So after last night's game it is very clear to me that Matt Cain reads this blog.  How else can you explain last night's dominating performance?  He was so upset about all the negative posts about him that it fueled his competitive spirit and he took the mound with the sole intention of proving us naysayers wrong.  What other possible explanation is there?  Well with that all summed up, let me get to the main part of my post:

Why Jose Castillo is more valuable than Matt Cain

1. Jose Castillo has hit 3x as many homers as Cain.  3x!
2. Castillo means Castle in English and that's awesome.  It reminds me of Johnny Castle from Dirty Dancing.  Fess up guys!  You know deep down that movie is a guilty pleasure for you too.  Cain doesn't mean anything! 
3. Jose Castillo is bilingual.

So that about sums it up. 

I realize he's still the youngest pitcher on the staff but he does now have a fair amount of major league experience.  It appears as if he's really plateued and in my very humble and very unprofessional opinion, I'm not entirely certain that he's going to get much better than he is right now.  A lot of good starts but no real domination mixed in with a lot of very mediocre starts as well. 

I'm thinking that maybe he doesn't have the right kind of mental toughness to dominate in this game.  I have this feeling that he thinks way too much about what kind of pitch he's going to throw and in what count etc etc instead of just clearing his mind and throwing the ball.  As I said before, I'm no expert on baseball but he just looks like he's always pitching tentaively and I'm not so sure he's going to break out of that.

I don't particularly like Damon Bruce (I'll admit I like him more now than when he first started) but he made an excellent point tonight.

Will Molina be any more valuable in a trade than he is RIGHT NOW?

Probably not.  We've been speculating for months about Durham and Aurelia being up on the auction block if they were to get hot.  But what about Molina?  He's not part of the future (3+ years from now) and behind the plate he's good but he's not exceptional.  If your argument is that he needs to be there to help calm the young arms down I counter that there are plenty of vet catchers to be had in some kind of Molina deal who can bat 8th for us and keep the pitchers just as calm and prepare them just as well for the future.  Perhaps better.

Thoughts?

While on my lunch break in Palo Alto spotted a pretty face.  I know there are a lot of fans of "The Office" on this blog so I thought I'd share.  FWIW she as buying sushi and since she was with her kids I decided to be lo-pro and not introduce myself.  The pic was taken with my iPhone while I pretended to talk to someone on the phone.

Jan at Mollie Stone's (via anna banana)

my friend posted it on her blog.

1.  I love that the Giants are going to have Cain and Lincecum in the rotation next year.  That means I have a 2/5th chance of watching an incredible pitcher when I go to the park.  Hell, I love Lowry too, that means I'm at 3/5th if he's not traded before opening day.
2.  I love watching gamers play baseball.  Say what you want about Rowand but guys like him and Byrnes play the game the way it's supposed to be played.
3.  Dude, it's baseball and it's almost pitchers and catchers.  That enough is awesome.
4.  Even though it's just the beginning it rebuilding..we're finally rebuilding.  And the promise of what's to come excites me.
5.  Eff you, you negative Nancys.  :P