Benadryl-Driven Epiphany: Expect a Surprise in the NL West
Despite my wild success as a blogger, I do have a day job. With a day job comes the opportunity to forge friendships, learn from other intelligent people or just pig out and b.s. for two hours on a Friday afternoon. I took the opportunity to do the latter after an arduous week.
My co-workers and I tried a new Chinese restaurant. One with homemade noodles and fresh vegetables, which was slightly above the standard of my preferred Chinese restaurant. Normally, my go-to Chinese restaurants sell food — and “looseys” for dessert — from behind bulletproof glass. Like the ones off Olney Ave. in Philly.
Being the good Catholic boy I am, I abstained from meat on a Friday during Lent. Instead of my typical beef and broccoli, I went with stir-fried noodles. I was proud of my religious zeal, silently congratulating myself and basking in my ability to be so pious.
That quickly changed after lunch when I started having an allergic reaction. I was so itchy, my face was blotchy and my skin felt like the flames of Hell were setting me on fire. I quickly left work and popped some Benadryl.
On my hour-plus drive home, I started thinking how a saint like me could be taken down by a noodle. How a gift so pure like me could be taken down because he strayed away from his typical order. How this holy roller could meet his doom because he was breaking away from his anti-social lunch habits.
As I cruised down 355, more questions lingered, “How could this sneak up on me?”, “Did my superior genes betray me?”, “Why didn’t I assess what was happening around me when another co-worker had an allergic reaction?”
Maybe it was Benadryl brain or the sports radio playing in the background, but it made me think, “Wow, this kind of sounds like the 2017 Chicago Cubs.” They thought their pedigree would carry them back to the promise land. They never saw what the Milwaukee Brewers were assembling to sneak up and challenge their crown. Slowly, the Cubs saw what was happening within their division. The Cubs eventually took care of business and calmed the storm, much like my dear friend Benadryl did for me. As I recovered, I wondered, “What team might sneak up like the 2017 Brewers and potentially knock off a division winner?”
Instantly, I thought of the San Francisco Giants. While it’s hard to say a team with the second-highest payroll is a sleeper, they were tied for the worst record last year with the Detroit Tigers at 64-98.
In what was seemingly ages ago, the Giants made major moves that has me excited about their possibilities this year.
They started by acquiring former-MVP Andrew McCutchen. A major step in improving their corner outfield spots. Despite having a star like Hunter Pence, no Giants corner outfielder ranked in the top 45 of Bleacher Report’s 2017 end-of-year piece. McCutchen, meanwhile ranked ninth among all qualified center fielders.
What really makes the McCutchen addition intriguing is how it pairs with the signing of Austin Jackson. For just $3 million a season, they’re getting a player who has the potential to cover that vast outfield in tandem with the former Gold Glove winner in McCutchen. Jackson’s bat was a surprising plus for the Cleveland Indians. A more patient approach at the plate gives reason for optimism at the top of the lineup.
For what it’s worth, Jackson is hitting .400 early on this spring. I’m not one to put too much stock when a player is hitting well in spring training, but it’s a positive sign he’s swinging the bat well from the get-go. Moving Jarrett Parker and Gorkys Hernandez to the bench will only improve their depth.
The infield got a shot of adrenaline when they traded for Evan Longoria. This is a major upgrade over the imposter that occupies Pablo Sandoval’s body. Longoria collected his third Gold Glove last year, and that caliber of defense is going to be a necessity. His lack of power last year — only 20 HRs — can easily continue in the enormous parks of the NL West. That’s his lowest total since he hit 17 in 2012. The difference was he had 365 less plate appearances in that injury-shortened season.
A major issue for the Giants last year was the pitching staff, which seemingly can’t get any worse. Three of five starters had +4 ERAs. Factor in that all-world pitcher Madison Bumgarner had just 17 starts and you can see how last year was an anomaly. Assuming MadBum (great nickname) is healthy and makes 30+ starts, it’s easy to imagine the Giants winning nine of the potential 15 additional starts he’ll make this year.
The bullpen is going to be the x-factor when it comes to this team getting out of the basement. There are a lot of unproven names on the backend, and guys like Sam Dyson are a complete enigma. Their ability to produce and alleviate pressure on the starting staff will be the catalyst to success.
And if you didn’t like any of the logic, just remember it’s an even numbered year. Although 2016 didn’t work out, it might have been because the Giants didn’t have their good luck charm in the Kung Fu Panda.
Realistically, the time is running out for guys like Johnny Cueto, Jeff Samardzija, Mark Melancon, Pence, McCutchen, Longoria and others. Now is their time to make one more run. Younger teams are coming on full force, and it won’t be long before the Giants blow up that bloated payroll.
My prediction: The 2018 San Francisco Giants are your NL West champions. If I’m wrong, it’s probably because I chugged too much Benadryl.
