Pitchers Park Podcast - A San Francisco Giants Podcast

First, it's important to remember that the views presented on the McCovey Chroncast do not reflect the views of Grant Brisbee, SB Nation, Vox Media, most of the commenters on this site, or (and especially) the San Francisco Giants... Now that that's out of the way... I'm back. And, it is with a heavy heart that I must announce that I am at it again. Yes, I, the most negative human being ever born,...

This week, Sami and guest-host Joanne discuss Ryan Vogelsong’s triumphant return to the Bay Area to retire as a Giant. They defend his Giants' legacy against callous national writers who just don’t get it, as well as plotting a similar return for other Forever Giants. They also discuss the late-night shenanigans of the win over the Dodgers last week, as well as digging into some playoff expectatio...

The Dodgers are coming to town, so this week, Sami and Doug talk about how bad the Dodgers have been lately to distract themselves from how bad the Giants have been this whole year, and to try to get everyone hyped up for the series. And it worked! Beat L.A.! Beat L.A.! Beat L.A.! Will the Dodgers get to 100 wins? Will the Giants get to 100 losses? These are the hard-hitting questions facing 2017...

In this Labor Day edition of the McCovey Chroncast, Sami and Doug talk about the varying levels of suck associated with the San Francisco Giants. But also, some good things! Like Gorkys Hernandez’s defense and Madison Bumgarner’s home run. But then there are the bullpen implosions, injury updates and under-performing offense. It’s a mixed bag, really, but Doug comes through with a great recap of t...

To the surprise of no one, the San Francisco Giants were eliminated from contention in the National League West this weekend. Some hoped they'd last a little bit longer, others were ready for the inevitable. This week, Sami and Doug discuss the week that was, including the split series with the Phillies and a little bit of Hunter Strickland schadenfreude, and we answer a lot of your questions abou...

This week, Sami and Doug take a look back on what turned out to be a pretty successful and eventful week for the San Francisco Giants. We saw an injury to Brandon Belt, a triumphant return for Jarrett Parker, Ty Blach’s homer, George Kontos getting claimed off of waivers and a Panda reunion. Some good, some bad, but the Giants won four of the last seven games, so we will take it. Get better soon,...

This week, we chat with Lana Berry about this weekend's Giants vs. Dodgers series and the Dodgers playoff hopes. Meanwhile, Sami and Doug discuss the continued fecklessness of the San Francisco Giants: including the trade of Eduardo Nunez, a possible return of Pablo Sandoval, Brandon Belt's misadventures in base-running, and the looming trade deadline. The Dodgers are very good and the Giants are...

If you ignore their record, the Giants are playing like a very good team right now with plenty to be excited about. While you care for your frightened dog(s), barbecue various meats, and enjoy America's independence from the Brits, join us as we bask in the good times of a six-game winning streak, the found money quality of new closer Sam Dyson, the coolness of Jae-gyun Hwang, and the fact that Bu...

Sixty episodes! Who would've thought we'd make it this far? Neither Doug nor I did, mainly because I am one of the main components of the entire endeavor, and this week will remind you why I'm such a liability: deep into the 'cast there's ~political discussion~. You might say, "Hey dingus, stick to baseball!" and we are sticking to baseball as this particular political discussion relates directly...

Doug is off this week so instead it's just me and Roger talking prospects, the current state of the farm system, the current state of the international development, and Austin Slater's swing.  You can find our Minor Lines expert giving an in depth analysis of the Giants' top six picks in this year's draft and how it was both an atypical draft for the organization but also an exciting one. And what...

This is not, not, not, not an hour-long conversation about the beauty of Golden State Warriors basketball. Just wanted to get that out of the way right up front. There will be no references to Steph Curry's jumper or Klay Thompson's defense or Draymond Green's energy or Kevin Durant's completely dominant game or how they defeated the Cleveland Cavaliers and won a championship *in the Bay Area* for...

The Giants are, of course, famously bad and unlikely to get better soon. What does that mean for the Chroncast? We think the franchise’s descent into Rebuilding Mode will bring about some of our best work, actually. And this week is definitely proof of that concept. I go in on Hunter Strickland, Doug comes up with an idea to monetize the podcast that will net him a million dollars, we come up with...

We pack a lot into this week's hour and hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we enjoyed making it. First up, it turns out Buster Posey has beef with Brandon Belt. We get to the bottom of it without forgetting to stop to reflect on the Giants taking 2 out of 3 in St. Louis against Baseball's Greatest Team, the Cardinals. Always a pleasure to watch those wins. We also follow up on our trade pro...

It should come as no surprise that the Buster Posey Death Watch has watched anything but the death of Buster Posey's baseball career. He's still pretty good! And he's hitting for more power than most Giants, which I think you'd agree are still struggling as a whole to hit for team power. We also look ahead at the Giants potentially bright future with their outfield. There are some interesting pros...

There's no logical explanation for the Bay Area media's intense scrutiny of Giants' first baseman Brandon Belt when the entire organization is currently in the midst of its worst start ever and every single player not named Brandon Belt (or Buster Posey) is performing well below the caliber of a Major League Baseball player, so we decide to come up with additional irrational reasons to dislike the...

A 9-17 start is, as the kids say, a "suboptimal" start to the season, and there's no question that the team has a nearly impossible chance of making the postseason... so where does that leave our weekly podcast if there's nothing really to root for? Well, that's the thing -- there's still plenty to root for and plenty to talk about. What is there to root for, you may ask? Why, friendship and camar...

So, 2017 isn’t what you hoped it would be, but that’s okay. The Giants were never going to win every game and they were never built to be the best team in the league. Sure, they have been the worst team in the sport since last year’s All-Star Break, but they have a bunch of guys on the roster we and you really, really like. So, let’s still get together and talk about them. This week, we follow-up...

Sure, the Giants haven’t had a comeback win in the ninth inning since May of 2015, but as we approach the two-year anniversary of this bit of history, is there enough evidence on the current roster to explain or disprove just why it is that they’ve been so unlucky in this specific way? And how have the staples of the Giants’ lineup looked in the early going? More than a few of the hitters seem to...

We're back to talk about the Giants' first week of the season. Did blowing two saves in one game set them up for a historic run? Is there anything to the idea that the Giants' bullpen isn't hitting luck it's actually carrying over the same performances from last year because it's basically the same composition? We also look at the performances of each significant player from the past week and wind...

There are 13 rankable managers in the National League and by gawdness, we rank the everlovin' heck out of 'em. This comes just before the first pitch of the 2017 season and on the heels of the national baseball writers anointing Cool Joe Maddon as the greatest manager in the game. We think there's something wrong with that label and try to sort out just exactly where Joe and the other NL managers...

It's difficult to look at the San Diego Padres and think "now there's an exciting baseball team!", but it's a lot easier to look at the FOX-TV show Pitch and think "now there's an exciting TV show about baseball!". We used that reasoning this week to close out the NL West preview as writer Jason Holtham of the aforementioned FOX-TV show Pitch joins us to discuss the fictional Padres, a far more en...

This week’s show begins our preview of the rest of the NL West, starting with the loathsome Dodgers and followed by the gritty Diamondbacks. We invited a couple of guests to help us out with those previews and we think that makes them far more entertaining than you, a single-minded Giants-only fan, could ever possibly imagine. Eric Stephen of True Blue LA helps us understand just how it is that th...

We’re back! And it’s — wait, what? Spring Training has been going on for a couple of weeks already? We’re still shaking off the podcasting rust, but we do manage to talk about some key items of Giants baseballery, including reasons to be optimistic this season. It’s a striking departure from the usual back and forth and we’re cautiously optimistic it will be a new trait of ours going forward. But...

It is with a heavy heart that I must announce that the Chroncast is at it again, but just one last time in 2016. That's right, after this week's episode, you won't have me or Doug to kick around anymore! Joining us this week for an appropriate send-off is Baseball's Grant Brisbee.  What's the best course of action for the Giants to take heading into 2017? Do the recent Gold Glove awards make a who...

The Giants' farm system has experienced a dramatic shift in quality over the past few years: they can grow position players now! That's cause for excitement, because in the coming years, the offense is going to need a boost from somewhere given how no free agent bat wants to sign with San Francisco. Is Christian Arroyo worth all your hopes and dreams now? One thing's for certain: the Giants' bullp...