Two last-place clubs meet at Oracle Park, and the standings matter less right now than what each front office does over the next couple weeks.
Bush’s Picks
LAASF
LAASF
OverUnder
Best BetGiants
San Francisco carries the better overall record into this one and gets to play it at Oracle Park, which is enough of an edge in a game between two non-contenders. The Angels have won their last 2, so this isn't a soft lean, but the Giants have simply lost fewer games all year and that record gap is the more reliable signal over a full season.
Angels
+Winners of last 2 games
+New front office could unlock younger roster spots
−40-61, among the worst records in baseball
−Rotation gutted by trade rumors around Soriano, Detmers
−Multiple starters (Kikuchi, Kochanowicz) already lost for the year
Giants
+Better overall record than the Angels
+Chapman nearing activation to boost the infield
+Blew out Seattle 7-0 earlier this stretch
−Losers of 3 straight entering the series
−Bullpen crippled — 5 relievers on the IL
−Front office reportedly shopping veterans as the rebuild stalls
Neither club has a starter locked in for Friday's opener, which tracks — both rotations are more trade-chip than trade-deadline anchor at this point. San Francisco isn't fielding calls on Logan Webb, but pretty much everyone else on both staffs is drawing interest from rival teams, and first pitch is set for 7:15 PM PT.
The lineups tell more of the story than the arms do. Matt Chapman (abdomen) has been trending well enough in his rehab that the Giants think he could be activated in time for this very homestand, which would be a real jolt for an infield that's been scuffling without him. Harrison Bader isn't walking through that door anytime soon — the Giants don't expect him back until after the deadline. On the Angels' side, Adam Frazier is grinding through a rehab assignment at Triple-A Salt Lake, but the middle infield picture in Anaheim is muddled by a front office in transition.
Show fees
7:15 PM PT
Spread
ML
Total
LAA Angels
SF Giants
None of that changes what's actually playing out here: two organizations that have already conceded this season isn't about October.
Los Angeles Angels
Jul 22?vs Cardinals—
Jul 21?vs Cardinals—
San Francisco Giants
Jul 22?@ Royals—
Jul 21?@ Royals—
Recent form.
The Angels fired GM Perry Minasian in late June and handed the interim reins to John Mozeliak, whose entire mandate is squeezing value out of anyone who might net a prospect before the deadline. That's the backdrop for a team that's dropped 21 games under .500 despite winning its last 2. The Giants, meanwhile, are 3 games worse off after losing 3 straight to Seattle and Kansas City, with Buster Posey's front office reportedly testing the market on veterans like Luis Arraez and Robbie Ray as the rebuild he promised keeps sliding sideways.
Los Angeles Angels
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
San Francisco Giants
(0)
Fully healthy — no injuries on ESPN's report
Injury report — info via ESPN.
It's a matchup that means more to the guys making trade calls than the guys on the field, but Chapman's potential return and whatever the Angels roll out on the mound behind their patchwork rotation are worth watching if you're killing time before the deadline circus kicks into gear.
