Giant hole

Pitching woes make an Angels comeback almost impossible

With the San Francisco Giants holding a 3-2 lead in the World Series, the scene shifts back to Anaheim, where the Angels will try to pull off a miracle. CNNSI.com spoke with Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci, who is covering the series for the magazine. Here are his thoughts on what we've seen so far and how the remainder of the series will play out.

CNNSI.com: Halfway through Wednesday's Game 3 things looked pretty bleak for the Giants. How shocking is their comeback?

Tom Verducci: It's surprising because of how it started. The Giants were down 3-0 in the fifth inning, 15 outs away from being down three games to one. Kirk Rueter chops a ball 15 feet in front of home plate and then Kenny Lofton bunts a ball that hugs the third base line for about 60 feet and a comeback is born. You had two hits that went about 75 feet combined, and the Giants were on their way. To me, though, the Angels' problems go back to the fact that they do not have a "put away" starting pitcher -- no one who can just take a few runs and make them stand up. Anaheim's pitching has been worse than mediocre in the series.

CNNSI.com: Would you say all the runs in this series are the result of poor pitching or good hitting, or both?

Verducci: It's mostly bad pitching. We've seen that this postseason run has really taken a toll on the starting pitchers -- especially on the Angels. Jarrod Washburn, Ramon Ortiz and John Lackey have never pitched anything close to this number of innings in a single season, and Kevin Appier's stuff hasn't been good for a month. I've just seen too many pitches in the middle of the plate, too many pitchers falling behind in the count. To just say all the runs are a result of good hitting isn't right. I think the pitchers have to take a large share of the responsibility for what's happened in this World Series.

CNNSI.com: With the Angels having the rotation problems that you mentioned, can they stage a comeback in this series?

Verducci: I don't know how they would do it. Appier's stuff is so poor right now. He doesn't have an above-average fastball to begin with and as of late its been in the 86-mph range. And the Angels' bullpen, as good as it is, is not very deep. There's no Ramiro Mendoza-type to take over a game early and bail out an Appier or another starter who departs early. On good days Appier's been pitching five innings, so I think Anaheim is in a whole lot of trouble for Game 6.

CNNSI.com: What should Anaheim's strategy be for the rest of the series?

Verducci: Given that the Giants are now going up against Appier and probably John Lackey if there is a Game 7, this would be one of the all-time collapses if San Francisco doesn't close out the series. I just think Anaheim is so short pitching-wise. What the Angels have to do is turn these games into slugfests like Game 2 and just outscore the Giants, and for that to happen San Francisco would need a major breakdown in its pitching staff. I really don't see that happening because Dusty Baker has more options in his bullpen to settle down a game than Mike Scioscia does.

CNNSI.com: How big was the run that San Francisco scored off Francisco Rodriguez to win Game 4? Did it lessen Rodriguez's aura of being unhittable?

Verducci: Well, he's still the best arm Scioscia has. It's not as if the Giants slapped Rodriguez around the park. A big play in that sequence was Bengie Molina totally botching a fastball that he should've caught. That passed ball put San Francisco's winning run in scoring position. I don't feel the Giants have solved Rodriguez at all, and certainly Scioscia hasn't lost any confidence in him. The difficult part now is figuring out how early Scioscia goes to him in Game 6. He may have to use Rodriguez for three innings and not worry about Game 7 because it might not ever come about. Scioscia has to use his pitchers in Game 6 as if it's Game 7.

CNNSI.com: What have you thought of Barry Bonds' performance so far?

Verducci: It's one of the most amazing things I've ever seen in baseball. Getting on base 16 times in 22 at-bats is something that kids don't do in little league. It's remarkable to see this guy locked in the way that he is. When he does swing the bat -- on the few occasions he gets something to hit -- he's just squaring up the ball and hitting it hard. There are no bloop hits. His home runs are way beyond the fences. To see a guy at the top of his game in the World Series the way Bonds has been is very impressive. I don't blame Scioscia for walking him every chance he can get.

Sports Illustrated senior writer Tom Verducci covers baseball for the magazine and is a regular contributor to CNNSI.com. Check out his Insider column throughout the postseason.

 

Related information

Stories

Tom Verducci's Insider Archive

Multimedia

Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video