Giants' strengths, concerns for postseason

The Giants outlasted the Dodgers in perhaps the greatest division race ever, but they’re hoping their journey through October is only beginning.

After clinching the National League West crown and the best record in baseball, the Giants enjoyed a few days off before hosting the Dodgers in the NL Division Series beginning tonight at Oracle Park.

The Giants are playoff-bound for the first time since 2016, but they have several veterans on their roster with a championship pedigree, most notably Buster Posey, who led San Francisco to World Series titles in 2010, ‘12 and ‘14.

• NLDS Game 1 presented by Good Sam: Tonight, 9:30 p.m. ET/6:30 p.m. PT on TBS

Posey will be aiming to become the first NL player since Sandy Koufax and Johnny Podres to win four World Series rings with the same team, but the Giants’ veteran catcher is trying not to look too far ahead and instead is keeping his focus on the step directly in front of him, a mindset that helped his club win a franchise-record 107 games during the regular season.

“I don’t think it’s fair to say World Series or bust,” Posey said. “Obviously, that’s the goal. But you’ve got to go through the DS and the CS to get there. We’ll see where we’re at after that.”

How do they advance out of the Division Series?
The Giants led the NL in homers, but they also excelled at run suppression, boasting a pitching staff that ranked second in the Majors with a 3.24 ERA this season. Runs tend to come at a premium in the postseason, so the Giants will be leaning on their top starters -- Kevin Gausman, Logan Webb, Alex Wood and Anthony DeSclafani -- to continue to deliver quality outings and take some pressure off their offense and bullpen, which was taxed heavily down the stretch while Wood and Johnny Cueto were on the injured list.

• What comes next? Giants postseason FAQ

“I feel like we’ve been good all year,” DeSclafani said. “I think we’ve been nothing short of awesome and really solid throughout the whole year. Obviously, we’ve had a couple ups and downs, but we’ve been really strong. I don’t think there’s any reason we can’t carry that into the postseason.”

What does the blueprint for a championship run look like?
With a deep roster lacking any glaring holes, the Giants have consistently shown the ability to beat teams in a variety of ways. Their elite pitching can shut down lineups, while their dynamic offense has shown the ability to consistently wear down opposing starters and punish mistakes. The beauty of the 2021 Giants is that it’s been “a collective effort,” as Posey has said.

• How they got there: Deep Giants beat odds

The Giants are unlikely to produce an MVP or Cy Young Award winner this year, but they truly embody what it means to be a team, pairing their superior depth with uncommon selflessness. Case in point: They set a franchise record with 241 home runs despite not having a single 30-homer hitter on their roster. Instead, they had 17 players with at least five homers -- an MLB record.

Most of president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi’s shrewdest pickups, including Darin Ruf, Mike Yastrzemski, Donovan Solano and LaMonte Wade Jr., didn’t generate much initial buzz, but a steady flow of contributions from that cast of unheralded players ultimately served as the lifeblood of the team’s success this year. Posey and Brandon Crawford have led the way, but the Giants aren’t overly reliant on their stars. They can count on virtually any one of their players to step up and come through in big spots, which should make them a dangerous team to contend with in October.

What is one reason for concern?
The Giants have looked vulnerable against left-handed starters in recent weeks, primarily because of sagging production from two of their big right-handed bats: Kris Bryant and Evan Longoria.

Bryant, San Francisco’s prized Trade Deadline acquisition, posted an underwhelming .788 OPS with seven homers over 51 games after coming over from the Cubs and ended the regular season by going 5-for-30 (.167) with eight strikeouts over his last nine games. Bryant also dealt with some defensive issues at third base and right field and recently began losing some playing time to Ruf, who has been scorching the ball since returning from an oblique strain. Longoria, meanwhile, is mired in a 3-for-37 (.081) funk with 18 strikeouts over his last 11 games.

“Obviously, at this point in the year, I would love to be going good,” Longoria, 35, said. “But I’ve been here before. ... I think I just need to have a couple of good at-bats, hit the ball squarely and that’s kind of how things turn around. Regardless of good calls, bad calls, I’m not going to make excuses for that. I feel like over the course of the little rut that I’ve been in, I’ve had good pitches to hit. I just haven’t been hitting. I’m trying to find a way to figure that out as soon as possible.”