Dodgers vs. Giants preview: Q&A with McCovey Chronicles' Grant Brisbee

The Dodgers and Giants rivalry dates back to their days in New York. Right now, the two teams are playing at opposite ends of the spectrum. LA is 8-2 over its last 10 while SF is 1-9. Let's see what Grant Brisbee of McCovey Chronicles has to say about that.

DAVID: Since the Dodgers and Giants last played, San Francisco is 1-4. What do you think has contributed to that record?

GRANT: Bad. A lot of bad has contributed to the record. Bad hitting, bad pitching, bad baserunning, bad fielding, bad manners, bad posture ... bad. Mostly the hitting, though. They literally have four guys (Blanco, Pence, Sandoval, Crawford) in the middle of unbelievable slumps. I think if you add them all up, they're something like three for their last 80.

DAVID: Ricky Nolasco is still on the market. Do you think the Giants should go after him?

GRANT: If the Marlins want to donate him to whatever team is willing to pick up his salary, sure. If the Marlins actually want a player back, no. When you add up his stats for the last four years and compare them to Barry Zito's, it's basically a wash. It amuses me how excited people get about him. He's okay. Mediocrity in the rotation is valuable. That doesn't mean you pretend it's anything close to a necessity.

DAVID: I read a rumor a couple days ago about San Francisco's interest in Alex Rios. Do you think he could help the team's offense? It seems as if SF's offense has started to revert back to its old self.

GRANT: Too expensive, too left-handed. The Giants should avoid all lefties worse than, oh, Joey Votto if they can help it. If they load up on righties without platoon issues, they'll have a power advantage against teams with lefties at AT&T. In theory... They'll never have a power advantage.

DAVID: Over the past week and a half Buster Posey has been tearing the cover off the baseball but the rest of the team hasn't done much, contributing to the team's performance. Do you think the Giants need to add someone like Rios right now to get this team jump started while the division is this close?

GRANT: Sam thing as the Nolasco answer: If there's someone who doesn't take more than a C prospect -- especially if the player isn't a rental -- sure. But I don't think this team has shown enough to be in win-now mode. Not even close. So unless they rip off a heckuva run before the deadline, the shouldn't be doing a thing.

DAVID: I have to ask since it was such a big storyline, what was it like to get no-hit by Homer Bailey?

GRANT: Embarrassing, but you can't get too down about it. When I think of all the horrible Giants lineups that didn't get no-hit, it drives home the general flukiness of it all. Not that Bailey wasn't great. But there's a right player, right time, right place vibe with every no-hitter. Also, the Giants can't hit.

DAVID: Continuing with the previous question, did the Giants just look off offensively or was Bailey's stuff that good? His ERA was 3.88 going into that game...

GRANT: Both. He was throwing a lively fastball, and the Giants are having trouble with hard stuff up right now.

DAVID: What do you think the problem was with the Giants when they were swept in LA? The pitching was good and the offense was too. Did LA just overpower them?

GRANT: They were outscored by five runs in three games, so I don't know if overpowered is the right word. They scored five runs in the game the Dodgers scored six instead of the games the Dodgers scored three or four. That's the anatomy of a sweep -- everything goes wrong. Also, the Giants can't hit.

DAVID: Since it happened after we conducted the last interview I didn't get the chance to ask about it. How much of a loss is Angel Pagan to this team?

GRANT: Pretty substantial, especially with Blanco falling in the toilet. With Pagan out, the Giants' defense is a lot better, though, so at least that's something.

DAVID: Continuing with injury news for SF, is Ryan Vogelsong still expected to be out until early August? Could this be why the Giants need to go after another solid starting pitcher?

GRANT: Yeah, I think early or mid-August is still the timetable. But Chad Gaudin is almost back, and he's been a very capable fill-in. I don't think Nolasco is a big upgrade over Gaudin.

DAVID: If the Giants could only send one player to the All-Star game, who would it be and why?

GRANT: They should rename the game to the Buster Posey All-Star Extravaganza Featuring Buster Posey, and every player chosen for the game should bring a gift for Buster Posey.

DAVID: Series prediction?

GRANT: The Giants won't hit. Hopefully the Dodgers won't hit more. Or will hit less. You get the idea.