"The Giants aren't young like the Padres or hyped like the Dodgers, but they've got something neither of those division rivals has the best record in baseball, Jeff writes.
This misfit group of castoffs and veterans has coalesced into a winning machine, never losing more than two consecutive games and boasting four streaks of at least three straight wins.
After crushing the Reds 19-4 on Thursday the most runs by any team this season they've improved to 28-16 with a season-high five-game winning streak.
By the numbers: The Giants got here in exactly the way you'd expect given the state of baseball in 2021 elite pitching and a lot of home runs.
Their starters have the best ERA in baseball (2.57) while eating up more innings (252.2) than every rotation besides the Dodgers' (250.1).
Their 62 HR are second only to the Braves (65), bolstered by a lineup with eight different players who've gone yard at least four times.
Between the lines: MLB has been trending younger for years now, but the Giants (30.3 years old) trail only the Nationals (30.7) in average age, relying on a mix of wily veterans and successful reclamation projects.
The SF OGs: Buster Posey (Giant since 2009), who opted out last year and hasn't been above average at the plate since 2017, has the highest OPS (1.108) of any player with at least 100 PA; Brandon Crawford (2011) is already over halfway to his career high in HR and Brandon Belt (2011) has an .855 OPS.
Change of scenery: Anthony DeSclafani has a 2.03 ERA after a 4.19 through five years in Cincy; Kevin Gausman (1.66 ERA) is dominating after mostly disappointing in Baltimore, Atlanta and Cincy; Alex Wood (1.75 ERA) hasn't had a sub-5.00 ERA since 2018.
Then there's 35-year-old Johnny Cueto (3.34 ERA) and 30-year-old Mike Yastrzemski (on pace for ~5 WAR), who's looking to prove his 2020 breakout wasn't a fluke.
The bottom line: It's been a while since Posey led San Francisco to World Series wins in '10, '12 and '14. Perhaps '21 is the start of "odd year magic."
Shoutout to readers Mike F. and John C. for inspiring this piece after rightly dragging me for leaving Posey off my All-Star squad." Axios
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