MAKING A FIRST IMPRESSION: Giants Top Pick Jackson Flora Looks GOOD

0:00This is the Lockdown Podcast Network celebrating 10 years of your team every day. Today's episode is brought to you by the Dell XPS. I'm Wes Goldberg from Lockdown NBA Daily and Lockdown Heat. So what does it feel like to have a better laptop like the Dell XPS powered by Intel Core? With a premium design that's thin and light, it feels smooth. With a responsive touch screen, it feels fast and precise. And with long lasting battery life, it feels like non-stop energy with a laptop that can keep up. Built for those who want better, the Dell XPS. Built for you. Can the Giants have some fun playing spoiler and finish out the season strong? It's all coming up on Lockdown Giants. You are Lockdown Giants. For daily San Francisco Giants Podcast, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team

1:00every day. What's up y'all? Want to lock down Giants? Part of the Lockdown Podcast Network. My name is Alan Styles talking Giants baseball with you Monday through Friday, happy Friday to everyone out there. And we are getting into whether or not the Giants can play a successful spoiler to end the season and end the season with some good vibes. We're also going to talk about Jackson Flora, who's looked really good in San Jose. And everybody is very excited about this young man that the Giants drafted. It's exactly what we wanted to see when the Giants picked him a couple months ago and last but not least, the Giants are paying fans to attend games. Another Giants are down bad, but I didn't think they were down that bad. So that's what's coming up today. Let's start with the Giants and how they are looking to finish strong. They start a series against the Padres and that is tonight. And of course, whenever you have an opportunity to go up against a rival, I know they're

2:01not the smurfs, but I would say there's a little bit of a rivalry there in San Diego with the Padres always going back and forth, spending a bunch of money. The Padres do. Obviously, they have an outstanding ballpark that I still want to get down to and they got the big names and the big contracts and all that. And they're in the midst of a battling for a wildcard spot. So it would feel really good if you're the Giants, even though you're out of the mix yourself to say, hey, we're still going to mess up your day, Padres. And we're going to pull you down with us. So we might try to do that. And in this series, the Giants are going to throw out Malena, Perdomo and Webb, at least that's what's scheduled. And there's a little bit of a of a return, right? With Robbie Ray on the mound, that's going to be Malena, verse Ray tonight and then King and Padres. So a bit of an opportunity for the Giants to show what they can do against the team that also started off pretty poorly, but they were able to turn it around even though the Giants

3:01were not able to do so. So that is where the Giants fall as far as what they want to do moving forward. They got the St. Louis Cardinals. They have to go to St. Louis, so you know St. Louis. I know they're having a rough season as well, but they are a team that has been battling with 500 and maybe if they get hot, you know, can can hang around there. So they're going to go to St. Louis and they're going to go to LA and then they face Minnesota, another team that kind of sold the deadline and they don't look to be contending for anything at least not this season. And then of course, as Major League Baseball loves, the Giants will close the season and loss Angeles against the Dodgers against the Smurf. So those are kind of the main games to look forward to as the season winds down. Just checking here. I know checking the wild card is a bit sad because the Giants aren't in it. But yeah, the Cardinals, six and a half games back, they're pretty much done.

4:03The Padres are holding on. When I say holding on, I truly mean that to that last wild card because the Diamondbacks are only a half game back. After that though, Pirates 4 and a half games back. Remember when the Pirates are hot to start the season, everybody thought, what's going on here? The Miami Marlins, six and a half games back. Like I said, the Cardinals and the Reds. So those are, I guess, the teams where you know who's going to be in the mix and you know who is probably not going to be in the mix. Yeah, a lot of these teams started out early and they were hot and then they eventually just cooled off and you know, they weren't supposed to be that good anyway. So it was a bit surprising when they were rolling. So that's who the Giants have coming up just as far as what the Giants have done lately. That sweep, I know everybody was excited for the Giants to get that sweep. Also Matt Wilkinson got his first win of his career. I didn't want to gloss over that. They're excited for tugboat getting his first win and funny enough, that was a game where

5:05he threw two innings, but they were just two very important innings. So you never know how you're going to get your win and that's partly why we don't really look at wins the same way that we used to when it comes to pitchers. There's just so much that goes on. Now quality starts is one thing, but wins is another. So shout out tugboat getting his first win and a lot of the names that we've heard before and you can drop your name or drop a name in the comments of who you're excited about. I think a lot of people are excited about Jonah Cox. I think Jonah Cox is a guy and there's an article out right now with Susan Slusser and Buster Posey about the base ceiling. We talked so much about this in the off season, the Giants stealing bases. Are they going to do it more? And they didn't early on, right? With their lineup that they were trying out there, they weren't doing it. Now that they have some younger guys and they're playing this more dare I say, I know it's probably a cliche based on their manager. They're playing this more college style of baseball, small ball, even if you will be

6:10sides Bryce Eldridge and and Rocky Devers, but that's the whole part of it. Everybody has a role. I think early on when we were looking at the Giants lineup and what they would be able to do, that was the question. Who is doing what? Who is the big hitter? Who is going to play small ball? What's going on here? It's very clear what the Giants have going on now, right? They have and again, that's how it is in college. You have guys that do certain things. And it doesn't mean that if you are a base hit type of guy, that doesn't mean you don't try to hit a home run if you're in a 3-1 count or 2-0 count or a 2-1 count, a very favorable count. But for the most part, you know what you are. So just this lineup from the game that they won when they came back and took care of business. Drew Gilbert, Sardinna, maybe figure out who he is. He's not swinging for the fences. Every single swing, any more. A Turner Hill, he definitely knows who he is.

7:11Then you turn it over to Bryce Eldridge. You know, he's a big bopper. Jonah Cox, look, he could be a guy that can do a little bit of both. Obviously, that power, he's got a little bit more in there than maybe he's shown so far. But he is a guy that right now, you're more so looking for the base hit type of guy because then he can steal the back. But he's got power in there and maybe he'll unlock it. And that's why they're hitting him for five. That's why they're hitting him because they see the pop that he could have. Jung Huli, I'm going to be nice. Everybody gets on me. Jung Huli is a solid hitter. Maybe he's just a guy that isn't necessarily going to have a specific role. He's a gap to gap guy. He's going to get knocks for you. He's starting to steal bases more. So that's why you're hitting him in that five, six spot, right? That's just what fits that type of hitter. More Shay Witt come, we know, you know, just got to the squad about a couple weeks ago, whatever it is. And then you get Drew Kavanaugh catcher, just do what you got to do to get on base.

8:12And then you have Grant McCray and Christian Kos, who also, I would say, more so feel like base hit type of guys. Now I know that Grant McCray has that sneaky pop. That way Grant McCray just focuses on going the other way as is the deal with a lot of lefties. That's when he's best. So there is not a lot of power in that lineup at all. And they won that game and Debra's didn't even play. Debra's hadn't taken a day off in a very long time. They wanted to give him a break and you say, hey, you know what, let's get him a break. We know he's been hot, but this season, we know what it is. And they end up winning the game because everybody's going up there. And you know what, it might not even be so much as having a role. I know I focus a lot on that. I think it's also having a plan at the plate, just having a plan at the plate when you're going up there because maybe if you're Jonah Cox and they know, everybody's saying he's got this sneaky power, we want to unlock it more. If you're in a three one count, Jonah Cox doesn't need to be push butting.

9:15Now he might, but he doesn't need to be push butting, especially if, you know, there's guys on and it's an RBI opportunity, whatever it is. So it's almost as if their philosophies on having plans at the plate has also changed. And that's another big reason. I think the game just looks more cohesive. They're not always winning. I know they just swept the, swept the car nose, but everything looks more cohesive. They look like they have a plan, which is funny because these are guys that haven't even been in the big leagues for that long. They just got there. So that's the funniest part about all of this, but the giants looking to finish strong. I hope they can do it because you got a bunch of games against the smurfs against the Dodgers. So it'll be good to end the season on a high note just like that. When we return Jackson, Flora looks good out there in San Jose. What could that mean for his immediate future with the giants? More locked on giants coming up. Can we talk about one of the most underrated organs in your body?

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11:22your first subscription. Your body does so much for you. Let's do something for it. That's D-O-S-E-D-A-I-L-Y dot CO slash locked on M.O.B. for 35% off your first month subscription. Before we continue today's show, it's time for the everyday icon presented by Stance. As the official sock partner of Major League Baseball, Stance knows greatness isn't built in a single moment. It's earned over time through consistency, preparation, and showing up every day. That's why each week we're recognizing one player who's performance embodies those same qualities. And we got to give it to Tugboat Matt Wilkinson, getting his first win. We know he started a couple games. But he finally got his first win and we are very excited for him. The everyday icon is presented by Stance. Check out the icon collection from Stance Premium Comfort, Performance and Durability designed for whatever your day brings. Use promo code locked on at checkout for 20% off your purchase. Stance, the official sock partner of Major League Baseball.

12:23Learn more at Stance.com. We'll be back with you. And Jackson Flora has looked incredible. And a lot of people are excited for what he has shown so far and what he could continue to show. This is from Maria Guadardo of MLB.com. The Giants 2026 first round draft pick had punched out the first two batters he faced to start the top of the second inning of single A San Jose 3-1 win over the stock of ports on Thursday night. But he knew he had some extra incentive to strike out the side. A's prospect Edgar Montero had been designated that night's beer batter. So if Flora struck him out to end the frame, fans would be granted half off beers around the stadium for the next 15 minutes. The crowd at Excite Ballpark made the stakes known, chanting beer, beer, beer, throughout the at bat. Montero worked a full count, but he ultimately went down looking on an 83 mile per hour

13:25slider from Flora who's shredded off the mound and tipped his cap to the crowd as he walked off the field. Quote, I felt like I settled into a groove a little bit getting those first two strikeouts in that inning said Flora. I wanted to please the people. They were rooting for me. So I had to execute. I think he knew it was the beer batter. San Jose pitching coach Dan Runzler said, our funny thing is you can get your butt kicked a little bit. But if you strike out the beer batter, the fans are going to love you. I honestly think he just got in his element and he just did what he was supposed to do. It certainly was certainly a crowd pleasing performance from the 21 year old Flora who touched 100 miles per hour while working two hitless innings in his post season debut. And second career start for single a San Jose, the six foot five right hander walk two and struck out four in the 32 pitch outing, paving the way for the defending champion, Giants, who clinched the North Division series and secured their second consecutive trip to the best of three California League championship series, which begins on Sunday.

14:27Quote, the ability to slow the game down was unbelievable. That's from Edwin Villegas, the San Jose manager. It was a big game tonight. And he was acting like he was here since day one. That's pretty impressive to see from a kid that was making his second outing so far. Flora and the rest of his San Jose teammates got to toast their win in the clubhouse after the game. And he was celebrated by dousing each other in apple cider since most of the players, including teenage short stops, just war, Gonzalez and Luis Hernandez have yet to reach legal drinking age. Quote, it was awesome, especially in this environment. Flora said to come in here and help the team win a playoff game and just be able to celebrate in the clubhouse like that really motivates you even more to get up to the big leagues and help that team win to be able to celebrate like that on the big stage is a lot of fun. Flora said he would be lined up to start game three of the Cal League championship series if necessary. So he could end up making one more appearance for San Jose before the end of the season.

15:28Either way, he's pleased with the progress he's made on the mound since the Giants took him in the fourth or with the fourth overall pick of the 2026 draft out of UC Santa Barbara. He goes on to discuss kind of what he's been doing and some of the changes between being a professional versus being in college. And he wants to polish his pitches. He says, I think it's just continuing to polish my pitches. I think I've got to get a little used to this change up as it keeps getting better and nastier. Like today, I was throwing a bunch off the plate just because I'm not used to it dropping that much. I think the better it gets, I've got to make adjustments to my sights and where I'm starting the ball, but it's been good. I'm excited to keep going. That's his new kick change that he's been working on. And the last part that he says, Flores said he plans to return to Santa Barbara this fall to continue working towards his communications degree and start preparing for his first full professional season with the Giants next year. Quote, I'll be working out there.

16:29Obviously, they have great facilities and great people to be around. There's a great gym to work out at. So I'll be there for most of the off season. I'll be back in pitchers camp in January and Arizona. It's continuing to get bigger and stronger and stay healthy. I probably won't take too much time off. I believe in just keeping the arm loose. I may not be off the mound for a while, but just playing, catch, and staying loose and keeping myself ready. I'm excited. So everyone is excited about Jackson, Flora. And the question is that I know I saw a couple of comments from, I believe it was yesterday show where I said we were going back and forth about what says, but it's barb at you and Yahoo sports wrote saying the Giants all they're talking about is their farm system. And I said something and I love all the viewers and listeners and the commenting and how we can go back and forth. And I did say something yesterday where I said, you know, to be talking about guys that aren't going to be here for four or five years, that can't be your main selling point,

17:31right? How do you comment it and said, well, I don't, I think you're off on the four to five years. A lot of these guys are going to be here sooner than that. And I believe the example that was used was Joe Swarck and Zalas. Yeah, some of these guys are going to fly up here. But Davidson, who ended up being in contusion, he's day to day by the way, fouling that ball off his foot. Both Davidson could be up here. If he's not up here, well, he needs to be up here this season or he'll get added to make sure he stays on the team for next season, he'll be in the big leagues next season. Okay, there are certain guys that we've talked about that we know are very close. Some of these guys, I mean, Joe Swarck and Zalas is in single lay. So yeah, in two, two years, if he continues to ball out, he might make it. I just meant as a whole talking about the farm system and they're still at best two years away, that's hard to sell tickets, right? The giants can't sell tickets saying, and that's why you know, and we'll talk about in the next segment, they're paying the fans to come to games.

18:32The giants can't say, hey, Joe Swarck is going to be here in two years by our 2027 tickets, by our 2028 tickets. Joe Swarck, Luis Hernandez are probably going to be here in two, maybe three years. So we can, you know, go back and forth on, I guess, a year here or there. That's not necessarily my point. But I've talked about the prospects over and over again, and you know how incredibly excited I am about them. All I'm saying is the giants have to do something in the meantime, and they have to be competitive and they have to at least cosplay as a contender in the meantime. Look, they've got to get back to 500 at least. They got to do that. So all of us talking about the prospects, prospects, prospects, that just means that the giants actual team hasn't been very good. We've talked, and I know the prospects have been so good this season, that's part of it. But we've talked more about the giants and the ins and outs of the gameplay in the last couple of months here, more than we had prior to because it was just groundhog day.

19:37It was the same thing over and over. Now we have a little bit of different juice going on. So if they can find some type of secret sauce in and out sauce, whatever it is, for next season, add in a couple of arms and one more big bat. Now we're talking here, but I get what you're saying. It might not be four or five years, heck, it better not be. But ultimately, I'm just saying it's not tomorrow and it's not next year. Even for Florida, Florida might be two years. I don't know. If he's one year that be incredibly impressive, but yeah, these guys come up in two years cool. You got to sell tickets in between then. You got to convince us that the giants aren't just going to sail and wait because what of those guys aren't good either. There's still always that world we've seen prospect lists before. We know how it works. That's just what it is. One more segment with you, a very interesting marketing strategy from the giants as they are essentially paying some of their fans to go to games. Yes, they are down bad that much, but exciting though, exciting right now.

20:38More locked on giants coming up. There's nothing like watching a giants game, even if they're the San Francisco Rivercats, even better when you get to watch it live. The excitement, the fans, the only problem getting tickets can feel like a grind, long queue, surprise fees, prices jumping out. That's where there's game time. The game time app gives fans the advantage with constant innovation. It's how you unlock amazing tickets and experiences in just a few taps. It's simple to use. The game time guarantee means you get 100% authentic tickets delivered on time and at the best price. And here's the best part. Things are included in the price you see. What you see is what you pay. Period. The seat views feature is huge. I can see the panoramic view from my exact seat before I buy. Zone deals let's me pick this section and save even more while game time selects a seat. You can follow your favorite team and get alerts when new deals drop. I've seen some tickets drop as low as $10. Two taps and it's done. No stress, no hidden fees. Just great seats in minutes. That's what makes it so easy to decide.

21:38Last minute to hit a game. Take the guesswork out of buying Moby tickets with game time. Download the game time app. Create an account and use code locked on for $20 off your first purchase terms apply. Again, create an account and redeem code L O C K E D O N for $20 off. Download the game time app today. Last segment with you and this is a fun one. Okay, this is from SF gate. The giants are offering to pay their most loyal fans to come to September games from Alex Simon for the final month of the season. The San Francisco giants are offering season ticket holders a chance to earn a bit of money on their ticket simply by showing up to some games. Giants ticket reps emailed the teams season ticket members last week saying they quote, share your disappointment in the team's awful season on the field. As injuries have hampered the giants roster and led to many new faces wearing the black and orange. The email says the team is giving fans what they are calling an added incentive to fill

22:40the ballpark for any season ticket holder who attended games for this week's three game series against the car nose or who comes out for the September 21st through 23rd games against the twins. The giants are giving out a credit. Yeah, they ain't going to do these against the Dodgers. They're not going to do that. The giants are giving out a credit equal to 15% of that ticket's value. The team is also applying an additional 5% boost to the credit total if the giants win, which they did in all three games against the Cardinals this week making for a possible total credit of 20% for those games. It's not a direct cash payment, but rather a credit in their ticketing account. In effect, a fan who has a season ticket that costs $100 per game would receive $15 credit just for showing up to one of these six games or $20 for each game of the giants win. If that fan attended all six games, they'd earn a minimum of $90 for that seat at a maximum of $120.

23:40So far, it'd be a minimum of 105. Thanks for sweeping the Cardinals. Those credited funds can then be used to bring down the total of future ticket prices. And if you're wondering, obviously they know what they're doing. The email says the giants are not allowing season ticket holders to earn the credits if they sold their tickets on secondary marketplaces like StubHub, SeatGeek or others, but they were giving credits for tickets that were afforded directly to another account. So season ticket holders did not necessarily have to attend themselves if they found someone to go in their place. The offer arrived just a few days after the team's renewal deadline for the 2027 season, where the team's website says lands on or about August 28th. The giants offer a four-part payment plan that involves charging 40% of the full season price on that date with the remaining 60% taken in three equal installments in November, January and February. Okay. So the SFGate reached out and email response to SFGate, Giant Spokesperson Sophie Walner

24:47said the team extended the offer to all 2026 season ticket holders, whether they chose to renew for next season or not. It would also, it will also help try to fill the ballpark for midweek games. The team recognizes our harder to attend with school back in session. Here's the quote, this final stretch is giving a number of new players, new opportunities to take the field at the major league level. Some for the very first time, we want them to experience Orca Park at its best, feel new to passion and fans who bring the energy to the ballpark. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. And yeah, attendance has, I don't want to say plummeted, but they were at a season low, 24,130. That was a, that was a Wednesday game at the end of August. So that's one way to do it. If you're the giants and obviously we know it's been a rough season for them with everything that has gone on and all the different things that they've tried to accomplish.

25:47And unfortunately, they were not able to accomplish. I think it's pretty cool though. You know, I think it's pretty cool to try to convince fans to go, it's better than than doing nothing. Okay. And as far as the beer is concerned, it's not the first move the giants have made to try to get people in the stands. The team slash ticket prices for the most part of the second half with some as cheap as $10. If you haven't already purchased tickets, they even dropped some beer prices for one game at KMBR's urging with that Wednesday day game coming up on September 23rd. That should be an extra sweet day in the sun for season ticket holders too, as that's the last game they can get credits for attending. So that game, they're really trying to make it look a lot better than it probably would. And I'm assuming just based on how they were bringing it up. I'm assuming that's one of those games against the twins. Yeah. September 23rd. Day game against the twins. They got to do whatever it takes because I don't know, even even the last home stand against

26:49the Cardinals that day game, and I know schools back in session, that day game was looking pretty brutal if I'm being honest. So the twins and at least the Cardinals, you know, I'm not going to battle fan base here, but it feels like the Cardinals would probably travel a little bit better than the twins. I mean, the twins, they haven't really done much. They had what Carlos, Kareya for two days or whatever a year, whatever it is. So yeah, the giants are all hands on deck to try to make those, because trust me, from the other perspective, you know, I do a lot of in-game hosting as I do with the river cats and things like that. It affects the different shots that you take from a broadcast perspective, because you don't want the stands to be empty. It affects that the TV broadcast, it affects obviously being in the building as you're spending this money, obviously you would have gotten for cheaper, but just the other money that you're spending, just the product in general, when you're having the sweet life and people are coming out, there's business deals going on, you don't want it to look like it is not

27:51popping. You don't want it to look like it is not a good look. So the giants, even if it's just a random game, they want to make sure that everything, that's what they're known for, right? Hey, the giant fans, they show up no matter what. Well, you might have hit your limit there because the giants have been so bad, but they can't let that be seen for the most part throughout the season, even if the season is lost. So I appreciate them pressing the red button, pulling the lever, saying we got to do whatever we got to do to make it look better than it looked against the cardinals. Obviously a lot of this stuff was already in place, but they don't want that to happen again. Of course they're not worried. They're not doing any beer specials for the Dodgers. They don't got to worry about that. I don't even think they got to worry about the Padres. I don't know. Maybe that day game tomorrow might be a little sketchy, but it's a Saturday. So it's the midweek and then it's who they're playing, who they're facing. Then the last series is the Dodgers and it's a weekend. So they don't have to worry about that at all.

28:52Good on them for giving it a try. Thank you for listening to Lockdown Giants. Thank you for watching Lockdown Giants. We should have followed me on social media at the underscore styles, styles with an eye for your second listen, find the all night locked on M.O.B. Game Night every game every night until a World Series champion is crowned. Get local analysis on a national scale, find M.O.B. Game Night on Lockdown M.O.B. on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts. We will talk to you on Monday. Until then, peace. For your second listen, find the all night locked on M.O.B. Game Night every game every night until a World Series champion is crowned. Get local analysis on a national scale, find M.O.B. Game Night on Lockdown M.O.B. on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts.