The Giants have found new life since San Francisco's president of baseball operations Buster Posey’s drastic roster shakeup.
And Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow, in talking to KNBR’s “Murph and Markus” on Monday, pinpointed exactly what’s behind the team’s five-game win streak.
“This team has the bullpen to win all those games,” Krukow told Brian Murphy and Markus Boucher. “When you get into a one-run ballgame, whether it’s on the road or whether it’s at home, it really makes no difference because you have to be really good to win those games.”
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SIGN UP HERE As it stands, the Giants are sitting at a season-high 10 games above .500 after improving to 38-28, with both San Francisco and the San Diego Padres sitting one game behind the first-place Los Angeles Dodgers in a tight National League West race.
And even though the Giants recently adopted a torturous– yet historic –path to victory, Krukow acknowledges the key differences powering San Francisco's much-needed second wind.
“You have to be a good defensive team,” Krukow added. “You have to have a good bullpen that could throw strikes. You have to have a bullpen that has balls to challenge and get ahead in the count.
“And you have to have the belief on your bench that you’ll find a way to score, finding ways to win. From wild pitches to just heads-up plays on defense to sac flies. Your little things they’re doing right now. That’s how you have to win those games.”
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With a 5-0 record since Wednesday's flurry of roster moves and a roaring Oracle Park behind them, Krukow knows a mindset change also is behind the Giants’ newfound momentum.
“So, when you have that type of confidence, when you’re in the last three innings of the game and you have to play your best baseball, there’s pressure on the other team to match you,” Krukow concluded.
“Right now, they’re not feeling that pressure. They’re loose. They’re free. They’re confident. That’s the difference.”