Looking Ahead…
Even now, looking at the 2016 schedule seems…..lackluster.
I do admit, the idea of this being “tentative” is a funny concept. The only time these dates change is a funky season opener deal, that’s it.
I’m sure you’ve read other stories about this, so here’s what jumps out at me.
• Opening against Milwaukee – I don’t know why there’s a weird thing about SF and Milwaukee. Usually season openers are inter-divisional games, but with five-team divisions sometimes there’s not. Since Milwaukee joined the NL in 1998, this is the second time the Giants open their season against them. And that’s not counting the weirdness that was the opening of Pac Bell Park. A lot of people remember the Yankees coming to town for a preseason game, but forget the first of two preseason games, the first baseball game ever played at Pac Bell Park of any kind…was against the Brewers. Huh? Only Houston was a more favored season-opening opponent by the scheduling gods…since 1998, the Giants opened against them three times (1998, 2004, and 2010). Could still happen, with the current interleague play.
• Home Opener against the Dodgers. Can’t they do this in an odd year, so the Giants can raise a banner in front of them?
• Also ending the season against the Dodgers. Let’s be honest, even with this season, the Giants are in line to be contenders again next season, and so are the Dodgers. That…could be very exciting.
• Splitting two series of two games against the Red Sox here and there…I’m sure Pablo Sandoval is so thrilled about that.
• Last time the Giants were matched against the AL East, the scheduling gods did a fun week in New York, with the Giants facing the Yankees and Mets back-to-back. I missed going out there for that. They did not do such a thing this year, though they play the Red Sox and then the Yankees on the road, so if you want to do the ESPN Rivals Roadtrip, it’s set up.
• Oakland interleague series at the end of June…*yawn*
• This schedule doesn’t have any real monsters of a road trip. There’s 10 games in early September, at the Cubs, Rockies and Arizona, but the flights all are in the same direction, there’s an off-day in there, and neither the Rockies or D-Backs should be much good. And while Coors is a house of horrors, Chase Field isn’t really. There’s a 10-gamer in Late May/Early June, going to Colorado, four in Atlanta and three in St. Louis, which’ll be no snap, but it is bookended by off-days. The other road trip of note is nine games in early August at Philly, Washington and Miami, but even that has an off-day before the trip and an off-day between Washington and Miami.
• Off-Day Weirdness. As you can see above, the Giants got some good off-day/travel days on their big road trips, but there’s one spurt that is strange with them. There’s four off days in the span of two weeks that ALSO includes the All-Star Break. That’s weird, right?
Wed., July 6 – COL
Thurs., July 7 – OFF DAY
Fri., July 8 – ARI
Sat., July 9 – ARI
Sun., July 10 – ARI
Mon., July 11 – AS Break
Tues., July 12 – AS Break
Wed., July 13 – AS Break
Thurs., July 14 – OFF DAY
Fri., July 15 – @SD
Sat., July 16 – @SD
Sun., July 17 – @SD
Mon., July 18 – OFF DAY
Tues., July 19 – @BOS
Wed., July 20 – @BOS
Thurs., July 21 – OFF DAY
Fri., July 22 – @NYY
So…that’s the things I noticed in the schedule. I can’t complain much about it, which is good. I’m not overly excited about anything in particular, which is eh. There’s lot of games against division teams, which is normal.
So there you are. I’d still rather have something more to root for this year, other than just against the Dodgers and Cardinals.
