of this episode's video is embedded at www.torturecast.com.
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The Giants went 4-2 this week, but ended a 6-game winning streak. Eric and Chad talk review the week that was in San Francisco Giants' baseball, including the trade of fan-favorite Mauricio Dubon. We had an entertaining blow-out on Sunday night baseball with Albert Pujols taking the bump along with Luis Gonzalez, and the Giants and Mariners keep making trades, including the same guy back and forth!
You can join us for every episode with our live stream on Facebook.
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Join the conversation and Chad and Willie review the last week in Giants' baseball. We talk about the highs and lows, Buster Posey Day, and an umpire doing weird things with Madison Bumgarner.
You can join us for every episode with our live stream on Facebook.com/torturecast.
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We recorded episode #250 and reviewed the week in Giants' baseball. Not the greatest week, going 2-3, but there were many challenges to overcome from COVID and injuries, Farhan is making deals everywhere, a career minor-leaguer finally got his chance in the show, and the rosters have contracted. Eric has a mini-rant about fair weather Giants fans at the end, so don't miss it!
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In episode 249, we talk about the Giants' 8-3 road trip...despite losing 3 of 4 in NY! We give our players of the week, roast Angel Hernandez, and a traditional segment, "why the Giants will win it all."
You can join us for every episode with our live stream on Facebook, although we didn't go live this week due to circumstances. We should be live around noon pacific every Monday.
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In episode 248, we talk about the Giants' hot start to 2022 as they opened the season winning 7 of 9 games and all 3 series. Their pitching is hot, their hitting could be better, but it's all working out. We give our players of the week, and a traditional segment, "why the Giants will win it all."
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Willie, Chad and our listeners predict how many wins the Giants will get, where they will finish in the NL West and what special awards might be earned.
Join us as we rejoice that baseball is BACK and we will get a full 162! We break down elements of the new CBA, give you the details of spring training and when the season will start, AND the Giants have already been busy signing new players for the 2022 campaign.
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We're back for the new year with a fresh episode to bring updates regarding the MLB lockout of players, but in addition, we have a little discussion about the insane football playoff games from this past weekend, the fact that the Giants never even offered Kevin Gausman a contract, and it looks like Bonds will not make it to the Hall of Fame in his 10th and final year of eligibility.
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Eric and Chad talk about all of the hardware Giants personnel have earned so far, who's signed and accepted offers, and who the Giants should be in the market for. We also re-visit Buster's retirement.
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Buster Posey has retired.
We'll have a special Buster podcast in a few days, but until then, here is his press conference from earlier today. It's about an hour, and it starts with a statement by Buster himself. the middle of it includes Larry Baer, Farhan Zaidi and others, but you can fast forward that to get to the Q&A the media had with Buster. And, if you really hang around, we've included a bunch of Buster Posey career highlights at the end.....thanks everyone, and thank you, Buster Posey.
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We had to take a few days (or longer) to process the finality of the end of the #SFGiants' remarkable 2021 season, but we're ready to talk about it.
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Join us for a playoff special episode as we review the first four games of the NLDS against the hated Dodgers and preview the "win-or-go-home" game 5, to be played Thursday night at Oracle Park. We share our keys to the game, our super (or little) -stitions while we watch games, and quite honestly, just get pumped about the fact that this is happening for the first time in our lives.
Giants. Dodgers. Elimination Game. Playoffs. It doesn't get any better than this!
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This is Chad King from Torturecast with a few notes and sounds from last night’s 4-0 victory over the LA dodgers in game 1 of the National League division series at Oracle park. Logan Webb reminded all of us of Tim Lincecum’s postseason debut against the Braves in game 1 of the NLDS in 2010. Webb threw 7 ⅔ scoreless innings while striking out 10 and issuing zero walks. The offense was powered by a 2 run opposite field home run in the first by Buster Posey, followed by solo shots by Kris Bryant in the 7th and Brandon Crawford in the 8th. Tyler Rogers got one out in the 8th and Camilo Doval retired the side in order in the 9th.
Our friend Ryan Leong from Bay Area sports wrap was at Oracle last night and kindly shared some audio with us.
The first is Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford talking about how Logan Webb has improved in his abilities over the last two years.
Giants starting and winning pitcher Logan Webb says says it's always been his goal since he was a child to pitch in a playoff game
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says his team kept the same approach at the plate and Logan Webb exploited their weaknesses
Dodgers losing pitcher Walker Buehler says he didn't do his job and he takes the blame for the loss.
A big thanks to Ryan Leong from Bay Area sports wrap, go follow him over on Twitter @ryanleong
Well, the Giants and Dodgers will do it again tonight at ORacle when Kevin Gausman faces 20 game winner Julio Urias. Hopefully the Giants can put their foot on the Dodgers’ throats by going up 2-0. I’ll be in the bleachers with the rowdy crowd tonight. It should be fun.
Don’t forget to follow us on twitter @Torturecast, like us on Facebook and check out our site at Torturecast.com. Just yesterday KTVU ran a story about Torturecast and Giants fandom featuring yours truly. The video is up on torturecast.com.
Have a great day, and Go Giants! Boom!
Join us for a very happy discussion about the Giants' historic 107 win club that won the NL West on the last day of the season. We preview the possible NLDS opponent and take a peek at the rest of the playoffs.
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A fantastic 5-1 week saw the Giants' NL West lead grow by one game to 2 and their magic number shrink to 5 with 6 to play. Unfortunately, the good vibes were marred somewhat when we found out that Captain Belt has a fractured finger that could jeopardize any playoff participation...and he had been one of the hottest players in baseball, cranking out homers 28 and 29 in a game this week. Eric, Chad and Willie talk about the week that was and look forward to the last 6 games of the regular season as the Giants try and clinch the NL West and avoid game #163 and the wild card game. Plus, we bring back the old segment, "Why we will win it all!"
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This week, the Giants clinched a postseason berth for the first time in 5 years, but they're not close to being finished. With the best record in baseball and a slim lead in the NL West, they still want to win the division and move deep into the playoffs. Eric and Chad talk about the past week in Giants' baseball and how the last 12 games may shape up for them and the Dodgers, as the loser will be facing a wild card elimination game despite winning more than 100 games. Torture, indeed.
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The boys are still in first and un-abashed Astros fan, Ty Thomas, joins us to discuss why the Giants are the best team in baseball.
Join us for episode #237 as we review a crazy week in Giants' baseball that culminated in a hotly contested series with the Dodgers. The Giants briefly dipped to second place for like 11 hours before reclaiming the top spot. Are we worried about the lack of hitting with RISP? Jake McGee? The playoff rotation? We cover this and more! Audio version is available wherever you get your podcasts.
The Giants are guaranteed to have their best monthly record of the season. They won nine straight series. They went 6-3 on the road trip, yet here they are, only 1.5 games ahead of the Dodgers. Eric and Chad talk about how this resilient team will deal with positive COVID tests for Donovan Solano and Alex Wood, and a sick Johnny Cueto, all while they head into huge series with the Brewers and Dodgers. All of our episodes are also available on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, and most major podcast platforms.
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time, and all past videos are on www.torturecast.com.
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What an exhausting week of Giants' baseball, filled with a heart-crushing defeat, victories snatched away from losses at the last minute, and back to back jacks twice, Chad and Eric talk about it all. The Giants maintain their NL West lead, but it did slip a bit to the streaking Dodgers. We also talk about the pros and cons of a team that relies, more than any other team, on the long-ball to score runs. We're in the last lap of the mile now, and the Giants have their eyes surprisingly set on capturing the division title for the first time in nine years. All of our episodes are also available on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, and most major podcast platforms. The video version of this episode can be found at https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=3365696930324440
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Chad, Eric and Willie talk about the last two weeks of Giants baseball, including Brandon Crawford's 2 year, $32 million extension and how that might affect Posey and Belt, the fact that they went 10-3 and only increased their NL West lead by a game, the dramatic come-from-behind victories, the taxed bullpen, and how this team continues to be the best in baseball with its depth, consistency and resilience. We also make fun of our pre-season win predictions and look forward to how the Giants can clinch the West, something we didn't even consider back in April. All of our episodes are also available on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, and most major podcast platforms.
Chad, Eric and Willie talk about the trade that brought in the big fish, Kris Bryant, and the potential effect he'll have on the Giants and their race in the NL West. We also talk about the huge series against the Dodgers and Astros at Oracle this week. All of our episodes are also available on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, and most major podcast platforms.
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In episode 232, we review the series in St. Louis, LA and back home vs Pittsburgh and share our trade wish lists. And yes, the Giants still have the best record in baseball.
Join us next Monday on Facebook Live around noon pacific.
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Chad and Eric chat about the state of the Giants' season at the All Star Break and how having the best record in baseball is different than when they had the best record in the break in 2016. We review the last week of Giants' ball, the homerun derby, the All Star game, the Giants draft and more!
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Chad, Eric and Dills chat today as the boys chat about the Giants' road trip, All Star selections, and those City Connect jerseys.
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time. Episode #230 video is posted below:
Chad, Eric and Dills chat about the team with the best record in the bigs. Over the past week, they won 4 in a row before dropping their last 2. We had fun talking about the 2 game sweep, including the crazy extra inning games against the Angels and A's and the frustration of going 0-13 with runners in scoring position in last night's loss to the Dodgers. Plus, an all-star update, injuries, a Giant gets suspended for PEDs, foreign substances, and more!
Chad, Eric and Dills chat about the team with the best record in the bigs and their power surge to the top of the homerun charts and how Farhan's moves are paying big dividends. We review the series in Texas and Washington and focus on the sweep of Arizona and series win against Philly. Who's hot and who's not, all star game voting, the pen has improved tremendously and playoff odds are increasing by the day and at this point, we'd be surprised if they don't make the playoffs.
We streamed this episode on Facebook. You can find the video version of this podcast and past podcasts at torturecast.com.
In our 227th episode, we review the Giants-Cubs four game series over the weekend, significant injuries, Kuip's illness, Pride day, the league's crackdown on "goo," and a preview of their six-game road trip to Arlington and D.C.
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time.
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The Giants' season took a depressing turn when they were swept at home by the Dodgers. But, being #ResilientAF, they brushed themselves off and won 6 of their next 7 games, including 3 of 4 in Dodger Stadium. That weekend was highlighted by a gut-wrenching, classic torturous Giants game as the Dodgers tied it up with a pinch-hit, 2 out, 3-run bomb to tie the game at 5. The very next batter, Albert Pujols, sent what appeared to be the walk-off blast over the left field wall until Mike Tauchman put on his cape and lept over the fence to snatch defeat out of thin air. The Giants proceeded to put a 3 spot in the 10th and held on for the win. That propelled them to 3 straight over the Dodgers. Chad and Willie talk about the last two weeks of baseball, the shift, Gausman winning NL pitcher of the month, postseason predictions, the upcoming series vs the streaking Cubs (9-1 over 10...and swept the Padres) and more.
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Join us for episode #225 as we chat about the 26-16 first-place Giants as they stay hot. Yes, they should be 6-0 on this road trip, but sh$# happens. Despite having the best record in all of baseball, the Giants have still been walked off 6 times on the road. That's HALF of their 12 road losses. As Eric put it, they aren't #ResilientSF, they are #ResilientAF. We chat about the Pittsburgh and Cincinnati series, and preview the BIG series against the Dodgers this weekend. (apologies for some audio level problems, they will be fixed for the next episode).
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time.
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Join us for episode #224 as we chat about the 22-14 first-place Giants as they stay hot. After dropping 2 of 3 in Colorado, they got back on the winning wagon by taking 2 of 3 at home from San Diego and swept two games from Texas. And what about Buster Posey turning back the clock and hitting almost .400? We'll review the last 8 games and preview their road trip.
Join us every Monday at 12:15 pm Pacific for the live stream on Facebook.
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Join Chad and Eric's discussion about the last week of Giants baseball and the surprising development that this team finds itself alone in first place for the first time since August 2016. Remarkable for a rag-tag team, eh? They review the series at home vs Colorado and three at San Diego. The starters continue to dominate while the hitting and bullpen still need to pick it up. But hey, we can't complain much at this point. Then there were the infamous three straight balls called strikes in the 9th in San Diego. Ump had a dinner reservation, apparently. This and more in episode 223 of the TortureCast!
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time.
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Join Chad, Willie and Eric's discussion about the Giants series victory over those pesky Marlins. Logan Webb looked great in the series finale, and overall the pitching once again made up for the lack of offense. Also, did Madison Bumgarner pitch a no-hitter? This and more in episode 222 of the TortureCast!.
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time.
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Join all three of us as we dissect the road trip in Miami and Philadelphia, where the Giants maintained their .500 road record. The trip included a couple of shutouts, great pitching, heartbreaking losses, and a couple of fantastic comebacks. Where are all these pinch-hit homers coming from? We discuss Doval's debut, Cueto's injury, Giants with the unlucky BABIP and more in episode 221 of the TortureCast!.
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With the way the Giants are playing, we DO feel good! For those of you who are old enough to remember the 1989 "I Feel Good" commercial/campaign the Giants ran....you'll understand. Join us for episode #220 as Chad and Eric review the Giants series in San Diego and against Colorado and Cincinnati. We discuss the incredible timely hitting (despite being second-worst in batting average in the NL), and excellent pitching that has contributed to their scorching 8-4 start to the season. Alex Wood joined the rotation and will pitch in Miami, but that's balanced by a lat injury to Johnny Cueto in the finale of the Reds series.
Join us for episode #219 as Chad, Eric, and Willie (he joins mid-show) review the Giants opening series in Seattle. We discuss the bullpen meltdown, power surges from Buster and Longoria, a great start by Gausman, tickets at Oracle, notable performances around the league and more!
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time, although we'll be recording at a diffent time for next week's episode 220. Episode 219 video is posted on torturecast.com.
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Join us for episode #218 as TortureCast's founder, Willie Dills Gregory joins Chad and Eric to wrap up spring training and preview the upcoming season, including our annual total win and playoff predictions. We also read off all of our listener win predictions and Eric even proposes trading Buster Posey...what?!
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time.
In episode #217, we review the week in Giants' spring training camp, notable performances, cuts, news, injuries and our top 5 favorite Giants outfielders of all time.
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Join us for episode #216 as we review the week in Giants' spring training camp, notable performances, cuts, experimental rules in the minors, news, injuries and our top 5 favorite Giants infielders of all time.
You can join us live on Facebook every Monday around noon Pacific time. Our video broadcast can also be found at www.torturecast.com
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The Giants have a small power surge going in their lineup this week with two bombs by young phenom Heliot Ramos and solo shots coming from six other players. Jose Alvarez also signed with the Giants this week, further bolstering their pen with yet another lefty. Eric and Chad talk about how the Giants are building their roster with depth as a strength, since they lack some of the talent that lurks on rosters in LA and San Diego. We also look at another top 5: this time our top 5 Giants pitchers in our own lifetimes. Obviously, Bum and Timmy made our lists, but perhaps we're old enough to sneak on pitchers from the 80's?
Look for us to regularly record every Monday throughout the rest of the season. We streamed this episode on Facebook Live and the video is accessible on facebook.com/torturecast or our website www.torturecast.com.
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The annual feeling that hope springs eternal when you hear the crack of the bat is upon us! Spring training has started and Chad and Eric are here to talk about it. On the table for this episode is the top of the lineup, new pitching acquisitions Aaron Sanchez and Scott Kazmir, Belt's mysterious illness, names are being added to the Giants' home jerseys and we reminisce about our top 5 Giants' seasons of all time...that was a fun and nostalgic discussion. Look for us to regularly record every Monday throughout the rest of the season. We streamed this episode on Facebook Live and the video is accessible there and eventually on torturecast.com and our YouTube channel.
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Farhan Zaidi has been at it over the past four weeks, signing pitchers Alex Wood and Jake McGee and infielder Tommy LaStella, and trading pitcher Shaun Anderson to the Twins for outfielder LaMonte Wade Jr. All of these acquisitions certainly makes the Giants incrementally stronger via depth, role, and situationally. Chad and Eric discuss the impact of these moves, the possible starting rotation, where the Giants' farm system is nationally ranked, our top five Oracle Park moments, the Super Bowl and more.
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Happy New Year! We're back! Eric and Chad hop aboard the first podcast train of 2021 to discuss the players that the Giants have signed so far this offseason, what their needs are, and what free agents are left to pursue to fill the holes. Boy, the Padres certainly loaded up with Darvish and Snell, eh? Egad. That said, we do think there is a good chance the Giants could sneak into the playoffs with an expanded playoff schedule like last year, but those details have not been settled, yet. With the demonstration of the NFL finishing its regular season during the pandemic along with last year's MLB and NBA seasons, it seems likely that MLB will proceed with its regularly-scheduled spring training and season. However, the owners will push to delay the season to offset the financial losses of not having fans in most parks for the first couple months. The players won't let that happen. We talk about this and more on episode 212 of the TortureCast, the podcast by and for fans of the San Francisco Giants.
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The boys streamed episode #211 over on Facebook, but are bringing it to you on YouTube as well. We review the Division and Championship Series and preview the World Series. Braves, WTF, you had ONE JOB! We also talk about potential Giants' All-Stars, Belt's surgery, Ramos' injury, a 10% reduction in Giants baseball operations and more. You can follow us on Twitter @torturecast and like us on Facebook, where we stream our episodes live. You can also get our audio-only podcast on your favorite podcast platform.
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We streamed episode #210 on Facebook tonight, reviewing the wild card round and previewing the division series. We review Zaidi's end of year comments and watch the Giants' fan "thank you" video. Horrible, bad, regretful predictions of the DS and CS winners are also made by Chad and Eric. We hope they don't come true.
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One game. One hit. One play. Essentially, if the Giants had one fewer mistake or one more rally over this entire 60 game season, they would be in the postseason. Yes, they exceeded expectations, but this is a bit painful to see them lose 3 in a row to close out 2020.
Chad, Eric and Willie give the eulogy for the 2020 Giants' season. They were as close as you could get to not only getting into the playoffs, but having a chance to knock off the Dodgers as well. Instead, that honor will go to the 29-31 Milwaukee Brewers, who had the tiebreaker (intradivisional record) over the Giants by one game. The NL West is far superior to the central, but the central will see four of their teams in the playoffs, a record, of course.
Yes, there were mistakes...many mistakes that cost the Giants ultimately. Namely, in the last week, they lost their last three games and four of five. That's not playoff-caliber baseball. They blew a 2-run save on Friday night against the Padres, blew numerous chances with the bases loaded on Thursday against the Rockies, and committed a crucial error that led to three unearned runs in the finale that they only lost by a single run. Then, umpire Rob Drake didn't help things by taking away four ABs in the final two innings from the Giants with some horrendous strike calls. Poor Austin Slater!
We choose our Giants' MVPs, talk a little about the future, make our first round playoff picks, and essentially, had a group therapy session. If you need some therapy after the way this season ended, we're here for you. Take a seat on the couch and let 100 minutes of Giants' therapy wash over you.
Eight games left. That's it. This is our last podcast before the end of the 2020 regular season, and the Giants are just on the outside looking in at a playoff spot. Despite having a .500 record like the Reds and Brewers, both teams hold the tie-breaker over the Giants (intra-divisional record), and that may be key in deciding the Giants' playoff fate. Chad and Eric review the 3-2 week and forecast the Giants chances for making the playoffs, which may take 6 wins in their last 8 games to ensure a spot.
Chad and Eric will be captaining a team of Giants fans this Thursday at 7pm PT to defend our title in Giants trivia. We'll be joining other captains, including Andrew Baggarly, Grant Brisbee, Marty Lurie and many more. If you're interested, tickets are $30 and all proceeds go to benefit the Sonoma Family Meal and Big Basin Recovery Fund. Go to www.giantstrivia.eventbrite.com.
What a bizarre week of Giants baseball...even for 2020! The Giants started the week with a mini two-game sweep over Seattle, but the second game last Wednesday was played under apocalyptic skies at Oracle Park as Most of California is still on fire. Chad covered the game that night and has never seen anything like it. Your social media was probably covered with orange-tinted photos from the Bay Area. Then, just as they had started a pivotal four-game series in San Diego, Alex Dickerson apparently tested positive for COVID-19, but then later didn't. It was determined, through two subsequent negative tests, that his first test was a false positive. This resulted in immense scrutiny and pain for the Dickerson's (Alex's wife is 39 weeks pregnant and on bed rest) after USA Today falsely reported that Dickerson broke protocol and visited family and friends in the San Diego area, which was completely false. Also, Friday and Saturday's games were postponed, but one was made up during a double header on Sunday that the Giants promptly got swept in.
Chad, Eric and Willie talk about the downer to end the week and our best memories of Pablo Sandoval, as he was designated for assignment last week. However, the Giants are still holding on to the 8th and final seed in the National League playoffs with 13 games to play. What else could you ask for with this team?
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The Giants hit .500 after a 4-2 week and now sit at 21-21, with zero run differential, so right in the middle, baby! But, in 2020, that's good enough to get you in the playoffs! The Giants currently hold the 7th seed, virtually tied with the Marlins and just ahead of the Rockies. There are several other teams in contention, of course.
Chad and Eric discuss a good week in Giants' baseball. From a record 23 run murder of the Rockies to familiar face of Madison Bumgarner returning to the Oracle Park bump, there was a lot to talk about. Just 18 games left in the season, and the Giants control their own destiny.
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Borrowing the slogan of mediocrity from the 1984 campaign, the Giants are indeed hanging in there thanks to a shortened season, and the expanded playoffs. After going 3-3 this week, they sit just a half game out of the 8th seed in the National League, with only 24 games remaining. This week saw the Giants with an epic walk-off homerun against the Dodgers, a double-header sweep to the same team, a boycott of a game, winning two of three in Arizona, old guys catching fire, and....no trades. None at all. This is so 2020.
We’re excited to announce that TortureCast has joined the SportsHosts community as one of their official Content Creators.
SportsHosts is the world’s first global community of fans, built by fans for fans. We’re going to be working together with them to create better experiences, better content and better events for passionate fans like you to be part of.
You can check out our page on the SportsHosts platform by signing up for free using this link (https://tinyurl.com/sportshosts). You can also go to SportsHosts.com and search for TortureCast. Once you’re there you can join our page, the Giants' page and your other favorite team communities and start sharing your passion with like-minded fans - this will be an experience like no other.
SportsHosts. Let’s Go Together!
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Just as we counted the Giants out last week after having lost 5 in a row and 7 of 8, including those 3 gut-wrenching 9th inning blown leads, the Giants turn it around and hammer out 6 straight wins (and counting) to get themselves right back in the wild card hunt at 14-16. Chad, Eric, and Willie get together to discuss each game of the week, Joey Bart's MLB debut (finally! boy can he rake!), Yaz's MVP consideration (he leads MLB in offensive WAR!) and sadly, the end to the reunion with Hunter Pence as he was designated for assignment after posting a miserable .096 average (5-52). We're going to miss The Reverend.
You can also check out the video of the podcast below, and join us on Facebook Live (mostly) every Monday afternoon as we review the week in Giants' baseball!
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Willie Dills joined Chad this week to talk about what may be the most depressing week in regular season TortureCast history. Not only did the Giants drop 7 of 8, but they blew three consecutive save opportunities. The first was the worst: a 5-run lead in the 9th (first time since 1929 a lead this big was blown in the 9th), the next night it was a 3-run 9th inning lead, and last night it was a walk off 2-run HR by the Angels. All 3 were blown by Trevor Gott, who is officially out as closer. However, the defense helped put Gott in the situations in 2 of the 3 blown saves. Adding salt to the wound in between was a 15-3 blowout loss to the A's. Sitting dead last in the NL West at 8-16, the Giants' playoff hopes have dwindled to a microscopic level.
BTW, where's Joey Bart?
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Somehow the baseball season is still pushing forward, despite the Cardinals are now the "infected" team. In fact, although the Giants have played 16 games, which is more than a quarter of the way through the season, the Cards have only played 5 games....FIVE.
The Giants went 3-5 since our last recording, but the main hurdle was Colorado, where they lost three of four, despite having late inning leads in two of those losses. They've split so far in LA, but Donnie Barrels (aka Donovan Solano) leads the league in hitting, and Yaz leads the majors in wins above replacement. The veterans of Pence, Pablo, and Crawford have not played well at all, and their pitching staff has a 5th worst ERA at 5.05. Surprisingly, their batting average is fifth. At 7-9, the Giants are barely out of the expanded playoff picture, and if they can survive the last 4 games of this hellacious 10 game roadie, they may not be in horrible shape. Eric and Chad chat about all of this and more in a brief episode 202.
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Although the Giants had an average week, it included a dramatic splash-hit walk off, another great comeback stalled by a bullpen that exploded, Chad got credentials to cover a game, and well, basically most of the Marlins have COVID-19 (and now the Cardinals, too), which is putting the MLB season in dire jeopardy due to the number of postponed games. Eric and Chad chat about all of this and more in a brief episode 201.
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Willie Dills Gregory and his two friends started this podcast on June 12, 2011. Nine years later, we've finally reached episode 200. However, that's with the caveat that if you add all of the bonusodes, season previews and interviews, it's really recording number 258. That said, it's something to celebrate, especially as we recorded during the Giants' home opener (which they sadly lost 5-3 to SD).
Chad, Eric and founder Willie Dills wax poetically over 90 minutes about the Marlins' COVID outbreak, the expanded playoffs, and the first series the Giants split against the Dodgers.
This episode, and all going forward, was streamed on Facebook Live. Check out our ugly mugs as we get through this episode! Hopefully baseball sticks around long enough to make it to the playoffs. Thanks for coming along for the ride!
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Honestly, we can't believe it. We are having a season preview episode. In July. Whatever. We'll take it.
Joining Chad and Eric are long standing podcast veterans including a founder of TortureCast, Willie "Dills" Gregory and a woman who has joined us for numerous season previews and drunken "bonusodes," Jennifer (formerly Cosgriff) Kent.
The four of us discuss the new rule changes, the potential roster, guess on the number of wins for the Giants, the World Series champs and even discuss the importance of Gabe Kapler and several Giants that took a knee during the National Anthem before the exhibition game against the A's.
We're almost to #200!
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We have a schedule! We also have injured players and others that might sit out this season. Chad and Eric discuss the first week of summer camp, the positive COVID cases, and more in this episode of TortureCast!
After months of frustrating negotiations...the owners and players failed to come to an agreement. But alas, MLB Commish Rob Manfred instituted a 60 game season, players agreed to the health protocols, and voila! We officially have a 2020 baseball season!
Here are the main points:
60 game season (40 against NL West, 20 against AL West)
Universal DH
In every extra inning, a runner starts the inning on second base
60 player pool; camp opens today, July 1
Season starts July 23 or 24
Trade deadline is Aug 31
30 man roster the first 2 weeks of the season, 28 the next 2 weeks, 26 the rest of the way
Playoffs remain the same (3 division winners, 2 wild cards in each league)
Separate COVID-19 injured list. A player has to test negative twice to resume play
Players and personnel not in game must be in stands, 6 feet apart
Eric and I talk about the ramifications these new rules have on the Giants, including who's going to be DH most of the time, the Giants actually have a shot at a playoff spot with so few games, how do they handle stats of runners scoring in extra innings, and much, much more.
We are so excited to actually discuss real baseball, but we hope that the season not only starts, but can come to a conclusion. There is serious worry about what the virus may do to halt the season. But, in the meantime, we're moving forward and will be back with an episode in mid-July and our annual season preview around July 22.
As noted in the photo above, Eric and I met up in Las Vegas last week, the first time we've seen each other in 7 years! We talked shop, drank, and caught up. We highly recommend "BEER PARK" at the Paris Hotel, a great outdoor venue. Next time, we'll make a podcast out of it.
@chadk21 & @2outhits
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Wow! What a change 24 hours can bring. After MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said last week that he's '100 percent' certain that a 2020 season would happen, he flipped yesterday and said he was not '100 percent' certain. This brought ire and backlash from the players, and quite honestly, the owners and Manfred don't look good to the public in this situation, despite their leverage. This (Tuesday) morning, Manfred and MLBPA chief Tony Clark had a secret meeting and emerged with a 'framework' for both sides to move forward on negotiating terms. Initial reports state that the season would be around 60-70 games, players would receive their full pro-rated salaries (which is what the owners were denying all along), and there would be a greatly expanded playoff...going to 16 teams from the current 10. Originally, expanded playoffs were to include 14 teams. In return, the players would agree to not filing any grievances against the owners about their reduced salaries due to the limited number of games.
Despite this great nugget of news that may bring us baseball at Oracle Park in July, it all stems on player safety and the hopes that the nation will not shut down again due to a second wave of the corona virus. We are already seeing many states spike in cases due to re-opening, and that is cause for concern.
Also, these events have impacts on sports betting. You can find our sponsor's (Sports Betting Dime) betting section here, has the odds for the MLB season to be played went from -300 to -165 after Manfred's statement yesterday.
We also recap the seven players the Giants took in the draft, the Oracle Park bullpens are done, and sadly, Cy Young Award winner Mike McCormick passed away this week.
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Things are tough in the nation right now. From the pandemic to civil unrest, there are many more important things happening than a podcast about baseball and the Giants. Yet, Eric and I decided to go ahead with our recording, as we only do so every two weeks at this point. Perhaps our conversation can be a distraction from these troubling times.
There have been a few developments in the negotiations between the owners and players, but both sides seem to have their feet planted firmly. The owners want to pay the players much less than previously agreed to, with fewer games played, and the players want a prorated salary and more games. They are currently very far apart, and the chances of having a season seem to dwindle with every passing day. But, there is some hope that we'll see baseball some time this year. We also chat about Vegas reopening, bullpen completion and new dimensions at Oracle Park and more!
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Do we think this is likely? Not really. But, that is the latest bit of news coming out of the baseball world. Last week, MLB owners sent the players association a proposal that would start an 82 game season in July. Some of the main points of how the season would work include the DH for the NL, an expanded 14-team playoff, games restricted to mainly geographic opponents to reduce travel, and a myriad of COVID-19 related guidelines for on-field play (no spitting, chewing tobacco, fist bumps, etc.). They also proposed a 50/50 revenue split with the players, but that would result in lower salaries than the players already agreed to on March 26, when they agreed to a pro-rated salary based on the number of games played. Additionally, California Governor Newsom indicated that pro sports may be able to return by June, without spectators.
All of these issues are massive hurdles, which makes the prospect of a season starting in July seem unlikely. However, baseball fans around the nation would be ecstatic to see their team playing on their home field (on TV) sometime this year.
We also talk about Blake Snell's unwillingness to play for less, the Giants are paying their non-baseball staff through September, and the OOTP Baseball dream bracket #2 will send in the 1954 and 2012 Giants as part of the field of 64 historic teams.
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Show links:
MLB Owners Proposal Highlights: https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-2020-season-plan-owners-approve-proposal-for-july-start-talks-reportedly-begin-without-salary-discussion/
Blog by Craig Calcaterra: https://craigcalcaterra.com/blog/the-pandemic-diary-may-16/
Blake Snell: https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29174318/rays-ace-blake-snell-says-refuses-play-reduced-salary
OOTP Dream Bracket #2: https://www.mlb.com/dream-bracket
We're back to talk about developments in a plan that may bring baseball back in some form by June. Currently, the plan is to essentially put all players and personnel in a bubble, test them for the virus every week, and make sure they only travel to and from the stadiums and hotel. However, the PPE and test kits required would put a huge strain on medical resources, and there are players with families that are unwilling to be away from their families for five months or longer. Adding families to the bubble would raise the costs and stakes far too much. This plan is questionable, at best, but may be our only route to a form of baseball.
Baseball Reference is simulating the 2020 season with the game, OOTP 21, and currently the Giants are in 4th place at 7-10. Hunter Pence is 1-3 in the players' league, playing MLB The Show '20, but he had an epic walk-off Buster Posey homerun in his last game. You can view his games on his Twitch channel.
Stay safe out there, and if you have a quarantine story to share with us, drop us a line at chad@torturecast.com!
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It's April 8, 2020. Just six weeks ago, we thought we'd be talking about the first week of the regular season by now. Instead, we are without baseball, and without sports worldwide. I found myself watching old Giants games on YouTube as an exercise in remembering what it's like.
Eric and I chat about how we're doing during this crisis, but we dive into plans that are being floated that may, just may enable MLB to start the season in June with play across 10+ stadiums and adhering to a strict isolation and testing policy. We're not so sure this is a feasible plan, but any baseball is better than no baseball! Eric also asked me and the general audience what are your top five Giants-related personalities you would like to be isolated with? Tune in to find out what we thought!
The corona virus has changed our world for now, and although sports and baseball aren't of the utmost importance, it does bring balance and a little meaning to our lives. We miss it.
Oh, and STAY THE F&%( AT HOME!
Chad
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The founder of this podcast, Willie Gregory (@williedills) invited Eric and I to join himself and his friend and Astros fan Ty (@tyberius_asher) on a special Twitch streamed episode to talk about the Astros cheating scandal. However, in the days that passed, the corona virus had taken over the headlines and canceled or suspended sporting events around the world, including Major League Baseball.
In this special episode, we chat with Ty about how he has dealt with the Astros cheating scandal as an Astros fan, and then we dive in to discuss this brave new world that we are in. Covid-19 has forced the suspension of the NBA, NHL, MLS and MLB and canceled March Madness. Even Disneyland closed! My son's school closed, the Monterey Bay Aquarium, and the list goes on. Even Tom Hanks and his wife have it.
Join us for a long, interesting, fun, and inebriated episode of the TortureCast!
Check out the video stream on Twitch here! https://www.twitch.tv/videos/566341797
The crack of the bat, the smell of fresh cut grass, and the warm rays beating down on the fans. Baseball is officially back as spring training and the cactus league is a week into the 2020 season. Eric and I chat about our impressions of the first week of Giants' baseball, and to be honest, although this team may not be that good, what if they surprise us. No, not playoff surprise, but maybe a 75 win season? Time will tell.
We also dive into "who is Mason Saunders?", revisit the Houston Astros cheating scandal, Aubrey Huff, possible playoff expansion, and we even have our first music break, with a song sent in by a listener. Enjoy "Baseball always brings you home" by Shel Krakofsky and Dave Dresser.
Chad
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Pence is back, along with the Panda. Pretty soon we might see Barry Zito as the batboy. For all the analytical signings that Farhan zips out, he signed two fan favorites. We talk about all of the signings, FanFest, media day, Giants players adjusting to life without Bumgarner...and ALERT, PITCHERS AND CATCHERS REPORT TOMORROW! What a sweet sentence that is.
Alas, we know there is some overlap with Giants and 49ers fans. However, if you don't like the 49ers or don't care about football, fast forward this episode about 20 minutes, as Eric and I get into the mess that was the Super Bowl. And...with new software we're still trying to dial in the audio levels, thanks for your patience!
Chad
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Happy New Year! Oh, and the 49ers are in the Super Bowl!!
We last recorded in November, and WOW, what a difference a holiday season can make. MadBum signed with Arizona, the cheating scandal saw three managers and a GM get fired, Farhan Zaidi is acquiring young talent faster than his hairline is receding. Eric and I talk about the off-season moves, the Hall of Fame vote, the mostly brand-new coaching staff, including the first MLB full-time female coach, Vegas doesn't like the Giants, and much more in this episode of TortureCast!
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We told you we would be back for episodes when the manager was hired. What we didn't foresee is the hiring of a controversial manager, a new GM, the loss of two HUGE Giants, the 2019 season awards, and a cheating scandal that is rocking the baseball world. Boy, did we have a lot to talk about in this meaty episode!
We dive into the controversial hiring of Gabe Kapler, the hiring of Scott Harris as the GM, Will Smith signed a three year, $40 million deal with Atlanta, Bumgarner officially declined his qualifying offer from the Giants, all of the season awards, and the Astros sign-stealing scandal that is likely to alter the course of Astros history going forward.
You may disagree with some of our opinions about Kapler. Let us know your thoughts on this topic, we'd love to dissect them in the next show!
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Much like the "Mattress King" did, we thought the Astros would win the World Series. Unlike the "Mattress King," we did not bet 3 million bucks on it. Congratulations to the Washington Nationals for bringing home the coveted Tiffany trophy for the first time in the city's history. It wasn't the most exciting seven game series that we've seen, with only one game decided by one run and the rest by 3 or more, but it was seven games, nonetheless.
Eric and Chad review the World Series and then talk about the Giants who elected free agency, and the finalists for the Giants' managerial position.
We'll be back periodically throughout the offseason, even for short(ish) episodes when something big drops. Perhaps signing Cole? We kid.
Thank you for all of your support throughout the 2019 season. It was our most successful year after our inaugural season of 2011. We recorded 28 podcast episodes during the season, totaling over 30 hours of content, including a few interviews. We hope to bring as much or more audio content to you in 2020, and perhaps more video products. We want to hear what you want! Send us a line at chad at torturecast dot com.
Thanks, and we'll see you soon!
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Jose Altuve won it for the Astros with a dramatic pennant-winning homerun in the bottom of the ninth to send them to the World Series to face the up and coming Washington Nationals who surprisingly swept the Cardinals. It's the first such pennant-clinching homerun since Travis Ishikawa did so for the Giants against the Cardinals in 2014. Let's just thank the baseball gods that it's not a Dodgers-Yankees World Series!!
Chad and Eric review the league championship series, the latest in the rumor mill of potential Giants' managers, Arizona Fall League developments, the passing of an MLB umpire that just worked the AL division series, and talk about Chad's latest deep sea adventures.
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Schadenfreude (/ˈʃɑːdənfrɔɪdə/; German: [ˈʃaːdn̩ˌfʁɔʏ̯də] (listen); lit. 'harm-joy') is the experience of pleasure, joy, or self-satisfaction that comes from learning of or witnessing the troubles, failures, or humiliation of another.
This is what us Giants fans experienced on Wednesday night. Despite seven consecutive NL West titles, despite a club-record 106 wins, despite setting a record for homeruns, the LA Dodgers somehow did NOT win the World Series. Clayton Kershaw, the anti-Bumgarner of the playoffs, entered with a 3-1 lead in the 8th inning of game 5 versus the Nationals and promptly gave up back to back homeruns on consecutive pitches, the second time he has done that in the playoffs. He's never done that in all of his years of the regular season.
As we dance on the graves of the 2019 Dodgers' season, Eric and I also review the first round of the playoffs and check it against our predictions. One thing to note, including the two wildcard games, 5 of the 6 contests (4 LDS) came down to ONE GAME. So, that said, I ended up getting 4 of 6 correct, Eric 3 of 6. We also preview the LCSs and we'll be back to record episode 185 right before the World Series.
Go Nats?
Chad
P.S. I will be leading a scientific expedition to explore the deep sea off the coast of California next week. You can watch live video from the depths from our remotely operated vehicle at www.nautiluslive.org. We should be in the water from Monday through Thursday night. I will be audible on the coms between 8-12 both in the AM and PM (2 shifts).
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The 2019 San Francisco Giants' season is over.
We gave a tribute to Bruce Bochy's incredible career in episode 182, but this episode wraps up the last week of the 2019 season.
Chad and Eric cover the week that was, and venture into predicting the playoffs for the 10 qualifying teams, and even review the predictions we had at the beginning of the season.
Thank you for your support all year long!
Thank you, Boch.
There's no other way to put it. 2003 wins. 3 World Series Championships. Innumerable memories.
Bruce Bochy managed his last major league game on Sunday, and we were witness to one of the greatest send-offs a manager could ever have.
He is forever Giant.
Check out episode 183 for a summary of the last week in Giants' baseball, our playoff predictions and more, but episode 182 is all about Boch.
Enjoy.
We weren't sure if it was going to happen, but it did. Bochy reached 2,000 wins in his managerial career, with the help from a certain Yaz.
Chad and Eric talk about Bochy's magical milestone and the week that was in Giants' baseball. Yaz hit a homerun where his grandpa hit homeruns. A rookie won in Atlanta where the veterans couldn't. Changes to the park are afoot.
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Yaz's dash to home in Sunday's game was an analogy for this year's Giants' team. Heart and hustle, but not the highest level of talent. But, heart and hustle will win games, as it is obvious in their 33-15 record in 1-run games, best in MLB. The Giants went 3-4 this week against the Pirates and Marlins at home, securing a losing record at Oracle Park. That said, their road record is above .500, and they can finish that way. A weird juxtaposition that the Giants will contend with next year. If they had a winning home record this year, they would be in contention.
Bruce Bochy only needs 2 more wins to reach 2,000 in his career, with 12 games to go. The Giants find themselves in Boston and Atlanta this week.
Eric and Chad talk about the week that was in Giants' baseball. From a record-setting number of players on the roster, who's hot and not, Cueto's fabulous return, and the bullpen having the best ERA in the NL in September, despite the trades and injuries. All this and more in episode 180 of the TortureCast!
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The Giants beat LA. Ok, they won 2 of 3 after losing 3 of 4 in St. Louis, but Bruce Bochy single handedly won the LA series with shrewd moves with the bullpen. Maricio Dubon hit a pair of jacks, including one against Kershaw, while the Giants improve to 33-15 in one run games.
Eric and Chad talk about the week in Giants' baseball, the rookies, a record number of players on the roster, a tribute to Bochy by the Dodgers, who's hot and not, and more!
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The Giants fell out of the playoff race in a huge way this week, going 1-6 and falling 8 games behind the Cubs for the second wild card. As of now, they need to shoot for 2,000 wins for Bochy (8 more) and maybe a .500 season as a silver lining.
Eric and Chad talk about the bad week that was, transactions, the roster expansion, and their first 20 homerun hitter in 4 years. It's not all bad news...just mostly.
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After a sweep at the hands of the Cubs essentially eliminated any chance the Giants have of making the postseason, Evan Longoria had a great weekend against the A's, enabling the Giants to take the Bay Bridge trophy and climb back to 4 games out of the wild card. But, if they had just taken one game in that crazy series against the Cubs, they'd be 2 out right now. With precious little time remaining, the Giants have to step on the gas...now!
Eric and Chad review the 2-3 week and talk about players' weekend, Bochy's 4,000th managed game, Cueto's rehab, Pablo's TJ surgery, who's hot and not and more!
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Eric said the Giants needed to go at least 4-2 this week, and well, they did. Although, we were hoping for a 5-1 week, Bum laid an egg in the last game vs Arizona. We recap a solid week of Giants baseball which saw Mike Yastrzemski hit 3, yes, 3 homeruns in a game. Last time that happened was Jarrett Parker...where is he now? We also saw the MLB debut for Logan Webb, Pillar light it up, Belt's granny, MadBum's masterpiece vs Oakland, and Will Smith's meltdowns.
We review the week in Giants' baseball, stroll down memory lane, cover transactions, the upcoming series, and bring back "Guess that Giant!" Hope you enjoy episode 176, we did!
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It's been a wild two weeks of Giants baseball. The Giants went 5-8 since we last recorded, but they only dropped from 2.5 games back to 3.5 games back. Alas, their playoff chances keep plummeting (down to 3% per fivethirtyeight.com). In episode 175, we covered the trade deadline, the fact that both Bumgarner and Smith will be with this team through the end of this season, Panik getting DFA'd, the losing streak, the 1989 Giants' reunion, Will Clark's #22 getting retired next year, Will Smith's first AB, hit and RBIs...literally we couldn't have chosen a worse regular season stretch to miss our weekly podcast. Nevertheless, Chad and Eric are back with a vengeance in an extended episode to catch all of us up on the happenings of Giants baseball.
I Feel Good. ish.
Here's the video the Giants streamed of the 1989 celebration on Sunday. We opened this podcast with the first minute of this segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYvQ4QprPUU
Here's the video from "Inside the Clubhouse" about the 1989 Giants: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQAkKHRLrYw
Thank you to @ryanleong for the audio and photos that were included in this podcast.
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The Giants keep surprising everyone. 4-2 this week with all 4 wins by one run, and 2 were extra inning. Two games were single-handedly won by Pablo Sandoval, as he hit two game winning homeruns this week. As a part-time player, he leads the team with 13 bombs. They are 26-10 in one run games and 11-2 in extra inning games. They keep pushing the narrative that this team can win, and will win close games. It's torture. It's classic Giants baseball, and Bruce Bochy thrives managing this team.
Eric and Chad talk about the last week in Giants' baseball and the impending trade deadline that is less than 24 hours away as this is typed. Most likely, they Giants will NOT be trading away Bum and Smith, and in fact, may be adding small pieces. Although this could hurt their long-term prospects, we agree that Zaidi has proven that he can adapt to a changing team and will be able to cope with a lack of trade return. And the reality is...the players don't care about what this team will look like in 2-3 years. Most of them won't be on the team then. They care about now. This is Bochy's last season. Although their playoff chances are predicted between 7-12%, that is irrelevant to the clubhouse. They believe, and that's all that matters. It'll be an interesting concluding two months of the season.
On a somber note, I (Chad) live in Gilroy, and we opened this show discussing the tragic events that transpired at the Gilroy Garlic Festival on Sunday. Although my family didn't attend that fateful day, plenty of my friends and their kids did, serving in the volunteer capacity at various food booths and such. Literally dozens of my friends and the friends of my 13 year old daughter had to run from goddam bullets, saw people shot, one was grazed by a bullet. It's left an indelible mark on my town of Gilroy, but we will persevere
. Please consider donating to various funds, including the GoFundMe page for the 6 year old boy that was senselessly gunned down. Donate blood at the Red Cross. Do what you can to help our little town recover. It's been a rough 36 hours, but it was important to me to record a show today.
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From our friend Ryan Leong comes Joe Maddon's post game comments after the Giants beat the Cubs 5-4 in comeback fashion. Be sure to check out our latest episode 173!
Shaun Anderson pitched 5 innings against the Cubs tonight in the Giants' thrilling 5-4 comeback win against the Cubs. Here are some of his post game comments. Be sure to check out episode 173 that we recorded earlier today!
This is a quick audio byte of my thoughts as I drove home on the 101 after tonight's epic come from behind victory over the Cubs 5-4. I covered the game from the press box tonight and was treated to a 3 run eight, capped off by Joe Panik's game-winning RBI double. Giants are above .500 for the first time this season, with 6 games to go until the trade deadline. They've won 16 of 19, and the exuberant clubhouse vibe was palpable. The audio quality isn't perfect, as it was recorded in my car. I'll post the audio of Shaun Anderson's post game in a separate file.
This team continues to surprise everyone, including GM Farhan Zaidi. The men in black and orange have won 15 of 18 and find themselves only 2.5 games out of the wildcard and are now tied for second in the NL West at 50-50...they're at .500! Every win in July has increased their chances of making the playoffs and decreased the chance that Zaidi will trade anyone. The next 7 games will probably dictate what he does.
Chad and Eric talk about the Giants' historic July, three extra inning walk-off wins versus the Mets, why Tim Flannery thinks the Giants should trade Bumgarner, who's hot (basically everyone), the minor league report, the flurry of transactions this week, and the crucial next 7 days before the July 31 trade deadline.
Chad will be covering Monday's game versus the Cubs, so be sure to tune into twitter @torturecast!
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The Giants have won 9 of 11 and lead MLB in home runs for the month of July with 22. You read that right. They lead the league in home runs this month. Did this team find their true identity, or is this just a phase like a cranky teenager going through a growth spurt? Eric and Chad talk about the series win in Milwaukee and recorded this during the Giants' 19-2 demolition of the Rockies in the first game of their day-night doubleheader today.
To the surprise of everyone, the Giants are one of the hottest teams in the league. All the more surprising is the fact that they are winning on the strength of their offense. The team is 9-2 in its last 11 while averaging 8.5 runs per game. Suddenly, they're just 4 games back of a playoff spot. At 750/1 to win the NL Pennant, there would be value betting on the Giants to squeak into the playoffs and make a run. However, Farhan Zaidi is still likely to sell at the deadline, so bettors wouldn't actually be wagering on this Giants team; they'd be wagering on a team that may be without the likes of Madison Bumgarner and Will Smith. The guys at Sports Betting Dime (www.sportsbettingdime.com) think there is value betting on the Giants to squeak into the playoffs and make a run.
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The Giants have won 6 of 7 and head into the All Star break just 5 1/2 games out of the second wild card spot. The problem is that they have seven teams in front of them, and that is why the oddsmakers give the Giants only a 0.7% chance of making the playoffs. That said, we can still enjoy some good baseball as of late with a tremendous week by Evan Longoria, who hit 5 homeruns, including 4 in San Diego, the Shark is pitching very well, Dickerson continues to swing a hot bat, and Will Smith heads into the break converting 23 of 23 save opportunities and dipping his ERA under 2.
Chad and Eric talk about the last two weeks of Giants' baseball, Chad's experience covering the Diamondbacks game last Sunday, they give their All Star game and HR derby predictions, and look forward to baseball before the trading deadline to see if GM Zaidi will pull the trigger on any trades to help the farm system for future Giants' teams.
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The title was just too sophomoric to pass up...sorry about that. But, we do want more production from Alex Dickerson, who knocked in 9 runs in the first two games in Arizona, including a grand slam, two doubles, and a triple. This performance prompted the chant, "Dick! Dick! Dick!" from the Giants' dugout. Truly an awesome sight and sound.
We had a small break because of Chad's vacation, but it was a fairly successful period for the Giants, as they went 7-5 during the two week break, but still find themselves in the cellar of the NL West. Eric and Chad review the last two weeks, the latest trade rumors about Will Smith and Madison Bumgarner, compare Mike Yaztremski's stats through 92 plate appearances with that of his grandfather's start, this week in Giants' history, who's hot and not and more!
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The Giants just can't seem to push through in any particular week, and last week was no exception. Although they did win the first game of each series against the Mets and Dodgers, they proceeded to lose the next two games and each series. They also mustered a horrendous 2 for 24 with runners in scoring position against the Dodgers, glaringly one time unable to score with the bases loaded and no outs and again with runners on the corners with no outs in their 1-0 loss on Sunday. Speaking of Sunday, anyone see that Muncy splash hit and the subsequent reaction by MadBum? Yeah, Eric and Chad have thoughts on that.
We also review the draft, this week in Giants history, and who's hot and who's not. We'll be back in two weeks for episode 170.
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We also review the draft, this week in Giants history, and who's hot and who's not. We'll be back in two weeks for episode 170.
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The Giants went 3-3 since our last podcast, but after losing the first two in Miami, I think most Giants fans will be quite pleased with winning 3 of 4 since then. But, let's be honest: going 3-3 against two of the worst teams in the league is disappointing, but also a barometer of where this Giants team is amongst the 30 clubs. We talk about the great performances of Shaun Anderson, Tyler Beede, and Jeff Samardzija, Crawford's 2 homer game, two easy wins in Baltimore, scoring 5 in the first inning just to give up 6 to the Orioles in the bottom half of the first, we review May's atrocious stats (spoiler: the starting pitching stats are the worst in SF history for ANY month), we preview the MLB draft (Giants have the 10th overall pick), who's hot and not, and much more!
Don't forget to check out our weekly "This Week in Giants History" at www.torturecast.com!
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The Giants went 1-6 since our last podcast, and have completely taken the season in a different direction, being outscored 55-19 in the process. In addition, they gave up 15 unearned runs this week, which is almost half of the season total of 32. They are dead last in hitting and fielding percentage, and 3rd worst in the NL in ERA, a spot they were third in just a few weeks ago. They've lost 5 in a row, 6 of 7, and are on pace for 97 losses. Mac Williamson was DFA'd again, Carl Yaztremski's grandson was called up and got 3 hits, and the only win of the week was so improbable, with the Giants being down to their last strike 8 times. Baseball is weird. We talk about it in episode 167 of the TortureCast!
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The Giants went 3-1 after our last podcast, and have exceeded expectations (sadly) with a 17-17 record over their last 34 games. They took 2 or 3 from Arizona and their regulars have been performing well. Crawford won 2 games by himself with a game-saving play and a homerun. Panda hit 2 pinch hit HRs and won a game. Zaidi keeps the roster rotating with some shrewd trades and moves. Listen to this and more in episode 166 of the TortureCast, the podcast by and for fans of the San Francisco Giants!
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We review the last week in Giants' baseball, including a 2-4 record, using Nick Vincent as an opener after being outscored 42-5 in the first inning through 40 games, Derek Holland's comments about a "fake" injury and Zaidi's response, injuries, the revolving door that is the roster (36 on the 25 man and counting), who's hot and not, Hunter Pence's renaissance, and much more. Although the Giants sit in the NL West cellar, there's always interesting topics to discuss...just gotta look for it!
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The Giants could have had a much worse week if it weren't for the fact that they came back from 8 runs and 4 runs down in two games in Cincinnati. They took 2 of 3 against the Dodgers and split 4 in Cincy. The Giants lead the league with a 9-2 record in one run games...that's good but not good considering their lack of ability to put teams away. Their win after an 8 run deficit is the 5th time they've done that in Giants history and the first time in 30 years. They followed that up with a 4 run deficit win against the Reds, and that is a miracle of its own.
We celebrate Eric's 40th birthday and Willie Mays' 88th birthday in episode 164.
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The Giants started off this week with a 2-game sweep in Toronto and finished a 4-4 road trip before heading back to San Francisco to face a depleted New York Yankees team that had 15 players on the injured list. That didn't matter, as the Yanks swept the Giants at Oracle thanks to bad starting pitching, poor defense, and getting behind early.
Despite going 2-3 this week, the Giants sit at 11-17, last in the NL West and only surpassing the Marlins in overall record in the NL. Bum, Holland and D-Rod all did poorly against the Yanks, and Gary Sanchez hit the ball out of the yard twice, one time at 467 feet.
We talk about the week, the last visit to SF by the Yankees (Chad was there for Bonds v Clemens in 2007), who's hot and not, should Mac be called up, should the pens be moved along with the elimination of Triples Alley and more.
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The Giants raised their team batting average over the last 6 games from .199 to .209. The bad news is that the Giants' pitching staff ERA went from 2.75 to 3.22. Christian Yelich hit 8 homeruns...this week. The Giants have 13 homeruns...as a team....all season. Eric and Chad talk about a 2-4 week during this road trip, dropping 2 of 3 each to the Nats and Pirates. But, in almost every game, a single play was the difference. The Giants are, well...competitive. They truly are. A few hits here and there and the Giants could be .500 or better. They are not getting crushed. They just can't win most of the close games, which is, well most of their games. At least Buster Posey won a game single-handedly with a 3 run jack to defeat the Pirates 3-2. He also applied the tag to Kang to record the final out at home that game. So, there's that. But, that's exactly what the Giants need. And more times than once every 23 games. Also, why can't the Giants score in the first inning? They are dangerously close to setting the MLB record for not scoring the first to open the season. They are at 23, while the record is 28. Hell, why not? Who cares? BTW, they are hitting .096 in the first inning. All 7 hits are singles. I want to see them score that first first inning run via the little league homerun with like 7 errors on an infield hit.
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Where would the Giants be without Kevin Pillar? He dominated the week, hitting 4 homeruns with 12 RBI. In fact, no other Giant had more than 1 RBI for the week! The Giants sit at 7-10, 4 games back of the Padres, but it would be much worse without Pillar's contribution. That said, he's only hitting .155 on the season, so he's getting timely hits. How long will this last?
We talk about Pillar and the week in review on episode #161, including the insane 18 inning win against the Rockies, surprising pitching from the Shark, and how the bullpen leads all of baseball with a 1.77 ERA. However, they also are at the bottom of the NL with a .199 batting average, and have mustered only 10 homeruns, which is the same as Kris Davis! Eric also introduced a new segment called "Guess that Giant," which Chad performed poorly in. Let us know in the comments if you guessed this Giant faster than Chad did (we're sure you did). This was a fun podcast to talk about a winning week. The Giants go on a long east coast trip, so their hitting has to come around at some point.
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In episode #160, Chad and Eric have a lot to discuss. The Giants are 10 games into the 2019 season, and although they haven't been swept, they also haven't won a series, going 3-7 in that span and dwelling in the cellar in the NL West. The pitching has been excellent, in fact, 2nd best in the NL, but their offense is non-existent. They have averaged only 2.5 runs per game and are hitting .207 overall. Cody Bellinger has more homeruns (7) than all of the Giants (6). We also talk about the two trades Zaidi pulled off this week and the short cups of coffee for Michael Reed and Connor Joe. Eric brings in a new minor league report, and he's planning another new segment for the episodes to come this season.
Don't forget to follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook, and of course, visit www.torturecast.com for podcast episodes and written articles.
Chad and Eric host our annual season preview episode a little bit late...well, after 4 games into the season, but there is a good reason for that. Chad had the flu one week, then was traveling for work, then last week was having the experience of a lifetime, diving 2 miles under the ocean in the historic Alvin submarine, exploring a recently discovered "octopus garden" near an extinct underwater volcano while the BBC broadcast all this live back to the UK for their "Blue Planet Live" show. So, yeah, good reasons.
The Giants started off the season with a whimper, losing 3 of 4 in San Diego, while mustering only 5 runs in the process. They are hitting an NL-worst .177, but at least their pitching is 2nd! By the way, who expected Michael Reed and Connor Joe to be on the roster? We review this series, and preview the season, reading off all of YOUR predictions for total wins this year. Spoiler alert...most of you don't think they're going to win that many game. We also give our playoff, statistics, trade, and milestone predictions.
Spring has sprung, and baseball is back, baby! Can't be sad about that.
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Chad and Eric reconvene after the #Harperwatch ended last week. The Giants were once again the bridesmaid after Harper said no and took the rose from the Phillies. But, we talk about the reasons why he stayed in the NL East, and why it could have been a prohibitive contract for the Giants, especially if they aren't going to be competitive for a few years.
We also talk about the start of spring, the crowded outfield and pen, starting rotation possibilities, Bochy's retirement announcement and the unfortunate Larry Baer incident.
The season is a mere 24 days away, and we can't wait!
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This is the second time we recorded episode #157 (first version in November was eaten by my dog...I think), but we are back to get you ready for the upcoming season. Eric and I talk about what moves have occurred with the Giants' new head of baseball operations (not much), the passing of two Giants greats, the current outfield market, potential trades, the Hall of Fame results, and our Super Bowl predictions. It's great to be back in the podcast saddle again!
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Chad and Eric wrap up the Giants' poor season in episode 156 discussing their worst month in franchise history, going 5-21 and plunging 16 games below .500 after they were at .500 on August 31. Hunter Pence's lasting speech was uplifting after the Giants got trounced 15-0 by LA. We also lament about the fact that the Giants could have forced LA into a wild card game if they could've won one stinking game over the weekend.
We also preview the playoffs, give our picks, and choose our postseason awards.
This episode was also streamed on Facebook Live, and you can watch the video here:
https://www.facebook.com/torturecast/videos/291917328080020/
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The Giants finished their abysmal road record at 31-50 after losing their final four roadies (1 in SD, 3 in StL). It marks only the 6th time the Giants have lost 50 or more games on the road and the first time they've done that in consecutive seasons since 1984-85. At least they're guaranteed of a winning home record (they are standing at 41 wins).
Eric and Chad review the week on the road, a monumental bomb off the bat of Hunter Pence, the possibility that GM Bobby Evans might be replaced and what a new GM might do (trade Bumgarner?), Melancon's struggles, review the current playoff situation and pray and hope that the Giants can knock LA out of the playoffs this coming weekend as both teams close out the regular season.
We'll be back next week to wrap up the season and preview the playoffs. Until then, be sure to like us on Facebook, follow us @TortureCast and check out our site at torturecast.com.
The Giants lost 11 in a row for the first time since 1951. They have now established a SF record for consecutive losses, beating 1985 and 1996 (10 games). At least the 1902 and 1944 NY Giants can rest assured that their losing streak records are intact.
The Giants ended up beating the Rockies 2 out of 3 games and honestly, could have swept. Dereck Rodriguez had hist 10th game giving up 2 or fewer runs ending in a loss or no decision.
Chad and Eric talk about the last week, the losing streak, the MLB playoff picture, and more in episode 154 of the TortureCast, the podcast by and for fans of the SF Giants!
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Yes, that show title is hyperbole. But, the Giants have lost 8 in a row, plunging them to 8 games under .500 and 11 games back in the West. They were swept in Colorado and Milwaukee, making it their first winless 6 game road trip since 2015. Although their pitching hasn't been horrible, the pen and starting pitching is choosing bad spots to fail. Their hitting, or lack thereof, is the main culprit. The difference between their home (+9) and road (-17) records is astounding.
Ryder Jones going down for the season on a swing just encapsulates this injury-ridden season too well. MadBum, for all of his fire and fury, plunked Ryan Braun after their words earlier in the game, was met by a grand slam by Jonathan Schoop, the best retribution the Brewers could have asked for...and that's after 3 of their players and manager were ejected for their reactions from the plunking.
With less than three weeks left in the season, the Giants will try and finish with some competitiveness, and hopefully be spoilers for a team or two. They will also try and avoid their longest losing streak in SF club history at 10 games (1996 and 1985). Hopefully it will never get to their overall club record at 13 games (1902 and 1944).
Thanks for the wonderful comments on YouTube, and hopefully you'll root for this team as they close out this miserable season. Besides, football is back, and a good distraction, anyway.
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Let's face it. The Giants were already out of the playoff race, but they are cementing that destiny by losing 5 in a row. They are a season-high 5 games under .500 and 10 games back of the Rockies. The only silver lining about getting swept in Colorado is that it kept the Dodgers from taking first place.
Eric and Chad discuss the last 9 games and where the Giants go from here. They called up their prospects, Aramis Garcia and Chris Shaw did get their first big league hits and homeruns, Steven Duggar went under the knife to end his season, Posey is on target after his surgery, the Giants traded away Andrew McCutchen for Yankees prospects, and D Rod continues to show his dominance in this league. By the way, the Giants are in danger of having their first back-to-back losing seasons in 10 years. Ick.
We also talk about the MLB playoff picture and more in episode 152 of the TortureCast, the podcast by and for fans of the San Francisco Giants.
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With special guest, Ryan Leong (@ryanleong), Chad and Eric discuss the last two weeks of the Giants' season and realize, like even the Giants' brass, that this season will not end in the playoffs. At 65-67 and 8 games back with 30 games to play, the Giants probably just need to play the youngsters. Also, Buster Posey had hip surgery today and will miss the rest of the season and be out 6-8 months, hopefully ready in time for the 2019 season with more power to contribute from his legs.
We also talk about the possibility of the ballpark being adjusted to lure future power hitter free agents, Derek Holland's racially insensitive appearance on national TV, a setback for Jeff Samardzija, the fight between the Dodgers and Giants, the excessive proclivity for the Giants' bullpen to fail and much, much more on episode 151 of the TortureCast!
Ryan Leong been covering the Bay Area teams since 1998. Freelancing for major sports radio networks including ESPN and CBS Sports Radio, AP Radio and NBC News Radio. He has coverd all of the major events, including Super Bowls.
Ryan Leong also sent 6 interviews recorded after yesterday's game against the Rangers. You'll find these at the end of the podcast:
-Giants manager Bruce Bochy says he roots for Derek Holland because he's has been doing his best to bounce back from a bad 2017 season with the White Sox
-Giants starting and winning pitcher Derek Holland says while he has shown improvement on the mound he wants to make it through the seventh inning
-Giants center fielder Steven Duggar says he's doing anything he can in each game to help the team win
-Rangers manager Jeff Banister says Yovani Gallardo made one bad pitch which was the two run triple hit by Steven Duggar
-Rangers starting and losing pitcher Yovani Gallardo says he knew the pitcher was on deck but with the count 2-2 he wanted to get Steven Duggar out and it didn't happen
-Rangers shortstop Elvis Andrus says the offense struggled while in Oakland and it had a carryover effect into their series vs. Giants
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Eric and Chad talk about Barry Bonds' #25 being retired (Willie Mays' and Barry Bonds' speeches are at the end of the podcast) and all of our memories watching him as fans before we started this podcast. We also review the split of a four game series with the Pirates and focus on the emerging star of Dereck Rodriguez, whose name, if you Google it, still comes up with his dad's picture first (Pudge)!
The Giants need to play with some sense of urgency right now. Sitting 6 games back of Arizona with 43 to play, they need to do well on this 10 game road trip, starting with 3 in LA. Tonight, it'll be a classic matchup: MadBum vs. Kershaw.
It's a tough road, but stranger things have happened.
Enjoy episode #150!
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Two weeks ago we talked about the Giants' dwindling playoff chances and how they needed to reel off a streak of near-historic proportions to get back in the race. It hasn't happened in the last two weeks. Going 5-7 in those two weeks with some late heart-breakers against the Astros has all but put a nail in the coffin for the Giants playoff hopes. MLB rates them at a 2.2% chance of getting into the dance.
When you look at their current deficit at 6.5 games behind Arizona, you can point to just one game a month that they shouldn't have blown. If they just had one game a month back, they'd be sitting just 1.5 games out. This is the difference between a good team and a mediocre team.
Chad and Eric review the last two weeks, talking about the devastating blow of Cueto getting Tommy John surgery, Pablo is out for the rest of the year with a hamstring tear that required surgery, and Brandon Belt is still out. Although rocked by injuries, the Giants have had bright spots in Dereck Rodriguez, Duggar, Moronta and others. We also talk about why the Giants didn't buy or sell, and if they're rebuilding. And...should they trade Bumgarner?
Enjoy Episode #149 of the TortureCast!
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The Giants have not been too bad, but they haven't been great at all. They are 3-5 since we last recorded and are slipping in the standings, now in 4th place, 4.5 games behind the Dodgers, needing to leap three teams in the NL West. Things aren't great. Things aren't horrible. Things are just...meh.
Chad and Eric catch up on the Giants over the last two weeks, with series against Oakland and Seattle, with the All Star game in between. Posey, Cutch, Belt and Crawford have been woeful since the break, and all four maybe even worse over the last month. The bright spots are Derek Rodriguez, and more recently, Hunter Pence.
If the Giants want a shot at the West, they may need a bat or arm. But, will they be buyers this far back? Or, will they sell and reload for 2-3 years from now?
Enjoy Episode #148 of the TortureCast. The Giants need a push!
Chad
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The Giants took the rubber game of a three game set with the Cubs with a 13th inning walk-off hit by Buster Posey. This was the second walk-off in the series and the eighth walk-off of the year, which leads all of baseball.
Chad and Eric chat about the current homestand, Crawford and Posey's selections to the All-Star game, the timely pitching of Dereck Rodriguez and Suarez, the return of Johnny Cueto, the trade of Gearrin and Jackson, more trade rumors and more!
Friend of the show Ryan Leong passed along this youtube video, it's a good watch. "The Giants Story, A Tale Of Two Cities" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jDNdb2xHxCI
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The surging Giants just completed a 3 game sweep of the division-leading Diamondbacks in Arizona behind timely hitting and phenomenal pitching from their staff. All told, the Giants have won 10 of their last 12 and find themselves only 2 1/2 back of Arizona in a virtual tie with the Dodgers. After the final 3 games on this road trip in Colorado, the Giants return home once again for 10 games before the All-Star break. The Giants currently have the best home record in the NL, so home cooking should be good to close out the first half.
Eric and Chad discuss the latest successful homestand, walk-offs by Pence and Crawford, incredible pitching from their rookies and Bumgarner, and how the Giants will handle both Samardzija and Cueto coming back to the rotation, given the great performances from Suarez and Rodriguez. In fact, the Giants are 8-2 in their last 10 combined starts (2.62 ERA).
We also talk about who's hot and not, this date in Giants history, and the All-Star game vote here in Episode #146 of the TortureCast, the podcast by and for fans of the San Francisco Giants.
We've had a string of real-life incidents get in the way of recording the last 3+ weeks, including Memorial Day, the death of Chad's dog, Eric's car breaking down, and a hair appointment (long story). Alas, Eric and Chad get back together to talk about what we've missed and where the Giants are. They are .500, 4 games back, and quite frankly, in a position to win the west, now that they have MadBum, Panik, Williamson, Hanson, Melancon and others back on the roster. That said, they're missing Strickland to a self-inflicted hand injury, and Longoria also breaking the same 5th metacarpal that both Strickland and Bum broke. It's like whack-a-mole with injuries this year. Get one back, another one goes down.
They've won 3 in a row, 4 of their last 5, and Bum had a classic dominant performance last night against the Padres. This is the point. The Giants can't keep giving away games. Just one or two games a month equates to 6-12 for the year, which can make the difference in a season. The Astros won like 13 in a row, including many close games that they didn't give up. That's the mark of a championship team, like the Giants were for their 3 World Series rings.
Eric and Chad talk about who their pick for team MVP is so far this season, drafting Joey Bart, who's hot and who's not, injuries and more in this packed episode #145 of the TortureCast!
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Brandon Belt was just named NL player of the week. Belt hit .444 with 5 HRs for the week, and is now in the top 5 of most offensive categories in the NL and is an MVP candidate at this point. So, suck it, Belt haters.
Brandon Crawford has raised his average from .189 on May 1 to .302 by hitting well over .500 in the month of May. He credits his turnaround to Panda and Blanco, who noted that he used to have his hands set a little higher, just mere inches. Low and behold he checked the video and fixed it.
MadBum has three rehab starts coming up, Mac Williamson will be back soon, and the Giants might be running into a buzzsaw of a road trip, facing Houston, Chicago Cubs, and Colorado. This might be a tough road trip to survive.
The offensive explosion this month has compensated for the horrendous starting pitching, which has plummeted the Giants to 12th in the NL in ERA at 4.33. That said, the entire NL West is struggling, and the Diamondbacks have opened the door for almost any team to take command. The Giants are in 3rd, just 2 games back at 24-24, but the Dodgers have won 4 in a row and are just 3 games back of the Giants.
This is anyone's race!
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How could losing 6 out of 7 be worse? Well, if the rest of the NL West played well, that's how. The Giants, coming off a sweep of Atlanta, were only 4 games back of division-leading Arizona. Although they went on to lose 6 out of 7 this week, they find themselves only 4.5 games out. Arizona got swept, LA got swept, Colorado didn't play very well. So, at 20-21, the Giants return home to face the Reds in a critical series to stay in the hunt until MadBum and Cueto can return to aid this team.
Chad and Eric talk about the starting staff that just got absolutely wrecked in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, and their astronomically high strikeout ratio.
Fellow fans, there are silver linings to everything, and this podcast has a very thick lining.
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The Giants are hotlanta right now after sweeping the young, first place Braves to start off their 10 game road trip. The Giants have won 4 in a row, 5 series in a row, 7 of 8, and 11 of 14. Their record stands at 19-15, 4 games back of the division-leading Diamondbacks. Chad and Eric discuss their .417 average with runners in scoring position over the weekend, the great pitching, Johnny Cueto's elbow, kicking the tires on Matt Harvey, who's hot and not, injuries and more. We like to record when the Giants are good! Thanks for all of your great comments and support!
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The Giants wrapped up the week with a 5-2 record as a part of a 7-3 homestand, propelling them above .500 for the first time this season.
Chad and Eric talk about the hot offense, Panda's perfect inning, who's hot and who's not, and injuries. Speaking of which, we might be saddled with bad news regarding Johnny Cueto. Although he's seeking second opinions about his UCL, it could mean Tommy John surgery.
The Giants are off for a 10 game road trip, and have 18 road games in May, vs. 7 at home. Could be a tough month for the Giants, or it could be an opportunity for the offense to continue heating up in these small ballparks.
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Just to be clear, we do not hate Brandon Belt, but we know that many Giants' fans do, and we are perplexed. Chad and Eric talk about that along with the week in review, who's hot or not, a little lineup reconstruction, the return of the Mac, and much more.
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This is a week that you just wanna punch right in the face and forget about. It was a rough weekend bender, at best. Giants go 2-5, but the worst of it coming on the backend, losing three straight to the lowly Padres. Eric noted that after the Giants went 9-0 against San Diego in the first half of 2016, they are 10-23 since, and haven't won a series against them during that time.
The Giants continue to have the worst batting average with runners in scoring position, a lowly .158, despite their overall team average at .244, which is 8th in MLB.
Struggling players include Beede (sent down, Cueto up), Pence, Belt, Dyson and Osich, versus the relatively few hot players (Posey, Crawford, Stratton).
We also talk about two SJ Giant teammates who hit for the cycle it the SAME game, then later that week, hit walk off homers each in back to back games! We review the injury report and bitch about Melancon. Overall, not a chipper episode, but a meaty one.
This, and so much more in episode #139 of the TortureCast!
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Although it's been a week since we last recorded, the Giants only played 4 games, thanks to off days and a rainout. They went 2-2 last week, splitting 2 game series each with the Mariners and Dodgers, but the Dodgers series was dramatic! The Giants blew a lead late to force extra innings, and actually went down 5-4 in the 14th before Andrew McCutchen launched the most memorable hit of this young season, a 3 run homer to win the game. He also went 6-7, the first time a SF Giant had 6 hits at home...ever! They also exploded for 10 runs in game 2 vs. the Mariners.
Chad and Eric discuss these four games, significant at bats, who's hot and who's not, and preview the upcoming week.
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If you told us that the Giants were going to start the season without MadBum, Shark, and Melancon, yet split the first four games of the year in LA, we'd take that in an instant. We'd be even more flabbergasted if you told us that the Giants would be outscored 14-2 but STILL WIN 2 GAMES. Thank you, Joe Panik! His two solo shots in two consecutive games off of Kershaw and Jansen may have single-handedly prevented the Giants from being swept.
That said, winning the first two games of the series put the Giants in the driver's seat to take the series, but they couldn't do that, losing 5-0 and 9-0 in the last two games.
Chad and Eric dive into the stats of the series (mainly that the Giants were 1-20 with RISP, and Longo, Cutch and Jackson combined for 2-43!), the pros, the cons, the strengths and the weaknesses. But, hey...it's only four games.
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It's our annual season preview! In this 7th preview in total, the gang has all been pretty close in guessing the Giants' win totals...until last year.
With all of us ranging between 84 and 92 wins, we were more than 20 games off. That said, no one predicted that the Giants would lose 98.
Taking that into consideration with this year's injuries, we have the biggest range in our hosting history, with Chad going low with 76 wins, Willie just behind at 79, and Eric piling on the unicorn droppings with a whopping 96 wins, proclaiming that the Giants will win the West, the World Series, Duggar will win Rookie of the Year, and Posey and Panik will battle it out for a batting title.
Perhaps Eric is getting high off his new puppies?
We also read listener's win total predictions, talk final potential roster moves, and our keys for getting off to a good start, considering that the Giants play the Dodgers 10 times over their first 29 games...and that's without Bum or Shark.
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Spring training has merely a week left, and Chad and Eric talk about the second round of cut the Giants made, and how the Giants are near the top of every offensive category! (but, maybe not so much on pitching).
MadBum is raking, AT&T Park is rated #1 by Forbes, and the season starts in LA in 10 DAYS!
Join us for a fun episode...spring is almost over!
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We last left you before Media Day, before pitchers and catchers reported, before Tony Watson and Derek Holland were signed. And man, does everything seem positive right now!
There was a profound sense of positivity at Media Day, where I got interviews with Evan Longoria, Brandon Belt, and Brandon Crawford, along with group interviews with Andrew McCutchen and Bruce Bochy. But...I buy into it. This isn't your typical response from a team that lost 98 games last year. They truly think that was an anomaly, and with the improvements to the club, these guys think the postseason is certainly possible. I think I'm buying into it.
Eric and I talk about this and the first six games of spring training, which included three bombs from Kyle Jensen?! Ok, so although he's not making the team, we still talk about him and other solid performances over the first week down in Arizona.
Timmy signs with Texas?! At least he's not a Dodger.
Also, check out Eric's great writing on our site, he's gonna manage a team website at some point, or get caught in a sex scandal when he's made it. Either way, that's more than I can say.
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The ever-casual skipper, Bruce Bochy, commanded a group of reporters in a suite today at AT&T Park, where he talked about the "euphoria" he experienced when he found out the Giants had traded for Andrew McCutchen, among other great nuggets in this interview.
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Chad sat down with Giants' shortstop Brandon Crawford to talk about what went wrong last season, and what he's looking forward to in the upcoming campaign, especially with the additions of Cutch and Longo.
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Chad sat down with Brandon Belt for a one-on-one discussion about his health status, pitch selection, and last year's disappointing season.
Also, be sure to check out Chad's interviews with Evan Longoria and Brandon Crawford, and group interviews with Bruce Bochy and Andrew McCutchen.
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Chad attended SF Giants' Media Day at AT&T Park where a group of reporters huddled around newly acquired outfielder Andrew McCutchen. "Cutch" as he is often called, talks about Roberto Clemente, how he got his number 22, and the similarities and differences between PNC and AT&T Park, among many other subjects.
You can also view this interview on our YouTube channel
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Chad sat down for a one on one interview with San Francisco Giants' new third baseman, Evan Longoria. Evan answers questions about his new home, the new ballpark, and the new fans.
Look for additional interviews with Andrew McCutchen, Brandon Belt, Brandon Crawford and Bruce Bochy.
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It's true, the Giants' pitchers and catchers are reporting in less in a week. A few mere days until we can claim that we smell the fresh cut grass and hear the crack of the bat echo through our collective skulls.
Until then, Eric and Chad talk about Barry Bonds' #25 being retired in August, despite not being the Hall of Fame (a Giant requisite for a retired number), the clash between the MLB players' association and MLB about the lack of free agent signings, Chad will be covering the Giants at Media Day on Friday, and Eric has been writing a metric ton on torturecast.com. Seriously. Go there. Read it. It's good stuff!
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In episode 132, Eric and Chad talk about the big signing for the Giants this off-season. We also talk potential lineup options, pitching rotation, and Hall of Fame results.
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Ack, the unthinkable has happened! The Dodgers are in the World Series!
Listen to Eric and Chad break down their predictions.
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What a horrendous day. Just coming off the news from Puerto Rico, then comes the Vegas shooting and now Tom Petty. Let's talk about baseball, shall we?
Chad, Eric and Willie reflect on the end of the 2017 season for the Giants, including what went wrong, how they may address it, Pablo's season-ending walk-off and how that affects the draft, and of course, Matt Cain's last start. Chad talks about covering Cain's last start and Eric shares a poignant moment he had with his father when they watched Matt Cain and Barry Bonds beat the Cubs in Chicago.
We also dwell upon the impending playoffs and offer up our predictions. Chad and Willie both predict Houston and Washington making it to the World Series with Houston winning it all, while Eric thinks the Dodgers will hoist the Tiffany trophy after defeating the Astros. (GOD I hope Eric is wrong)
That means it'll be the Twins vs the Rockies in the World Series, of course.
We'll be back in a week or two to reflect on the playoffs, then again after the World Series before we head into the hot stove season.
Chad and Eric wind down the season with a deep political discussion that some may not want to hear, but what the hell...they're close to 100 losses.
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Although we didn't dwell on the hurricane in Texas, we wanted to mention that thousands, if not more, people, are being severely affected by this storm. Please, donate money, pray, do whatever you can to help those in harm's way.
As far as baseball, Chad and Eric reconnect with Ben to discuss recent developments in Giants-land from their earliest and official elimination from the West, being swept by Arizona, Kontos to the Pirates, Cain getting bombed...wait a minute, jeez, sounds like we didn't have fun! But actually, any time you get three guys talking baseball, no matter how depressing it may seem, it's actually quite enjoyable, because you know what, there's real life like in Texas.
We do also dwell on more positive topics like the player's weekend uniforms and the Giants mega-interest in Stanton (like that's going to happen).
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So, we lost track of the number. 127, 128...it's about the same difference as in Matt Moore's expected and real ERA.
Speaking of Moore, we talk about the huge disappointment he's been, among other Giants. They are flirting with a 100 loss season, but are throwing in the towel with the youth movement, DFA'ing Connor Gillaspie, sending down Hwang, and calling up Suarez, Jones, Parker and others. If Beede and Arroyo weren't hurt, we just might have the RiverCats playing out the rest of the Giants' season!
And yes, we talk about the reunion with the Panda, and trading away a solid player in Eduardo Nunez to the Red Sox for some pocket lint that may not amount to anything.
At least we can look forward to 2034?
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Happy birthday, America!
To celebrate, the Giants have won six in a row, and have mystified some Giants' fans who seem to think "there's a chance" of making the playoffs.
No. That's not going to happen.
But, that's no reason to not celebrate this winning streak, the bullpen, and the timely hitting! I mean, even a guy who goes 1 for 10 with a homerun celebrates that dinger, right?
Eric and Chad talk about what's gone right for the Giants, why they should trade Cueto, Posey's selection to the All Star team, the homerun derby, and who's hot and who's not.
Stay safe out there! Don't blow off any fingers and don't drink and drive.
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How do you record a podcast for a team that is 20 games under .500 and 20 games back before it's officially summer? You cry, you laugh, you commiserate. But, one thing is for certain, there is no stress in this season now, so put that in your pipe and smoke it!
Chad, Ben, and Eric join in a proverbial IDGAF podcast to try and dissect what has gone wrong for the Giants this year. After tonight's 9-0 loss to the Braves, the Giants have a .361 winning percentage, and are on pace for 103 losses. To put this in perspective, since 1883, the Giants have only lost 100 games ONCE. As far as winning percentage, the current club is 3rd worst in history, trailing only the 1943 (.359) and 1902 (.353) Giants. Yeah...since 1883, y'all!!
Clearly, the Giants will be sellers at the trade deadline, but they can't trade everyone you think they can trade. Belt is in a 3-25 slump, Matt Moore is 0-4 with a 9.24 ERA on the road. Matt Cain is waaaay too expensive and is 0-4 with a 7.46 ERA on the road. The Shark has a no-trade clause. Bum, Posey, and Crawford are untouchable. This leaves the likes of Cueto, Nunez, Panik, Melancon and maybe a couple of others as trade bait.
They need to restock in order to compete in the coming years.
We just didn't think this year would be historically bad.
Maybe the Giants made a deal with the devil for 3 world championships?
Still. Worth. It.
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When we recorded our last podcast two weeks ago, the Giants were 8-2 over their last 10 games, and had pulled within 6 games of .500, but it's all gone south since. Despite tonight's win in Milwaukee, the Giants have plummeted to the dredges of MLB with Philly and San Diego. They also lost 2 of 3 to Philly, which was the first series win for Philly in 5 WEEKS.
Eric and Chad discuss their recent woes and now there are rumblings of being a "seller" for the first time since 2007-2008. Posey even reflected on this new era for Giants baseball.
Still, we look for highlights and silver linings, and we aren't quite ready for them to sell just yet.
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Nope. Not yet. The Giants are making great strides, winning 3 series in a row, and opening with a win in their 4 game series with Chicago. However, they still find themselves 9 games back of Colorado and in a precarious hole. That said, if they had been .500 or worse, their season really would've been over by now, or close to it.
There is life. Not much, but it's something to build upon.
Chad and Eric talk about where the Giants are more than a quarter of the way through the season, and what it'll take to erase the Rockies' lead, week by week. We revisit Eric's excellent article on the history of playoff berths with a record similar to the Giants', and although far from a lock, it's encouraging to see that it's been done multiple times.
Join us for episode 123 of the TortureCast!
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Ben returns to the podcast with Chad and Eric to discuss what may be the turnaround for the Giants' season. Sure, it's only a four-game winning streak, but they hadn't won more than two consecutive games all year. The pitching is settling in, and despite the injuries, the offense has shown some life over the last several days. Buster Freakin' Posey is showing how to put a team on his back, going on a homerun tear, catching a 17-inning game, and hitting a walk-off in said 17th. Cain has been somewhat of a "stopper," and although he many not quite be channeling 2012 Matt Cain, it's more than serviceable for a fifth starter. Span is hitting over .400 since coming off the DL and setting the table.
Now, they just need to start winning series and get back to .500, and we can talk about making the playoffs thereafter.
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Being a Giants fan is tough right now. We've had it good over the last 7 years, but things are a-changing in 2017. The fact is, to get to 87 wins, a reasonable total to get the second wild card position, the Giants would have to play .591 ball the rest of the way, and only one team (Cubs) did that all of last year. Eric and Chad discuss this looming task, along with the poor performance of the team and players, aside from the likes of Posey, Panik and Arroyo.
If the Giants want to turn their season around, it needs to start now.
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Willie returns to the podcast to chat with Eric and Chad about the Giants' historic poor start. We still believe it's too early in the season to panic, but there are legitimate concerns, but there are also bright spots like Matt Cain, Christian Arroyo, Michael Morse, Buster Posey and Joe Panik.
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We thought they'd turn it around this week.
They didn't.
After a 2-4 week, the Giants sit in last place at 5-9, but we look at two seasons since 2000 when the Giants were worse (4-10) and both seasons they finished above .500. In 2000 they won 97 games and the west after starting 4-10.
Ok, so we're looking for silver linings here.
Eric and Chad discuss MadBum's winless start to the season, Cueto's 3-0 start, the bad luck, who's hot and who's not, if Cain should be skipped, Marrero's first MLB HR, Strickland and Gearrin haven't allowed a run, and well, anything else positive we can point towards.
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3-5 is better than 1-5, 6, or 7, right?
That's the barrel the Giants were looking down two days ago when they were 1-5 before winning the last two to make the internet of Giants fans a little less dreary.
Eric and Chad open up our first regular season podcast of 2017 by discussing what went wrong (LF, bullpen), and what went right (Bum, Cueto, Moore, Panik, Crawford) over the first week of the season. Basically, the Giants have the worst left field offensive numbers by far, and their bullpen and pitching stats with a lead are cringe-worthy. Also, we hope Buster will be ok after getting drilled in the noggin.' And that little league bases-clearing double by Moore is a sight to behold.
Maybe next week will be better?
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Besides the post-World Series victory podcasts, season previews are our favorite to record every year. Spring has sprung. Hope is effervescent. The Giants bullpen is...different.
Chad, Ben and Eric talk about that catastrophic meltdown by Melancon in the 9th in their opening day loss to the Diamondbacks, but also reason why there is hope.
Many of you responded to our query about how many games the Giants will win this year. Let's just say that many are out of the stratosphere, but would more than be appreciated. We also offer up our own predictions and break down what are crucial spots that may pivot the season in one direction or the other.
Don't forget to follow us on Twitter @torturecast or like us on Facebook!
Ben, Eric and Chad get together to talk about the first couple of weeks of spring training, including the record number of players in camp, the competition for scarce infield and outfield positions, the fifth starter, the new closer, and of course, Hunter Pence's freshly shorn face.
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Matt Moore is about to embark on his first full season with the Giants. He had some incredible performances last year, which we talk about in this interview. There's no doubt he loves being in SF, he just wants to get over the bitter disappointment of last October.
You can watch this interview and others over at TortureCast.com, as well as our Facebook and YouTube pages.
The Giants biggest acquisition of the offseason was new closer Mark Melancon. He has a lot of expectations and pressure, and he talks about it and a lot of sports science in this group interview at Media Day at AT&T Park.
You can watch this interview and others over at torturecast.com.
Hunter Pence almost always has a smile on his face, like he did during this interview at Media Day. He talks about his training, the World Baseball Classic, getting married, the disappointment of last year, and the excitement that Melancon brings to the team.
You can also watch this interview and others over at TortureCast.com, or our Facebook and YouTube pages.
Here's our group interview with San Francisco Giants' shortstop Brandon Crawford at Media Day at AT&T Park. The upcoming World Baseball Classic and the disappointment of last year's NLDS are among some of the topics.
This and other interviews are available in video form at TortureCast.com, Facebook, and YouTube
TortureCast's Chad King participated in a group interview of Buster Posey at 2017 Media Day at AT&T Park. Buster discusses knuckleballs, the World Baseball Classic, his offseason regimen, sleep and nutritional science, and who calls the pitches.
Be sure to check out this interview and others in video form at torturecast.com and YouTube.
Chad sat down for an extended exclusive interview with Giants' starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija at Media Day at AT&T Park. Topics include his offseason training regimen, the World Baseball Classic, AT&T Park, the origin of his last name, and an analysis of getting more consistent results in his starts compared to a year ago. Enjoy the other video and audio interviews with Buster Posey, Bruce Bochy, Brandon Crawford, Hunter Pence, Matt Moore and Mark Melancon at TortureCast.com.
The TortureCast has awakened from its long winter slumber to bring you thoughts on the Super Bowl and the Giants' offseason. We say goodbye to Romo (Dodgers), Lopez (FA), Peavy (FA), Pagan (FA), Blanco (D'backs), Casilla (A's), and welcome Melancon, Morse, Rollins, Hundley, and a lot of familiar faces. The starting rotation is almost set, but there are questions in the outfield, except for Gorkys!
Willie, Chad and Eric soak in the post-wild card game glory of another legendary performance by Madison Bumgarner and another unlikely postseason hero as Conor Gillaspie hits a 3-run homer in the 9th to defeat the Mets 3-0 and move on to face the best team in the majors, the Chicago Cubs.
The Giants have now won 11 consecutive postseason series, tying the Yankees, and Bum has 23 scoreless innings in elimination games in the postseason, and lowers his road postseason ERA to a microscopic 0.50, easily the best in the history of baseball.
We revel in the stats, the momentum and talk about how the pressure now is really on the Cubs.
Join us for episode 114, it's a good time!
Despite the second half collapse, the Giants have done what we thought wasn't going to happen.
The whole gang is back to talk about the Giants making the playoffs. We talk about the starting pitching, the timely hitting, and what MadBum might do to the Mets.
Sorry for Chad's reverb, but it was worth it for the Donald Trump sound bytes.
The Giants went 5-9 since we recorded two weeks ago, just when we thought they were turning the corner. Those 9 losses included 3 in which they led going into the 9th, including vs. STL and LA. Not gonna lie. Those losses hurt, A LOT. And now, they're having a direct impact on the Giants' chances of making the playoffs, but here they sit, 1/2 game back of NY and 1 game up on STL.
Eric and Chad talk about the final six games of the year, and the keys to securing a wild card spot, now that LA has clinched the NL West.
Please enjoy, what will most likely be our last regular season podcast of 2016. Hopefully, we'll have a playoff edition for episode 113. Disregard that 13 part of the number.
RIP Jose Fernandez
Ok, Matt Cain doesn't explain why they lost, but he has a message for Giants fans: they signed up for criticism, and they do deserve some right now, but they are in control of their own destiny.
I talked with Matt Cain after the Giants lost 3-0 to the Cardinals. The Giants now trail the Mets by 1 game and lead the Cardinals by only 1 game. Their playoff hopes hang in the balance.
Chad
Hey, the Giants have won 4 out of their last 5 and turned a 1-4 roadtrip into a 5-5 with great starting pitching and Hunter Pence playing like frickin' Hunter Pence, wildly flailing appendages, hair and all!
The Giants still have a slim shot at the division and hold a lead on a wild card spot. Chad and Eric talk about their chances, Santiago Casilla, and if Bochy has developed dementia all in episode 111.
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After a failed recording (no, seriously, we did a WHOLE podcast and forgot to hit the record button last week!), and serious schedule challenges, we finally got 3 out of 4 of us to record episode 110 of the TortureCast! Of course, we last recorded when the Giants were up by 6.5, but now they are trailing by a full game to the Dodgers.
We talk at length about what went wrong, how bad every facet of the game has been, but also about how unlucky it has been to lose as many games as they have due to poorly timed hitting, pitching and blown saves.
Matt Moore for Duffy and Will Smith. Are these trades worth it? Is this Carlos Beltran or Jeff Kent? Truth is, we won't know for a while, but there is plenty of the season left for these trades to pan out in a favorable way.
For at least 24 hours, the San Francisco Giants have the best record in all of baseball at 54-33, yes, even better than the Chicago Cubs that are starting their entire infield in the All Star game, plus Dexter Fowler (which is a complete joke).
We focus on what the keys have been to their success, and what keys lie forward in the second half to ensure that they win the NL West. The All Star snub of Brandon Crawford, Belt in the final five, and the grease fire that is the Giants' bullpen round out this fine baseball conversation with Chad, Eric and Ben.
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Just a quick summary of thoughts and quotes from Bruce Bochy's pre-game presser from the dugout.
Chad and Eric talk about the Giants’ second 8 game winning streak of the season, the incredible pitching they have been benefitting from, All-Star voting, Duffy’s injury, who’s hot, and Timmy’s great performance in his first start with the Angels. And, if you’re not a Warriors fan, don’t listen to the first part of the podcast as Chad laments on what could have been the completion to a historic season.
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Chad and Eric discuss the weekend series against the Dodgers, which saw the Giants take 2 out of 3 very close, fun and competitive games. Other topics include splash hit #69, Belt's offensive surge, Posey's recent struggles, Timmy's AAA starts for the Angels, and the Giants' interest in a trade for Ryan Braun now that Pence is on the shelf until August.
Hey, look at that. Brandon Belt getting hit on by a giraffe.
Chad and Eric are giddy about the Giants’ 6-game winning streak that is buoyed by the team’s pitching, with an ERA of 1.86 over that stretch. Cain has two consecutive great starts, and even Peavy wasn’t bad. The top three continue to dominate, all with sub-3 ERAs, and the 3 run homeruns by Peavy and Crawford were huge game-deciders.
Of course, there’s Timmy, who decided to sign with the Angels. Bochy said that he might look good in red, but we’re not so sure (cough 2002 cough).
Let’s keep this “first place” thing a thing.
Eric and Chad record episode 104 to discuss the recent series split against Colorado, and the first loss of the 3 game series against Toronto. The fact that we're HAPPY that Peavy ONLY gave up 3 runs in 5 innings tonight is a bit sad. The back end of the rotation is now 1-8, while the first three are 12-5. Timmy isn't necessarily the answer, but we're not sure the Giants have many other options.
Oh, and Steph Curry is a god.
Chad goes solo in this short 103rd episode to talk about the latest homestand and road trip, who's hot, and who's not (cough Jake Peavy cough), and what to do about the struggles from the back end of the rotation.
In our 102nd podcast, Eric and Chad break down the second week of the 2016 season that saw the Giants go 2-4 while our livers broke down even more. Our G-men dropped 2 of 3 in each city of Denver and LA, but not all is lost as we look at the positives of Samardzija’s and Cueto’s starts.
Posey snapped his 18 AB hitless streak, Romo and Adrianza went on the DL, Duffy’s slump, Derek Law made his dad very happy, we share our concerns about Peavy and Lopez, how Samardzija met his wife, and Vin Scully’s dulcet tones as he recounts how MadBum and his wife saved a rabbit from a rattlesnake’s belly. Don’t forget to follow us @TortureCast on Twitter, like us on Facebook, and check out our articles, including Eric’s “Friday Five” at TortureCast.com!
The Giants started the season 5-2, taking 2 of 3 in Milwaukee and 3 of 4 from LA. All 5 wins were from the comeback variety. The Giants also hit 14 homeruns and for the first time since 2003, hit homeruns in their first 7 games. Chad and Eric discuss the details of the week in episode 101 of the TortureCast!
Although this is audio recording 145 (or thereabouts), we’re celebrating the 100th episode of the TortureCast! No big cake. No confetti. Just us.
Ben, Eric and Chad gather around the proverbial campfire to talk about their expectations for the 2016 season, including their predictions for the number of wins for the Giants. Now, Chad has something at stake, as he’s predicted the EXACT number of wins for 3 of the last 4 years: 84 last year, 88 in 2014, and 92 in 2012. The only year he was off was 2013, but he predicted his low of 82, which corresponded with the low bar of 76 wins, the lowest since 2008.
The year’s predictions:
Chad: 90 first place
Ben: 86 first place
Eric: 94 first place
Willie: N/A
We also discuss our favorite episode, the coolest thing we’ve done as a part of this podcast, and our predictions for most HR, lowest ERA and best batting average.
Come join us for our centennial!
TortureCast's Chad King and Veronica Belmont interviewed Matt Duffy at "Media Day" at AT&T Park.
In our longest interview of the day, a pleasurable Matt Duffy talks about his rocket ride to success, who is the smartest on the team, and his time travel destination being the 2014 World Series Parade.
Duffman, indeed.
TortureCast's Chad King and Veronica Belmont interviewed Giants' second baseman Kelby Tomlinson at "Media Day" at AT&T Park.
Veronica asks Kelby about why glasses instead of contacts, Kelby talks about his offseason conditioning routine, and he gets stumped by our time travel question.
TortureCast's Chad King and Veronica Belmont interviewed Hunter Pence at "Media Day" at AT&T Park.
Hunter is in love with the new additions to the rotation, Veronica and Hunter talk guide dogs and if he and his fiancee should get a puppy (Veronica says yes), and we talk time travel. Yep, this is a Hunter Pence interview.
TortureCast's Chad King and Veronica Belmont interviewed Buster Posey at "Media Day" at AT&T Park.
Buster talks about his career high in games and plate appearances last year and if that had anything to do with playing first base more often, starters potentially eating more innings this year, and although he's not a "fan" of the DH, he'd like to see a poll of baseball fans on the topic.
TortureCast's Chad King and Veronica Belmont interviewed Brandon Crawford at "Media Day" at AT&T Park.
Brandon talks about how have three kids changes parental defense from "one on one" to "zone." We also talk about his surging power numbers, his gold glove and how freak injuries and conditioning contributed to his ups and downs last year. Also, the Giants commercials and how they had to modify a men's medium t-shirt for his shoot.
TortureCast's Chad King and Veronica Belmont interviewed Brandon Belt at "Media Day" at AT&T Park.
Belt talks about his lack of concussion symptoms, the latest giraffe commercial, how him and Crawford are "rebranding" themselves, and his impressions of the offseason moves.
TortureCast's Chad King and Veronica Belmont caught up with Giants second baseman Joe Panik at Media Day at AT&T Park.
Joe says his back is cleared by the doctors, his wedding date is set, and he's looking forward to playing the Yankees this year, and destroying the Red Sox.
TortureCast's Chad King and the internet's Veronica Belmont caught up with Matt Cain at the Giants' "Media Day" at AT&T Park on 2/12/16.
We talk golf and contractually prohibited activities such as SCUBA diving, which he really wants to do.
Chad covered the AT&T Pebble Beach Chevron charity shootout which pitted the Giants against the 49ers. He was able to catch up with Giants reliever George Kontos to talk about his golf game, the offseason acquisitions, and his first purchase with his new contract money. Also be sure to check out our interviews with Matt Cain and Bruce Bochy, and look out for player interviews from this Friday's "Media Day" at AT&T Park! @TortureCast facebook.com/torturecast torturecast.com
Chad covered the AT&T Pebble Beach Chevron charity shootout which pitted the Giants against the 49ers. He was able to catch up with Giants pitcher Matt Cain to talk about his golf game, the offseason acquisitions, and his lack of fear of decapitating the crowd on the first tee. Also be sure to check out our interviews with Bruce Bochy and George Kontos, and look out for player interviews from this Friday's "Media Day" at AT&T Park! @TortureCast facebook.com/torturecast torturecast.com
Chad covered the AT&T Pebble Beach Chevron charity shootout which pitted the Giants against the 49ers. We were able to catch up with Giants manager Bruce Bochy to talk about his golf game, the offseason acquisitions, and how his weight fluctuates like Pablo Sandoval's.
Also be sure to check out our interviews with Matt Cain and George Kontos, and look out for player interviews from this Friday's "Media Day" at AT&T Park!
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Now that the Super Bowl has happened, Eric and Chad take you through the maelstrom of Giant happenings over the past month. And spring training is almost here.
We talk about our grades for the Giants' offseason, Juan Uribe is too expensive, the Giants have the highest payroll in 2021, Belt is heading towards arbitration, where Timmy may go, Vegas World Series odds, and Chad will be covering the Giants vs 49ers shootout at Pebble Beach and Media Day at AT&T Park with the internet's own Veronica Belmont!
And, baseball is almost here!
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The Giants signed two big starting pitchers, and their names don't start with a G. Willie and Chad talk about how Samardzija and Cueto make the Giants better than last year and how the Dodgers got worse. Oh, and the Warriors lost their first game of the season.
So, the Giants are no longer reigning champs. Big deal. They’ll do it next year, of course. Eric and Chad get together on Skype to discuss how the scrappy Royals made it all the way back to the World Series and how they won it after 8 of their 11 wins secured in comeback fashion, and the parallels drawn to the Giants’ 2012 six elimination game wins against the Reds and Cardinals.
The Giants are also banking cash in large piles after declining the options on Nori Aoki and Marlon Byrd. Greinke, Price and Cueto may all be #1 targets of Bobby Evans and his staff, but we also ask if they may spread the money around a bit to a greater quantity of second-tier pitchers and a couple of outfielders. All we know is that this will be an exciting offseason as the Giants attempt to reload with more available cash than they’ve ever had, and during an offseason flush with quality starting pitchers.
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Since 2011 we've brought (almost) weekly podcasts to chronicle the San Francisco Giants' season with cheer, torture, profanity and hope. We've been fortunate enough to cover two World Series championships, but this year was not meant to be. The Giants finished 84-78; in second place in the NL West. To be honest, given the injuries, this was not a horrible record, but surely far short of where the Giants and their fans wanted to be.
Willie, Chad and Ben get together to wrap up the season in Episode 98 of the TortureCast. We offer up what went wrong and right for the Giants, and what their offseason priorities should be. Chad also has correctly predicted the last two season win totals at 88 in 2014 and 84 this year. Vegas had them at 84.5 wins for the over/under. No money changed hands.
We offer our postseason winner predictions and who we want to win. All three of us settled on Cubs (want) and Cards (should). Besides, the Giants and Cards have alternated the NL pennant the last 5 years. Why should that change? It would only give credence to the even year magic that they will surely experience next year as they pass around their fourth commissioner's trophy.
In a tumultuous episode after a break from scheduling difficulties, Chad, Willie and Eric break down the chances for the Giants winning the NL West.
As I type this at 11:15 pm, the Giants just won on a sac fly to left field in the bottom of the 12th inning to keep their chances on a morphine drip.
The Giants are certainly not looking like they'll last long, but as we say, take it one game at a time.
The boys use their humor and defensive mechanisms to get through episode 97.
The Giants are still alive...mathematically anyway...
Chad
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What the hell?! We take one measly week off and the Giants fall off a cliff?! We promise that we didn’t take a mercenary contract out on any of the players, or spike the Gatorade in LA. From 1 ½ games back of the Dodgers when we recorded episode 95 exactly 2 weeks ago, to an 8 ½ game chasm, the Giants’ season is all but mathematically over. So, sit back and commiserate with Chad, Ben and Eric in this eulogizing podcast. Damn, this odd year curse might actually be real.
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Despite a 2-5 road trip, the Giants actually GAINED a half a game on the Dodgers, who have lost 5 in a row, and now the Giants only sit 1 1/2 games back. Let's just not think of the wild card at this point.
Chad and Eric are joined by Ryan Leong from Associated Press Radio, who covered all 4 games in Pittsburgh, plus the Steelers exhibition game. We talk about the series, pinch-hitting MadBum, the Giants' league-leading batting average, and their chances on catching the Dodgers. Really, it doesn't look to bad...at least now.
Chad visited the Giants clubhouse and interviewed reliever Hunter Strickland before the Giants beat the Nationals 8-5. Hunter discusses his lack of love for an automated strike zone, the confidence it takes to pitch in the majors, touts the camaraderie of the clubhouse, and being a southern boy, his favorite food is fried chicken, because of course you should know that.
Be sure to check out our Bonusode (93.1) that was recorded after the game at Zeke's!
After Willie and Chad covered game 2 of the Nationals-Giants series, they were joined by regular guest Jen Cosgriff and new guest JuanPedro Huerta at Zeke's for a boisterous bonusode.
We discuss the game, Jen's destruction of California teams during her midwest trip, the "Full Clubhouse" parody and more while we pound back a few adult beverages.
The boys are back after a vacation break to bring you some heartache, but silver linings. The Giants were swept by the Cubs, but thanks to the Pirates and Nats, sit only 2.5 games back of the Dodgers. We talk starting rotation, injuries, who we love and hate, and basically sing a huge kumbaya.
You can follow us on Twitter @TortureCast, like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/torturecast or check out our website at torturecast.com.
Ben, Eric and Chad discuss the sweep of the Phillies, the HR derby, and what Bochy should do in the All Star game.
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Hey, it's our first Bonusode of the season! After Wille and Chad covered the destruction of the Phillies at AT&T Park, they strolled from the press box to Zeke's to pontificate on the glorious night that was, the upcoming All-Star game, and Chad's interviews with Crawford and Duffy prior to the game. Light 'em up, cuz this is a good 'n happy one!
You can hear the Brandon Crawford here: http://torturecast.podomatic.com/entry/2015-07-10T20_25_52-07_00
You can hear the Matt Duffy interview here: http://torturecast.podomatic.com/entry/2015-07-10T20_22_24-07_00
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Chad interviews All Star Brandon Crawford before tonight's game against the Phillies. Brandon talks about busting slumps, hopefully getting into the All Star game at the same time with Joe Panik, and gives some advice to other 5 year olds (like the iconic picture of him as a 5 year old at Candlestick).
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Chad interviewed Giants' third baseman Matt Duffy before Friday's game against the Phillies. Matt talks about his ascension to fame, how he gets over slumps, praise for the new All Stars and how not to piss off Vogey.
The Giants have been a streaky team this year, and this week is no different being mired in a seven game skid. Willie and Chad talk about the Giants recent struggles, injuries, the return of Cain and Peavy, and beat up on Don Mattingly. We also made ourselves feel better talking about the four Giants that were selected to the All Star game.
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The Giants went 4-2 for the week, which is something amazing considering they were under.500 at home. Despite a 12-13 June (ok, they can still be .500 with a win tonight), the Giants are only 1/2 game back of the Dodgers. Chad and Ben discuss the month of June, the All Star game voting, Duffy and more!
The Giants are a mere 1/2 game back of the Dodgers despite going 12-13 for the month of June (really? June swoon?). Although the Giants can have an even .500 month, the more important stat is that the Giants could be in first place when they start July.
Chad and Ben discuss the 4-2 week, the starting rotation, and painful childhood memories in episode 90 of the TortureCast!
The whole gang is back together to recap the week that was in the land of black and orange. Who's out of the rotation when Peavy and Cain return? Is Crawford an All-Star? Is Pete Rose really that big of a douche? (answer: yes). We also take a moment to remember former Giant Darryl "Hambone" Hamilton, who was tragically killed early this morning. Once a Giant, always a Giant.
We had a power outage that prevented our last podcast, then acts of God that prevented our next scheduled podcast, but with the Giants entering Chavez Ravine, Chad decided it's about time we talk Giants ball!
Chad catches up with the Giants "meaty" season, their road domination and underwhelming home performance. There's also catching up to do with Heston's no-no, the Giants' visit to the White House, the draft, McGehee coming back, Scutaro re-signing, Scandoval, MLB canceling 60 million votes, and what in the hell do the Giants do when Cain and Peavy come back?!
Oh, and the Giants beat LA tonight 9-5 and are 1 1/2 games back.
Enjoy episode 88 of the TortureCast!
Willie is joined by Justin Robert Young of Night Attack, who also happens to be a Pirates fan, for a game in the box. We discuss the Giants positive approach to social media and the loss to the Pirates.
Willie made his way to Pete's to watch a game with some of the mods and redditors from reddit.com/r/SFGiants
He interviewed Nick and the head mod, Devon while we watched the Giants lose to Jaun Uribe, I mean, the Braves.
The Giants pulled off an incredible 21-9 record in May, despite losing the last 2 games of the month, and a heartbreaker at that. Ben, Eric and Chad discuss the Giants' meteoric rise to 1st/2nd place, all star candidates, all the DFA'd Giants that have roosted in Sacramento, and as always, our new favorite guys, guys we should hate, and why we'll win it all.
Hunter Pence is back. And not just on Twitch, but like hitting homeruns and throwing awkwardly from right field. Yes, all is right with the world.
Back when the Giants were 4-10, we didn't panic. We said let's wait until they have played 40 games, and if they're at .500 and Hunter is back, they'll be fine. Welp, they're 20-18 now, so guaranteed to be at .500 after 40, and Hunter IS back, and had a huge hand in the last two wins, going 4-8 with a homerun and scoring five runs. The Giants have the best record in the NL since their bad start at 16-8, and have a great stretch of games coming to balloon that record.
Join Chad and Eric as they discuss the Giants' recent success as they delve deep into numbers, including Casilla's immaculate inning, only the 79th in recorded history. Belt is hitting .321 and shutting up his haters, Pagan's back is acting up, and Bochy names coaches for the All Star Game. Plus, Jeff Loria named his cat as manager of the Marlins.
Enjoy episode 86 of the TortureCast!
We got to talk about a winning week in episode 85. The Giants swept the Dodgers at home, and they went 4-1 for the week. We'll ignore the fact that the Giants lost to the Dodgers tonight. That doesn't count.
Chad thinks Sanchez will be DFA'd when Pence comes back, we love Maxwell and Aoki, hate Ventura, Twitter and Arte Mareno.
Come join this "less than 1 hour" episode of the TortureCast!
Wouldn't it be nice to have the Tigers' record (11-2) right now? Although the Giants have gotten off to one of the worst starts ever for a World Series champion, it's not quite yet time to panic.
Chad and Eric discuss the highlight of the week, which, yes, was the only win in the last 10 games, but it was also the World Series Ring ceremony. Chad was in attendance, and he strolls down memory lane and recounts his experience in the clubhouse, seeing all five living Hall of Famers, and actually handled the ring of Bochy himself. All pictures of the night are on our Facebook page.
We cover McGehee, Peavy on the DL, "Tweet at me, Bruh," our new favorite and least favorite guys, and of course, "Why We Will Win it All."
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Welcome to our first regular season podcast of the 2015. Hopefully it won't be the last. We've been a fortunate group of guys able to podcast about 3 World Series championships, watch from the press box and interview players, but the first week of the season feels like the Houston Astros. Despite winning three of their first four, the Giants are in a tailspin with a current 6-game losing streak. Their bats have not just gone cold, they are stored in liquid nitrogen. They are a whopping 5 for 47 with runners in scoring position. They can get runners on buy the truckload, they just can't deliver them home.
Eric and Chad talk about the frustrating start to the season, throw around ideas on how to fix it, discuss Heston's place in the rotation, get peaved at Peavy, and at one point, bask in the glow of the home opener and Bum on a horse.
It can't get any worse, can it?
- Chad will be in the press box at AT&T on Saturday night to cover the ring ceremony and game versus Arizona. Be sure to follow @TortureCast on Twitter for copious updates and pictures of endless coffee.
So, the Giants won tonight. They can't go 0-162 like some predicted.
Chad, Willie and Eric wax poetically about their 6 game road opening days, Matt Cain's injury, Peavy's back, and their predictions about the season. Chad goes low with 84 wins while the rest of the crew hover around 88.
We also remember Lon Simmons, argue about the Giants' opening day winning streak, and worry about everything that we can't control.
Spring Training has not been kind to the Giants. They own the worst record, by far, in all of MLB. Hunter Pence got broke, and Bochy is actually worried about his team's performance.
Chad, Ben and Eric try and talk each other down from the ledge, and bring some levity to the foreboding results from the Giants' practice games thus far.
Hey, it's an odd year, afterall.
Yes, Jerry is a 49er, but we covered him at the AT&T Pro-Am at Pebble Beach this month, so it sort of, by proxy, regionally counts to fit our jersey-number-title-thing that is dying.
The boys are back in Arizona! Timmy reunites with his dad, Pablo is still fat, Cain is throwing wild and free, Ben and Chad review their experience and interviews at Media Day, Bochy's heart had a scare, Sheilds rejected a larger offer from the Giants, Moncada signed with Boston, and the first radio broadcast of a spring training game is next week, March 3.
Can't you just smell the fresh cut grass through your media player of choice?
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We regretfully dedicate the first portion of this episode of TortureCast to the Super Bowl and the bad? call at the 1 yard line. Willie, Chad and Eric catch up on all of the signings by the Giants, including Casey McGehee and Nori Aoki, and reminisce with our man-crush on Michael Morse, who is now a Miami Marlin. We will also be at Media Day on Feb 6 to interview as many Giants as we can, so if you have a question you want us to ask, let us know at torturecast AT gmail DOT com or find us on Facebook and Twitter.
Also, don't we all want to be Pat Burrell still?
http://www.csnphilly.com/blog/700-level/chase-utley-celebrates-super-bowl-shirtless-drinking-slip-n-sliding-pat-burrell
It's been a month since we recorded our gloriously long World Series Championship podcast, but our livers and tear glands have recovered enough to deliver our first "hot stove" podcast of the offseason. Chad, Ben, and Eric talk about the impending Lester decision (probably made by the time you listen to this), and the Giants options to fill their holes in left field and third base. Tim Flannery retired, and Madison Bumgarner won Sports Illustrated's "Sportsman of the Year," which apparently ripped off the fresh collective scabs of millions of KC Royals fans.
You can follow us on Twitter @TortureCast and like us on Facebook! All of our podcasts and video and audio San Francisco Giants player interviews can be found at TortureCast.com.
They did it.
Again.
For the third time in the last five years, the San Francisco Giants are World Series Champions!
Riding the superhero left arm of Madison Bumgarner, the Giants squeezed out a 3-2 win in game 7 of the World Series to down the Kansas City Royals.
Willie, Chad and Eric record our longest podcast of the year to discuss this memorable World Series; the heroes, the almost-goats, and what it took to fuel a remarkable run that has placed the black and orange in "dynasty" status.
Even if you have to listen to it in two parts, sit back, relax, and bask in the glow of three Commissioner's trophies!
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One. More. Win.
And the San Francisco Giants will be World Champions for the third time in five seasons.
We are so fortunate to have the opportunity to talk about our favorite team, potentially on the eve of the clincher as the Giants head back to Kansas City up three games to two. If not tomorrow, then perhaps game 7. Even if they don't win it all, this has been a hell of a ride.
Listen to episode 76 as Willie, Ben, Chad, and lucky charm guest Eric break down the first five games of the World Series and look forward to a hopeful clincher in either game 6 or 7.
These moments, right now, are why we do this show.
The TortureCast, the podcast by and for fans of the San Francisco Giants.
Good luck, and let's bring it home, boys!
Incredibly, our boys in black and orange have done it for a third time in five years! In a rousing 4-1 NLCS win over the St. Louis Cardinals, the Giants move onto the fall classic to face the young upstart Kansas City Royals beginning Tuesday night. Willie, Ben, Chad and guest Eric Nathanson review the NLCS, including the momentous homeruns hit by Michael Morse and Travis Ishikawa that have left indelible marks in Giants' lore. In the last half of the podcast, we preview the Royals, their strengths and weaknesses, and how the Giants might exploit them. We also talk about Hunter Pence's lack of geography knowledge, a horrible ESPN article, our favorite guys and we make series predictions (hint, all 4 of us take the Giants). Tune in for a jam-packed special World Series episode of the TortureCast!
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A special mid-NLCS episode of the TortureCast finds the Giants and Cardinals knotted at 1 game a piece in this 7 game series. Now, the scene shifts back to our park in China Basin for games 3, 4 and 5. Willie, Ben, Chad and special returning guest, Eric Nathanson, break down games 1 and 2, including what went right (bullpen) and what went wrong (bullpen, BA w/RISP). Although the walk-off HR was soul-crushing for about a minute, we all were inspired by the tenacious Giants coming back throughout the game, including the dramatic 9th inning.
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The Giants were considered the 10th seed in the MLB playoffs, yet here they are, demolishing the Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals to become one of the "Final Four" in Major League Baseball. Willie, Chad and Eric discuss the Giants' chances in the NLCS vs the Cardinals and what makes these teams so special.
Since we last recorded, the Giants beat the Pirates in the Wild Card game and took a 2-0 lead in the NLDS against Washington. However, as the Giants looked to sweep the Nats with MadBum on the bump today, it didn't work out, and the Giants move onto Game 4 with a 2-1 lead and Vogey on the mound. Chad drives this podcast solo to talk about how the Giants are playing with house money, and how they might clinch this series before the dreaded game 5 possibility in Washington. Because, no one wants that.
What does 2014 have in common with 2010 and 2012? The San Francisco Giants are in the playoffs, of course! Let's hope the pattern extends itself to a third title. The boys break down the Giants' wild card chances against the Pittsburgh Pirates for an hour, which is about the same amount of time you'll be either watching commercials and relieving your bladder during wild card game on Wednesday.
We gloat over our expert prognostication of Giants wins back in March (we picked 89, 89, 88, and the Giants had 88), pick our team MVPs, and give our cliche "3 keys" for a Giants victory against the Buccos. Let's hope this is the start of a new chapter in Giants' lore. Who will deliver the next triple-double, stand in the rain, bust out a thong, deliver the clutch HR, or throw a strike that freezes a dominant hitter to clinch a series? We'll find out if that road indeed lies ahead, Giants fans. Buckle up!
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Willie, Ben and Chad once again head to Zeke's after a Giants game to talk about many exciting events. First and foremost, the Giants blanked the Diamondbacks 5-0 to maintain their 2.5 game deficit behind the Dodgers and their 4 game lead on the wild card. We also talk about "video gamer's" night with Todd McFarlane before the game (Ben got the sweet Assassin's Creed figurine).
Even more exciting was the fact that we had clubhouse access for the first time. Chad snagged interviews with Panda, Pence and Affeldt before the game, and those interviews can be found at TortureCast.com. We also spoke with Matt Duffy after the game (interview is at the end of this bonusode) about his critical 7th inning double to put the game away. Pour a shot and a beer, sit down, and enjoy another bonusode with the boys from TortureCast!
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Chad interviewed Pablo Sandoval before the Giants faced the Diamondbacks on September 10. Pablo talks about the difference between this year and 2013, his favorite ball game (hint: it has to do with 3 HRs), and Pablo has NEVER TRIED KALE!
Chad interviewed Hunter Pence before the Giants faced the Diamondbacks on September 10 at AT&T Park. Chad asks Hunter about his gaming and how this year differs with last year. Spoiler: Hunter thought Chad's questions were "weird."
Chad interviewed Jeremy Affeldt before the Giants took on the Diamondbacks on September 10 at AT&T Park. Jeremy talks about the energy in the clubhouse and how this year differs from 2010 and 2012.
Ben and Chad round up the last week that saw Buster Posey win the NL player of the week (.565!!) and Madison Bumgarner earned NL pitcher of the month for August, yet his monthly ERA (1.97) was actually higher than Kershaw's ERA for the year. Yeah, we know who's winning the Cy Young, and maybe even MVP. The Giants had a rough few days in Colorado, but bounced back nicely in Detroit, but because the Dodgers aren't cooling off, they find themselves 3.5 games back after pulling to within 1.5 earlier in the week. The good news is that the Giants have a 3.5 game lead in the wild card, they still have 6 games yet to play against the Dodgers, and Buster Posey found his spinach. We also talk Belt's possible return, Morse's injury, and how Panik and Susac are exceeding all expectations so far. Join us for the recorded stream, a stream while we recorded on the internetz. Don't forget, we now stream all of our podcasts LIVE on YouTube around 9:30 pm PDT every Monday. We will also have clubhouse access this Wednesday and Saturday, so we'll be sure to take our anti-anxiety medication before we ask Hunter Pence how fluffy his shower towel is.
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Eric Nathanson (@2outhits) pinch hit to join Chad on Episode 69, which was streamed live on YouTube. We talked about the Giants' 6-1 homestand, the continuation of the May 22 game in Colorado, which the Giants won 4-2 (and that did NOT extend the winning streak, by the way), and the heartbreaking way (6 times this year, in fact) the Rockies exhumed the souls of the Giants once again. Seriously, if the Giants had only won three out of the six games in which they were leading the Rockies, they'd have a one game lead in the NL West right now.
Willie and Chad break down the 13-2 crushing of the Brewers after the game at Zeke's. Chad also talks about his interview with Will Clark before the game (http://torturecast.podomatic.com/entry/2014-08-30T10_55_46-07_00), and the boys break down the Giants chances to make the playoffs down the stretch.
Don't forget to follow us @TortureCast and like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/torturecast. We also stream our podcast live every Monday at www.TortureCast.com.
Before the Brewers opened up a three game series with the Giants, Chad was able to sit down with Will Clark for a brief interview. Parallels between the '87 and '89 playoff teams were made with the '10 and '12 teams, he talks about his first at bat against Nolan Ryan, and we discuss the new wildcard format.
Don't forget to follow us on Twitter @TortureCast or like us on Facebook. Our blog is at www.TortureCast.com, and we stream our podcast live every Monday at 9:30 PM Pacific when you can call in at 415-799-SFG1.
This is our first live call-in streaming show, ever! We apologize that Chad's voice is a little soft for half the podcast, and we actually dropped the stream about 10 minutes in, causing mass hysteria as people couldn't listen to us live, but we trudged through and took a couple of calls about the misfortune the Giants have faced over the last 3 games, including the Nats comeback and tonight's inexplicable loss to the woeful Rockies. We'll be doing it live from here on out! Don't forget to call in at 415.799.SFG1 to let us know how sexy you think Crawford's mane is.
We knew this day would come. We finally hit a uniform number that has never graced the back of a single SF Giant.
We'll think of it as Xavier Nady minus 1, or Doug Mirabelli plus 1. Not sure what we'll do about 100+, if we ever get there.
Willie and Chad talk Giants baseball on this off-day that finds the Giants starting a six game road trip to Chicago and Washington, only 3.5 games back of the bums and with a hold on the second wild card spot. Hey, they were further back of the Padres at this point in 2010. Of course, the Dougie was also a popular dance then, so....
We cover the recent series, Morse's hot bat, Panik's hustling pinkie, Matt Cain's season-ending surgery, Belt's troubling concussion (and Sanchez's), Susac, Posey, Pablo, perplexing Timmy, the second base curse, Jimmy Rollins, and what kind of player would manifest with Yaseil Puig's raw talent with Hunter Pence's love and respect for the game.
Also, next week around 9 pm PDT, Monday, August 25, we'll be having our first LIVE CALL IN SHOW and will be streaming it LIVE on YouTube.
Mark it on your calendar, and be sure to call us from your phone and we'll be sure to patch you in, even if you think Michael Morse is a bust this year.
That number is 415-799-SFG1
Again, that number: 415-799-SFG1.
Wait, I only need to repeat it on the podcast, not on this post...
Willie and I were joined by the wonderfully talented internet entrepreneur and Giants fan, Veronica Belmont in the press box for Game 2 against the Dodgers on 7/26/14. Unfortunately for her, she agreed ahead of time to be a guest on our traditional "bonusode" at Zeke's after the game. Our regular favorite, Jen Cosgriff from Bay Sports Net joined us later in the episode as well.
We talk about the game, where the Giants are, our Hearthstone conversation with Hunter Pence during BP, the back-up, back-up, back-up, back-up, back-up second baseman.
Come travel down the path of despair, elation, drink orders, and "FU*& ITs!"
Chad
Remember Steve Edlefsen? We barely do, and we also barely remember the Giants being in first place, which they are not, officially, anymore. They've lost 10 games to the Dodgers in 22 days, and Ben and Chad replay what the hell has gone wrong with our boys in Black and Orange. Romo is no longer the closer, the team can't hit, and half the lineup is Fresno Grizzlies. Take a sip, it's that bad.
Chad attended the Reds vs Giants game in the press box on 6/28/14 and is here to report a very Not Safe For Work podcast as he drives home. The Giants are terrible, having lost 8 1/2 games to the Dodgers in 3 weeks, and their lead in the NL West stands at a single game. Come and join the f-bombs and pine with Chad.
Hello everyone! Nothing to see here! The Giants are in first place! Don't worry! Unicorns farting rainbows of happiness!!
The Giants are in first. There were also in first when we recorded this special bonusode with Ally and Jen almost a week ago after they lost the first of 3 in horrible fashion to those purple-clad lucky SOBs. The Giants are still in first place. Why do we all feel so bad? Because we're Giants fans!!
Joe Martinez. He pitched in a total of 21 games over 4 season, some of which were with the Giants. Yes, lament as we run out of jersey numbers but celebrate as we talk about the team with the BEST RECORD IN BASEBALL. That's right, the Giants haven't started off this good since 1962, before all of us were born.
In the first solo TortureCast, Chad attempts to substitute rum and coke and brevity for the lack of conversation. Hey, the Giants have the BEST RECORD IN ALL OF BASEBALL, and we, er, Chad, needs to talk about it, as it may go south at any time. Also, Panda's hot, Posey's not, and MLB.com gives the Giants an 88.6% chance of making the postseason.
Ben and Chad are beside themselves trying to understand how the Giants have the best record in the National League. They also talk about the resurgence of Vogelson and Sandoval, and their concerns about recent injuries. Join us for another episode of SF Giants baseball!
Willie and Chad talk about the great first quarter of the 2014 season, which finds the Giants in first place and somehow FOX sports ranks them as the best team in the MLB. We also discuss the Belt injury, entities we hate, and our new favorite guys.
Wille, Ben and Chad record the first 2014 regular season episode of TortureCast, reviewing the Giants' fantastic 5-2 start, Belt's 4 HRs, the Giants lead MLB in HR, taking 2 of 3 from the Dodgers, MadBum, Cain, Hudson's first start, and who we hate this week (insert Puig).
Willie, Chad and Ben welcome Jen Cosgriff and Chelena Goldman to our season preview podcast bonanza, recorded LIVE at the Public House at AT&T Park. They probably wished they hadn't agreed to come. And we saw Brian Wilson give up all the runs against the Padres as we recorded. And Willie is okay at pool.
Willie couldn't make it tonight, so we brought in Jen Cosgriff to talk about her 6 days in Arizona for spring training. We talk about the 27 inning scoreless streak by Giants starters, then freak out about the pummeling of Sergio Romo and aforementioned starters. We can't wait until the Dodgers melt down from their Australia series!
The boys are back in Episode #56 to talk about Ben and Chad's experience interviewing players at Media Day, how Chad gave a 3 hour behind-the-scenes tour of the Monterey Bay Aquarium to Matt Cain and his family, early domination by the starters in Spring Training, our favorite tweets, and the first "Why'll we'll win it all" of 2014. Come join our Michael Morse swooncast!
Chad and Ben corner George Kontos at Media Day at AT&T Park and find out that he owns every single "Friends" episode. Seriously?
Also, he developed a new pitch over the offseason that will hopefully help mix up pitches that hitters often anticipate from him.
Be sure to check out our interviews with Matt Cain, Sergio Romo and other Giants players at TortureCast.com!
Chad and Ben interview Giants reliever Javier Lopez at Media Day on January 31, 2014. He praises the fans, the stadium, the team, and winning 2 World Series as the main factors in re-signing with San Francisco. Javy also would like to eliminate the earned run if an inherited runner scores after stealing second through defensive indifference.
Be sure to listen to our other interviews from Media Day including Matt Cain, Sergio Romo, Tim Lincecum, Michael Morse and others.
Chad and Ben interview Giants starting pitcher Ryan Vogelsong at Media Day on January 31, 2014. Chad embarrasses Ben with a story about Ben's Vogelsong jersey that he donned at the All Star Game in 2011, and we also talk about his physical therapy that continues to address his freak hand injury from last year.
Be sure to listen to our other interviews from Media Day including Matt Cain, Sergio Romo, Tim Lincecum, Javier Lopez and others.
Chad and Ben sat down with Giants closer Sergio Romo at Media Day at AT&T Park before the start of spring training. We talk about his takeover of the Warriors' Twitter account, what he would have like to have played professionally if it weren't for baseball, and he hates that inherited runners that score count as an earned run.
Be sure to check out our other interviews with Matt Cain, Michael Morse, Javier Lopez and others!
Chad and Ben interviewed Giants' starting pitcher Matt Cain during Media Day at AT&T Park and asked him about his 2013 first half slump, golfing at AT&T Pro-Am, what baseball rule he'd like to change, getting "Cained," and surprisingly, he wants Chad to take him SCUBA diving in Monterey.
Chad and Ben interview the Giants' new left fielder Michael Morse at Media Day at AT&T Park. We ask him about the "phantom" grand slam he hit with the Nationals 2 years ago, what sport he would've like to have played professionally, other than baseball, and one baseball rule he'd like to change.
The boys are back as baseball closes in on returning, kinda. Talking about the off season moves and where the Giants stack up in 2014.
We recap the 2013 season and discuss the possible changes for 2014. It's not all doom and gloom, I swear!
This one took a while to get up. Sorry about that. But if you listen real close, you can hear the girls twerking on the bar. Crazy night at Zeke's.
We're joined by 2outhits.com creator and former TortureCast guest, Eric Nathanson as well as being joined by our two favorite Bonusoders, Ally Williams and Jen Cosgriff. This one was a damn good time.
After a Giants win the mood is decidedly lighter for our usual Bonusode. We are again joined by Jen and Ally and also a random drunk guy who was pretty affectionate towards the girls.
Our own Chad King talks Giants baseball with Marty Lurie prior to the Giants 4-2 win over the Brewers on August 5th, 2013. Follow him at https://twitter.com/baseballmarty
The Giants are in a tailspin towards the bottom of the MLB, trade talk, suicide watch and more...
We drag Ally Williams and Little Jen along for another postmortem TortureCast Bonusode at the legendary Zeke's. Timmy's post no-no breakdown and something about fans charging the field...
Willie is out but Chad and Ben discuss the All Star Game, Timmy's No-No and the second half of the season.
We were privileged, or cursed, to watch a 13 inning loss to the Padres. This is our conversation at Zeke's afterwards. Thanks to Jen Cosgriff for joining us!
As the Giants continue to slump as a team, Chad and Willie discuss the future of the starting rotation and specifically Tim Lincecum and Chad Gaudin.
We discuss the turmoil of the last two weeks, a great day at the yard and the return of Ben Lee!
This episode is dedicated to my Uncle Pal. You truly were our MVP. I'll miss you.
Willie Dills and Chad King discuss the first place Giants recent 7-3 home stand, the starting staff's comeback and the miraculous offense of the Giants. We also give love to...a Dodger?! Ahem...what now?!
After a devastating loss by the Warriors, Chad and Willie find solace in the fact that the Giants are in 1st place and just won 6 in a row, including a sweep over the Dodgers.
We get all long winded and slurry (well, one of us does) with special guest Eric Nathanson from 2outhits.com. Strap in, it's a long one!
Willie and Chad discuss the success the Giants have had despite the struggles of Tim Lincecum, Vogelsong and Matt Cain. Also, we love us some Hunter Pence.
We're back at it for the 2013 season! Talking World Series rings, 4-3 starts and what's going on in this new young season for our boys in black and orange.
We interview the San Francisco Giants Social Media Director, Brian Srabean. We had a great conversation with him and want to thank Brian again for taking the time out to talk to us.
Chad King and Willie Dills discuss the Hall of Fame snub, the Posey and Pence deals and much much more. Go 49ers! Super Bowl baby!
We discuss the moves the Giants have made so far in the off season and go over some of our drunken predictions made in April with the hosts of the 2 Guys, a Glove and a Coke Bottle podcast.
We go on for days about this 2012 Giants team but you know what, it's because we DID win it all!
An historic comeback over the reds keeps the Giants in the hunt for gold in October. We talk about it.
We got to catch a ballgame from the press box and made a little bonus episode about it. Also, NL West Champs!
This episode was accidentally deleted earlier. It's back. Lot's to talk about as the Giants start pulling away in the west.
4.5 games up and feeling good! We talk about some of the potential issues that may rain on our parade come October but the mood is a happy one.
Melky, why? Why did you do that? What the crap dude? We're super mad and we tell you why.
The guys are all here. We talk Pence, Timmy, Buster and how the line-up stacks up since Pablo is back.
The internet tries to keep us down but we forge ahead and talk about the All Star Game, Timmy and the Brandon's. 1st place, barely...
The day before we celebrate America, let's celebrate first place, perfect games and All-Stars. Life is good.
It's a holiday podcast! Chad and Ben talk a lot of Lincecum, and a little Bumgarner, and start getting a little nervous...but then talk Melky, Posey, and Pagan and everything seems a little better. Who do we love this week? Who do we hate? How many awkward things is Ben going to say after having to work on a national holiday? Tune in to find out!
The Giants are back to .500 and the boys are feeling somewhat better but still aren't convinced. Why? Well, we'll tell you all about it.
After a tough week the Giants find themselves in some trouble in the west. A walk-off win makes everyone feel better though, even Chad, Ben and Willie.
While Ben is on a dream trip on the east coast, there's still baseball going on here. So Chad and Willie discuss the first 22 games of the year and what some of the notable happenings have been so far. 12-10
Ben sat down with Wendy Thurm last week to discuss some of the latest changes to the Giants, including Bumgarner's emergence, the team's offense, Spring Training, and franchise players.
Chad, Ben, and Erin reunite to discuss a rough opening week for the Giants, replete with ups and downs. We talk Timmy and Wilson, what to panic and not panic about, defense, offense, small sample sizes, and Aubrey Huff. Really, we talk a lot about Aubrey Huff.
The preseason TortureCast/Giants Pod supersode! We are joined live at the public house over drinks by Danny and Thomas from the 2 Guys, a Glove & a Coke Bottle Podcast, as well as Samantha Land from KNBR and Michael from the Grubby Glove. We drink copious amounts and talk about the upcoming season. Settle in, this one goes deep.
With no Ben, Willie and Chad discuss the waning spring and how it will shape the roster in 2012. We also discuss how lame it is to beat people up and shout out Erin...again.
After some technical difficulties, Chad and Ben cover a range of Spring Topics, including Lincecum, roster cuts, coverage for starters who may see DL time in April, the cover of ESPN Magazine, gender and fandom, and an interview with Christina Russo.
Willie Dills is back on the show and we talk about the performances 10 games into Spring Training. Do they matter? Who is making waves? And who the hell is Tommy Joseph?!
We get it going this week with Willie Mays and end with Mike Cameron. If you can't figure out how to get from one to other, listen to this!
Without Willie Ben and Chad welcome Erin to the show to talk about the beginning of Spring Training! It happened, it's real, the 2012 season is here. Let's Go Giants!
The boys talk about the line-up, FanFest and Timmy laying of the Double Doubles. We also feature a brand new intro thanks to Ashkon and Baily! Check out their music!
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The boys talk about the final pieces to the puzzle that Sabean has put into place and whether or not these were what was needed. Also, we commiserate a bit more about Eli and the other Giants.
The boys wallow in the Niners NFC Championship loss by talking about arbitration stuff, we welcome Chad King to the line-up. He's hitting 3rd of course.
The boys are back! We start a new season of TortureCast by discussing what the future holds for both the Giants and the show. Ben and Willie talk trades, signings and releases that will affect the 2012 San Francisco Giants squad.
Even on Halloween the Torture never stops as the guys forge ahead in the absence of Willie Dills. Ben Lee and Mike G discuss the goings on of the Giants in the offseason and we support the Mayoral campaign of Ed Lee.
Willie Dills and Ben Lee discuss the retirement of Bill Neukom, the moves for next year and the MLB playoffs. Also, a song from some people over at KNBR.
The Giants are officially out but TortureCast is back. After a long hiatus the boys talk about next year, this year's playoffs and much more. A segment from Chad King as well!
After losing two out of three to the Diamondbacks, the Giants are teetering on the edge of elimination from contention. The boys discuss the possibility that it might be time to stop believing and what to look forward to if so.
In an attempt to stop the feelings of depression and sadness the boys talk about their favorite Giants from years past. Also, a game and a half. A game and a half!
Without Ben or Mike, Willie Dills welcomes Chad King of Out of Left Field, Kids Are Hard and Epic Diapers to the show. We talk slumps, bumps and bruises and try to make of the most of the midsummer Giants doldrums.
A rough week for the Giants following a slide from 2 games up to...only a half game up? That's not as bad as I thought. We talk lack offense, lack of run support and horrible hitting.
The boys discuss the trades, the postseason as it stands now, the current line up compared with opening day and telling Phillies fans to get over themselves.
A 4-2 week of Giants baseball, Tony Plush v. Johnny Velvet, Ben displaced but showing dedication, Trade deadline approaching fast!
The first half is over so we review where the Giants stand and what needs to happen in the second half. Also, All Star week with Ben Lee and a new segment from Chad K. Go Giants.
A tough week ends up ok for the Gigantes as we get ready to celebrate the All-Star Weekend with 4 of our own boys heading to AZ. Plus much more!
The guys talk winning streak, pitching, Zito's return and much more! Mike G is back and we also get our first fan email. Humm Baby!
A rough week for the orange and black. Willie Dills and Ben Lee discuss the weeks games, possible restructuring of the league and what to do about Zito plus much more!