Another Press Box Dills Stream of Consciousness – July 10th SF v PHI

Listen to our “Bonusode” at Zeke’s here, stream it below!

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Listen to our interview with All Star SS Brandon Crawford

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Here we are again. Considering the struggles this team has had its amazing that the flag in right center is still hanging in the second position. If the rest of the west wasn’t so weak it wouldn’t be but we’ll take what we can get. Tonight’s an important game as the Giants are sitting at 43-43. Dipping below .500 can be a psychological blow and the Phillies aren’t exactly world beaters so a loss with your horse on the mound could be devestating. As the game goes on I’ll be noting my thoughts here for your enjoyment. Go Giants.

First real shareable moment of the night is the bat boy hitting the dirt bringing balls out in the first. It is social media night so I’m sure that will be all over the Twitters. He did get a well deserved standing ovation upon returning to the dugout. Look. We all have embarrassing moments growing up. They just usually don’t happen in front of 42,000 people.
If you had told me at the beginning of the year that Duffy would be hitting in the 3 hole consistently I would have assumed that we’d be out of contention. He’s been one of the best stories of 2015 and after losing Pablo and the struggles of McGeehee, it’s awesome to see him doing well.
Three straight singles to get going against the stingy Cole Hamels. Unfortunately, Posey hits into a double play and the Giants only get one run out of a bases loaded nobody out situation. We’ll see if that comes back to haunt them. (Edit: nope)
After a narrow escape by Bum in the first as well we have settled in to a bit of a duel. Both pitchers look like they are in a fairly decent rhythm. Could be a low scori…aaaaand as I’m typing this Carlos Ruiz (remember him?) hits one out on the first pitch and we’re tied.
Since facing the Phillies in 2010 this team has made a full 180. What used to be a perrenial contender is now a collection of unknowns dwelling in the cellar of the NL East. That team was so scary for so long and it’s tough to pinpoint exactly where it all went wrong.
On a team struggling to score runs two run singles up the middle are a beautiful sight. The fact that Maxwell and Pagan had a hand in the inning is also beautiful. These guys have been scuffling for an extended period of time and we’re going nowhere without them.
Panik keeps it going and the Giants have the rare double bases loaded one out situation in a single inning.
We’ve officially given up on keeping score as the Giants bat around in the 4th. The inning started with Brandon Crawford striking out and after 8 guys came around the bags we’re back at Crawford. Pence hit a Grand Slam in the meantime to continue his campaign to save the Giants.
Can’t tell if the Giants are really good at baseball or the Phillies are really bad. Maybe a bit of both?
How does a 10-1 route get better? When Bumgarner has a bizzare stand off on the basepaths with Phillies 3rd baseman, Maikel Franco.
Bumgarner leaves the game in the 6th after getting into a little trouble. It’s a shorter start by his standards but since we have finally given him some run support its nice to let him relax and take rest of the night off. The game isn’t over by any means but it’s gonna take a Herculean effort for this Phillies lineup to come back.
I need to start bringing a radio into the box. Games like this are perfect for Jon Miller stories.
The crowd is now in full on party mode. I guess that’s what happens when you score 11. This team needed a game like this. Recently runs have been so hard to come by and a blowout can actually provide confidence for many games to come.
It’s now a baker’s dozen as Panik launches one into the seats with Pagan aboard. The Giants are just teeing off at this point as they’ve scored in every inning since the 8 run outburst.
One thing the American League doesn’t get is Jean Machi at bats. They’re missing out.
A fan jumped into the cove after Panik’s home run ball. It was quite a majestic move, reminiscent of Aubry Huff’s legendary rail jump after Matt Cain’s perfecto in 2012. He did get the ball and what looks like a stern talking to by some official looking gentlemen. The smile never left his face, however. What more could we get from this game? It has it all!
Ladies and Gentlemen. The Giants just got 20 hits at AT&T park. I shit you not.
Make that 21 which is the most ever in a game at AT&T park. Maxwell with 4 of them. At this point the Giants are 21 for 41 for the game which is a .512 avg.
Another bat boy bites the dust but this time to much less fanfare. The Phillies BB was almost off the field with a bat and tripped. More on this story as it develops.
Another cool thing that happened: a Giants front office employee tweeted at me that he is a fan of my podcast, The Instance. He then tweeted a pic of his 10 year WoW statue and his 3 rings. Epic.
Giants win by a final of 15-2. Now to the bar for a bonusode!