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# Can Giants recover in 2nd half?

##### Henry Schulman

##### Updated 10:36 am, Thursday, July 18, 2013

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- Though catcher Buster Posey is hitting .325 with 13 homers, he is learning about life on a losing team. Photo: Jeff Chiu, Associated Press
  Though catcher Buster Posey is hitting .325 with 13 homers, he is...
- Madison Bumgarner has been the Giants' lone consistent starter. The left-hander's 10-5 record looks even better when you consider San Francisco is 43-51. Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle
  Madison Bumgarner has been the Giants' lone consistent starter. The...
- Tim Lincecum starting pitcher of the San Francisco Giants reacts after striking out Adam Lind of the Toronto Blue Jays in the 4th inning of their MLB baseball game Tuesday, June 4, 2013 in San Francisco Calif. Photo: Lance Iversen, The Chronicle
  Tim Lincecum starting pitcher of the San Francisco Giants reacts...
- SAN FRANCISCO, CA - JULY 10: Manager Bruce Bochy #15 of the San Francisco Giants takes the ball from pitcher Matt Cain taking him out of the game in the first inning against the New York Mets at AT&T Park on July 10, 2013 in San Francisco, California. Cain only pitched two thirds of an inning. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) Photo: Thearon W. Henderson, Getty Images
  SAN FRANCISCO, CA - JULY 10: Manager Bruce Bochy #15 of the San...
- Pablo Sandoval hits an RBI double during the first inning.
  Pablo Sandoval hits an RBI double during the first inning.

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Buster Posey had to think about it for a second, but yeah. Going back to high school, college and the pros, this is the first time he really has learned about life on a losing team.

"I would say so," Posey said, "but at the same time, I would say the season is not over. I hesitate to even recognize a losing anything because there still is whatever we have, 65 or 70 games to go."

The actual number is 68, and sure, anything can happen. However, after a 43-51 first half, the Giants might not get 68 games to keep this ship from running aground.

Between now and July 31, general manager Brian Sabean has to decide whether his team still has a legitimate shot to win a weak National League West, then act accordingly by the nonwaiver trade deadline, either by dealing prospects to fortify the major-league roster or trading big-league players to restock a farm system that has little advanced talent.

As any mariner knows, a big ship needs a lot of time to reverse course. Fortunately for the Giants, a baseball team does not.

Salvation can come as soon as this weekend, when the Giants open the second half with three home games against first-place Arizona, which they have beaten six times in nine games this season.

The Giants trail the Diamondbacks by 6 1/2 games. If they win two of three, they will knock a game off that deficit. If they sweep, they could end the weekend 3 1/2 games out of first place, depending on what the second-place Dodgers do in Washington.

This is simple math that manager Bruce Bochy wants his team to forget. He said the last thing his players should do is treat this weekend like the final three games of the season.

"It doesn't matter who you play," Bochy said. "It's all about playing better and finding ways to win ballgames and taking series. When we play games out of our division, we have to win those, too."

The Giants' plunge from World Series champs to potential deadline sellers ranks among the most surprising stories in baseball this season.

All looked fine May 12, when the Giants won their third in a row against Atlanta and stood at 23-15. Then, starting with a 1-5 trip through Toronto and Denver, the Giants began a free fall that left them with the NL's sixth-worst record at the break.

Health has played a role. After dodging significant injuries through 2012 the Giants have been hit with many maladies ranging from pesky, such as Marco Scutaro's chronic back woes, to season-altering injuries such as Ryan Vogelsong's broken hand and the hamstring surgery that will leave the Giants without their leadoff hitter, Angel Pagan, for most or all of the rest of the season.

But as reliever Jeremy Affeldt said, "We didn't lose half our team."

Indeed, injuries alone cannot explain the Giants' nosedive. They were getting healthier during a 5-19 stretch that preceded their three-game win streak in San Diego over the weekend.

"I think it just has to do with consistency," Affeldt said. "The pitching staff gets on a roll, and then it gets off. Maybe the starters get on a roll and the bullpen's not doing well. Our offense is scoring 10 runs and we're not pitching enough. We give up two runs and only get one."

Even if the Giants discover consistency, that has to translate into wins, and fast. So it goes when you need an eight-game winning streak simply to reach break-even.

This team's chances of winning the West and returning to the playoffs are slim.

Once again, the players cannot think that way.

"What I've felt over this stretch in the last month is, you really have to simplify things when you're going like this," Posey said. "You have to go pitch by pitch more than ever, on defense and offense. You can't think ahead to later in the game. You can't look ahead to the next game. You can't look at trying to win 10 games at once."

True, but if the Giants do not win a lot more games than they lose during the 10-game homestand that begins the second half, the front office could decide that the way to simplify things is to start looking toward 2014.

### Injury update

OF Angel Pagan (left hamstring surgery): Pagan was not having a standout year when he got hurt May 25, but his switch-hitting presence atop the lineup has been missed and has forced manager Bruce Bochy to play supposed platooners Andres Torres and Gregor Blanco together too many times. Pagan probably is done for the year.

RHP Ryan Vogelsong (broken pinkie): The injury to Vogelsong, who was hit by a pitch May 20, exposed an organizational void in big-league-ready starters. The only blessing was Chad Gaudin's emergence as a starter. Vogelsong hopes to return in early August.

2B Marco Scutaro (mallet finger, back): Although he has not gone on the disabled list, his injuries have impacted his swing at times. He is not the same hitter he was when he came to the Giants last season but still provides a valuable presence in the No. 2 slot.

RHP Santiago Casilla (right leg surgery): A cyst that lodged in his right tibia, near the knee, finally became too painful and was surgically removed May 28. The right-handed setup man returned to the mound Sunday, reintroducing stability to the back end of the bullpen.

3B Pablo Sandoval (left foot strain): The Panda ran out of hamate bones to fracture, but this injury cost him two weeks in June, plus the time he needed to get his plate timing back when he returned.

C Hector Sanchez (right shoulder injury): Sanchez provided some danger last year as a switch-hitter with a bit of pop off the bench, but this injury has ruined his season. He is on the disabled list, eligible to return Wednesday.

### 3 hits

1. Madison Bumgarner: Still only 23, the left-hander has emerged as a true staff ace, with the stuff, guile and power to pick up 10 first-half wins on a losing team and beat any hitter at the plate.

2. Chad Gaudin: Recent news of his arrest on a lewd-conduct charge sullied his personal reputation. On the field, he saved the bullpen early in the season when starters consistently got knocked out early, then saved the rotation when he replaced an injured Ryan Vogelsong.

3. Dodgers-Giants: With the Giants coming off another championship and the Dodgers starting to play up to their payroll, the rivalry has become feisty again. Nothing is more fun than watching these teams and their fans get riled at one another.

### 3 misses

1. Pitching, hitting and defense: That just about covers it. The Giants failed for extended stretches in each of these facets of the game. Fortunately for them, it was not often simultaneous. If it were, their record would be a lot worse than 43-51.

2. Injuries: Good health marked their 2012 championship season, and every prediction for 2013 started with, "As long as they stay healthy." They haven't, and that has contributed to their downfall.

3. Road woes: The 18-31 record away from AT&T Park is incomprehensible. The Giants lost 35 on the road all of last season. The pitchers fell behind early, the hitters could not catch up, and that made for a lot of quiet plane trips.

### Unit reports

Rotation: As always, the Giants live and die with their starters. They have done a better job of late, but a terrible start and inconsistency throughout the unit are a big reason for the team's decline. All-Star Madison Bumgarner was the only completely dependable starter. For nearly one month, from mid-June through last week, he was the only starter to win.

Bullpen: The relievers did a creditable job in light of the turnover and Santiago Casilla's injury. Twelve men pitched in relief in the first half, often shifting roles based on what the team needed on a particular day. The bullpen's 3.22 ERA ranks fourth in the league.

Hitting: Injuries to Angel Pagan, Marco Scutaro and Pablo Sandoval hurt, but health was not the lone reason the offense plummeted as spring turned to summer. The Giants averaged 4.5 runs a game through May 31 and 3.4 runs between June 1 and the break. They put plenty of runners on base but could not buy a hit in the clutch for more than a month.

Defense: The Giants' inability to catch the ball came at a bad time, earlier in the season, when they were not pitching, either. A defensive slump contributed to some losses, but this was not the team's biggest concern. Big improvement is necessary for throwing out base stealers. Their 23.3 percent success rate ranks third worst in the league.

Henry Schulman is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. E-mail: hschulman@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @hankschulman

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Can Giants recover in 2nd half?
Between now and July 31, general manager Brian Sabean has to decide whether his team still has a legitimate shot to win a weak National League West, then act accordingly by the nonwaiver trade deadline, either by dealing prospects to fortify the major-league roster or trading big-league players...

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