Tejada kinda sucks, no?

I agree that Bengie, while a terrific guy, isn’t part of the next good Giants team. If there is indeed a market for his services, I think we should pursue that option.

Little Money appears to not be an ideal choice for thirdbase (limited lateral range) or for firstbase (limited…uh…height). That’s not to say he will not or should play either of those positions next year – but the real question here, I think, is “where can he play when we assemble our Next Great Giants team?”

Lotta Money really is the 800 pound gorilla in this discussion, isn’t he? I am not absolutely wedded to the idea of Gerald being only a catcher. It’s his bat we especially want in the lineup, just as we want Pablito’s in the lineup somewhere next season. If we still want Sandoval starting during the Posey Years (as future historians will call it), maybe our best option is to leave Pablo at his best position (catcher) and take advantage of his positional flexibility defensively so that we can get the maximum number of good hitters into the starting lineup. So maybe Posey plays SS, as he did his freshman year. Maybe he’s the next Craig Biggio and takes over 2B for a decade and more. Or maybe Nick Noonan becomes a lock at 2B, and Burriss or Crawford or Schoop turns out to be a terrific SS – then perhaps Buster is our starting CF. Or LF. I think we should remain open-minded about where he ends up playing – because it appears Gerald Posey can play pretty much anywhere.

So, I think Pablo’s future depends on how Crawford, Noonan, Frandsen, and Burriss turn out. Weird, huh?

but Lyle pretty much covered it . Nice post.

I think its way to early to make decisions about Busta. In theory, he’s 100x more flexible than Pablo and we still really don’t have a good idea where he is in terms of development.

In terms of Bengie, I would really hate to see him go before his contract is up. I have a feeling he’d get pretty butt-hurt, and I’d really hate to part with him like that. He’s been one of the best Giants we’ve had on and off the field for the last couple years, and watching the Big Money/Little Money dynamic at the end of the season was awesomely entertaining. Unless the deal is just too sweet, I think Bengie should stick around.

…If only to say Miggy, Ishi, Franny, and Manny.

My main concern is whether Pablo can really catch. Baseball America has quoted scouts almost universally panning his defense behind the plate (except with a good arm).

I’m not opposed to making him a catcher, of course. I just wouldn’t be too quick to assume he can do it without hurting the team.

I’m of the school of thought that Bengie is far more valuable for the Giants next year than he is likely to be for other teams. Bengie should be around for the Giants next year to aid in Pabito’s growth as a catcher and offensive player, as Bengie plays similarly in many ways of the game. Also, the bullpen projects to be very young again, and the rotation will still be young, so having Bengie to work with the youngins is never a bad idea. Also keep in mind that as long as the black hole that is 3B exists, Pablo will get his ABs. Unless the offer includes young players and is enticing, i’d pass.

Tejada’s done. I’m not sure he will out hit Bengie next year, let alone Pablo.
As if to spite me, ZIPS (2009) projects him at .300/.344/.441 in Houston which is probably around a 100 OPS+ or so, which I would guess to be better than Molina.

The age might be off, though. zips has him at 33, BR has him at 34 this year, and 35 in 2009.