San Francisco, CA
San Francisco Giants Reliever Shines In Spot Start Against Rangers
ARLINGTON, Texas — Spencer Howard got the start for the San Francisco Giants on Saturday against the Texas Rangers. To say he did their beleaguered rotation a solid would be an understatement.
Howard made his first start at the Major League level in two years when the Giants slid him into the rotation between Logan Webb on Friday and Keaton Winn on Sunday, the latter of whom will be activated on Sunday.
To make it more ironic for the 27-year-old California native, he was making that start against his former team. He pitched for the Rangers from 2021-23, before which he was a top prospect for the Philadelphia Phillies and starter from 2020-21.
Howard had a shaky start in the first inning, giving up back-to-back walks to Marcus Semien and Josh Smith, but he fought through it to only give up one run, which came on Nathaniel Lowe’s sacrifice fly to right field, which scored Semien.
From there, the right-hander was excellent.
He scattered three hits, induced a double play grounder to end the third and retired six of the final seven batters he faced before manager Bob Melvin brought in reliever Erik Miller.
Howard threw 74 pitches in 4.2 inning, 53 of which were strikes. He walked three, struck out two and left with a 3-1 lead. Miller ended up taking the victory as San Francisco won, 3-1.
He was solid in two relief outings with the Giants since he was called up on May 28. Howard had a 2.08 ERA in 8.2 innings, giving up nine hits. He struck out seven and walked none. He last pitched on Tuesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Nothing in his body of work this season at Triple-A Sacramento suggested he would be this good for San Francisco. With the River Cats, he had a 1-2 record with a 5.90 ERA in 10 games. He struck out 35 and walked eight.
In fact, nothing in his career suggested it, either.
The former second-round pick of the Phillies went 1-2 with a 5.92 ERA in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season when he made his debut. He made 11 starts with them in 2021, going 0-2 with a 5.72 ERA before he was traded to the Rangers.
With Texas in 2022 he went 2-4 with a 7.41 ERA in 10 games (eight starts). In 2023 Howard began the season hurt and was ultimately traded by the Rangers in late July after giving up four earned runs in 3.1 innings.
The New York Yankees acquired Howard but he lasted a month at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre before his release. The Giants picked him up in late September and stashed him in the minors.
San Francisco, CA
Kanye West and Bianca Censori Explore San Francisco Science Museum
Kanye West and Bianca Censori popped up at a California science museum on Independence Day — and the couple, as usual, caught everyone’s eye — but it was Ye who really stole the show as he looked totally out of this world!
KW and BC strolled inside Exploratorium in San Francisco on the Fourth of July to take in some of the cool exhibits, which include the “Cafe Wall Illusion,” “All Eyes On Me,” and “Fog Bridge.”
One photo captures Kanye seated across from Bianca at a mirror exhibit.
We’re told the famous lovebirds were totally engaged with each other as they walked around like ordinary citizens eyeballing the various displays. Other people, of course, recognized the two, but stayed away — not wanting to intrude in their space.
Our sources say Bianca was her regular sexy self, wearing white see-through leggings with a blue strapless top and heels. For Bianca, the only shocker was that her body was almost completely covered — a rarity for her.
Kanye, on the other hand, took the top prize for his outfit, donning something resembling a white, baggy spacesuit with matching sneakers. Going to the moon, Ye?
TMZ obtained several photos of the pair enjoying their little outing … In one image, the two were seen holding hands as they maneuvered through the museum.
Another snap shows Bianca on a red phone listening to scientific facts near the entrance of the building.
What’s next? Nasa?
San Francisco, CA
San Francisco shootings in Tenderloin, Potrero Hill leave 2 injured
SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco police are investigating two separate shootings that left two people injured on Friday, officials said.
The first shooting happened in the Tenderloin. Officers responded to the area of Ellis and Hyde streets at 8:37 a.m. on the report of a shooting. A man was found lying on the ground with an apparent gunshot wound. The victim received first aid and was taken to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
No arrests have been made.
Another shooting was reported at around 9:50 p.m. Officers assigned to the Bayview station responded to the 1100 block of Connecticut Street where a man was found lying on the ground suffering from an apparent gunshot wound. Officers rendered aid. The victim was taken to a local hospital for life-threatening injuries.
No arrests in this case have been made.
No suspect information was provided by police in either of these shootings.
San Francisco, CA
One Sleeper Starting Pitcher Trade the San Francisco Giants Should Pursue
The San Francisco Giants are without a doubt one of the most intriguing teams to monitor ahead of the MLB trade deadline.
While they are not viewed as a serious contender right now, they’re about to get major pitching help returning from injury. Blake Snell, Kyle Harrison, Alex Cobb, and Robbie Ray will all likely be back at some point in the fairly near future.
Adding those pitchers back to the staff will make them a much more serious contender. They also have the ability to swing a deal or two ahead of the MLB trade deadline later this month.
Could the Giants actually look to acquire another starting pitcher and allocate one of the arms returning from injury to beef up the bullpen?
One potential sleeper starting pitcher trade that San Francisco could consider would be for Colorado Rockies starter Cal Quantrill.
During the 2024 season thus far with the Rockies, Quantrill has started in 18 games. He has compiled a 6-6 record to go along with a 3.77 ERA, a 1.33 WHIP, and 100.1 innings pitched.
For the fans wondering why the Giants would trade for a starting pitcher, there is one glaring reason. Even with players returning from injury, they had not played great before going out. Snell has not lived up to the hype this season and has quite honestly been a poor starter so far this year.
Quantrill would give San Francisco major insurance for the rest of the season.
Also, the 29-year-old starting pitcher would not break the bank in a trade. He also has another year left on his contract following the 2024 season. Quantrill could be an important piece for the 2025 season as well.
Acquiring players who can make an impact past 2024 should be a priority for the Giants. Quantrill is exactly that kind of player.
If San Francisco wants to get aggressive, they’ll also need to acquire a piece or two to improve their offense. Cody Bellinger is a name who would make sense for the Giants.
All of that being said, the Giants seem like a team that could very well become a buyer. They’re close to contention, but will need a few moves to actually make a run.
A trade for Quantrill could help them bet much closer to their goal of making the postseason.
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