5 things worth watching in Giants second half: It can happen

SEATTLE — Before the Giants went their separate ways for the All-Star break, manager Tony Vitello looked to two members of his coaching staff for inspiration for what could only be described as a miracle in the second half.Ron Washington, now the Giants’ infield coach, was the third base coach and bullpen coach Jesse Chavez was an active member of the relief corps on the 2021 Braves.For two men with nearly a half-century of experience in the big leagues between them, that team — which owned a losing record at the All-Star break — netted each his only World Series ring.“I’m not saying that it’s going to happen,” Giants starter Logan Webb said, recollecting the message to the team.

“But it is baseball, and it can happen.”It’s unlikely.Even drawing on the experience of that Atlanta team is doing a bit of wishcasting.

The lowest odds FanGraphs gave them to make the playoffs came on June 22, at 7%.The last time the Giants’ chances — currently at 0.6% — were above 7% was on May 17.But there is still plenty to look forward to over this final 66-game march to the finish line.

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By clicking above you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.Never miss a story In retrospect, the Giants’ season was over on May 30, when they fell 14 games under .500 for the first time, at 22-36.

They dug themselves a hole far too deep to climb out of.But in more than a month since, they’ve shown flashes of the team that, on paper, president of baseball operations Buster Posey expected to contend for the playoffs.As Rafael Devers has heated up, so has the offense, while Webb and Robbie Ray have, for stretches, formed the two-headed monster a manager dreams of at the front of their starting rotation. Still, it resulted in only a 19-19 record over their last 38 games going into the break.Vite...