SB Nation User Blog: Speedforthewin

POLL: Moves

Speedforthewin — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 16:24:11 -0000

With the trade deadline approaching and the Giants firmly in... wait, can we call this contention?, the talk around here has been bat-centric. So I pose this question: if you could choose one player to add to the giants, who would it be? for the purposes of this poll, we will focus only on hitters, if you feel the team needs to add a pitcher, state so in the comments.

Now the contenders:

Brandon Wood 3B/SS/1B, Salt Lake Bees (AAA affiliate of the LA Angels)

.305/.379/.620 (avg/obp/slg), 15 HRs at AAA Salk Lake (187 ABs)

Former top prospect of the Angels that projects for power, but not average at the major league level. Could play almost any IF position, though is probably best suited for 3B.

Mark DeRosa 2B/3B/LF, Cleveland Indians

.280/.348/.479 (avg/obp/slg), 13 HRs (257 abs)

FA after this season; can play multiple positions, but is below average at those positions defensively (at lest 2B, not sure about the others).

Howie Kendrick 2B, Salt Lake Bees (AAA affiliate of the Angels)

.231/.281/.355 at LAA (186 ABs)

.286/.348/.476 at AAA Salt Lake (21 ABs)

Former starting 2B for the Angels, sent down to the minors last week. Has hit for average in the MLs, but not much else (Career line of .294/.324/.417).

Dan Uggla 2B, Florida Marlins

.216/.332/.414 at FLA

A bat-only 2B that may have to be moved to 3B in the future.

Nick Johnson 1B, Washington NationLOLs

.311/.415/.439 at WSH (228 ABs)

FA after this season; good on-base man, leads the league in not being Rich Aurilia; it is unknown if he is well versed in the fake bunt.

Kevin Frandsen 2B/SS/3B, Fresno Grizzlies

.330/.382/.484 at AAA Fresno (188 ABs)

We have said almost everything that needs to be said about frandsen the past couple days. Well versed in the art of the HBP.

BOWKERMANIA! RF/1B, Fresno Grizzlies

.343/.451/.573 at AAA Fresno (213 ABs), 10 HRs

Bowker has had a ridiculous season at AAA Fresno, getting on base at a .451 clip with double digit HRs and Steals. Can play 1B, but is primarily an OF.

Jesus Guzman 1B/3B, Fresno Grizzlies

.316/.364/.548 at AAA Fresno, 9 HRs

Guzman, a minor league FA pickup in the offseason, has impressed so far in the minors. Guzman played 3B most of his minor league career before being converted into a 1B this season.

So, what say the McCoven?

Poll

Who should the Giants add?

Brandon Wood, 3B/SS/2B

34 votes

Mark DeRosa, 2B/3B/LF

9 votes

Howie Kendrick, 2B

9 votes

Dan Uggla, 2B

24 votes

Nick Johnson, 1B

15 votes

Kevin Frandsen, 2B/SS/3B

31 votes

John Bowker, RF/1B

110 votes

Jesus Guzman, 3B/1B

15 votes

Other (Please state in the comments)

9 votes

256 votes | Poll has closed

State of the Giants

Speedforthewin — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 16:02:57 -0000

We are now 2 weeks into the season, and while the results are not yet what some were expecting, let's step back and look at the big picture:

The Giants sit at 4-8, tied for 4th place in the NL West with Arizona, and are a ahlf a game back of the Rockies for 3rd. The Giants are currently 5.5 games back of the Bums for 1st place.

The pitching, expected to dazzle, has been less than stellar these first few weeks. However, as much frustration as there has been, the Giants sit 9th in the NL in team ERA, at 4.75. Opponents have hit .249 against the Giants, good for 5th in the NL. The staff is also 4th in K's, w/ 100. The Bullpen, while giving up some leads early in the season, is 7th in the NL with a 4.38 ERA. The staring staff has not fared as well, as they are 9th in the NL with a 4.96 ERA. Interestingly enough, the Giants starters are tied for 2nd in the NL in K's, with 69 thus far.

The Offense, expected to improve off of last season's poor performance, has regressed following an impressive opening series. The Giants are 15th in the NL with 37 runs scored. Additionally, the offense is 12th in BA, hitting .239, and 15th in OBP, getting on base at a .297 clip. Individually, while the young hitters are taking most of the blame, poor performances have come from veterans and young players alike. Ishikawa and Aurilia, the 1B platoon (like it or not), have started with BA of .167 and .161, respectively. The starting middle infield of Emmanuel Burriss and Edgar Renteria have started .189 and .200, respectively. Also, Pablo Sandoval (.244) and Randy Winn (.234) are struggling to begin the season. For those who wonder where Nate Schierholtz is in this writeup, he has one less AB than Tim Lincecum. The bright spots have been the play of Fred Lewis and Aaron Rowand, who have carried the team in the first 2 weeks. Lewis is hitting .395 with a .521 OBP, while Rowand is hitting .297 to start the season.

I Just thought I would put the numbers into perspective with the rest of the NL. the team is struggling equally, veterans and youngsters, so the youth movement should not be abandoned for Uribe, Aurilia and McPherson. Nate should probably see some time, but noone knows who I am talking about anyway. The pitching appears to be coming around, but facing the D'Backs offense will do that to you. Thoughts on the first 2 weeks of Giants Baseball?

3 More cut down

Speedforthewin — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 23:06:04 -0000

3 More cut down

per Baggs. Goodbye to Matos, Bowker and Gerald

Orlando Hudson?

Speedforthewin — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 16:59:43 -0000

Orlando Hudson is a to be FA this offseason, after playing the last 3 seasons for the D'Backs. I realize that the organization has made a statement of not signing big free agents, but who are we kidding, this is the Giants, and they sign Free Agents readily. Orlando Hudson is the best 2B on the FA market, having a reputation for excellent defense (2 consecutive Gold Gloves at 2B) and sporting a career line of .282/.346/.779. However, that does not reflect his offensive performance since he joined the D'Backs in '06. From '06 to '08, Hudson has posted an avg of over .285, OBP of over .350 and OPS of over .800. He has battled some injuries, including playing in only 107 games this season. Let's examine the pros and cons of signing O. Hudson:

Pros:

Fills a position of need for the Giants.
Plays excellent defense, which would strengthen a bad defensive infield for the Giants.
Is certainly no slouch with the bat. While not a game changer, his presence in the lineup would definitely help an anemic offense.
Hudson's presence would allow Kevin Frandsen to play 3B, which while not ideal, would keep the Giants from spending money or trading for a big name 3B.
Although Hudson has been injury prone, the Giants are one team that could handle him going down for a month, with Velez, Denker and Franny available to pick up time in the event of an injury.

Cons:

His presence on the Giants would most certainly stunt the growth of at least 1 of 3 players: Kevin Frandsen, Travis Ishikawa or Eugenio Velez. If Frandsen and Sandoval see the majority of the time at the corner infield spots, Ishikawa would see next to no time, unless Sandoval splits time between 1B and 3B and ishikawa gets 2 starts a week. Velez will see next to no time at 2B and would be limited to 1 start a week and pinch hitting, pinch running duties.
He certainly would not come cheap. Hudson made ~6 mil this year and is the best 2B in a fairly weak 2B class, so he will get paid well, and the Giants recent track record of FA deals is not in their favor.
Injury prone.

I believe that Hudson would be a great addition to the Giants, but only at the right price. The Giants would be best served to over pay for a shorter term deal, like a 3 year deal, and abandon the ideal if Hudson rejects it.

What do you think, Orlando Hudson for 2009 2B?

POLL: Favorite Nickname of '08

Speedforthewin — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 12:21:01 -0000

I was kicking this around for the past few days, and with as many good nicknames as have been kicked around this year, why not vote on them? I mainly stuck with more recent names, and I'm sure 7 options isn't nearly enough, but let me know if there is a big one I am missing. I have cracked up over the various nicknames for Velez this season, so I'm not making it a secret which one i'm picking.

EDIT: Big Panda and The Freak added by popular demand.

Poll

What is your Fav nickname that has been rolled around this site this season?

Speedy McF*ckup / Baron Pickoff von Ironglove/ Zorak (Eugenio Velez)

34 votes

Juggernate (Nate Schierholtz)

31 votes

Freddieloo!/ Fast Freddie/ FLew (Fred Lewis)

5 votes

The Hebrew Hammer (Brian Horwitz)

12 votes

"Dirty"/ El Guapo (Jonathan Sanchez)

20 votes

Little Money/ Meatwad/Big Panda (Pablo Sandoval)

28 votes

The Enchanter/ Franchise/ The Freak (Tim Lincecum)

27 votes

Other (Please Specify)

7 votes

164 votes | Poll has closed

DH Spot

Speedforthewin — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 07:25:54 -0000

The fantasy team at ESPN.com broke down lineup changes for the remainder of interleague play. Here is what was written about the Giants:

And the extra lineup slot goes to … does anybody care? OK, we'll say Rich Aurilia or Emmanuel Burriss.

So I pose this: Do the McCoven care who is the DH?

Personally, I'm all for starting the Hebrew Hammer.

Filler, filler, filler, filler, filler, filler, filler, filler, filler, filler, done.

Bochy on Walker's outing last night

Speedforthewin — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 14:04:01 -0000

If this doesn't feed fuel to the fire on all of the thighler jokes on gameday threads, i don't know what will.

From the SJ Mercury News and Andrew Baggarly:

The fire brigade wasn't done for the night, because struggling setup man Tyler Walker pitched himself into trouble again in the eighth.
"It looked like he got tired there," Bochy said. "A polar bear doesn't do well in the heat."

There you go, let the thighler jokes fly.

Who should take Misch's start tomorrow?

Speedforthewin — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 18:14:58 -0000

Tuesday's game @ the rockies is looming and the giants website still has Misch penciled in as the starter even though he has been pitching out of the bullpen recently. With the Fresno starters getting knocked around lately, this is certainly an interesting decision. So i pose to the McCoven, who should take the hill tomorrow night? Personally, i'm hoping to be sipping on some Hennessey.

P.S. this is my first time working with a poll, hopefully it works.

Poll

Who should start tomorrow's game?

Pat Misch

24 votes

Brad Henessey

17 votes

Victor Santos

1 votes

Nick Pereira

8 votes

Keiichi Yabu

7 votes

Kevin Correia

38 votes

95 votes | Poll has closed

KLaw gives the Giants his love

Speedforthewin — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 14:50:10 -0000

I'm sure some of you have read this, but i thought i would post this for the benefit of all. Keith Law ranked the Giants first day draft as the top first day draft this year. His thoughts:

1. San Francisco Giants

Buster Posey falling to them at No. 5 was part luck, but the Giants also had the guts to take him. Posey reportedly is asking for $12 million. Sandwich pick Conor Gillaspie should have gone in the first round, and Roger Kieschnick has first-round potential despite mediocre performances. Keep an eye on fifth-rounder Edwin Quirarte, a reliever from Cal State Northridge with big-time sink on his fastball and an improving splitter.

It's nice to hear something tangible about Quirate, he sounds like an interesting pick for the Giants at the very least. Rounding out the top 5 (2-5) were the Red Sox, Royals, Cardinals and Tigers.

Thoughts?

Zito's Resurgance

Speedforthewin — Fri, 30 May 2008 15:34:20 -0000

Ok, hear me out, but Zito has actually been markedly better since his "time off." On just thinking about his starts without any numbers, I thought he had done marginally better, but the numbers tell a bit of another tale:

5 G, 5GS, (1-2) W-L, 28.1 IP, 3.49 ERA, 1.59 WHIP, .284 BAA, 21 K's, 16 BB's

Now the WHIP is still alarmingly high, but Zito has drastically improved all of his stats from April to May. I think the Real Zito may be somewhere in the middle, closer to a 4.2-4.3 range ERA.

Comment Starter: Was Zito's month a fluke, or is he becoming a serviceable starter for the Giants?