he just got his shit absolutely smothered this year

Jeez. The girl just decided to become a cheerleader and now it looked like they were going to lose! I was sure of it! Way to ruin my week, jerk. Now I'll be in a bad mood until Sandlot comes in the mail, and unless that has some wacko ending where the Giants lose to the Dodgers on a ridiculous steal I think I'll be able to get over this.

Then, Rookie of the Year. Then, Little Big League. I will not watch Angels in the Outfield because I'm still mad at the Angels. After that, I'll be caught up on my missing childhood once and for all. But nobody better spoil 'em. got that?

This team was not high on blue chip prospects.  Hell, for most of the second half, they didn't look much like a winning team.  But they pulled together when it counted.

By far, though, the star of this team remains one man:

"All of that [credit] goes to our manager." Minicozzi added. "He's my favorite manager. There's no one I want to play for more than him. He doesn't put any pressure on you. ... I absolutely love playing for Lenn Sakata."

Travis Denker, 2B, High-A San Jose (Giants)

The California League is the only minor league still with games to play, as Denker's Giants play Lake Elsinore tonight in a decisive fifth game. The bad news is that San Jose will likely be without the services of Denker, who injured his shoulder in a collision at home plate on Friday night. It's a tough break for San Jose, who got this far in no small part on the strength of Denker's bat, as the infielder was 11-for-21 with three doubles and three home runs in six games. Denker came over to the Giants system just a few weeks ago in the Mark Sweeney trade; he's basically a guy who can hit, as evidenced by his .300/.379/.461 line in the Cal League this year, mostly with the Dodgers' affiliate, Inland Empire. Scouts aren't especially high on him--he's small, unathletic, and not an especially good defender--but like most players with that profile, he'll get a chance to push many criticisms aside next year if he proves that he can hit Double-A pitching.

Sergio Romo, RHP, High-A San Jose (Giants)

Sergio Romo's numbers are eye-popping--in 41 relief appearances in the California League this year, Romo struck out 106 in just 66 1/3 innings, allowing only 35 hits and 15 walks. That success has continued in the postseason, as Romo has pitched 4 1/3 scoreless innings while retiring 13 of the 15 batters he's faces, seven of them by strikeout. With all this dominance, it's still hard to get too worked up about Romo as a prospect. Before you even look at his stuff, his size (5'11", 185) and age (he'll turn 25 during spring training next year) are already working against him. Romo's fastball sits in upper 80s and his curveball is average. So how does he put up such insane numbers? Command and control; Romo can place both of his pitches anywhere he wants them, and his low three-quarters arm slot adds a little deception as well. It's the kind of combination that stops working at the upper levels, when the margins for error reduce exponentially.