How are they doing it?

[stringer bell]

I made a comment that Terry Francona should be making a place for a Manager of the Year Award on his mantle, given how well the Cleveland team has done so far. I think the same can be said for Gabe Kapler and his job with the Giants in the National League. 

I haven't paid much attention to the NL West, except to note that the Rockies and Diamondbacks are two miserable teams this year. The supposition was that San Diego and the Dodgers were among the elite, but the Giants are in first place. I checked their roster, in part because of ex-Twins Zack Littell and LaMonte Wade Jr. and saw a team that was ......old! Among the regulars (according to BRef) only one player was under 30. The top four starters by innings are also over 30. 

I do wonder if somehow the Dodgers and Padres looked past the Giants figuring that they were head and shoulders above them and the other two teams in their division. The Giants are getting solid seasons from almost everyone. Six of the eight starters have OPS over .800 as do two bench players (including Wade). All of the pitchers have ERA+ numbers better than average and Taylor Rogers twin brother has been outstanding. 

The Giants don't appear to be a team of superstars (Posey was, and is still a fine player), but they have managed to put together a good team without exceeding their budget. It would appear that their pieces fit together very well. The rest of MLB and particularly the Twins should be able to learn something from the success of the 2021 San Francisco Giants.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Dodgers and Padres have the 2nd and 3rd best records in the NL, so it’s not like they’ve been slacking that much either. The Giants have just been that good. (And Pythag and BaseRuns back up their record too!)

Preseason, Fangraphs gave the Giants a 5.7% chance of making the postseason; now, it’s up to 85.3%. Kind of the Twins in reverse (63.3% preseason, 3.2% now).