This blog is dedicated first and foremost to the San Francisco Giants. Secondly it is devoted to the smearing and ripping of the most disgusting franchise in professional sports: The Los Angeles Dodgers.
This is completely unexpected. Miguel Tejada will be a San Francisco Giant... perhaps coming full circle across the bay from where he began his impressive career. I didn't see this one coming. I said it yesterday. I thought Bartlett was the guy, especially with Ryan Theriot being dealt to the Cards and taking them out of the running. What does this mean?
Well, it's another $6.5MM alotted to another old guy with limited range to play SS. It really shows how desperate the SS market is when Tejada is being penciled in to play out there. That's $17.5 committed to Huff & Tejada thus far (for 2011) this offseason, with questions remaining about Panda, left field, and raises due via arbitration to Jon Sanchez, Cody Ross, Mike Fontenot, and Andres Torres.
We'll get into that later. Let's talk Tejada.
Assuming he will play the majority of his games at short, which he did last year after being traded to San Diego, we could certainly do worse. However, the man is damn near 40 and if the hot corner is manned by the Tai Chi Sloth (formerly Kung Fu Panda) or Mark DeRosa, I could see a lot of balls hit to the left side of the infield escaping into left.
Certainly Tejada can play 3rd, and has done so recently, but that would likely mean Tai Chi Sloth's days as a Giant would be numbered. Obviously then, a Jason Bartlett would still be necessary. Let's assume that doesn't happen.
It's a short-term fix for the SS position, and also a motivational tool in management's ongoing effort to get Sandoval's ass into gear. DeRosa's return to the active roster means theoretically, we wouldn't need Sandoval... something that better get his juices going-- hopefully not too much fruit juice though because of all the high fructose corn syrup added to them.
All accounts have Tejada as the Giants new SS, a role he played better than 3B last year interestingly... Here's how Tejada & Uribe compared in 2010.
It's really not a huge dropoff, save for HRs and 3B defense... but as I've pointed out, 3B really doesn't matter too much.
I'm not crazy about Tejada as our starting SS, but with limited options available, the move at least keeps us around the same level of production out of the position as 2010.
Annnnddddd... our dream of a "big bat" is one more veteran contract further away.
I don't even want to write about this... I really don't.
What can I say, there is no honor among thieves and no loyalty in professional sports. I'm not just talking about the players either. There is a lack of loyalty at the management level as well.
As the hangover from our World Series victory begins to subside, we've experienced our first wakeup call. It was one of those shrill hotel room wake up calls that angers the hell out of you because it's just so goddamn unpleasant.
Why Uribe? Why the Dodgers? WHY! WHY!
I mean, yes, the money was excessive, and yes the Dodgers will regret giving him 3 years and $21MM, but the fact that we lost a key player to our hated, disgusting arch rivals is just unacceptable.
The Giants get a compensatory draft pick out of it because they offered Uribe, a Type B free agent, salary arbitration, but that doesn't lessen the sting of losing such a well-rounded player.
He is an above-average shortstop, an above-average hitter, and is the type of lineup and clubhouse glue that got us our first World Championship in San Francisco. He was just nearly as important as Aubrey Huff, who in my opinion got $2-3MM more per year than was necessary.
I understand why Uribe took the money. Money is good, and this will be his last chance to score a multi-year deal like this, I just wish the Giants would've tried harder to keep him. To me, it just sounds like they let him go... and that's a tough pill to swallow for fans like me who become so attached to players.
Now we'll have to see our beloved Uuuu-Ribe do his patented jazz hands in Dodger Blue, a thought that makes me seriously nauseous.
It's not quite Johnny Damon bolting Boston for Pinstripes but that's what it feels like. The last such thing we saw was Jason Schmidt signing for huge dollars with the Dodgers... a move that hamstrung them for years.
I will never be able to root for Uribe again, which is unfortunate. In addition, he will suffer horrible effects from the traitor's curse he brought upon himself. Like Schmidt did, Uribe will toil in both injury, mediocrity, malaise, or all 3. It is not that I wish this on him, it is just what will happen. His fate is sealed, and there's nothing he or anyone can do about it.
As for our shortstop options now... the market is not very attractive, hence the big contract for the newly hexed Juan Uribe. Here are the available shortstops, thanks as always for the ever-handy MLB Trade Rumors
Orlando Cabrera (36) - Type B, not offered arb Juan Castro (39) Craig Counsell (40) Bobby Crosby (31) Adam Everett (34) Cristian Guzman (33) Jerry Hairston Jr. (35) Cesar Izturis (31) Derek Jeter (37) - Type A, not offered arb Julio Lugo (35) Nick Punto (33) Edgar Renteria (34) Miguel Tejada (37) - Type A, not offered arb
That, my friends is one ugly list. The only people on that list that deserve a starting role are Derek Jeter, Miguel Tejada, maybe Nick Punto and possibly Izturis simply because of his defense.
Derek Jeter's agent has been contacted by the Giants, but he will not be signing with us. If Jeter and his camp even entertain a phone call from Brian Sabean, it will be solely to drive up his price with the Yankees and it will turn into a one-sided pissing contest. So forget Jeter. It's not worth thinking about.
Tejada is old balls as well, and although he can still hit, I wouldn't want him necessarily as an every day SS at age 37.
Basically, our options are in house guys like Manny Burriss (not a viable option), Brandon Crawford (who hit .241 in AA and is not close to being ready with the bat), or to make a trade.
See, this is why I wanted Uribe back... it's ugly out there. The trade options include Jason Bartlett, who the Giants have discussed with Tampa Bay, and possibly Jose Reyes of the Mets, who will be an unrestricted free agent next summer. Bartlett is the more likely scenario, but he's only a slightly above average player.
Bartlett will likely make $5MM via arbitration this year and Tampa has little use for him at that salary with Reid Brignac ready to step into a full-time gig.
There are other teams eying Bartlett, but that probably won't drive his price up too much. He is a good defender, gets on base at a decent rate, and won't hurt you, but he also can't hit it out or do anything spectacular. Although he a Bay Area native with ties to Mountain View and Stockton... so there's that.
As for Jose Reyes, he's a name I've heard floated recently. The Mets, who've dealt with Reyes's creaky hamstrings, occasional brilliance, and general disappointment, perhaps are ready to move on... especially with his pending free agency in '12 and totally new regime in place.
With Jonathan Sanchez likely available, this may be an intriguing deal to explore... And in case you're wondering, Sanchez becomes expendable due to the fact that Dan Runzler is being groomed as a starter.
That was fairly amazing. I wish I could've been at the yard, but it doesn't matter. It didn't matter if you were with a group of friends, listening on the radio at work, or getting blind drunk with strangers at a bar... We won a World Series game, and we need to win three more. That right there is an absolute rush. I said in my last post that if the Giants wanted to beat Cliff Lee, it was up to Tim Lincecum. No one could've predicted that Lee would've had such poor command with his fastball and that his offspeed pitches would've been non-existent. The Giants capitalized on Lee's lack of high quality stuff, as good teams do, and that was really the difference.
Lincecum on the other hand, has to be a cause for concern. Since his first start against the Braves in the NLDS, he's been pretty good, but certainly not great. He's been bailed out a couple times, including tonight. As I alluded to on Tuesday, if Cliff Lee is right, Lincecum giving up 4 runs is a near death sentence.
Obviously, you can never rule out these Giants-- we all know that. But without those 7 earned runs of Lee's and that monstrous dong by Uribe allowed by O'Day, the Rangers probably have the lead into the late innings.
I won't say we got lucky, but this is the first time that Cliff Lee has shown any semblance of humanity/mortality, and it was a rather big showing of vulnerability.
This does two things:
1) The Rangers, who have grown accustomed to Lee shutting down teams automatically, have had their noggins shaken up a bit. Their world has not been turned upside down, but it means something. I wouldn't expect Lee to do this again.
2) It gives the Giants a HUGE shot of confidence heading into Game 2 and beyond
Notes & Observations:
-- I said on Tuesday that one of the keys to success was Andres Torres and Freddy Sanchez doing a better job of getting on base and setting the table for the rest of the lineup. They did just that, especially Sanchez, who went 4-5 with 3 doubles.
-- Andres Torres & Freddy Sanchez went a combined 5-9 with 4 runs, 3 RBI, and one big HBP. These two did what I told them, and it was huge. -- Another key I mentioned was Pat Burrell needing to get hot. He is on the ball... and by on the ball, I mean he is just off the ball. He is very close to getting a hold of a couple pitches and I believe big things should happening shortly. He still has a good eye and drew a huge walk off of Cliff Lee to prolong that big inning.
-- Good to see Santiago Casilla and Sergio Romo doing well. A 7 run lead is a great time to get your struggling relievers into the game. While Romo and Casilla came out of the game with a confidence boost, the same cannot be said for the totally lost Ramon Ramirez and the up and down Jeremy Affeldt.
-- Everyone knows about Vladimir Guerrero's declining mobility in the field; everyone but Ron Washington apparently. Guerrero is a future hall of famer and has always been one of the most unorthodox, exciting players in the league since he began with Montreal all those years ago.
Personally, I would not have played Guerrero in perhaps the most difficult right field in all of baseball. Vlad's arm is still stronger than hell, but he just can't move anymore. Those years of torment by playing on carpet-covered concrete in Montreal absolutely devastated this man's knees and he has no business playing out there anymore.
What happened out there in Game 1 was beneficial to the Giants, but to see Vlad struggle with routine plays and fumble the ball around was hard to watch. It is most difficult because he has been so good for so long, and his skills are eroding in front of the whole world. The man can still hit the hell out of the ball, but he shouldn't be out in the field. You know it. I know it. He knows it.
David Murphy should play in RF in Game 2. Murphy is an offensive downgrade, but not by a huge margin. He is a decent hitter that adds an element of speed and defense that is more conducive to the National League style of play. He hit .291/.358/.449 this season with 14 steals. You make the call.
-- Great to see Ishikawa and Nate Schierholtz getting big hits and making good plays on defense (other than Ishi's ugly throw).
-- Stay hot Cody Ross. He had a rather pedestrian game for his standards, but it was still 1-5 with a run and RBI. He will never have to buy a drink in this town again. -- How huge is Juan Uribe? That guy is an amazing, funny little man and I love him. If he's not re-signed to a two year deal this offseason I will fill a mason jar with an unpleasant substance and FedEx it to Brian Sabean.
-- Nice little tidbits here:
-- Heading into the World Series, the Giants have the lowest team ERA since the '01 Cardinals and '01 Diamondbacks.
-- The team that wins Game 1 of the Series wins 61% of the time
-- 6 of the last 7 and 11 of the last 13 Game 1 winners have won the series.
-- Cain against Wilson coming up Thursday night. I would expect our lineup to be the same, going against another lefty. For the Rangers, I would expect lefty David Murphy to play in place of Vlad and hit 7th. -- It's gonna rain tomorrow. If you're lucky enough to go to the game, bring a poncho with a funny slogan on it. Hopefully that doesn't screw up our game.
You guys like my rally beard? I applied a second coat of Walt Frazier Just For Men. Looks delicious. ---->
Andy Baggarly was right when he said, "Isn't this whole torture thing a little played out?"
I for one, am a little sick of it myself. I cannot deny that these Giants have given me more mini heart attacks than any other team I've rooted for, but I'm fed up with the whole mantra. They play close games, that's their style. Do we really need to keep saying "torture" ad nauseum?
I feel the same way about the rest of these terms the Giants are being branded with.
As the National sports media discovers the World Series-bound 2010 San Francisco Giants for the first time this week, do not expect the tidal wave of ridiculous and unfair monikers to subside. Yes, as Mat Latos pointed out, this team has gone through a lot of changes. And yes, Brian Sabean has acquired a ton of new players that were unwanted by their previous teams.
Players are always unwanted by their previous teams! This is the age of free agency, waiver wires, and "What have you done for me lately?" I cannot deny that guys like Pat Burrell and Cody Ross were picked up for nothing, and have been huge this season. But isn't that what being a good GM and a good team is all about?
Why, when a player is bought at an all time low does that then make him a "misfit" or "castoff" or "salvaged"?
In addition, with those noted exceptions above, there is blue chip talent on this team. Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, Buster Posey, and Madison Bumgarner are all high 1st round draft picks.
Brian Wilson and Serge Romo are also products of our farm system. Are they misfits because of their beards?
Freddy Sanchez is a former all-star and batting champion. Is he a castoff?
Because Andres Torres was a late bloomer and an undrafted free agent, does that somehow make his story infinitely less intriguing than Josh Hamilton's?
Juan Uribe has hit 20+ home runs in a season four times and has a World Series ring from his days with the White Sox. Because he's funny and pudgy, does that make him somehow less of a player than Texas SS Elvis Andrus, whom I expect to be drooled over by the media? Because 29 other general managers were too stupid to give Aubrey Huff a chance and a contract, does that make him any less worthy than Michael Young to win a World Series?
The answer to all these unasked questions is a resounding "no" from where I'm sitting.
These Giants have exceeded all possible expectations, broken through all barriers, and doggedly persevered all season to get to this moment-- in the face of certain adversity. Padres, Braves, and Phillies fans alike have yet to concede that they could have possibly been beaten by a better team... calling the Giants "lucky".
Well I'll tell you something. You don't get to the World Series on luck. No one does.
This team has played the same style of baseball all season: great pitching, a door-slamming bullpen, scratched out runs, and timely big flies. It's not luck. It's a formula; and it works.
This is a classic example of a team's individual parts coming together to create something too special and valuable to deny.
This may not be the best team to ever put on a Giants uniform, it is definitely not the smoothest, or the prettiest, but each and every one of these guys deserves to be there, and when they hoist that trophy, no one will call them castoffs or misfits ever again.
They will simply be known as World Series Champions.
Are you kidding me? Who the hell are these guys? How do they keep doing this? WHAT IS GOING ON HERE???
It's not like I doubted the Giants could get to the playoffs and do some damage in the first round, but I don't think any of us could have expected to be in a situation like this.
About 5 minutes after the dust settled, I said out loud-- partly to my dad, and partly to no one-- "We're up 3-1. I can't believe it. We're up 3-1. This is really happening."
There is simply no apt way to describe the feeling most of us have right now. Over a lifetime as fans, we devote tens of thousands of hours, spend thousands of dollars, and invest immeasurable amounts of emotion in our teams. We do all this in hopes that when it's all said and done, someday we are in a position like we're in right now.
We are one game from the World Series.
I almost don't even want to say it. I feel like we're in the 7th inning of a perfect game... shhh! Don't say it! With another dream Lincecum/Halladay matchup set to begin Thursday evening, we must remind ourselves that this series is not even close to being over. Halladay is capable of shutting us out, as is Roy Oswalt during a potential Game 6 in Philadelphia. With that said, here are my observations from Games 3 and 4.
Game 3
-- Matt Cain was an absolute monster. After a horrible performance in the regular season's final series against San Diego, I was worried about him a little bit. After a tough luck loss against Atlanta, I felt a little better. But after Tuesday's performance, I fully expect to win whenever he starts.
-- Cain and Buster Posey are what you call "old souls". With Cain, a longtime veteran at the age of 26 and Posey, a 23 year old rookie, there is a calming presence that the two of them bring to the table. I imagine that their quiet, confident demeanors, steady emotions, and workmanlike attitudes rub off on their teammates-- and I'm not talking about only the young ones. They act as though they've been there a million times, although neither has. I tell you, if all hell broke loose, you'd want those two guys around... and not just because they're both country boys who could probably get a seized up motor running and tie a clean Carolina rig onto 10 lb. test mono-filament line. They basically set the example of what a big league ballplayer is supposed to be. Truly remarkable considering their ages.
-- Edgar Renteria on Cain's performance: “CAIN IS UNBELIEVABLE. WHEN I SAW HIM IN THE FIRST INNING, I KNEW IT WAS GOING TO BE A BIG GAME FOR US. JUST TRY TO SCORE ANY RUNS.”
-- And how good has Javier Lopez been? Silent Assasin? I like it.
Game 4
-- Madison Bumgarner again looked solid. His 6 strikeouts seemed to be par for his course lately. He battled, but didn't have his best stuff. Hey, he was better than Philly's 4th starter, Joe Blanton.
-- Santiago Casilla can be extremely erratic at times. He's been pretty solid up until this series. He worries me a bit. Some of these bullpen guys look like they're "leaking oil".
-- Cody Ross--- excuse me, Cody "Boss" had another huge hit. Remember when all you jerks were mad at him for that error he made in RF a month ago? I told you he was a good player. He is simply on a hot streak that not even he can comprehend. As good as our pitching has been, Mr. Rosstober has been equally important... and I don't see this stopping anytime soon. -- Sandoval got a huge double. Nice to see. It gave us the lead, and it gave him a boost of confidence.
-- Sandoval immediately took this boost of confidence, and grounded into a double play with the bases loaded and one out. In case you were wondering, that was double play #26 on the season.
All Pablo needed to do was hit the ball into the outfield for a sac fly. He is a continuing liability at the plate, and I will continue to dislike him until he becomes a smarter baseball player.
And look how important that run was! WE NEEDED THAT RUN! Because...
-- Bochy doesn't get it. He still doesn't friggin get it. SERGIO ROMO CANNOT BE TRUSTED! I don't care that he rebounded after that run-scoring hit he allowed. This is the playoffs and he obviously is not pitching well enough. I know Bochy is a player's manager and he LOVES "sticking with his guys", but if there are two guys that cannot be trusted to get out of tight, inherited jams, it's Romo, and to a lesser extent, Casilla.
And back to that Sandoval GIDP... NOW DO YOU SEE, YOU MORON ZOO ANIMAL PANDA! GET THE RUN HOME!
-- Andres Torres has probably earned himself a start after showing signs of life in the past two games.
-- Nate Schierholtz is now an automatic out. He is officially approaching Rowand territory in hitting uselessness, and I honestly think he should start laying down a bunt up the 3rd base line ever time he hits until they start playing him in.
I met him once. He's a good guy, and I don't like disparaging good guys, but he is just not a good hitter, and is at a career crossroads. Right now, he's looking like a career 4th or 5th OF and defensive replacement. I know it's extremely difficult to produce without consistent at bats, but this is getting ridiculous.
Stretching back into the regular season, Schierholtz is 5-29, a .174 avg.
-- Ryan Howard and Chase Utley look lost for the most part.
-- Buster Posey was 4-4 after appearing tired and "slumpy" in the past couple games. I think the last time I said he was tired he hit a huge home run against San Diego.
And my God, what a play at home plate today. On a crazy/great throw by Rowand, Posey kept the game from getting out of hand with an amazing play at the plate. This guy is incredible.
-- Pat Burrell has a great eye. That is all.
-- Home Plate umpire Wally Bell was horribly inconsistent. This crew has been a disaster overall. Ted Barrett in Game 3 was the only guy worth his salt. Cousins, Iassogna and Bell were just not good. While Cousins and Iassogna don't know the difference between a ball and a strike, Bell just can't seem to remember whether he or not he's going to maintain a zone or just start anew each batter.
-- Charlie Manuel made a couple questionable decisions. Firstly, why leave a young Antonio "Diabeto" Bastardo to face Posey after he was brought in to face Huff, a lefty on lefty matchup? After all, Bastardo doesn't have much experience and righties like Posey hit .300 off of the bastard in '10. Why not bring in Madson right there?
-- The whole Oswalt thing was bizarre. I know he's awesome and everything, but why not bring in Lidge for the 9th? I know it wasn't a save situation, but if you're down to the bottom of the barrel, do you think it's wise to use a guy going on 2.5 days rest? And oh yeah, It was more like 4 hours rest, because Oswalt threw a scheduled side session before the game. And this move came from the guy who didn't want to start Roy Halladay on three days rest, leaving Blanton available for long relief work. Philly fans want Manuel's head on a platter right now. And they may get it.
-- I just checked the comment feed on the Philly.com game story. HILARIOUS. I just wish I could get Sylvester Stallone to read them all in his Rocky voice. Here is my favorite:
"Can we keep the Phillies biggest annual October choker Rollins nailed to the bench. He got picked off in the 2nd. He ended both the 4th and 5th innings by striking out with runners on. In the 7th he booted a tailor made double play that could have lost the game. In the 8th he comes up with a runner on 2nd, no outs and pops up. The next time someone calls this career .224 October hitter a big game player, they should be put in jail."
Philly fans are so much more entertaining when they're losing... hahaha
-- How huge was Juan Uribe? He comes into the game cold, and immediately makes a helluva play to nail Ross Gload at first. Say what you will about his range, but he is an above average shortstop and I want him back in 2011.
-- Oh yeah, and he also hit a sac fly to win the game. See Pablo, that's how you do it. What an exhilarating moment for Giants fans. Juan Uribe became only the 4th player in Giants history to hit a walkoff RBI. Wild.
No, we didn't get Adam Dunn or Jose Guillen. What we did get is a little dude by the name of Mike Fontenot that I believe can only help the Giants.
Is he a sexy name? No. He's also 5'8, from Louisiana and is funny looking. What he does bring to the table is defensive versatility, smart play, and fundamentals. Again, this is not game changer and is the furthest thing from a power hitter, but our bench has been perteptually thin -- especially now with Renteria injured, Uribe's tender hammy acting up, Sanchez slumping badly, and Manny Burriss as nothing more than a fast question mark.
Fontenot, played with fellow NL Westers Ryan Theriot and Brad Hawpe at LSU (Also Brian Wilson's alma mater). He was also hilariously and absurdly connected to Megan Fox romantically at one time, which makes me simultaneously chuckle and wish it was true. Here's a link:
Theriot it a plus defender at 3 positions-- 2B, SS, and 3B. In split duty this year (in limited time), he has only made 6 errors and has a .984 career fielding percentage. Practically, he fits a need for a lefty off the bench and someone who can fill in for Panda, Uribe, or Sanchez at any time. Scrappy players like Fontenot are great assets to have-- not game changers by any means, but do not take anything away from you.
For you Sabermetric fruitcakes, his WAR is -0.1. Not that it effing matters. Go back to pleauring yourselves to Fangraphs if you want to know his ZXYO--SwingUZR¥$ Percentage.
In exchange for Fontenot, the Gyros traded A-Baller OF Evan Crawford to Chicago. Crawford's numbers are unimpressive, but he was a former 9th rounder for the Giants a couple years ago.
Fontenot made $1MM this season and is arbitration eligible for a few more years, so if desired, he could be an inexpensive backup infield option for years to come.
Since I am blogging on my Moto Droid out of the house right now (God Bless America), I can't add any fancy linked text. So you'll have to click on a long ass old-fashioned link for Fontenot's stat page. Sorry.
It's not perfect-- nothing is of course with our Giants and the backward state of the roster. Bochy at the helm has driven us all to drink, yell, spit, and burn up various internet posting outlets at one time or another. Indeed, he is slow, deliberate and frustrating in many ways.
Bochy is slow to make pitching changes, slow to walk to the mound, it even appears as though he would eat dinner slowly.
The slowest part of his behavior has been the excruciatingly slow, soccer-like execution of assembling the ideal lineup.
Interesting about this suddenly decent offense is that it is made up of modestly and/or appropriately paid players that were not expected to make up the everyday lineup card.
We all know the bummers that have befallen the Giants payroll. Renteria makes $8MM, and has been a combination of hurt and ineffective. Rowand makes $12.5MM, and is both ineffective and horrendous-- now he rides pine. DeRosa has been injured for nearly a month after hovering slightly above the Mendoza line for the first 7 weeks of the year. His $6MM salary is on the shelf, along with his wonky wrist, which for some unacceptable reason, has not been repaired yet.
Then of course there's Bengie Molina, who has been another disappointment, making around $4MM. Let's add it up. For those of you keeping score at home (by the way, who the hell would actually do that?), that's right around $30 meeelion dollars (**Dr. Evil pinky finger thing**) of nearly dead weight in 2010.
Now, I'm not exactly sure if I'm going anywhere with the Dr. Evil reference. Maybe Brian Sabean is Dr. Evil, maybe it's Bochy. I'm not sure.
With the bizarre Frankenstein lineup that we've ended up with, we can't be upset. The additions of Pat Burrell and Buster Posey are about as cost-efficient as it gets, and the trio of Huff/Uribe/Sanchez are now looking like complete bargains and two of them are worthy of all-star consideration.
All the Sabean haters ripped on each one of these signings with the exception of Posey and Uribe, but look, somehow, things are working.
What we cannot stand as fans is the fact that money is being wasted on players either too ineffective or too injured to contribute at all. It's like, why cant any of these big salary guys work out, while the cheap guys like Huff, Santiago Casilla, Andy Torres, and Billy Mota are? I don't get it. It's the same GM making these moves, and yet there are wildly varying degrees of success involved. Back to Bochy though...
Bochy is a slow old catcher, who likes slow old vets. He can't help himself because it's who he is. Rowand is "one of our guys", Renteria "has been around for a long time", and Bengie "handles the pitching staff well". It's almost as if it causes Boch physical pain to remove former "gamers" like Rowand from the lineup, and to move the slow-learning, ADHD-riddled Pablo Sandoval down in the lineup. It really angers knowledgeable fans like myself, and many that I talk to on Facebook/Twitter or in real life, that we've been saying things like "Call up Posey" and "drop Sandoval down in the order" and "play Nate Schierholtz" and "how do you expect John Bowker to ever hit lefties if he never faces one?"-- and being correct about them while Sloth Bochy and Sabean sit on their hands for WEEKS at a time over these decisions.
While Schierholtz is still not playing in favor of Bengie Molina, many of the things that we fans have harped on are finally being done. Posey was called up. Andy Torres leads off daily while Rowand sits. Pablo Sandoval has been yelled at and demoted in the order for being a retard, and the best players are now playing on an every day basis regardless of salary.
However, the true test of whether or not Bochy has rid himself of his foolish ways and habits will come within the next week. Yes, Gamer Renteria (I think Gamer is a biblical name), is coming off the DL, and I for one am scared as hell that he will ruin everything.
Today, everyone from Baggarly and Schulman to Amy G and Lou Seal relayed the information via Twitter that Juan Uribe would continue to start and that Renteria would not reclaim his starting spot. I'll believe it when I see it.
I can't even imagine who would sit in favor of Renteria. If it happens, it would be the most egregious injustice committed in sports since soccer was invented by fruitcakes on another continent who thought ties were an okay way to end a sporting event.
(See how I ripped on the World Cup there while remaining relevant? Damn I'm good.)
The whole point is that Bochy, after weeks of torturous lineup cards, has finally figured it out. Step two is playing Posey at catcher, putting Huff at first, Nate in right, and banishing Renteria, Rowand, and Molina to the pine, where they belong.
Things are looking up.
PS: Pat Burrell could be the "big bat" we were looking for. Imagine that. Who advocated his acquisition months ago? Yeah, it was me.
Sorry for the delay in getting a post up guys. Every now and then it just seems like too much of a pain. I hope you suffered in the absence of my wisdom. That would make me feel pretty cool. Now, on to important things: The State of Stuff.
There is so much stuff to talk about, and so much has changed since my last post, that I feel like we're dealing with another season or something. I'm going to segment this up, so here we go:
Andres Torres Finally, we can say that we have a legitimate leadoff man in a Giants uni. It has been a long time in coming, and I pray that Andy doesn't flame out or begin struggling any time soon. In many ways, Torres has been a gift from the baseball gods, and he's doing his damndest to take full advantage of his first exclusive starting gig in his long meandering career.
There is so much to like about him as a player, especially his speed. As they say, speed is something you can't teach. In addition to utilizing his blazing talents, the man is flat out hitting, and running the bases like a champ. I've even picked him up in a couple fantasy leagues, and he's currently starting over Carlos Lee in one of them. It's truly an amazing development.
In the last month, Torres is hitting .302 with an astoundingly high .922 OPS-- much of which is augmented by a great on base percentage. The man is simply a catalyst, and has been involved the "offensive resurgence" that we've seen over the past two weeks. The second man involved in the resurgence is...
Freddy Sanchez
Wow, a legitimate leadoff man AND a textbook #2 hitter? In a row? And Bochy figured this out on his own?
Like Torres, Sanchez does everything you can ask of a second place hitter. He has excellent bat control, he goes the other way in a excellent manner, and he's smart in situational situations. Situational situations. You heard me.
Plus, he's on a 9 game hitting streak, where he's hitting .500 (16 for 32). You know what Krook would say...
"Stay hot Freddy Sanchez."
Huff & Uribe: The Dike Pluggers
Look, I know they're not exactly A-Rod/Teixeira or Braun/Fielder but...
...All of the sudden, I feel wave of something that almost feels like some strange combination of relief and confidence. I'm not used to this, so I don't know if I'm even describing it properly. I never was one for sharing feelings. I can't say enough about Uribe and Huff. They are the definition of "Gamers"-- not Aaron Rowand or Bengie Molina. Gamers are the ones who play hurt, listen to coaches, and don't complain about playing multiple positions-- all while actually hitting the goddamn ball. Hitting the ball is something that supposed "gamers" Rowand and Molina are currently incapable of, and basically have been for awhile.
Huff & Uribe or "Hurrribe!" have basically kept this team afloat, and seem to be thriving as dike pluggers. Hey man, get your head out of the gutter. Dike plugging is a serious issue in Holland!
Buster & Burrell: Killer B's?
Buster Posey was called up too late. It is a fact. I understand the "Super 2" issue. I understand the idea that he needs reps behind the plate and at 1B in Fresno--- believe, me, I get all of that. However, it just shows that the front office really just doesn't know what it's doing half the time. What I've been saying, what you've been saying, what this guy, and that guy, and this other guy have been saying is:
CALL UP POSEY NOW. WE CANNOT HIT. HE CAN. WTF ARE YOU WAITING FOR?
I can't complain as much now that he's up, but it was obviously three weeks (or more) too late. As we've seen in his 30 or so AB's, is that not only can he play a decent 1B and learn on the fly, but that yes, he really can hit. I doubt he will ever be a 30 HR hitter, and the power will come at some point, but he's just a flat out smart hitter. He takes pitches, he has a good eye, and he doesn't swing at garbage. He's the antithesis of the type of player who has embodied Giants baseball for the past two seasons.
As for Pat Burrell, I absolutely must praise the move. This is a guy who just two years ago hit 33 dongs in a Philadelphia uniform. I know that he's not that guy anymore, but hey, this worked with Aubrey Huff didn't it? Remember the season he had two years ago? Then he sucked? Now he's good again? Remember?
If nothing else, Pat the Bat is a solid right-handed bat off the bench that is a little scarier than Eli Whiteside or Matt Downs.
Honestly, based on the kind of shape he's in, and the handful of AB's he's had in the orange & black, I say give the guy an every day shot. Seriously. Rowand is simply horrendous in every way, and I will sacrifice a little D in order to have a functioning Pat Burrell in our lineup hitting 6th or 7th and playing LF.
I know many of you were down on the signing, citing his poor defense and steep offensive decline. The defense aside, some hitters just have an incredibly difficult time adjusting to another league (See: Holliday, Matt; 2009).
Burrell is not meant to be a life-saver or the "big bat" that we need, but he's a good player, he's cheap, and if he sucks, we're not hamstrung by the loss of top prospects or an extreme salary. Trust me, he will help us.
Pablo Sandoval
Let me preface this rant by saying that I love Pablo and I want nothing more for him than to succeed and be a perennial all-star. With that said, allow me to rip him mercilessly.
Pablo Sandoval is not smart. He has the mind of an 8 year-old child in a large man's body. He doesn't listen to coaches, he doesn't use his brain, and he hacks at slop nightly. If I were Larry Krueger, I'd have been fired for these comments.
In addition, Pablo has zero power, and is not a third place hitter. He is incapable of using his body to drive the ball, and hits off his front foot because he needs ritalin, and no one has taken the time to give him a psychological exam.
I'm serious. He has ADHD, and he needs medication. I'm not laughing. Anyone who is incapable of waiting .005 seconds more for a pitch to reach the plate has some sort of issue.
Now-- judging by his 2 hit day against the Pirates Sunday (a day after being demoted to the 8th slot by our resident genius Bruce Bochy), it's possible that he may begin to understand this whole "pitch-taking" and "pitch-waiting" thing-- much like an infant realizes that if they cry, their mother comes to hold them.
If he calms down at the plate at some point, it's possible that he could hit 25 HR a season. Until then, I'd much rather that his singles and doubles power be utilized in the 5th spot in the order, a spot where he has the potential to knock in a run or two. His penchant for grounding into double plays has killed 14 potential rallies already this season, and that enough is reason to move him the eff down in the order.
On that note, time for the...
Dream Lineup
Torres CF Sanchez 2B Posey C Huff 1B Sandoval 3B Uribe SS Burrell LF Schierholtz RF
Notice who's missing? (Other than the injured DeRosa)
Yeah, our resident "gamers" Rowand, Molina, and Renteria. They simply don't belong in the starting lineup any more and this type of thing is exactly what drives us Giants fans absolutely crazy about Bochy. The past three weeks has really lead me to believe that his brain, much like Felipe Alou's did, has turned into Cream of Wheat.
Bochy's bizarre use of Buster Posey and Bengie Molina in the lineups, as well as the "Sandoval hitting 8th" thing leads me to believe that this man is no longer fit to lead. Take the pinch running incident that took place Sunday in Pittsburgh. You know the one. The one where Bochy pinch-runs for Posey, one of the guys who can hit, in the 7th inning of a tie game.
Memo to Bruce: Posey is not slow. Just because you and Bengie and Whiteside are slow, doesn't make Buster slow too. Leave him in the game. Aggghhhh! Exasperating.
And how about Bengie Molina hitting 4th and Posey hitting 7th? Huh? Are you high?
I'm sorry. I'm officially on the "Fire Bruce Bochy" bandwagon. He has to go. This is ridiculous. He's acting like Tom Cable taking orders from the ghost of Al Davis. Nothing makes sense.
This next thing makes even less sense...
Mark DeRosa
The DeRosa DeLemma is officially pissing me off.
What we need to do right now is forget about the wasted $6MM we paid this dude this year. I like DeRosa, and he's a very good complementary player when healthy.
Unfortunately, he was never healthy, and the Giants made a mistake. I won't say they made a mistake with Freddy Sanchez, because he's currently worth his weight in a metal worth less than gold, but more than silver. Maybe copper? Anyway...
DeRosa needs to stop trying to be a "gamer" and just get the goddamn tendon sheath repaired, and he needs to do it two weeks ago.
This is an injury, that as he knows, takes 3 months to recover from, and 5 months to be normal again. Every day that management has wasted by trying to save face by putting him in Fresno, is a day that he's unavailable for the stretch run.
This man should have been under the knife the day he was put on the DL and not a day later. With that timetable, he could've returned, potentially healthy by mid-September. Now? Maybe 2011.
Again, it's just incredibly frustrating that we, the fans, know better than management with lineups, DeRosa, Posey, Wellemeyer, etc.
Isn't that crazy?
Lincecum
Lincecum has a combination of issues going on. Firstly, he absolutely HAS a blister problem. Someone close to the situation told someone else, who told me. That's good enough for a fan blogger like me. The reason that they've all downplayed it is because Timmy also has mechanical problems, mainly out of his windup. Something is amiss, and since his father is the only one who can fix it, we need to get Chris Lincecum to SF immediately, an idea that this dude had last week.
Lincey is walking too many dudes, his control has been off, and he's been average at best. Unfortunately teams have begun to adjust, and have been taking a ton of pitches, rather than be overly aggressive-- the previous approach to taking on the Timster.
My question is, why exactly, if Timmy has a blister problem, didn't he get one of his starts skipped? Food for thought.
The Wellemeyer Experiment is over I won't get into any of the stats. We all know they're bad. Wellemeyer cannot be relied upon to be a 5th starter. He's okay at home, but basically throws like Chet Steadman in the last Rookie of the Year scene without the theatrical shoulder grabbing by Gary Busey.
The question is not whether Wellemeyer needs to leave the rotation, but whether we cut ties with him completely, put him in the bullpen, or send him down to Fresno. The secondary question is, who do we call up in his place?
Knowing the team we're dealing with, it's safe to say that Madison Bumgarner will not get the call. Although he's been dealing pretty solidly against PCL competition and hasn't allowed more than three earnies in his last 9 starts (and did that only once), I have a feeling the 'tards up in the front office will be too gun-shy to promote the 21 year-old after his ridiculously poor Spring Training.
My opinion? Bring the kid up. Seems like he's gotten it together.
Unfortunately for Hacker, his window may have passed. Until his last three starts, he'd had an ERA under 3 and a K/9 of nearly 9. His last 3 starts have yielded 18 earned runs. Soooo.... yeah, he's out.
J-Mart is sporting a 3.32 ERA and threw a complete game 9 hitter against the Las Vegas Bastards a couple days ago (Dodgers AAA team), and looks like he's ready for the big club again.
Either of these dudes should get the call, if not both, should a bullpen injury occur.
Obviously, there are a million more things I could talk about, but that's about as many words as I can string together without losing all of you. I hope you enjoyed the State of Stuff and remember to follow on Twitter @TheDodgerhater.
This is just a perfect example of why you just can't react to every little thing during your team's 162 game season. Where were we last Thursday? We were five losses lighter, that's where we were.
Look, it's just a matter of peaks and valleys, and this team doesn't appear to be one of those smooth sailers. I mentioned in my last post on Monday, that it was gut-check time, and that this Padres series would be a solid indication of where this team really is.
With the smooth sailing of the few series in the review mirror, it was time for the Gyros to step up-- on the road, without Rowand and a healthy DeRosa, and after a devastating loss to their arch rivals. A couple guys showed up in the San Diego series, namely Cain, Sanchez, and to a lesser extent, Uribe, but it just wasn't enough. This of course is saying something, because the Giants were swept by a final score of 9-4. No, that wasn't the final score of Wednesday's game, those were all the runs scored the entire series.
I believe this 2010 team to be different from last year's model, because up until this grisly San Diago disaster, I saw a vastly improved team. Hell, even in the Eckstein game, Juan Uribe donged one off of one of the best closers in the game in Heath Bell to tie up the game. That was huge, and it just wasn't something we saw last year.
Let's talk Wellemeyer for a minute.
Todd Wellemeyer is not the good version from two seasons ago. This is a "Spring Training Superstar" who's lost his marbles and his command. This quote from Baggarly via Twitter doesn't make me feel good:
"I didn't think Todd Wellemeyer could punt his rotation spot on the basis of three starts. This first inning is making me think otherwise."
You know when a non-knee jerk baseball authority is freaked out, it's time to really freak the eff out. You don't need to see any stats to know that the dude is off his rocker, and is walking waaaaay too many dudes. But hey, people like stats, so let's look at how gross they really are. The guy is averaging almost 7 walks per 9 innings, an obscene 8.16 ERA, and a a WHIP just below 2. It's just fugly...
It's not like the guy is just giving up Texas Leaguers, seeing-eye grounders and running into bad luck. He's allowing more baserunners than should be legal, and is paying dearly for it.
Let's assume worst case scenario here for a minute, and that the guy needs to be replaced. There are a few options: Kevin Pucetas (AAA), Joe Martinez (AAA), Pedro Martinez (Free Agent), Jarrod Washburn (Free Agent).
None of them are particularly attractive to me, but hey, we're talking 5th starter here. We need a guy who won't pitch us out of ballgames. While the Pedro/Washburn route is certainly intriguing, it's unlikely. Pucetas is likely the guy, since he did indeed have solid spring.
However, Pucetas has given up 17 hits and 8 walks in 16 innings (3.94 ERA) so far in Fresno, which is certainly not something that makes me feel a whole lot better. After all, T-Dub's problem is baserunners, and that's the last thing we need while the offense struggles.
Joe Martinez, on the other hand is 1-0 with a 0.90 ERA in 10 innings thus far.
To be mentioned also is that there's some dude named Eric Hacker in AAA that is absolutely beasting around. Truth be told, I've never heard of the guy before, but he's 3-0 with a 1.10 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, and 16 K in only 16.1 innings. So for what it's worth, we've got this 27 year-old unknown down there mowing down the PCL.
Whatever the decision is, it probably needs to be made quickly, because we've got the Cards, Phils, and the damned dirty Rockies coming into town beginning on Friday.
Other random thoughts:
-- Is it possible that the Padres are a better team than they appear to be?
-- I bet the Gyros don't get swept by the Madres if Zito plunked a Dodger, resulting in a bench clearing confrontation
-- Velez is not a good outfielder
-- If Bruce Bochy refuses to play Bowker every day, how will we ever know if the guy can play every day? How do we know he really can't hit lefties? He's only gotten 3 ABs against them this year. Yes, he's gone 0-3 in those AB's, but it's like come on dude. If he was like 0-20, against lefties, then I'd say, "Okay, I understand."
This is the same confidence-shattering crap that we see time and time again from this organization. Stick his ass out there, and let him effing play. If he sucks after 150 ABs, then fine, do something else. God, I'm so sick of this.
-- My buddy proposed a hypothetical trade today. Assuming Madison Bumgarner stops sucking so bad and regains trade value... would you trade him for Carl Crawford, assuming we could sign Crawf longterm? He's eligible to be a free agent next season. Food for thought. That would be a lottaaaaa triples.
-- If you're like, "We'll sign a big bat this coming offseason." Let me tell you now, that you're dreaming. Here's the list of 2011 free agents. There's Carl Crawford and a whole lotta nothing.
Anything we get to improve this offense in the long term will have to come via trade, at a steep price. This is why there is such a high premium on great young hitters.
-- I hate the Dodgers all over again...
-- Is it possible that we suck on the road? Yeah we swept a terrible Houston team in Texas, but, yeah... we haven't done well since then outside SF...
-- If you're not on Twitter, I think you should, especially if you like venting frustrations during games. It's almost like a Giants chat room at times. I like to talk Giants a lot, so obviously it works for me.
-- Here's a great example of Twitter can be cool. I had this "conversation" with Nick Mangold, starting center for the New York Jets:
The Dodgerhater: PETA freaks protesting outside the KFC in San Rafael. This may be a perfect time to try that new Double Down. Haha! @NickMangold is down. Nick Mangold: @TheDodgerhater where do I sign up?
The Dodgerhater: We could organize an eat in. Gotta check to see where the PETA jerks are going, then march an army of dudes into the KFC.
Nick Mangold: I like it dude
Shut up! How many starting NFL players did you talk about KFC and PETA with on Twitter? Hmm? Oh zero, that's what I thought!
Before I get to Wellemeyer, check this out. It's The Dodgerhater's second appearance on HotStove.com commenting on Giants issues. This time about Aaron Rowand leading off. See my answer, as well as El Lefty Malo's and others right here.
The Giants have signed former Cardinal non-great Todd Wellemeyer to a minor league deal, similar to the one Juan Uribe signed last year. It would guarantee him a cool mil if he makes the team, but after Obama's tax increases, his salary should net him like $20k. Ha. Sorry. Sometimes I can't resist.
What's interesting about Wellemeyer is that he has been a swingman throughout his career and has had a little success both in the pen and as a starter. With the #5 spot now a tossup between Madison Bumgarner, Kevin Pucetas, Joe Martinez, and Wellemeyer, it'll all come down to whether The Carolina Kid is ready to do this thing on the big stage.
Despite the good things he saw from MBG last year in limited action, part of me thinks that if he's thrust into the #5 spot from the get go and struggles, that it could be a real confidence killer. The last thing we need is a talented sadsack. Those are the most frustrating.
It may be best for Bumgarner to start off in Fresno, get his confidence rolling, then promote him in May or June, so that he's in the groove, but doesn't have a tired arm like he did when he was promoted last September.
A look at Wellemeyer's career numbers gives us something concrete to work with. Last year he sucked, and upon further review, he sucked in the following seasons as well: 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2009. Keep in mind, he's only pitched in parts of seven big league seasons, and his rough going early on was simply due to inexperience.
So, how do we figure this guy out? His 5.89 ERA in '09 was hideous, but his 4.14, 4.54, and 3.71 ERA's in '06, '07, and '08 are at least palatable. Let's take a look at him when he's at his best.
Wellemeyer is one season removed from his best as a pro. Interestingly, it game when he was exclusively used as a starter (a pattern in his career). In 32 starts, he sported some truly respectable stuff: 1.25 WHIP, a nearly 3:1 strikeout to walk ratio, and stranded 77% of runners on base.
He's a three pitch guy, (fastball, slider, change), of which his best is an 85 mph slider that he threw for 26% of the time in '08. Last year, in which he blew big time, he only threw it 17% of the time. This would indicate that he either lost confidence in it, or simply couldn't command it worth a damn. Confidence is a bitch. It's really hard to say what exactly happened to T-Dub last year. He did deal with an elbow injury where he missed 25 days on the DL, but his strike percentage was nearly identical to '08, and his velocity was only down about 1 mph overall.
This just looks like a common case of lost command and a little bad luck.
In '08, his BB/9 rate was an excellent 2.91/9 innings. In '09, this rate ballooned to nearly 5 per 9. This, coupled with a rise in BABIP up from a below average .273 in '08 to a high .346, shows me that the man was just getting the ball up in the zone, and he was losing batters to walks that in '08 he was able to get out.
It could've been injury, confidence, fatigue, whatever...
I will end the most epic post about a minor league signee/potential 5th starter ever with this:
If we get the '08 Todd Wellemeyer who went 13-9 with a 3.71 ERA, Sabean has unearthed another gem off the scrap heap, a la Juan Uribe, Brandon Medders, Justin Miller, etc.
If not, it's another minimum risk/high reward signing. A pattern this offseason.
Now, we eagerly await the outcome of Timmy's arby case in Tampa... ----------------------------------------------------------------
Also, a melancholy happy trails to one of my favorite TV personalities of all time, Captain Phil Harris of The Cornelia Marie and of Deadliest Catch fame. It is not often that a total stranger's passing makes you feel this crappy. Allow me to say a few words.
Phil was a man's man. A brash, chain-smoking, tattooed outlaw of the seas. A father, a husband, a skipper. A guy you'd work hard for, even if it meant staying up for 36 hours hauling crab pots during 20 degree weather in 30 foot seas.
People like us only knew Phil for a few years on television, but those of us who watch Deadliest Catch religiously, felt like we knew him well.
I speak for myself when I say, I'll miss you skipper.
Smoke a Camel Filter, pound a redbull, and slay those crab up in heaven. We'll miss you buddy.
The ever more upsetting and frustrating Bay Area sports landscape has managed to finally disgruntle most of Giants Nation...
...or at least that's what it seems like to me.
Most of us are just disgusted with all the losing associated with being a fan in this area. Lord knows fans in other cities like Cleveland have suffered much more than us-- but at least they have LeBron (for the time being).
Who do we have here? We've got Patrick Willis, Monta Ellis, Lincecum, and I guess Nnamdi Asomughua (if you want to count the Raiders as a professional team). Of course we have an all-star hockey roster toiling in relative anonymity in San Jose, but even the Sharks continually rip my heart out every postseason. It's just a tough place to be a fan right now. Even with the surprising season from our Gyros in '09, it ended in a bitter fashion. With this distaste on our palettes (I'm thinking gross-ass Indian food the day after not brushing your teeth), we shifted our focus to the NFL season at hand. For those of us upstanding Giants/49ers fans, it was hope and elation, leading up to a fateful afternoon in Minneapolis when Brett Favre threw a spiraling pigskin ball that burst our exuberant bubble on its way into Greg Lewis's hands. The bright spots have been few and far between. Other than the steady Willis and Gore, a few bright spots like Vernon Davis, Michael Crabtree, and Dashon Goldson come to mind; glowing embers amongst a darkened abyss of abject failure and missed opportunities.
Living amongst the tall grasses surrounding Bay Area wetlands lives an extremely rare creature. This creature is confused, unhappy, and lives a solitary nocturnal life. This bizarre species is known as the Giants/Raiders fan. There are less than 2,000 of these oddball hybrids left, as 50 have died from self-inflicted injuries brought on by the sight of JaMarcus Russell attempting to play football and the thought of Darrius Heyward-Bey being picked ahead of Crabtree and Jeremy Maclin. And don't even get me started on the Warriors. I don't have words for it anymore. I really don't. It's indescribable.
Not that you didn't know any of these things already. We've been in collective pain for years. Other than Lincecum and the time the Warriors made the playoffs that one time, there's been nothing to cheer about. Everything North of HP Pavilion is a wasteland-- something like Central Nevada or Afghanistan.
With the Giants, the frustration is possibly at its highest levels since Armando Benitez had a job. It's frustration with ownership, frustration with Sabean, frustration with the system.
It's a helpless feeling most of us have. We look at our improbable attempt at a Wild Card berth last year in what was, without a doubt, the most atrocious offense the Giants have ever had. Basic problem solving: identify the problem. Step two is solving the problem in the best possible way.
Problem: No hitting, no power
Ideal Solution: Matt Holliday or Jason Bay
The realistic solution is what has driven 70% of Giants fans into a state of anger and delirium. It's not so much Mark DeRosa that is upsetting these people. What's really upsetting them is the seemingly never-ending cycle of replacing inadequate or used-up parts with slightly used or slightly more adequate ones.
This process is something akin to trading in a 1990 Plymouth Voyager for a 1995 Dodge Grand Caravan. What's next? A 2000 Chrysler Town & Country?
More succinctly, management has continued to add, as Raising Matt Cain would say, "One-Aaron-Rowand-at-a-time". Meaning, a vicious cycle of adding average, complementary veterans every year-- veterans that would be absolutely killer in a lineup where they are the 4th or 5th best hitter.
We all understand this. I know. I know.
In spite of the apparent mediocrity, the DeRosa signing is a step in the right direction. No, he isn't Bay or Holliday. But God dammit you guys, how many times do Brian Sabean and I need to tell you this... WE CANNOT SIGN THOSE GUYS/WE ARE NOT INTERESTED!
Sorry, I'm not rubbing it in, and its basis may be on a scale somewhere between "It sucks to be us" and "That's BS!", but it's the way it is.
Just like we were spoiled by the 49ers' dominance through the '80s and '90s, we were spoiled by Barry Bonds. Sabean made a brilliant buy low trade that turned into Jeff Kent (so don't say Sabes never takes you anywhere!). From there, a carousel of complementary veterans and mid-priced guys drove us to the brink of a World Series victory.
As we all know, Barry was a once in a lifetime player, and anchored this team for years. In addition to that note is that Jeff Kent was a once in a lifetime trade acquisition. Not very often do GM's pull off things like that. Perhaps not since the great Bartolo Colon for Grady Sizemore/Cliff Lee/Brandon Phillips heist of '99 has such a thing happened.
The point of bringing up history is that there is no quick fix out there. There is no Barry Bonds or Alex Rodriguez on the market; no one that would drive ownership to the brink of financial peril at the thought of adding such a talent.
We all know that Bay and Holliday would help. But these are not the types of players that lead you to the promised land. These are not the guys that you say, "This is it. This is our one guy. He will be the solution to all our problems for the next 5 or 6 years."
Trust me, in two or three years when Bay's defense is so bad that the Mets are forced to try him at 1st base, or in two years when the Cardinals cannot afford to match the Red Sox's offer to Albert Pujols because they signed Matt Holliday to a $90MM deal, you will understand. Then St. Louis will see what a mistake they made by stretching their payroll beyond its abilities and boundaries.
Such behavior with the Giants could cause us to lose our own future hall of famer in Timmy Lincecum. That's not something anyone could live with. The thought of it makes me sick.
As for DeRosa, look, baseball-wise, he's a perfect fit on any team. He may not do anything at an elite level, but the man is the essence of a baseball player and human glue. And yes, I know you jaded fans will remind me that "essence of baseball player" is the same cologne we slapped on when we signed Aaron Rowand. Trust me, I know.
And yes, we all scoff at the idea of M.D. (Can we call him "The Doctor" or "Dr. DeRosa"?) playing 3B when left is occupied by an unholy platoon of A.U. and Torres. Unfortunately, Bruce Bochy is a stubborn son of a bitch and is extremely deliberate. His lineups can be maddening; at times unconscionable. With that in mind, it may take a month of two for DeRosa to fully usurp the left field position-- but rest assured that it WILL happen at some point. My last two points begin with this: The offseason is not over yet, and we don't know what is yet to come. It most certainly will not include Matt Holliday, so just please, knock it off for your own mental health. It is possible that a player like Adam LaRoche could come in to play first and a guy like Miguel Olivo could come in to play catcher.
It is also highly conceivable that the Gyros acquire Pat Burrell from Tampa Bay in a prospect-light salary dump. Burrell is due $9MM this year (FA in '11), and a mid-level prospect would go Tampa's way, while Burrell and $4MM would come this way. Say what you want about Pat the Bat, but he's a Bay Area Native, and in 2008, he slugged his way to a .250/.367/.507 line. Granted he was sandwiched into an absurd lineup, but the man could always hit at a decent clip. Certainly a better clip than anyone not named Panda, Kung Fu.
His season in Tampa last year was a relative disaster, but he was playing DH in the American League, so I believe he was never fully comfortable.
This isn't just something out of left field (although Burrell plays left ironically). The Rays need to dump his salary to keep in line with their own budget constraints in their quest to re-sign Carl Crawford. He was linked to the Cubs' effort to rid themselves of Malignant Bradley before Chicago agreed to take the corpse of Carlos Silva instead.
This scenario is something that crossed my mind earlier this offseason, but the Uggla rumors took over. This discussion on MLBTR jogged my interest in a Burrell deal. Look, Burrell is not a great fielder, and I will not post his UZR ratings, because they are fugly. Let's say that he's got a great arm, and made only 2 errors in 2008. Okay? What the hell is UZR anyway?
Point two is as simple as this-- are we currently better or worse than last year? With Uribe inevitably coming back, and the addition of DeRosa, you honestly cannot say we're worse.
Maybe Uribe hits a few less dongs. But, maybe a healthy Renteria his a few more. Maybe Aaron Rowand gets on HGH or Ishikawa learns how to hit on the road. Maybe Nate Schierholtz or John Bowker figure it out. Maybe Buster Posey is ready to play.
Yes, it's a lot of ifs, but dude, how could Renteria/Rowand/Schierholtz/Bowker/Ishikawa be that much worse than last year? It's just unlikely.
And just think about how friggin close we were to the playoffs last year. Maybe DeRosa's 15-20 dingers could be the difference. Think of all the goddamn 1 and 2 run losses we had.
The bottom line is yes, we are all frustrated, and not just because of the Giants. These are indeed frustrating times across the board. What we need to do is look at the positives in this situation.
The '10 Giants are already better than the '09 version. My advice? Stop complaining and start looking forward to April.
