Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated 3 times a week on TheSportsVirus.com!
SF Chronicle Columnist John Shea joins us for our final Giants podcast of 2017. We look ahead to the 2018 draft (the Giants will have the #2 overall pick) and what SF needs to do to improve. Plus, a little MLB post-season forecast.
Shea gave The Sports Virus a scouting report on Seth Beer from Clemson, whom the Giants will probably consider for the #2 overall pick in the 2018 MLB draft: “…He’s the real deal. He’s probably a first baseman, maybe somebody like (Brandon) Belt would move to LF…He’s a legitimate power guy. 6’2,” 200-plus (pounds) and he hits the ball a long way…He’s not a real great athlete. He’s not going to be a great outfielder if you put him in left. He’s probably more equipped for first base. He’s not fast, he’s not going to have much range, but he hits the ball and (Bruce) Bochy was telling us lately and he’s saying it multiple times, hey we’ve been talking behind the scenes about getting these guys. Maybe not necessarily contact guys, but power guys. If they strike out, they strike out. They’re kind of behind the curve on that. Every other team seems to be getting these guys.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated 3 times a week on TheSportsVirus.com!
In advance of the final weekend of the Giants 2017 season, SF Chronicle Columnist John Shea joins us to talk about Matt Cain’s retirement announcement and the emotions that might take place when he takes the mound one final time on Saturday at AT&T Park. In Part 1 of a 2-part conversation, we also talk about whether or not it’s necessary for the Giants to make some drastic changes to the roster this upcoming off-season.
Shea told The Sports Virus about Matt Cain’s good attitude toward the end of his career: “…Cain was sent to the bullpen last September, he was sent to the bullpen two or three times this year. Each time he said fine, I’ll do what it takes. (Bruce) Bochy wants me to go, I’ll go. That’s pretty classy stuff that other pitchers might not do…It’s going to be an emotional day (on Saturday). It’s well deserved.”
Welcome to the SAN FRANCISCO 49ers EXTRA podcast on TheSportsVirus.com!
Every Tuesday during the NFL season we chat with Former 49ers QB Steve Bono. Today we talk about the 49ers loss to the Rams that dropped San Francisco’s record to 0-3. We also discuss the league-wide national anthem protests during week 3.
Bono spent 14 seasons in the NFL. He had a 5-1 record in his 6 Niners starts and finished his career 28-14 overall.
Bono talked to The Sports Virus about the NFL-wide national anthem protests during week 3. The kneeling all started last season with former Niners QB Colin Kaepernick being joined by S Eric Reid: “It seems to have come to be just about what are people going to do now during the national anthem? Why are we doing this? Why are we taking a knee? I like the fact that teams at least seemed to have talked about it…I don’t necessarily like that they’re kneeling down, that’s their prerogative, but I do like that teams agreed that this is what we’re going to do as a team. I would prefer that everybody stood for the national anthem and that they all stood there with arms locked. That’s great, that’s showing solidarity to me…It seems to me now that this would be something to do to make a statement, but what are we making a statement about?”
Bono made his opinion clear about Colin Kaepernick’s chances of returning to the NFL: “I don’t think Colin wanted to play last year and I don’t think he wants to play now. Has anybody ever heard him come out and say that he wants to play, that he’s actively tying to pursue a position somewhere?”
And, looking ahead to week 4, Bono speculated about possible scenarios for the 49ers anthem plans in Phoenix: “It will be interesting to see. If they all kneel, then I would say that we know Eric Reid is the leader because he was kneeling with Colin last year. If they all stand, then somebody else is leading them.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated 3 times a week on TheSportsVirus.com!
John Shea rejoins us for part 2 of our conversation and we talk about the feature he wrote with Henry Shulman in the SF Chronicle about Giants manager Bruce Bochy.
Shea talked to The Sports Virus about the possibility of Bruce Bochy retiring soon: …“As he said, a lot of guys want to retire because they want to do the things they enjoy. Bochy tells me the thing I enjoy the most is managing. So, if I retired I would want to manage…He wants to come back, he’s healthy, he’s feeling good. He said absolutely this team can contend again next year. He doesn’t want to oversee a rebuild.”
Updated weekly on TheSportsVirus.com starting October 17!
Before we get to the Warriors opener on October 17, we will have some preview podcasts. Ray Woodson chatted with Golden State assistant coach Mike Brown, plus we hear a little from head coach Steve Kerr at media day on Friday in Oakland.
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated 3 times a week on TheSportsVirus.com!
SF Chronicle Columnist John Shea joins us for a final month evaluation of the Giants and a glance at the Dodgers, who host San Francisco for three games over the weekend.
Shea talked to The Sports Virus about Joe Panik’s September surge: “…Does that improve the Giants pursuit if they do want to trade him in the off-season to get more for him? Here’s the one guy in the lineup who has good numbers but doesn’t have a huge contract. So, he would be the first guy that a lot of teams would ask for when they’re giving up a player close to free agency or they’re giving up a prospect that the Giants like. To move Panik would be a huge deal, much bigger than moving Matt Duffy which was a huge deal. In a lot of way they haven’t recovered from that.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated 3 times a week on TheSportsVirus.com!
Giants hitting coach Hensley “Bam Bam” Meulens has worked hard to help hitters improve this season. On Tuesday at AT&T Park in San Francisco he gave us an update on their progress.
Meulens talked to The Sports Virus about the MLB overall HR record that was broken this week and how that relates to the Giants: “…We don’t have 30-40 home run power and when you see home runs being hit at the record pace in other places and you’re not hitting them, you’re at the same level, you’re like, uh, I don’t know if it’s the ball, the ballpark or the players. In a lot of places the balls are carrying. When we go on the road we hit more home runs than we do at home …We’ve talked about it with some of our guys going into the off-season. I even put some ropes in the cage, where the angles are conducive to more balls in the air in this ballpark. We’re working on it. Hopefully it won’t take long so at least we’ll produce more extra base hits.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated 3 times a week on TheSportsVirus.com!
Tim Flannery, the former Giants 3B coach and current analyst for NBC Sports Bay Area and MLB Network joined us on Tuesday night to talk about the Giants season. We also hear SF manager Bruce Bochy’s thoughts on a record-breaking season for homers overall in MLB and chat with Rockies All-Star 3B Nolan Arenado.
Flannery told The Sports Virus about the importance of having energetic players on the roster: …“You gotta have it. Now if you have a superstar like a Nolan Arenado and he has that type of energy you’ve got a super, superstar who plays with an edge. Nolan is the nicest guy in the world off the field, but on the field he is just obsessed to do well and to play hard and to compete and to win…You look at the clubs we had winning here in San Francisco we had those types of misfits, whatever you want to call them. They might get kicked out of a restaurant once in awhile, but you know what, you’re gonna want them in your lineup every night.”
Arenado chatted with The Sports Virus about his September attitude last season compared to this season: …“It’s fun to come to the ballpark every day. I wake up in the morning and I can’t wait to go to the ballpark in the last 12 games. Last year I was like, I can’t wait to go to the beach and get this off season going. When you lose it’s just not fun baseball. Now we have a chance to do something special.”
Welcome to the SAN FRANCISCO 49ers EXTRA podcast on TheSportsVirus.com!
Every Tuesday during the NFL season we chat with Former 49ers QB Steve Bono. Today we talk about the 49ers season 12-9 loss in Seattle. Praise for the defense and criticism of an offense that hasn’t scored a touchdown in the first two games of the season.
Bono spent 14 seasons in the NFL. He had a 5-1 record in his 6 Niners starts and finished his career 28-14 overall.
Bono talked to The Sports Virus about the 49ers offensive line play in Seattle leading to Carlos Hyde’s 124 rush yards: “I’m going to credit them because they played better for sure against a good Seattle defense, at least run blocking. Carlos has slimmed down, he just looks faster.”
Bono also assessed the situation at wide receiver: “Some of those third downs the receivers are just getting man-handled by Seattle’s corners…Just not being big-statured guys. They try and throw that fade stop, back shoulder throw and they just seem to get man handled.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated 3 times a week on TheSportsVirus.com!
With the Giants season winding down, Joe and Ray Woodson take inventory on the wreckage of a team near the bottom of the Major League baseball totem pole.
Woodson talked to The Sports Virus about LHP Matt Moore: “…The Giants have to be asking themselves, even with what seems to be a reasonable $9 million option for next year, do we want to go forward with this guy? …There are reasons to say yeah you can because the stuff is there and the contract isn’t terrible and the fact of the matter is the politics say you traded a popular player away (Matt Duffy) for him so you might want to give him a little more time. The guy is still in his 20’s, you would think that this is a guy that you could redeem. But, I don’t know, I don’t know if the Giants know, I don’t know if Matt Moore knows at this point.”
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