The annual feeling that hope springs eternal when you hear the crack of the bat is upon us! Spring training has started and Chad and Eric are here to talk about it. On the table for this episode is the top of the lineup, new pitching acquisitions Aaron Sanchez and Scott Kazmir, Belt's mysterious illness, names are being added to the Giants' home jerseys and we reminisce about our top 5 Giants' seasons of all time...that was a fun and nostalgic discussion. Look for us to regularly record every Monday throughout the rest of the season. We streamed this episode on Facebook Live and the video is accessible there and eventually on torturecast.com and our YouTube channel.

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Farhan Zaidi has been at it over the past four weeks, signing pitchers Alex Wood and Jake McGee and infielder Tommy LaStella, and trading pitcher Shaun Anderson to the Twins for outfielder LaMonte Wade Jr. All of these acquisitions certainly makes the Giants incrementally stronger via depth, role, and situationally. Chad and Eric discuss the impact of these moves, the possible starting rotation, where the Giants' farm system is nationally ranked, our top five Oracle Park moments, the Super Bowl and more.

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Happy New Year! We're back! Eric and Chad hop aboard the first podcast train of 2021 to discuss the players that the Giants have signed so far this offseason, what their needs are, and what free agents are left to pursue to fill the holes. Boy, the Padres certainly loaded up with Darvish and Snell, eh? Egad. That said, we do think there is a good chance the Giants could sneak into the playoffs with an expanded playoff schedule like last year, but those details have not been settled, yet. With the demonstration of the NFL finishing its regular season during the pandemic along with last year's MLB and NBA seasons, it seems likely that MLB will proceed with its regularly-scheduled spring training and season. However, the owners will push to delay the season to offset the financial losses of not having fans in most parks for the first couple months. The players won't let that happen. We talk about this and more on episode 212 of the TortureCast, the podcast by and for fans of the San Francisco Giants.

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The boys streamed episode #211 over on Facebook, but are bringing it to you on YouTube as well. We review the Division and Championship Series and preview the World Series. Braves, WTF, you had ONE JOB! We also talk about potential Giants' All-Stars, Belt's surgery, Ramos' injury, a 10% reduction in Giants baseball operations and more. You can follow us on Twitter @torturecast and like us on Facebook, where we stream our episodes live. You can also get our audio-only podcast on your favorite podcast platform.

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We streamed episode #210 on Facebook tonight, reviewing the wild card round and previewing the division series. We review Zaidi's end of year comments and watch the Giants' fan "thank you" video. Horrible, bad, regretful predictions of the DS and CS winners are also made by Chad and Eric. We hope they don't come true.

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One game. One hit. One play. Essentially, if the Giants had one fewer mistake or one more rally over this entire 60 game season, they would be in the postseason. Yes, they exceeded expectations, but this is a bit painful to see them lose 3 in a row to close out 2020.

Chad, Eric and Willie give the eulogy for the 2020 Giants' season. They were as close as you could get to not only getting into the playoffs, but having a chance to knock off the Dodgers as well. Instead, that honor will go to the 29-31 Milwaukee Brewers, who had the tiebreaker (intradivisional record) over the Giants by one game. The NL West is far superior to the central, but the central will see four of their teams in the playoffs, a record, of course.

Yes, there were mistakes...many mistakes that cost the Giants ultimately. Namely, in the last week, they lost their last three games and four of five. That's not playoff-caliber baseball. They blew a 2-run save on Friday night against the Padres, blew numerous chances with the bases loaded on Thursday against the Rockies, and committed a crucial error that led to three unearned runs in the finale that they only lost by a single run. Then, umpire Rob Drake didn't help things by taking away four ABs in the final two innings from the Giants with some horrendous strike calls. Poor Austin Slater!

We choose our Giants' MVPs, talk a little about the future, make our first round playoff picks, and essentially, had a group therapy session. If you need some therapy after the way this season ended, we're here for you. Take a seat on the couch and let 100 minutes of Giants' therapy wash over you.

Eight games left. That's it. This is our last podcast before the end of the 2020 regular season, and the Giants are just on the outside looking in at a playoff spot. Despite having a .500 record like the Reds and Brewers, both teams hold the tie-breaker over the Giants (intra-divisional record), and that may be key in deciding the Giants' playoff fate. Chad and Eric review the 3-2 week and forecast the Giants chances for making the playoffs, which may take 6 wins in their last 8 games to ensure a spot.

Chad and Eric will be captaining a team of Giants fans this Thursday at 7pm PT to defend our title in Giants trivia. We'll be joining other captains, including Andrew Baggarly, Grant Brisbee, Marty Lurie and many more. If you're interested, tickets are $30 and all proceeds go to benefit the Sonoma Family Meal and Big Basin Recovery Fund. Go to www.giantstrivia.eventbrite.com.

What a bizarre week of Giants baseball...even for 2020! The Giants started the week with a mini two-game sweep over Seattle, but the second game last Wednesday was played under apocalyptic skies at Oracle Park as Most of California is still on fire. Chad covered the game that night and has never seen anything like it. Your social media was probably covered with orange-tinted photos from the Bay Area. Then, just as they had started a pivotal four-game series in San Diego, Alex Dickerson apparently tested positive for COVID-19, but then later didn't. It was determined, through two subsequent negative tests, that his first test was a false positive. This resulted in immense scrutiny and pain for the Dickerson's (Alex's wife is 39 weeks pregnant and on bed rest) after USA Today falsely reported that Dickerson broke protocol and visited family and friends in the San Diego area, which was completely false. Also, Friday and Saturday's games were postponed, but one was made up during a double header on Sunday that the Giants promptly got swept in.

Chad, Eric and Willie talk about the downer to end the week and our best memories of Pablo Sandoval, as he was designated for assignment last week. However, the Giants are still holding on to the 8th and final seed in the National League playoffs with 13 games to play. What else could you ask for with this team?

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The Giants hit .500 after a 4-2 week and now sit at 21-21, with zero run differential, so right in the middle, baby! But, in 2020, that's good enough to get you in the playoffs! The Giants currently hold the 7th seed, virtually tied with the Marlins and just ahead of the Rockies. There are several other teams in contention, of course.

Chad and Eric discuss a good week in Giants' baseball. From a record 23 run murder of the Rockies to familiar face of Madison Bumgarner returning to the Oracle Park bump, there was a lot to talk about. Just 18 games left in the season, and the Giants control their own destiny.

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Borrowing the slogan of mediocrity from the 1984 campaign, the Giants are indeed hanging in there thanks to a shortened season, and the expanded playoffs. After going 3-3 this week, they sit just a half game out of the 8th seed in the National League, with only 24 games remaining. This week saw the Giants with an epic walk-off homerun against the Dodgers, a double-header sweep to the same team, a boycott of a game, winning two of three in Arizona, old guys catching fire, and....no trades. None at all. This is so 2020.

We’re excited to announce that TortureCast has joined the SportsHosts community as one of their official Content Creators.

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You can check out our page on the SportsHosts platform by signing up for free using this link (https://tinyurl.com/sportshosts). You can also go to SportsHosts.com and search for TortureCast. Once you’re there you can join our page, the Giants' page and your other favorite team communities and start sharing your passion with like-minded fans - this will be an experience like no other.

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