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I sincerely hope all of you utilize the long weekend (if you have Monday off, that is) to relax and indulge in something you enjoy beyond baseball. There are so many off days in the season now that rather than wait for them to come back and play, you should take some off days, too.
This Houston-Chicago-Colorado road trip is brutal on paper. These are good teams, and it wouldn’t matter if these Giants were at “full strength” to face them. The sole mission for these next two series should be to avoid being swept. 26-30 is no way to live, but it might be the only way to survive.
When the Giants finally return home, they’ll be facing the Phillies and Arizona before heading back out on the road for 10 more games. But then all but two of the remaining games in the month will be at home and against the Marlins, Padres, and Rockies. Figure 3-3 on that first part of the home stand, 4-6 on that road trip (@ Washington, @ Miami, @ Los Angeles), and they’re at 33-39. Win that next home stand with, say, a 6-4 record, and the Giants end June going into Arizona and at 39-43. Not ideal, but not dead. I think that’s probably the best case scenario.
Obviously, their fortunes could change with Bumgarner’s return, but he’s just one player, and a player who pitches and hits just once every five days. But Joe Panik could also make his comeback. We don’t know what’s happened to Alen Hanson, so, it’s best not to wait for his return anytime soon.