the SF Giants in August 2008

Here's a return to writing about the Giants. I've been following them quite a bit this season, and checking up with three main blogs. I'll discuss those blogs more at the end of this post.

First, let's re-visit my preview for the season, position-by-position.

Catcher - "Bengie Molina, with backup help from Eliezer Alfonzo and Guillermo Rodriguez" is what I fearlessly predicted at the start of the season. Steve Holm showed up in spring training and the Giants looked back only for an unfortunate month when Alfonzo returned from a drug-policy suspension. Molina remains a competitor and a decent bat. He slumped a few times in the middle parts of the season, but he still gets a lot of my respect. Top-10 draft pick Buster Posey was a great selection. Assuming he signs, it will be nice to see how his professional baseball career line goes.

Infield.
1B - "This will be a platoon. Dan Ortmeier has the job, but Travis Ishikawa could get some playing time. They might bring in a veteran or get Aurilia to help out, but the position should be streaky this year. I expect these guys to bat #7 or #8 in the lineup. They are quick, thankfully. So, they will contribute once they get on base. It could be a great position, or a sore spot." That's what I previously said. Ortmeier slumped coming out of spring training and Ishikawa predictably stayed around the minors. BUT, John Bowker turned out to be a nice addition to this team. He's what we kinda hoped Ortmeier to be, and his upside is a bit higher. I dunno if he's the stereotypical big-bat corner infielder, but he's pretty good defensively and fun to watch. Yep, Aurilia helped out, as expected. But this seems like Bowker's job so long as he continues to develop.

2B - Kevin Frandsen's achilles tear bummed me out early on. It's too bad the team couldn't watch him help out. He had a rough Spring. The Giants were "relieved Ray Durham returned to his old form," to help the weak line-up, and to become trade-able. This worked out well for the team. The team doesn't have a 2B in place for next year who offers me any reasonable hope. Maybe they are looking for an acquisition?

SS - Omar Vizquel remains "a good defensive shortstop. He is one of the greatest of all time. He is a veteran with a passion for the game. He helps your team by giving your opponent outs instead of runners. And he's a stabilizing factor for your team's defense. He's a threat to opposing runners and batters, and he's a help to your pitcher." BUT, the Giants MUST move on to develop a replacement this year to learn from Vizquel and keep the position a strength when he eventually retires. They might be doing this, but it's tough to tell what their game plan is the way they are handling Burris and Ochoa.

3B - "Could be Joe Crede. Could be Morgan Ensberg. Could be a promotion from the Farm system. We don't know. It could be Pedro Feliz, but that is doubtful. New blood is needed. It's a position that is open for anyone with the potential to fill it. This should be a strange year." YEP. The Giants held out until the eleventh hour and then picked up Jose Castillo. Joe Castle turned out to be an inexpensive option who contributed nicely in spots, but never really showed that he should be the team's third baseman of the future. I expect the Giants to be involved in the trade and free agent markets in the coming Winter League Hot Stove. But, I also expect them to wait around for a good option. They won't pick up someone who is not relatively young with good years ahead of him because they already have a couple veterans who fill the veteran niche.

Utility - Rich Aurilia "earn[ed] his dues this year. Frankly, the Giants need[ed] a solid utility player." Hopefully, they can find a good waiver wire trade. Eugenio Velez turned out to be little more than "a pinch runner" because he had some major problems offensively and defensively after two months of the season. The team will keep tabs on him, but he's not the answer for this offense.

Outfield.
RF - "Randy Winn, barring any trades."[still might happen] "Nate Schierholtz will play on occasion"[regularly, in the minors, but he's the RF for next year].
CF - Aaron Rowand, who "play[ed] most of the year," often through injuries. He's an anchor
LF - "Dave Roberts and Rajai Davis. In the batting order, the position moves from cleanup to lead off." Thank the Maker, Fred Lewis turned out to be better than expected. Lewis is the answer for next year.

Pitching.
There's too much to talk about, so I will focus on Correia and Sanchez.
"Kevin Correia - He's one of my favorites because of his performance as a starter at the end of the 2007 season... Not a bad "bottom of the rotation" guy at all." He started well, then got injured, and has had trouble coming back.
"In limbo role: Jonathan Sanchez ... great guy for the Giants to have in reserve roles, and [is an] example of the Giants starting pitching depth." Sanchez started out amazing, but has struggled in the last few months.

Basically, Correia and Sanchez were relievers for most of last year. They both are obviously adjusting to a full season as starters. I think Correia's injury set him back on developing his long-term endurance. Sanchez started amazing, but his control has slipped as his body has tired. I'm sure his mechanics are breaking down a little from being tired. The Giants are building up his endurance this year, and they'll be patient with him until September. The Giants will likely be patient with Correia because he tends to pitch 4 SOLID innings each outing. He just needs to add an extra game or two onto that. I assume both of these guys will be around next year.

More in next post.