Posey's new deal a bargain

A day later, it's sinking in. I almost feel relieved and at peace, as if the news of Buster's new megadeal somehow alleviated some of life's other stresses.

It also renews the faith that I have in the Giants organization. They're clearly committed to winning, have drafted and developed quality players with quality character, and those players want to continue winning in front of the best fans in baseball (sorry Cardinals fans...).

Yeah, it's a lot of money, but it won't hamstring the Giants into the future. Cain and Bumgarner are locked up for years and years, and while all three of our core Southerners are going to be accounting for a large chunk of cash moving forward, the dead/half-dead money of Lincecum and Zito respectively will be coming off the books after this year.

There's that, and the fact that we've won 2 in 3, in addition to AT&T Park being paid off soon. The Giants are making money hand over fist, and there's nothing to worry about.

Things are good in Giantland, that's for sure.

If you look at the next 9 years, Buster will be making an average of $18.55MM a year. A lot of money for any position player, but as we know, this isn't just any position player. If you're reading this, I don't need to sell you on Buster Posey and what he means to this lineup, this pitching staff, and this city.

The closest example to what I just mentioned is Joe Mauer, who signed his own megadeal a few years ago. Just to compare:

Mauer: 8 years, $184MM ($23MM/yr)
Posey: 9 years, $167MM ($18.5MM/yr)

I love Joe Mauer, who was also an MVP in his own right, but he's not worth close to what he's making. To be fair, the Twins locked up their St. Paul hometown hero with the Yankees and Red Sox lurking in impending free agency, so that upped the ante a bit. Still, Mauer may never have another 20 HR season again, and I'm pretty sure we can consider 20-30 dingers for Buster a lock.

As for the issue that seems to constantly come up: how long until Buster isn't a catcher anymore?

I honestly don't understand why this is constantly coming up. He's 26, not 34. He wasn't a catcher until like 5 years ago, so despite his injury a couple years ago, he's still built to last.

Couple that with the fact that he only started 111 games at catcher in 2012 (29 at 1B, the rest at DH), I feel like the Giants are taking care of their golden goose pretty well.

Now, with the potential emergence of Brandon Belt, there may not be as many opportunities to play 1B as there were in 2012 for Buster to "take days off". That may be an issue. However, the sprinkling in of AL roadtrips throughout the season allows for Buster to take some DH days to stay fresh at seemingly random times.

I think at some point, the Giants should look into making Buster into a 3B, but let's wait on it people. We're not talking about someone who's breaking down or has 10 years of catching on his knee odometer. This isn't frickin Albert Pujols. He's still a spring chicken, and we need not worry about such things right now.

Just relax and enjoy another season with one of the game's best talents-- another season of many to come.

How to piss off a Giants fan: Do Nothing

Hey people. Sorry for my hiatus.

I won't go into a long soliloquy about the state of things and I can't sugarcoat my feelings:

I AM PISSED.

I am pissed that this organization has made no committment to improvement. I'm pissed that Zito will cost half a million more than he did last year, and I'm pissed that ownership refuses to eat one rough year of payroll in order to be better for a long time.

I really am disgusted.

It's not the fact that they won't wildly overspend on players that upsets me, it's the fact that they won't even try!

They never talked to Jose Reyes, they won't talk to Prince Fielder. They won't even send SO MUCH AS SEND A TEXT MESSAGE to Pujols's sleazy ass agent. There's not even so much as an illusion put forth by management that they are trying to improve the offense.

The Sanchez for Melky trade was okay, you know. I wasn't and still am not thrilled by it. I never liked Melky Cabrera and I consider him to be a fringe starter who had one decent year. I get that he's chasing a contract and yes I've heard that he's in shape, but I really don't care. Free agency may not be over, but Giants fans, if you're expecting anything more than Melky Goddamn Cabrera to help Timmy beat Kershaw, well... you're shit out of luck.

I've defended the Giants' responsible financial approach in the past. I know that their annual operating expenses include a $20MM mortgage payment for AT&T Park. That's $20MM that most other clubs don't have to worry about.

However, most other clubs didn't win a World Series in 2010 and make money HAND OVER FIST EVERY DAY SINCE THEN.

This team has the money, they choose not to spend it. There should be no confusion about that.

And yeah, absolutely, I agree that signing Lincecum and Cain long-term is the priority. Of course I get that. Pencil Cain in for at least $18MM a year and Timmy should get at least $22MM if not more. Pitching is expensive, there's no doubt about it. Pitching is also how you win day in and day out. It's our formula, and it shouldn't be messed with.

One has to think aloud though-- does Tim Lincecum WANT to stay with a team whose best improvement to an anemic offense is Melky Cabrera and a fourth OF like Ryan Ludwick to be named later? Would you sign with a team that gives you no relief from four losses to Clayton Kershaw in one year?

Seriously! Think about it. At a certain point, it's not about money or comfort or how much he likes San Francisco. If the guy doesn't get run support, he's going to lose faith in the organization.

In case you forgot, in 2011, Tim Lincecum faced Clayton Kershaw four times. Three of those games ended 2-1 and the other game was 1-0. The guy battles, and leaves his heart out there every time. What does he get?

Three runs in four games and Melky Cabrera.

With virtually the same team returning from last season, it just boggles my mind that that is an acceptable plan of attack. It was okay at the beginning of last season because we managed to win a World Series. Obviously, that didn't work out so well, and yet we're getting the same thing.

Payroll-wise, there isn't much left under their self-imposed $130MM salary cap. That payroll number, however includes the dead and decomposing weight of Aaron Rowand ($13.6MM) and Dickface Zito ($19MM).

Yes boys and girls, that is $32.6 million dollars to one guy on the road to retirement, and a second whose best accomplishment in a Giants uniform has been getting married.

As sickening as that is, it's almost over.

Rowand's money will be gone after this season. Zito's will be gone after next season. We're almost out of this.

In addition, Freddy Sanchez's $6MM will expire after this season, along with Aubrey Huff's $10MM (+$2MM buyout). As I count it, that'll be about $30MM opening up after this season.

Thirty million dollars.

Then, after the 2013 season, Zito will be gone, opening up another TWENTY million.

Based on the payroll figures and current contracts, there is just no reason why the organization couldn't sign a real hitter like Fielder or Reyes and backload the deal.

There will be more than enough money available annually to sign Timmy AND Cain for 2013 and beyond, if they'd just stomach one season of $150MM.

It's not like the 2013 crop of free agents is better than this year's either. The list is Brandon Phillips, Josh Hamilton, BJ Upton, Andre Ethier and Carlos Quentin. In addition, David Wright and Kevin Youkilis have expensive club options that may get them traded.

Are Sabean and Baer saving themselves for 2013's offseason? I just don't know. I just don't get it at all.

All I know is that the current roster is unacceptable and I've seen a minimal effort to improve the offense. We deserve more and it's just plain depressing from where I sit.

Don't worry DeRosa, they don't hate you, they just hate everything else

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.

Pujols wins MVP, but 3 Gyros receive votes

Pujols is the '09 NL MVP as expected, but check out the official BBWAA results for the exact rundown. As for the 3 Giants that received votes...

Pablo Sandoval finished 7th
Tim Lincecum finished 19th (behind Carpenter and Wainwright interestingly)

Aaaanndddd.... drum roll please!

Jeremy Affeldt finished 28th with 1 10th place vote. Pretty cool for Affeldt who had a monster season as a setup man.

Interesting to me is that Mark Reynolds of Arizona finished 21st in the voting behind guys like Jayson Werth and Yunel Escobar. I know the guy is all or nothing and struck out like 873 times, but compare his numbers to Pujols's:

Reynolds: 98 R, 44 HR, 102 RBI, 24 SB, 76 BB, .892 OPS
Pujols: 124 R, 47 HR, 135 RBI, 16 SB, 115 BB, 1.101 OPS

I'm not saying that Pujols didn't deserve to win unanimously, because he did, I'm just saying that Reynolds had an amazing season and got almost zero recognition, especially in the MVP vote.

These MVP votes are just bizarre in that way. While Reynolds was blasting dongs left and right all year, both Troy Tulowitzki and Derrek Lee, who finished 6th and 9th in the voting respectively, sucked for the first 6 weeks plus of the season.

Then there's the matter of how Timmy wins the Cy, but Carpenter and Wainwright (14th & 15th) finished ahead of his 19th place finish.

The right guy won, and I guess that's all that matters, but the rest of it makes zero friggin sense.