Barry Zito, Russ Ortiz and Jack Taschner all had tough first halves for the Giants.  Barry Zito was given everything but the keys to the city as a free agent this past off season and he has been terrible for the Giants.  Zito is 6-9 with a 4.90 ERA and a 1.45 WHIP so far this season.  Look for Zito to have a better 2nd half to the 2007 season if he just throws more strikes.  He has walked 52 batters in 104.2 innings but he has only allowed 100 hits which shows the stuff to be successful is still there.  Russ Ortiz was the #5 starter for the Giants before he hurt himself but he hasn’t pitched too well this season.  He is 2-2 with a 5.40 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP so far this season.  Don’t expect much from him in the 2nd half of the season.  Jack Taschner is lucky he throws with his left arm or he would be back in the minors by now.  He has a 1-0 record with a 6.08 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP so far this season.

Noah Lowry, Matt Cain and Matt Morris all had solid first halves for the Giants.  Morris is the veteran of this bunch and he was 7-5 with a 3.55 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP in the first half of the season.  He has rebounded from a poor 2006 season to be a pitcher the Giants can rely on this season.  Noah Lowry had an injury filled 2006 season but he has been outstanding this year.  He is 9-6 with a 3.35 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP so far this season.  He must cut down on his walks (55 in 107.1 innings) or their is no way he can maintain that nice ERA he had in the first half of the season.  Matt Cain is Mr. Bad Luck on the Giants.  He is 3-9 despite having a 3.53 ERA and a 1.33 WHIP so far this season.  Cain has outstanding stuff but he also walks too many batters.  If he can clean that up he can reverse his record in the 2nd half of the season.  Randy Messenger has done a fine job in the Giants bullpen after being acquired from the Marlins for Armando Benitez.  He is 0-1 with 1 save, a 1.50 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP in 15 games with the Giants.  They hope he keeps up the good work in the 2nd half of the season.  Vinnie Chulk has also been good this season out of the bullpen.  He is 3-2 with a 2.65 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP so far this season.

Omar Vizquel, Pedro Feliz and Dave Roberts all need to get their acts into gear in the 2nd half.  Omar Vizquel is still great in the field but he’s starting to look his age as a hitter.  He is hitting only .235 with 29 runs scored, 2 homers, 22 RBIs and 8 stolen bases.  Vizquel has been dropped in the order and the only way for him to get back to the top is by hitting the baseball better and more often.  Dave Roberts has been pretty awful when healthy this season for the Giants who gave him a pretty generous contract in the off season.  Roberts is only hitting .226 with 29 runs scored, 2 homers, 9 RBIs and 17 stolen bases this season.  He must do a better job in the 2nd half of the season or the Giants will continue having trouble scoring runs.  The Giants need Pedro Feliz to get his stroke back soon.  He is hitting .234 with 29 runs scored, 12 homers and 36 RBIs so far.  If he doesn’t start hitting soon look for Rich Aurilia to start stealing some of Feliz’ playing time.

Barry Bonds is still the man that makes the Giants offense go.  Bonds is hitting .295 with 46 runs scored, 17 homers and 42 RBIs in only 207 official atbats.  Pitchers definately haven’t challenged Bonds too much this season as they have walked him 91 times this season.  Don’t look for that to change any time soon as the Giants don’t have any protection in the lineup for him.  Bengie Molina is having a good season with the bat.  He is hitting .281 with 18 runs scored, 8 homers and 45 RBIs so far this season.  Look for Molina to continue playing well as he’s a solid hitter.  Ryan Klesko has made a nice comeback after missing almost all of 2006 with a bad back.  He is hitting .295 with 29 runs scored, 5 homers and 28 RBIs so far this season. 

The San Francisco Giants finished the first half of the season with a 38-48 record which has them in last place in the National League West, 10.5 games behind the Padres.  The Giants have had problems with their hitting as a lot of their veteran players are starting to look their age.  The Giants are only hitting .250 as a team and they have only scored 365 runs so far this season.  The Giants have wasted a lot of good pitching this season as they have the 4th best ERA in the National League at 3.93.