If the Giants first string is a band of misfits, I don't know what to call the gaggle of guys who will be out there tonight. With Vogelsong out the Giants turned to Chad Gaudin as a replacement. Gaudin was pitching well, until the Giants Plague hit and he, too, was injured. With Gaudin now on the Disabled List, the Giants are turning to left-hander Mike Kickham, who had a poor debut in Oakland as Vogelsong's original replacement. He allowed 4 runs on 4 hits, going only 2 1/3 innings and recording a loss.
Another face familiar to the starting lineup that will be warming the bench is Angel Pagan, who underwent surgery on his left hamstring, and could be out for up to 12 weeks. Joaquin Arias came out of the game in the second inning after straining his hamstring while scoring the Giants' only run. He expects to be back in a couple of days. Losing Arias would be more devastating if Pablo Sandoval hadn't come back from the DL to rejoin the lineup last night.
As a fan, it's impossible not to notice a trend: win the World Series, spend a season plagued with injury. Perhaps it is the universe's way of weeding out the bandwagon fans, but baseball is just as much about the ups as it is about the downs. Watching a team struggle can be disheartening, but watching them band together to pick up the slack can be thrilling, and that's what I hope the Giants will do.
The Giants are 3-7 in their last 10 games, and anxious to turn it around. Buster Posey said the key to getting through this is perseverance. It's going to take perseverance from the team, and from the fans. It's hard watching your team lose. It's especially hard when they lose to their rivals. Add in the fact that those rivals are in last place in the division, out by 8 games, and it's rough. But we must persevere, fans. The universe may be testing us, but we know our G-Men will emerge, any day now (but preferably today).
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