Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
Former Giants LHP and current NBC Sports Bay Area analyst Shawn Estes joins us to discuss manager Gabe Kapler’s head scratching moves, try to figure out why the defense has been failing and examine the slow starts for veteran hitters. Also, we go down memory lane and hear some entertaining stories about Shawn’s career.
Estes on Kapler pulling Kevin Gausman in the 7th inning on Sunday in LA with 80 pitches thrown: “You’re going to get more long term out of a pitcher like Gausman by allowing him to get through and battle through situations like that…Dusty Baker was really good at allowing his starting pitchers to work through some trouble, see what they’re made of mentally…If you’re not put in adverse situations then you never know what you can get out of that guy. I thought he pulled the plug way too soon in that situation.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
Former KNBR talk show host Ray Woodson returns to Inside China Basin to give his thoughts on the Giants analytical approach by new manager Gabe Kapler. We also chat about the possibility of a Major League Baseball shutdown after recent positive coronavirus tests caused several games to be postponed.
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
Former Giants reliever George Kontos won two World Series rings with San Francisco, now he’s an analyst for NBC Sports Bay Area. On Monday he told us about his decision to retire and he reacted to the MLB coronavirus news, which led to two games being postponed.
We discussed the opening four games for the Giants in Los Angeles and how manager Gabe Kapler handled the pitching staff:“In these situations now where it’s kind of all hands on deck at any point in time, everyone doesn’t know what to expect quite yet…In order to give your pitchers the best chance to succeed, they have to have confidence going into these situations knowing their job and what’s expected of them…(Having a defined role in the bullpen) in my opinion is the best way that guys who are routine oriented like relievers are, function at their highest level.”
Kontos on Shaun Anderson:“He’s got a demeanor and a kind of presence on the mound that is a little bit for me Hunter Strickland like…You can see once he hones it in a little bit more, he’s already nasty, but he’s going to be really, really good. He’s not afraid and does not shy away from any situation.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
USA Today columnist Bob Nightengale joins the Inside China Basin podcast to share his reaction to Giants manager Gabe Kapler and some players kneeling during the national anthem before the exhibition game Monday against the A’s. As we approach the regular season opener Thursday, he gives his thoughts on the Giants chances in a short season without All Star catcher Buster Posey.
Nightengale on new manager Gabe Kapler, who made headlines on Monday when he knelt during the national anthem:“I think he’s the perfect manager for a city like San Francisco. A very liberal guy. Very wide open. Introspective. I’m not sure Gabe Kapler could have (knelt during the national anthem) in Philadelphia to tell you the truth. I’m not sure the fans would have gone for that, but I think in the Bay Area, perfect.”
Bob on the Giants chances to contend in a 60-game season:“It’s going to be a fun team to watch…I think the Giants could surprise people. The fact they have these veterans and everything else. I like the veteran teams rather than the young teams in a situation like this.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating our 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
Former KNBR talk show host Ray Woodson joins us as we get ready for the shortened 2020 season.
Ray reacts to the news that Buster Posey has chosen to opt out of the Giants season. We discuss the impact on Posey’s legacy and how Major League Baseball might be effected as it attempts to play through a pandemic.
Ray on Posey’s decision: “He showed where his priority is and I think it’s a message to all of us of what’s most important here, it’s safety and especially those who are more vulnerable in our population. Care about them first, we can deal with others later on, but first you have to live to fight another day…That statement he made yesterday is the most important as far as the Giants season, but also the most important as far as his career because he’s setting an example. The stuff he’s done on the field of course has made millions of people happy over the years…Those games were great moments in a lot of people’s lives, but in the end it’s about saving lives and Buster is making a strong statement about that. I think that’s something that will resonate as part of his legacy a long time after his playing days are over.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
NBC Sports Bay Area Emmy Award winning reporter Amy Gutierrez joins the Inside China Basin podcast to talk about the San Francisco Giants and Major League Baseball returning during the Coronavirus pandemic.
Amy G is heading into her 13th season covering San Francisco Giants games. This season, of course, will be very different than the previous 12. We chat about adjustments that will be made by players and the NBC crew as they try to stay safe during Covid-19. We also get her thoughts on new manager Gabe Kapler and get to hear about her favorite moments at the ballpark.
Amy G on the decision to play baseball during a pandemic:
“Is it worth it? If one person got it and died from it, was it worth it to play the baseball season? That’s an extremely hard question to answer because, of course not, and then you deal with this need to get back to normalcy and people have to do their jobs and support their families. So, it’s a really difficult question to pose and to try and answer.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
Giants post season hero Travis Ishikawa joins us to reminisce about his game-winning home run in game 5 of the 2014 NLCS that sent San Francisco to the World Series.
“It was just one of those moments where I was able to tune everything out, kind of like Kevin Costner in that “For Love Of The Game” movie where he was able to silence it…When I first hit it, just looking at the trajectory of the ball I said dang it, I hit it good but it’s going to be right at him (the right fielder). I can still remember that moment like it’s in slow motion. I can remember the crowd getting louder and louder. They knew it was game over.”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
San Francisco Chronicle columnist Ann Killion joins Inside China Basin to talk about Major League Baseball getting set to return, the Giants relationship with Aubrey Huff and her 30-year career covering sports.
Killion is not optimistic about games this fall in the face of Covid-19:
“I don’t think that sports is going to come back this fall. I’ve been a skeptic especially ever since I’ve talked to a ton of experts…I can see it trying to and then stopping. That’s the debate. What’s worse, to start and stop and then maybe start again and have to stop again, or to just kind of have to wait it out and suck it up and get to a point where people feel safe and there is possibly a vaccine on the horizon?”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
CBS Sports Director Bob Fishman, who is a Sports Broadcasting Hall of Famer, joins Inside China Basin to talk about his illustrious career which includes directing 2 World Series. His resume is highlighted by 37 NCAA Final Fours, 27 US Open tennis championships, 20 Daytona 500s, 3 Olympic Winter Games and numerous NFL, NBA playoffs and college football games. A diehard Dodgers fan, Bob tells great stories about his time in network television including opportunities to develop friendships with childhood idols Sandy Koufax and Vin Scully.
Fishman on why baseball is the hardest sport to direct:
“Every other major sport is played left to right or right to left. So, basically you are on one camera to document the play…Baseball is the only sport where you are making internal camera cuts in the middle of the play…You may have five or six cuts within a single play. ”
Welcome to the INSIDE CHINA BASIN Baseball Podcast
Updated once a week and celebrating its 11th season on TheSportsVirus.com!
Former Major Leaguer, now Spectrum Sports Net LA analyst Jerry Hairston, Jr. joins us to cover a variety of topics including his experience in the Giants/Dodgers rivalry.
Jerry on racial prejudice he experienced early in his career in the minor leagues:
“I had some run-ins playing in Winston-Salem I was called a lot of things. Playing in Vegas in a tournament I was called a couple of names. I understood that it’s nothing like what Jackie Robinson (and others) had to go through…or what my grandfather (Sam, who played in the Negro Leagues and the Major Leagues) had to go through. I was able to handle it because my father (Jerry, Sr. who also played in the Majors) prepared me for that. ”
On MLB not having an agreement yet to start the season:
“I think baseball is missing a huge opportunity. I thought we’d be playing by July 4th. I’m just shocked the owners haven’t been able to come to an agreement. The players have proven that they want to play.”
On former Giants manager Dusty Baker being the Astros manager after the cheating scandal:
“I was hoping he wouldn’t get that job because Dusty really deserves better. Dusty is probably the best manager I ever played for, the most prepared manager I ever played for and probably the best communicator…He’s going to handle (the aftermath of the Astros issues) because he’s a people person and he’s going to be able to kind of shield his players the best he can.”
We also chat with Annie Maciel, the manager of the Facebook group SF Giants Gamer Babes to get a fan perspective on missing Major League Baseball.
Even in a shortened season, it’s shaping up to be a long year for the Giants. Every site reviewed on My Top Sportsbookswith divisional futures on offer has San Francisco with the longest odds to win the NL West, ranging from +5000 (2% chance) to +8000 (1.2% chance). FanGraphs projections had them finishing 20 games below .500 in a full season, six games behind the next-worst team in the division (Colorado).
Former Giants LHP and current NBC Sports Bay Area analyst Shawn Estes joins us to discuss manager Gabe Kapler’s head scratching moves, try to figure out why the defense has been failing and examine the slow starts for veteran hitters. Also, we go down memory lane and hear some entertaining stories about Shawn’s career.
the 7th inning on Sunday in LA with 80 pitches thrown: “You’re going to get more long term out of a pitcher like Gausman by allowing him to get through and battle through situations like that…Dusty Baker was really good at allowing his starting pitchers to work through some trouble, see what they’re made of mentally…If you’re not put in adverse situations then you never know what you can get out of that guy. I thought he pulled the plug way too soon in that situation.”
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Former KNBR talk show host Ray Woodson returns to Inside China Basin to give his thoughts on the Giants analytical approach by new manager Gabe Kapler. We also chat about the possibility of a Major League Baseball shutdown after recent positive coronavirus tests caused several games to be postponed.
Former Giants reliever George Kontos won two World Series rings with San Francisco, now he’s an analyst for NBC Sports Bay Area. On Monday he told us about his decision to retire and he reacted to the MLB coronavirus news, which led to two games being postponed.
the Giants in Los Angeles and how manager Gabe Kapler handled the pitching staff: 
Kontos on Shaun Anderson: 
USA Today columnist Bob Nightengale joins the Inside China Basin podcast to share his reaction to Giants manager Gabe Kapler and some players kneeling during the national anthem before the exhibition game Monday against the A’s. As we approach the regular season opener Thursday, he gives his thoughts on the Giants chances in a short season without All Star catcher Buster Posey.
who made headlines on Monday when he knelt during the national anthem: 
Bob on the Giants chances to contend in a 60-game season: 
Ray reacts to the news that Buster Posey has chosen to opt out of the Giants season. We discuss the impact on Posey’s legacy and how Major League Baseball might be effected as it attempts to play through a pandemic.
his priority is and I think it’s a message to all of us of what’s most important here, it’s safety and especially those who are more vulnerable in our population. Care about them first, we can deal with others later on, but first you have to live to fight another day…That statement he made yesterday is the most important as far as the Giants season, but also the most important as far as his career because he’s 
setting an example. The stuff he’s done on the field of course has made millions of people happy over the years…Those games were great moments in a lot of people’s lives, but in the end it’s about saving lives and Buster is making a strong statement about that. I think that’s something that will resonate as part of his legacy a long time after his playing days are over.
NBC Sports Bay Area Emmy Award winning reporter Amy Gutierrez joins the Inside China Basin podcast to talk about the San Francisco Giants and Major League Baseball returning during the Coronavirus pandemic.
season, of course, will be very different than the previous 12. We chat about adjustments that will be made by players and the NBC crew as they try to stay safe during Covid-19. We also get her thoughts on new manager Gabe Kapler and get to hear about her favorite moments at the ballpark.
“Is it worth it? If one person got it and died from it, was it worth it to play the baseball season? That’s an extremely hard question to answer because, of course not, and then you deal with this need to get back to normalcy and people have to do their jobs and support their families. So, it’s a really difficult question to pose and to try and answer.
Giants post season hero Travis Ishikawa joins us to reminisce about his game-winning home run in game 5 of the 2014 NLCS that sent San Francisco to the World Series.
to tune everything out, kind of like Kevin Costner in that “For Love Of The Game” movie where he was able to silence it…When I first hit it, just looking at the trajectory of the ball I said dang it, I hit it good but it’s going to be right at him (the right fielder). I can still remember that moment like it’s in slow motion. I can remember the crowd getting louder and louder. They knew it was game over.
San Francisco Chronicle columnist Ann Killion joins 
CBS Sports Director Bob Fishman, who is a Sports Broadcasting Hall of Famer, joins 
Fishman on why baseball is the hardest sport to direct: 
Jerry on racial prejudice he experienced early in his career in the minor leagues: 
start the season: 
On former Giants manager Dusty Baker being the Astros manager after the cheating scandal:
We also chat with Annie Maciel, the manager of the Facebook group SF Giants Gamer Babes to get a fan perspective on missing Major League Baseball.