This is going to be a short article, because it’s really just about two things. Two numbers, really: 63, and 13.
Those numbers aren’t inherently big, because I don’t think any numbers are, but within the context of the San Francisco Giants and playing people . . . whew, they are quite large.
You can probably guess what the 63 represents: The number of Giants who have played this year, from Abad to Yastrzemski.
That comfortably sets a National League record, besting the previous mark (the 2016 Atlanta Braves) by three whole players.
For some perspective as to just how insanely large that number is, the previous franchise record was a measly 51 players, back in 1990. Or, put another way, the previous record-holding Giants club could clone half their opening day roster, add it to their squad, and still only have the same amount of players as the 2019 team, give or take a half a player (or, as they call it in the American League, a “Designated Hitter”).
More theoretically, 63 also represents the systematic approach of Farhan Zaidi. In Bobby Evans’ final campaign a year ago, the Giants used 48 players, a number Zaidi flew by before he even got to September call-ups.
Of course, some of it has been hilariously expedited churn. Four of the 63 players are non-pitchers with fewer than ten plate appearances. Another eight are pitchers with fewer than ten innings thrown. But there is a process in there, and we can already see it working.
The Giants won’t use 60 or more players every year. This isn’t the new normal. Once the team is good, the need to cycle through endless amounts of players diminishes a bit. But it is a great way to maximize talent and find some hidden Yastrzemskis.
On to the next number: 13. That’s how many pitchers the Giants used in their Monopoly-length win over the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday. It not only set a franchise record for pitchers used in a game, but it bested the old mark by two!
How fitting is that? Nothing has defined Bochy’s Giants legacy like using relievers. And, with just 11 games left in his career, he not only set a franchise record, but blew by it.
Bruce Bochy, informed that the Giants' 13 pitchers used broke the previous record of 11: "Shattered it!"
— Andrew Baggarly (@extrabaggs) September 18, 2019
Some things just make sense.