With the Giants stumbling ever downward towards the midpoint of the season, we decided to check in with El Lefty Malo and McCovey Chronicles to get their opinion on a season that is rapidly approaching the point where "are you ready for some football?" will be the motto of the second half of the season. more ›

You know, if last fall wasn't exactly a great time for Bay Area sports, this spring, especially this weekend, has to be considered a great moment. We listened to Gary Radnich this morning and he was complaining about not having anything to complain about. more ›

here's todays sports wrap up more ›

-In a GAME THAT MATTERED, the A's lost their opening game, 4-0 to the Mariners. It's too easy to make much out of the first game of the season, but it should be noted that the A's took 17 out of 19 games against the Mariners last season and the Mariners just halved that. What happened yesterday could basically be summed up by this: great pitching. Mariner’s wunderkind Felix Hernandez, all of 20 years old, gave up only three hits in eight innings and struck out twelve. more ›

-We'll say this about the Warriors-- they got some gumption. After a series of not so great games and the shellacking at the hands of the Spurs, the Warriors went out and beat the mighty Suns. They started off scoring 45 points in the first quarter and then held onto win 124-119. J-Rich scored 36 points, 24 of them on 8 three- point plays. Stephen Jackson had 29 points and Brittle Baron had 21. They are now only a game behind the Clips for the last and final playoff spot. more ›

Here's the daily wrap up of the sports news more ›

Here's today's wrap up of sports news more ›

Here's todays sports wrap up. more ›

Here's todays wrapup of sports stories more ›

In Part I, we discussed just how good the Giants would be this season. Then, when it was agreed we were looking at a .500 team, we tried to figure out how okay we were with it. Today, we try to assess blame and then make some predictions. And away we go.... more ›

What to make of this year's Giants? We have no clue. No Giants team has been this much of an enigma since maybe 2003. After last year's soul crushing of a season, Giants management vowed to get younger and to change things up. They didn't. In fact, you could describe this season as the same but different. There is a new manager, a new corner infield, a new catcher and centerfielder but the team still feels the same. Same pitching staff (except with one noteacable exception) same bullpen, same middle outfield, and most importantly, the same Barry Lamar. What is true of the Giants in the past is true of this year-- the Giants once again are designed to be placed on the back of Barry Bonds. more ›

-The Warriors get a big lead, lose a big lead, then regain a big lead as they beat the NY Knicks. Tim Kawakami thinks the Warriors need to tank the season by giving Patrick O’Bryant some playing time. more ›

-In the biggest game of the year, the Warriors stepped up and beat on the Indiana Pacers with ex-Pacer Stephen Jackson leading the way. What does it all mean? more ›

-The Sharkies lost to the Dallas Stars, 4-3. It's the second consecutive loss against the Stars this week and who does the NHL scheduling anyways? It's also the Sharks third consecutive home loss. Their main culprit? Lousy power plays. So, does all this mean the Sharks need to bring in some more veteran guys? more ›

We were watching all the ESPN gab-fest shows yesterday and every single reporter on every single show ripped the Giants for all things Barry. We know it doesn't matter in the long run, but we do not like it when our favorite baseball team is ripped to shreds. Needless to say, the whole Barry thing is just leaving bad tastes all around. So much so, Magowan himself sent out a letter to all season ticket holders saying that mistakes were made in the past, but this time they really, really are trying harder but they really had no choice to do what they did. As El Lefty put it, the team’s slogan this year should be: Your 2007 San Francisco Giants: Savor the Grim Inevitability! more ›

-Sharks score five unanswered goals to beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-1. It was their first victory in Edmonton since November 2003. more ›

Miss Monta Ellis' last minute shot two nights ago? Here it is. more ›

-The Warriors beat the New Orleans/OK City Hornets and on KNBR this morning we heard the word "playoffs" being mentioned in reference to the Warriors this season. We'll let Basektball Chris handle that one, but how many seasons now have the Warriors gone on a run in December/January and had people thinking this might be the year? Let's just say the season ain't official 'til Baron Davis goes down. And Tim Kawakami agrees. Meanwhile, are the Warriors better without J-Rich? more ›

-Sharks lose to the Dallas Stars 3-0. Not really a surprise considering the Stars were looking to open up a can of whoop-as and the Sharkies were coming off a four-game break. It's the Sharks second loss to the Stars and the third time they've been blanked in the past fourteen games. more ›

-Frank Gore and Larry Allen from the 49ers and Raiders DE Derrick Burgess get an all expenses paid trip to Hawaii for the Pro Bowl. The Raiders are stunned only Burgess is going. Hmmm....maybe not being one of the worst teams in NFL history would have helped. more ›

So how did the Giants' hiring of Bruce Bochy go over with Giants fans? Well, does the word "meh" mean anything to you. It's not that people were upset (well, some people were) but most people just kind of gave it a shrug and said that it's not such a bad pick. Kind of like when you go out looking for a used car to buy and you dream of a sports car or a hybrid and you wind up doing what everyone else does-- buy a Honda. It's not very exciting and it's not very sexy but the car just plain ole works. more ›

Some of you just can't get enough Gavvy Gav -- Berkleyist finds a picture of him and Sofia Milos (Newsom?) by Luke Thomas. Us, we can't get enough MC Hammer! This may be SFist, but we Hella Heart Oakland. Lots of other new blogs of note. Jon Swenson says Phil Zajicek is blogging his Tour of California ride. And just in time for spring training, El Lefty Malo finds a new Giants blog, Giants Jottings. more ›

Rarely a day late, always a few dollars short. more ›

And the Giants got their man. Monday it was announced that Matt Morris, formerly of the Cardinals, is now a member in proud standing of the Black & Orange. As we said earlier, Morris is the proto-typical Sabaen pick-up: a gritty veteran just beginning the downside of their career and coming off a few injury-laden down years. When he was good, which was several years ago, he was the anchor of a pretty good Cardinal pitching staff. In 2001, he won 22 games and is 101-62 with a 3.62 ERA over his career. He is also known as both a "gamer" and an inning eater. Considering the chinese fire drill that was last year's pitching staff, that's a good thing. Last year, however, he was 14-10 with a 4.11 ERA, but he was 10-2 with a 3.10 ERA before the All-Star break last season and 4-8 with a 5.32 ERA after it. That could either mean he lost his stuff and r'uh oh or it could also mean he was simply fatigued after having shoulder surgery at the end of the 2004 season. The Giants hope it was the later. more ›

Some video to amuse you as you kill your Friday afternoon at the office: Schlomo Rabinowitz suggests what . We can't believe it either. more ›

The Giants, who just love their history, are getting ready to sign manager Felipe Alou's son Moises to a two year deal worth something like thirteen or fourteen million bucks, making him their right fielder. He's thirty-nine. Hmm. Felipe and his brothers Matty and Jesus played for the Giants in the sixties, so, from that perspective, this is a warm and fuzzy sort of thing, and Moises hit the crap out of the ball for the Cubs last year, but the whole thing starts to sound pretty crazy when you realize that, with thirty-eight year old Marquis Grissom in center and forty year old Barry Bonds in left, the Giants now have an insanely old outfield. And the rest of the team -- including recently signed short stop Omar Vizquel, 39, and catcher Mike Matheny, 34 -- is pretty old, too. You get kinda nervous about what the disabled list is going to look like next year (not to mention in 2006), and it looks like the Giants' MVP is going to be trainer Stan Conte. And is it too late to get all these guys on steroids? At least that'd help them heal faster when they get hurt. more ›

First thing is, you gotta understand that at least one SFist writer obsesses over the Giants to a damned near unhealthy point and scours the internet on a fairly regular (constant?) basis looking for Giants orts. So it's pretty rare when significant San Francisco baseball news reaches him through the papers first. Today, though, the Chron had a pretty sweet scoop when it reported that the Giants have all but signed Florida closer Armando Benitez to a three-year $21 million deal. Once he passes a physical, which could happen as soon as today, Thunderbirds are Go and the Giants look like the team to beat in the NL West, especially if they sign a legit bat to hit behind Barry Bonds. more ›

For in-depth analysis from the Lunatic Fringe, visit El Lefty Malo, Westwood Blues, Only Baseball Matters, Waiting for Boof, or another of your favorite Giants blogs. more ›