There’s no reason to think that Aaron Rowand transforms from an average player into an All-Star every three years. There’s no celestial alignment, no moons-of-Jupiter tugging on his talent humor. Sure, there’s precedent. It was scientifically proven that Robb Nen was affected by biannual patterns of underground geothermal spring activity, which is why he alternated great years with okay years. But that was proven through a series of peer-reviewed papers. There’s nothing like that for Rowand. There’s no reason to think that every three years, Rowand becomes a beast of a hitter.
But danged if that wouldn’t be cool. While Matt Cain deserves all sorts of credit for being Matt Cain when being Matt Cain was exactly what the Giants needed, it would be remiss to write about the Giants sweep of the Marlins without focusing on Aaron Rowand for just a second. Runs batted in all over the place, balls flying out of the park, and diving catches in crucial spots: Welcome back, Aaron.
And I’m starting to believe it’s just a wee bit of magic inside, with inside being defined as wherever the Giants are.