Article:Giants Slipping After Homestand

The Giants started out this 10 game home stand with a series win over a tough Phillies and it looked like things were on the improving a little bit. Vizquel was back and playing well and the team was getting solid pitching. Now after the home stand, the team stands at 4-12 in May and are a season low 11 games under .500. The solid pitching is becoming less of a regularity now especially in the bullpen. All the sudden Tyler Walker is becoming in-effective and with Walker not throwing well and Merkin Valdez on the shelf, the Giants pen is looking a little thin. Brian Wilson also had a rough outing in Sunday's game, but it was his first appearance in 5 days and the Giants were already down in the game. I'm not worried about Wilson or even Walker yet, but the fact that Walker is now sporting an era in the 7's shows that he's off right now. As a matter of fact, the bullpen's most reliable arm going lately has been Keichi Yabu. The Giants have gotten ok performances from call-ups Alex Hinshaw and Billy Sadler but it's still to early to determine exactly what roles they will have in the bullpen.

The Giants should be getting at least one arm back in the next week or so. Kevin Corriea and Noah Lowry are both being sent to Arizona to participate in extended spring training. Corriea has been throwing and could be one or 2 minor league starts away from being activated. Lowry is a little slower along in his recovery, but at least it's good to know that he's beginning to throw and if he can avoid any set-backs, an early June return may not be out of the question. The Giants rotation has been so inconsistent over the last month and this team will be helped out immensely if Corriea and Lowry can get back sooner than later. Brad Hennessey has also been throwing well down in Fresno as he's trying to find his way back to his pre-2008 form. Hennessey is 2-0 in 2 starts in Fresno as the Giants are getting him as many inning as they can by using him in the rotation. If he keeps winning down there, it's tough to imagine the Giants keeping him down for too long.

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