Evan Longoria. Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
No, Giants fans. It’s not just you.
“There’s some frustration,” Gabe Kapler acknowledged after his club’s bats were silent once again. “I think more than anything else our hitters are feeling some frustration right now.”
They have scored 42 runs this year, the fourth least in baseball (which includes the Mets, who have barely played this year). Their .203 combined average is the second worst and frankly surprising that it’s north of the Mendoza line. Farhan Zaidi’s offenses strive to be known for their plate discipline because working the count should not go into slumps. And yet, their .291 on-base percentage is the fifth worst in MLB.
There are holes everywhere, including a pair in left field, where a deadly duo in 2020 (Alex Dickerson and Darin Ruf) have been deadly for the Giants in the first few weeks of the season. So much of the Giants’ offense consists of platoons, and even with matchup advantages, no one apart from Donovan Solano and Evan Longoria has stepped up.
It was the righty lineup that started Friday against Miami’s Daniel Castano in the 4-1 loss. Austin Slater has had big moments but is hitting .194. Wilmer Flores contributed one of the Giants’ five hits but is batting .154. Ruf went 0-for-2 with a costly double play. Brandon Crawford went 0-for-3 and is now 1-for-16 against southpaws this year, especially concerning because the Giants’ backup and platoon option is their center fielder, Mauricio Dubon, who himself is struggling.
“The lineup that we generally put out against left-handed pitching — and right-handed pitching, for that matter — we have a lot of confidence in long term,” Kapler said of an offense whose .663 OPS is the fourth worst. “I think it’s fair to say that in small stretches, most offenses will struggle. That’s not to say that it’s not frustrating; it is not to say that we [don’t] need to string more consistent at-bats together. That is absolutely true.
“At the same time, I don’t think it’s any time to panic about the way the offense is performing. … I think our roster is full of capable offensive players.”
It’s a roster of hitters with track records, which the Giants will lean upon rather than a 13-game sample. Their .240 batting average on balls in play reflects at least some bad luck, and the Giants hope it will turn.
Mike Yastrzemski, their MVP candidate last year, showed signs of snapping out of his funk, lining two extra-base hits Friday when he entered played with three all year. His triple came on a 3-0 count, showing aggressiveness when the pitch came into his zone. Solano pounded three lineouts whose expected batting averages were .450, .560 and .910.
Kapler has faith. At the same time, “We’re not stringing enough high-quality at-bats together on a nightly basis to score enough runs to win,” he said.
Anthony DeSclafani was excellent for a third straight game and looks very much like the second coming of Kevin Gausman. After his six-inning, one-run performance, he has allowed two runs in 17 innings to start his Giants tenure.
“Just getting into leverage counts,” the 30-year-old said, when asked the difference between him last year and this year. “I feel like I’m getting ahead of guys better, and staying in those leverage counts.”
He was around the plate all night, 60 of his 87 pitches going for strikes. He throws some of everything, but has led with his fastballs: a two-seamer with good movement with which he got nine strikes looking, and a four-seamer that he used to induce five whiffs.
“I thought his fastball command was there and the life on the fastball. Executed at the bottom of the zone,” Kapler said.
