Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated twice a week on TheSportsVirus.com!
The 2019 regular season begins on Thursday in San Diego for the Giants. 3B Ron Wotus gets us ready with a conversation that we had just prior to spring training.
Wotus saw Buster Posey a lot during the off-season as they both rehabbed from surgeries at the same facility. He’s optimistic that Buster will be back to top form:
“He hasn’t really been himself, Buster 
Posey-like stats, especially last year. You know that thing (hip) was bothering him and he had to end the season. So, it’s encouraging that he’s got that hip fixed and hopefully we’ll see the Buster Posey of old.”
Listen To Ron Wotus
Join us again next week when we’ll be at the Giants home opener!
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Kevin Durant only took 6 shots, but showed his overall game as the Warriors bounced back from a blowout loss to Dallas on Saturday with a win on Sunday over Detroit.
Injuries derailed the Giants 2018 season. 2B Joe Panik was one of the walking wounded last year, but now he’s healthy and has been tearing up the Cactus League hitting over .400. Bench Coach Hensley Meulens is optimistic about this season, especially because Buster Posey should be back to his All Star form.
moment I start thinking about that, that’s when I go bad. I’ve been really trying to focus on contact point. If I hit the ball in the right contact point that’s when the ball will go. Don’t think about lifting the ball because that’s when bad things will happen.”
“Hitting wise it restrained him (last season) from being at his best, powerful and driving balls. Catching as well he wasn’t feeling like himself…I’m hoping he can get back to where he was the year before (hit .320 with .400 on base percentage).”
The Warriors finished their road trip 3-1 with wins in Houston, Oklahoma City and Minnesota. Steph Curry scored 36 points in the Tuesday win against the Timberwolves. Jonas Jerebko chipped in with 18 points in 18 minutes off the bench.
The Warriors beat the Rockets for the first time this season and they did it on the road without Kevin Durant. Ray and Joe talk about better defense, rebounding and a solid performance by DeMarcus Cousins.
The Giants pitching staff looks good so far in spring training. Two members of the staff who are hoping to be more consistent this season join us today. Chris 
Stratton is vying for a spot in the rotation or as a long man in the bullpen. Mark Melancon is finally healthy and wants to retain his spot as the closer.
“I had some really good games and some really bad games. Boch (Bruce Bochy) wants to know what he’s getting every day and that’s what I want every day is I need to know what I’m going to go out there and be capable of. I need to work on being a little bit more consistent and being better.”
really well. Will (Smith) did a great job and he’s very capable of doing it, likewise Tony Watson and some other guys. That’s the good thing and I think it’s a real staple on our club right now is the bullpen. I think we have a lot of really good arms. Whatever happens it’s going to shake out well.”
The Warriors 33-point loss to the Celtics on Tuesday night was a bad look on several fronts. Ray and Joe talk about what went wrong and the post-game comments from Steve Kerr, Kevin Durant and DeMarcus Cousins.
The Gold Glove left side of the Giants infield is back healthy and ready for a productive season. After injuries derailed SS Brandon Crawford and 3B Evan Longoria 
in 2018, they are poised to produce at previous career levels both at the plate and in the field.
“The biggest thing was swinging at good pitches…When you’re going through a little bit of a dry spell you start getting a little more anxious and you’re swinging at pitches that you that you don’t necessarily want to be swinging at and getting yourself out because of it.”
It is a tough ballpark to leave the yard and it’s just an overall more difficult ballpark to hit in with the weather. I think it’s more about trying to grind through at bats here and hit line drives. It took me probably three quarters of the year to get into that mind set…I’m positive that I’ll be more comfortable stepping into the box in game one this year than I was last year and I think that will translate into some better production.”
Philadelphia. We discuss Andre Iguodala’s comment about Steph Curry being the second best point guard in NBA history and look at the possibility of center Andrew Bogut returning to Golden State.
Giants catcher Buster Posey and outfielder Mac Williamson join us for our first Inside China Basin podcast of 2019. Both players are trying to get back to normalcy. Posey underwent hip surgery and is getting back to 
100%, while Williamson feels great after dealing with concussion symptoms for much of the 2018 season.
“I think mechanically I wasn’t able to swing the way that I always had and I’m sure that had something to do with it overall, but I was kind of having to tweak things to change my mechanics which I hadn’t had to do in the past.”
times, but I wouldn’t change it. I was going after a ball, trying to catch a ball in foul territory that was a meaningful out in our game…What are you going to do, let it drop? Pack my bags to Triple-A? It’s an unfortunate series of events…I just need to be more athletic and not trip (over the bullpen mound).”