The game resembled the team and the ones that came before it. Big lead. Blown lead. Disappointment.
The Giants’ dream died last night at 9:53 p.m. The team had been on life support for weeks, even months. It made a brief resurgence, which only delayed the inevitable outcome for a club that hasn’t met expectations in years.
Not only will the Giants miss the playoffs for the eighth time in nine seasons, but they’ll likely finish with a losing record as well.
“No offense to the teams we’ve had before but this is the most talented team I’ve been on,” Logan Webb said Tuesday night. “I think there were a lot of expectations and it sucks.”
Webb might be right about the talent on paper. But in reality this team is a continuation of the ones that came before it. The Giants went 52-45 in the first half and 25-36 in the second half.
In the last four years the Giants have gone 196-179 before the All-Star break and 121-148 after it. An 85-win team that morphs into a 73-win team. A playoff team that becomes a losing team. It’s hard to explain.
Blame the manager? Blame the players? Blame the franchise icon doing a job he’s never done before? Take your pick.
The Giants will have plenty of time to play the blame game. The next five weeks will be about the teams—about 15 of them—still competing for a World Series title.
Up next: Future Giant Sonny Gray (14-8, 4.33 ERA) was supposed to face Robbie Ray, who’s since been scratched. His season is likely over. It’ll be JT Brubaker starting instead. Get your jersey today at the nearest Dugout Store.