I would like to get the temperature of the room as to which lefty pitcher is most expendable.  If the Giants had the ability to acquire a middle of the order hitter this offseason, but at the price of either Sanchez or Bumgarner ,which would it be? Which pitcher should we keep?

  Very simply, I would keep Sanchez.  He throws 93-97 mph with a suddenly improved (fairly consistent!) set of breaking pitches and he's still 26 years old.  He is not a finished product by any means,  but right now, he is a good #4 starter, with the obvious potential to be a #1 or 2.

    Maybe Bumgarner can match that one day but I'm not sure if even he has Sanchez's upside.  What say you? 

    I'm going to the Outside Lands Festival on Sunday.  Anyone else going this weekend?  If you've been there before, are there any pearls of wisdom you could share with a first time participant?  I've been told not to drive because there is absolutely no parking, but what else should I know about?  If you are going, who are you most looking forward to seeing?  I'm hoping to see The Dead Weather, The Avett Brothers, at least part of the Modest Mouse performance, MIA, and of course, The D. 

     Over the past few days there has been a lot of discussion on this site about our beloved Giants, as we are at the halfway point of the season.  As we sit here ready to start the 2nd half, most of us are pleasantly surprised by the performance of the team.  There was some wasted years from about 05-07 and I think most people thought the rebuilding would take another year or two.  Neukom's stated goal was .500 this year and contention in '10.  I thought it would probably be more like '11 before we really turned it around (when the likes of Bumgarner, Posey, etc. would start to make an impact).  But we appear to be contenders already. 

    So my question is, is it a mirage or are the Giants back in the land of the baseball living for the forseeable future?  Should we expect to see competitive teams from here on out, or are we due for a 2nd half regression and more growing pains next year? Personally, I don't see why what we've done in the first half can't continue, if we stay relatively healthy of course.  Other than maybe Cain and Affeldt, I can't think of anyone who is having a year that is better than their career averages/ current expectations would predict. And we're a young team with talent in the farm system.  On the other hand, this has not been a great overall year so far for the NL, as teams with more talent than we have (Mets, Cubs) have under-performed, and we've taken advantage of that to have the 2nd best (tied) record in the National League.  Anyway, your thoughts.  What are the expectations?

  It was an evening like any other.  A boiling June Friday night at some brownturfed ball field in the Cal League.  The ringing of cell phones and the screams of dehydrated babies rang out in the half-empty grandstands with the clarity of a public announcement.  Two rosters of stiffs, youngsters, and anonymous prospects darkened their jerseys with sweat in a contest that soon would be forgotten until BUSTER POSEY WAS HIT IN THE FREAKING HEAD WITH A PITCH!!!!

  This happened a week ago.  I first read the news with alarm.  "What? The head? Is he okay?"  I was soon assured he was fine by the people whose job it is to give me this information.  The team was just being cautious. 

  I assumed this to be true but now it has been a week.  He was supposed to DH last night and did not.  He was supposed to be moving to Fresno soon and has not. The team still says he fine, but where is he?  I'm starting to grow concerned.  If he's really okay wouldn't it be better to get him back out there so he doesn't get psyched out?  Has anyone seen him? Are we sure he's still with us?   What should the course of action be?  I'm nervous, confused and scared.  Help.  BUSTER, IF YOU CAN HEAR THIS JUST SEND US A SIGNAL THAT YOU'RE OKAY!!! PLEASE!!! BUUUSSSTTTERRRRRR!!!!!!!!