​Good morning, baseball fans! Tonight at Oracle Park, the San Francisco Giants host the Colorado Rockies to kick off a four-game set. That’s right—four straight games after last weekend’s Coors Field series, and yes, four more chances to watch this divisonal matchup unfold. I’m kidding, of course. It’s hard to muster enthusiasm for a series that’s so far from exciting. The Giants and Rockies are vying for the basement, not just within the division but in the National League, and depending on how the Los Angeles Angels perform, perhaps even in all of baseball. If there were an opposite to “an embarrassment of riches,” this would be it—the kind of matchup that makes you question why the schedule-makers thought this was a good idea. And we get four games of it, because apparently the baseball gods are determined to test our patience this season.
In the best possible world, the Giants would sweep the Rockies and claw their way into a more meaningful fourth-place position in the division. But I’ve learned not to bank on bright spots with this team, and I’ve stopped anticipating the ideal outcomes long ago. I’ve grown wary enough to expect the worst, yet I’m always surprised when the unpredictable happens—usually in the opposite direction of my expectations. It wouldn’t be shocking to see the Rockies take this series, but then again, baseball has a strange way of flipping what we think we know, even when we’re convinced that the conclusion is inevitable.
So, how are you feeling about this four-game set? Do you believe the Giants can pull out a victory, or do you anticipate them slipping further toward the bottom of the standings? The series kicks off tonight with first pitch at 6:45 p.m. PT, and every game will be another test of whether this team can salvage any momentum, or if they’ll continue to stagger under the weight of a tough season. As the clock runs, we’ll see if the Giants can prove their supporters wrong and reclaim some footing, or if the Rockies will keep the pressure on a club desperate for a turnaround.