SB Nation User Blog: sfgreg

Sabean thinks Giants can contend in '08...

sfgreg — Thu, 15 May 2008 16:54:23 -0000

It's a scary thought , although I wouldn't really expect him to say anything differently. Here are some highlights of the article:

Sabean sees a San Francisco team that can contend.

Not in two seasons, not next season, but in 2008."As long as we've got a chance to stay in and around third place, why not?" Sabean said as he stood along the dugout rail and watched his players take batting practice. "Why wouldn't you want to think that way? These guys think that way.

He plans on keeping his "most marketable" veterans, for now...(sorry Nate)

With that in mind, Sabean said he does not contemplate moving his most marketable experienced players before the trade deadline, as many rebuilding teams do. Catcher Bengie Molina and outfielder Randy Winn, both signed through 2009, might yield the most in return. But as of now, Sabean plans to keep them.

"Both of those guys are unique," he said. "On any team, whether you're in transition or you're a veteran team, you want a veteran catcher. You want somebody like Molina who has an upside with the bat. In Randy's case it's the same thing, somebody who is so versatile, a switch-hitter who can play all three outfield positions. Their relative value is going to be consistent no matter what year it is or who you have around them."

He goes on to say that with Castillo and Bowker they have found solutions at first and third, so hopefully this means no outrageous trades for Crede or any other mediocre veteran corner INF.

At least there is still plenty of time left in the season for this team to change his mind.

Frandsen's Days at Shortstop are over...

sfgreg — Thu, 06 Mar 2008 17:36:40 -0000

This is good news, although it means they are going to have to add another SS to the 40 man roster at some point.

Kevin Frandsen will not be the Giants' shortstop on Opening Day. Manager Bruce Bochy said today he has informed Frandsen, who has struggled at the position, that he will return to his natural position at second base and get some time at third.

The Giants now have three candidates to be the Opening Day shortstop: prospects Emmanuel Burriss and Brian Bocock, who played Single-A ball last season, and Ivan Ochoa, last year's shortstop at Triple-A Fresno.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/03/06/SPP9VEU2K.DTL

Mets inquired about Molina...

sfgreg — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 04:18:00 -0000

According to Rosenthal the Mets called about Molina...

The Mets inquired about the Giants' Molina at the general managers' meetings, and they could attempt to revive the talks by offering newly acquired Johnny Estrada and perhaps another player. It is unclear whether the Giants want to trade Molina, however, and their trade leverage would be compromised by the $6 million that Molina is owed in each of the next two seasons. ...

I am all for trading Molina, but I wouldn't be wild about getting Estrada in return. Maybe Brian should call his old pal Dusty to see if he is interested in a veteran catcher.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/7480346?forum_key=StoryComments&topic_key=7480346&page_no =3

Poll

Do you think Bengie will be traded?

Yes

24 votes

No

46 votes

70 votes | Poll has closed

Tigers acquire Edgar Renteria

sfgreg — Mon, 29 Oct 2007 20:44:23 -0000

From Rotoworld:

Tigers acquired shortstop Edgar Renteria from the Braves for RHP Jair Jurrjens and outfielder Gorkys Hernandez.
That was remarkably quick. That Renteria is being dealt is no surprise, and it figured that the Tigers would be high on the list of suitors. However, we don't see wht the Braves felt they had to make the move today when better offers could have come later. This simply isn't a great return for a player who was one of the best in the NL last season. Renteria hit .332/.390/.470 in 2007, and he's under control for a very reasonable $20 million over two years (the second year is at Detroit's option). The Tigers did quite well to get him now. It'll certainly head off any Alex Rodriguez speculation.

Wow, that was quick! I wonder if Sabean was in on this?

Giants prepare for off-season changes

sfgreg — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 05:16:19 -0000

Here are some tidbits from an article from the official site. I know Sabean isn't going to tip his hand, but it's hard to get excited about the off-season after reading it.

Without being critical of departed home run king Barry Bonds, Bochy said Monday that he wants to "change the culture in the clubhouse" by urging the Giants to play more aggressively.

Not sure I quite understand this, but OK.

Sabean said that Rajai Davis will receive a chance to claim center field, with Dave Roberts moving to left, and spoke highly of shortstop Omar Vizquel and third baseman Pedro Feliz -- hinting that both potential free agents on the left side of the infield could be re-signed.

So Rajai, Roberts, and Vizquel won't combine to hit 10 homeruns, but remember speed, pitching and defense wins in our division. We're set!

Although management demonstrated its desire to field a younger team by announcing on Sept. 21 that Bonds would not be re-signed, Sabean indicated that the Giants still would try to build a contender even while nurturing less-experienced players.

More vets on the way.

Although the Giants ranked next-to-last in the NL in scoring, Sabean echoed Bochy in saying that these collapses could be attributed more to pitching than hitting: "In some ways, we scored enough runs," said Sabean, who noted that he'll try to add at least one proven reliever to the bullpen.

Second to last in runs and getting rid of our best hitter with no viable replacement. When in doubt, blame bullpen!

Sabean likened the challenge he faces this offseason to the predicament he confronted after the 1996 campaign, which happened to mark the last time the Giants lost more than 90 games (68-94) and finished last in the West. Although few realized it at the time, Sabean turned the Giants into winners largely on the strength of one trade: The deal that sent Matt Williams and Trenidad Hubbard to Cleveland for Jeff Kent, Joe Roa, Julian Tavarez and Jose Vizcaino. Kent formed an outstanding hitting tandem with Bonds for six years, while Tavarez and Vizcaino contributed significantly to the '97 team, which won the division.

What have you done for us lately?? That was 10 years ago.

The Giants have identified about six teams with position-player depth who could be pitching-hungry, although no talks are current.

Maybe the most interesting quote, that is if you have faith in Sabean's trading ability.

There is more, some of Sabean's other quotes are worth reading:

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071001&content_id=2244648&vkey=news_sf&fext=.j sp&c_id=sf

The Last Real Race...

sfgreg — Wed, 26 Sep 2007 19:24:58 -0000

Over at ESPN.com there is a piece on the 1993 pennant chase between our Giants and the Atlanta Braves. Of course we all know how that turned out, but I did find myself getting a little nostalgic when reading about it especially since I was fairly young when it happened(12yrs old).

It would take a transcendent pitching staff, the midseason heist of a slugging first baseman, the burning of a stadium, and a comeback from a double-digit deficit to beat Dusty's Giants. But the Atlanta Braves, playing Javert to the Giants' Valjean all year long, would finally subdue San Fran on the final day of the regular season, the last of its kind.

If it's not too traumatizing to relive this moment I would recommend checking it out. If nothing else it reinforces why we should hate the Dodgers, Rockies, and Braves so much.

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/eticket/story?page=93pennant

Hennessey out as closer.

sfgreg — Sun, 16 Sep 2007 06:01:26 -0000

Bochy has apparently seen enough of Hennessey in the ninth and is going to give Tyler Walker and Brian Wilson a chance to close some games. Big news, I know...

Bochy said before the Giants' game against the San Diego Padres that Walker and Wilson will share the closer's duties, replacing Brad Hennessey, the role's primary caretaker since the May 31 Armando Benitez trade.

It will be interesting to see how Bochy divvies up the 3 or so save opportunities this team will see the rest of the year.

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070915&content_id=2211369&vkey=news_sf&fext=.j sp&c_id=sf

Morris trade Completed

sfgreg — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 19:42:21 -0000

The PTBNL from the Pirates is single A pitcher Steve MacFarland.

The Pirates completed the Matt Morris trade by sending minor-league reliever Steve MacFarland to the San Francisco Giants.

MacFarland, a 21-year-old right-hander who was the Pirates' ninth-round draft pick last year, went 3-2 with a 4.80 ERA in 39 appearances for Class A Hickory, including one start. He struck out 69 and walked 48 in 65 2/3 innings.

Don't know anything about him, strikeouts look good but the walks look bad.

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/07239/812512-63.stm

Messenger DL'd

sfgreg — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 04:35:24 -0000

Broken left hand injured before today's game.

From Rotoworld:

Giants placed RHP Randy Messenger on the 15-day disabled list with a broken left hand.
Messenger was hurt when he was hit by a ball during batting practice before Wednesday's game. The Giants thought it was just a bruise, but X-rays revealed the break. Since it's not his pitching hand, he might be ready to return on Sept. 1. Pat Misch is expected to be recalled to replace him.

Tough Break....

(sorry couldn't resist)

Minorleagueball.com's Mock Draft

sfgreg — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 06:20:31 -0000

They did a five round mock draft over at John Sickel's minorleagueball.com. I am not much of a draft guru(wish I was) so I am curious to know how people would feel if the draft played out this way or similar to it. The Giants picks were made by a poster named MPK and here is what he thought of his drafting:

Not completely happy with my performance. Made a mistake or two and screwed up on Fairley's value.

Got some high-school pitchers I believe in, a couple CFs with high ceilings, and two polished college pitchers. Just missed on a couple guys I really liked with my 1st couple picks.

Any comments, questions, etc... would be appreciated.

#10 Madison Bumgarner-I was hoping to get a shot at Parker, Heyward, or Detwiler, but it was not to be. This pick easily could have been Harvey or Aumont, but I liked Bumgarner's easy velocity and athleticism. Hopefully he can be taught a change to help neutralize righties. Should I have gone in a different direction here?

#22 Corey Brown-Just missed on Mesoraco and Ahrens here. Brown isn't a terrible consolation prize as he should stick in center and is a well-rounded offensive player. I can understand anyone who would take Main here. Not a huge Borbon or LaPorta fan, so they weren't really options. Thought about Weathers, but I was pretty sure I could get better value for a fast- moving reliever later in the draft.

#29 Nevin Griffith-Burgess, Schmidt, and Fairley were considered here as well. Was tempted by Brackman, but there were too many negatives in his total package. I really like guys who can command and pitch off their fastball, plus Griffith is athletic and projectable.

#32 Wendell Fairley-I goofed here. Probably coulda nabbed him at 43 and gotten Burgess, Poreda, etc...at this slot. I do however believe in Fairley's ability and the chance he can be an offensive and defensive standout in CF. Still a risky pick, plus I miscalculated the interest in him so not my best selection.

#43 James Simmons-I really like guys who can pitch off their fastball and Simmons personifies that criteria. He's still 20, but should move pretty quick and provide some level of immediate security from this draft.

#51 Kyle Blair-Another pick I wish I could have back. I like Blair's total package (fastball around 90, plus curve, projectable, good makeup, athletic) and believe in his upside, but had him rated similarily to Kentrail Davis and Kellen Kulbacki, and given the state of the Giants farm system a bat may have been better.

#164 Jonathan Holt-One of my favorite picks. Hopefully he's the 2007 version of Joe Smith. Another guy with great fastball command. Close to a sidearmer and has excellent control of a high-80's sinker. Had a 60-4 K/BB ratio for U of Tampa this year. Decent size, durable, and should be a really fast-mover. Would have preferred Cory Gearrin because of his slider, but I'm happy with Holt despite the limited upside.

Here is a link to the diary above:

http://www.minorleagueball.com/story/2007/6/3/202249/9716

Link to the entire draft so you know who was available when he selected:

http://www.minorleagueball.com/

Is this how the draft is going to play out with all the hitters gone by #10? Would you take Matt Dominguez over Bumgarner or is that too big of a reach?

What would you have done or would like to see?