San Francisco Giants Brian Sabean Shops For A Short Stop
The San Francisco Giants have begun their rebuilding process for another run at a title. Aubrey Huff is the first domino to fall. The team has targeted short stop next. Brian Sabean has plenty of options to sift from. The main rumors are Juan Uribe returning, Tampa’s Jason Bartlett, New York’s Jose Reyes, or Boston’s Marco Scutaro via a trade, or Miguel Tejada as a free agent. Let us look at each option and discuss the pros and cons.
Juan Uribe
Uribe makes the most sense. He performed well and was a post season hero. Coming off a year in which he displayed plenty of pop, he should see a raise above his 3 million plus contract. However, right now Sabean and Uribe’s agent are not in the same ball park for numbers. I do not believe Sabean will over pay grossly for Uribe, but I feel he will drop his asking price from the alleged 6 to 8 million he is asking for. This is when Sabean will pounce. However, if someone is foolish enough to over pay, Sabean has plenty of options.
Jason Bartlett
Not a fan of this move. It would cost the Giants Pablo Sandoval. I am never a fan of giving up on a very young player after one bad season. Sandoval seems dedicated to getting in shape and being a better player in 2011. Bartlett is a nice defensive player with a solid bat. However, he does not have 30 home run and 100 RBI capabilities like Sandoval. There are cheaper options.
Marco Scutaro
Boston sure loves dealing short stops. It appears Scutaro is available for the right price. What that price is, I am not sure. Boston needs bullpen and outfield help. The Giants have arms to deal. Is that enough? If it is this would be a wise move. Scutaro is a solid bat and defender. He also would be the cheapest of all the trade options out there.
Jose Reyes
Forget it now fans. This move would cost way too much. Figure on at least Brandon Belt, Madison Bumgarner, and another top prospect. The Mets would not deal their franchise short stop for anything except a king’s ransom. Reyes has also been injury prone and who knows if he bounces back to the point where the trade would not be that terrible.
Miguel Tejada
The man still has solid pop. However, his defense is awful. He also is asking for more money than it would cost for Uribe. However, if Uribe goes and Tejada’s asking price drops, than the move might make sense.
San Francisco Giants Aubrey Huff Stays To Help Defend Crown
Aubrey Huff is going nowhere. The San Francisco Giants announced that the team will sign Huff to a two year deal with a team option for a third. The deal is reportedly worth 22 million. Brian Sabean did have to out bid at least one other team for the veteran’s services. In the end Huff wanted to continue to play for the team that gave him his first and probably greatest post season success.
Despite being 34, Huff had a very solid year. Huff led or was near the top of the team in virtually every offensive category this year. Huff also had many clutch post season hits. The Giants lineup was not exactly robust to begin with and this means the team needed to keep their middle of the order threat. In other words this was a no brainer decision for Sabean to keep this guy.
I personally do not see the risks that others see in this deal. Huff is only here for two more years and at 36 by the end of the deal, he should still be relatively productive. 11 million a year for a guy that can play multiple positions, hit .300, pop 20 homeruns, and drive in at least 75 runs is not that ridiculous. I look for Huff to continue to be a key bat in the Giants attack. GO GIANTS!!!!!!!!!!!
San Francisco Giants Pablo Sandoval Looks To Rebound In 2011
The year for Pablo Sandoval was wretched to say it kindly. Sandoval after tearing the cover off the ball was being pushed as the next great Giant superstar. He had a monster swing and the fun loving personality that everyone from the fans to the media was drawn to. The team pounced on him and made him Kung Fu Panda and shopped this everywhere. This was the beginning of the misery that was 2010 for Sandoval.
“I think we learned a lesson as an organization that we probably put him too far out there in our offseason with the “Panda Inside” banner and we learned that can put a lot of pressure on a player or, in fact, maybe in some ways it worked against him having to live up to that hype,” Sabean said. “The reason I mention this is we’re not going to make that same mistake with Posey. We’re going to try to let these guys fly under the radar, because we know the second time around they are marked men. … This kid right now is a hole card and he doesn’t really have a position until he gets his act in order.”
Brian Sabean
At east Sabean understands that he made a mistake. The pressure put on Sandoval buried him. Every swing he took was like he was trying to hit two grand slams in the same swing. Gone was the hitter that went with every pitch to any part of the field. He was just trying to be a slugger. He also bought into the he is the best at hitting bad pitches. If the ball was anywhere within his grasp, he was swinging. The result is all his numbers plummeted.
Sandoval also went through a messy divorce. He would miss time for the proceedings and lose serious focus. The divorce and custody battle put even more strain of his already strained shoulders. With all these issues going on Sandoval had a hard time staying in shape. The rotund Sandoval did not look like a man keeping his strength and conditioning up.
However, there are positive signs for 2011. Despite all the trauma going on in his life, he still hit .268 with 13 homeruns and 68 RBIs. It is not like he hit sub .200 with absolutely no power. The man showed he can hit, if he has a clear head and works himself into shape.
He should have all the motivation in the world to stay in shape. Early reports are the fact he is not guaranteed anything is having him work like never before. If Sandoval comes into camp in shape and ready to roll, a great part of this battle for redemption is won.
The biggest key is there is less pressure on Sandoval to perform. The team is not putting expectation on his shoulders. He is being asked to get in shape and prove he can be an effective hitter. He knows he can do that from his 2009 season. He can easily regain this form with a little work.
Sandoval’s home life is also much more stable. His divorce is over. The custody battle is over. His home life is settled. Pablo can go back to picking up the pieces of his life after this bitter break up. To have no worries and a clear head will help with Sandoval’s focus. A focused Sandoval will bounce back in 2011.
2010 is over for Sandoval. Despite the misery, he is a World Series champion. Sandoval also is looking for redemption in 2011. My money is look for a return to form from the former icon that is Kung Fu Panda. GO GIANTS!!!!!!!!!
San Francisco Giants Tim Lincecum Is Not Satisfied With 2010:Why This Is Great For San Francisco
When I mentioned his 20-game milestone to him Wednesday, he said self-deprecatingly, “I had 40 chances at it.”
Tim Lincecum Courtesy of Chris Haft Haft Baked Ideas
Tim Lincecum had a regular season in 2010 that many people would have wet their pants in excitement to have. The man was 16-10 with a 3.43 ERA and 231 strikeouts. When one takes out his awful month of August where he went 0-5 with an ERA north of 7, you get the picture that he was truly dominant in 2010 other than that month. However, the man is a two time Cy Young award winner and knows he can pitch better. The evidence for it was his sparkling 4-1 record in the post season with skins wins over fellow aces Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, and Derek Lowe. This is why when pointed out he was still a 20 game winner of sorts, he made it clear that he was not happy with his regular season.
This is great news for the Giants. Despite the fact that Lincecum had tasted the greatest success a pitcher can taste, he was not satisfied. Lincecum wants more. Lincecum not only wants to win the World Series, he wants to win 20 games and do everything else it takes to be considered not only a great pitcher, but the best pitcher in the game. My guess is that is what fueled Lincecum in his epic battles with Halladay and Lee this post season.
Knowing the fire is raging in Timmy is great news. The tough August might have done the Giants a world of good. That poor stretch makes Timmy hungrier. A hungry and motivated Tim Lincecum is the best pitcher in baseball. The playoffs proved that. Let me throw out his name now in the Cy Young race for 2011. Expect a motivated Tim Lincecum to try to quench his thirst for greatness in 2011. GO GIANTS!!!!!!!!!!
San Francisco Giants Buster Posey Rookie Of The Year Season: This Is The Tip Of The Iceburg
Last season was a dream season for Buster Posey and the San Francisco Giants fans. Buster Posey has been hyped as a future superstar since the moment he was drafted by the franchise in 2008 with the fifth overall choice. In 2010 Posey showed exactly why that these lofty goals were set for the young man.
The regular season was the main course. Posey was an absolute beast at the plate. The rookie crushed the ball to all fields and had an average hovering around .350 before a late season slump saw him fall to .305. Posey also displayed great power in spacious AT&T Park with 18 bombs and 67 RBIs. The stretch where he hit .350 with power helped propel the Giants to the N.L. West pennant.
However, he showed a great amount of skill behind the plate. Posey took the reins of this pitching staff and comfortably guided them through start after start. The result was guys like Jonathan Sanchez and Matt Cain pitched inspired ball down the stretch. His work with the bullpen was equally impressive. He had no problem getting his pitchers to trust the game plan and pitch out of jams. Posey also showed he had a pretty solid arm by gunning out 63 percent of would be base stealers.
The regular season was truly remarkable. However, the desert was his playoff performance. The young man showed incredible poise in the biggest games of his life. His fielding was still tremendous. He handled the great pitching staff flawlessly. The icing on this cake was his .288 average with 1HR and 5RBIs. This was against studs like Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Roy Oswalt, and Derek Lowe.
This first season is great, but Posey will be better in 2011. His work ethic is tremendous, but the biggest key is this World Series win. Posey will never feel real performance pressure again. He joins men like Rajon Rondo and Tom Brady that hit the pinnacle so early, that the stunting of their growth through big time pressure is not possible. He will never worry if he will wilt in the big moment. In the big moment, he came through. He helped guide his team to victory when it mattered most. Do not under estimate the value of this.
Nest season Posey will probably tear the cover off the ball. He will continue to guide this ridiculously great pitching staff to unprecedented heights. At the end of the day he will probably be in the discussion for the MVP trophy. If not this year coming up, plan on it soon. Posey is the rookie of the year, but this is the tip of the iceburg.
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