Sabean said he expects to solve third base internally, with Pablo Sandoval getting the bulk of time...

Sabean said he expects to solve third base internally, with Pablo Sandoval getting the bulk of time despite his inexperience at the position.

http://www.mercurynews.com/giants

about 1 month ago Dan from NM Comment 38 comments 0 recs |

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I’m intrigued by the idea of Pablo playing third base regularly. The offensive requirements are lower there than at first, but it’s not as taxing as playing catcher. (Plus, Sabean may not be willing to trade Molina.)

Put me down as in favor at this point.

by Dan from NM on Nov 14, 2008 7:49 AM PST 0 recs

I guess we are locked in to an Ishikawa/Phelps platoon at 1B.

by Lars The Wanderer on Nov 14, 2008 7:53 AM PST 0 recs

Ishikawa/Phelps/Bowker/Aurilia/Tony Clark!!!

My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.

by howtheyscored on Nov 14, 2008 8:16 AM PST up 0 recs

BTW, link fail

by Lars The Wanderer on Nov 14, 2008 8:04 AM PST 0 recs

Sorry about that. I was trying to link to the Mercury News.

by Dan from NM on Nov 14, 2008 11:54 AM PST up 0 recs

Link Fix

Pablo At 3B, Giants Are Ready to Shop

My adopted son Matt Downs. Lost in the wilderness of mediocrity.

by nvsfg on Nov 14, 2008 8:20 AM PST 0 recs

refail

by Evan on Nov 14, 2008 9:00 AM PST up 0 recs

Merc or SBN issues

link worked on preview.

My adopted son Matt Downs. Lost in the wilderness of mediocrity.

by nvsfg on Nov 14, 2008 11:34 AM PST up 0 recs

Terrible idea. He’s not a third baseman long-term, and he’s probably not a legit major-league hitter yet.

by Evan on Nov 14, 2008 9:03 AM PST 0 recs

but, no Casey Blake!

The Denker bus is now bound for San Diego. Those who were passengers on it are now angrily stranded at a gas station in Modesto, CA. Not much about baseball here .

by oldjacket on Nov 14, 2008 10:13 AM PST up 0 recs

(a) So what if he’s not a third baseman long term? Plenty of players switch positions after a few years in the majors.
(b) Is there any really compelling reason not to FIND OUT if he’s a legit major league hitter yet? It’s not like he’s going to drag down an otherwise great lineup if he flops. Giving young players the chance to sink or swim is exactly what the team should be doing at this point.
© No Casey Blake!
(d) No Joe Crede!

Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly

by jcb9 on Nov 14, 2008 10:22 AM PST up 0 recs

NO CASEY BLAKE!

The Denker bus is now bound for San Diego. Those who were passengers on it are now angrily stranded at a gas station in Modesto, CA. Not much about baseball here .

by oldjacket on Nov 14, 2008 10:28 AM PST up 0 recs

VOTE NO ON PROPOSITION CASEY

#1 JUDY STEFFES FAN
My favorite pie is (name of pie flavor)
Bay City Ball

by xanthan on Nov 14, 2008 10:34 AM PST up 0 recs

HEY!

How DARE you say an unkind word about my wife! I’ll cut you, you son of a…

…oh….wait….you meant Casey Blake. Right, sorry.

Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly

by jcb9 on Nov 14, 2008 10:36 AM PST up 0 recs

(a) But Pablo is a catcher who needs to improve his catching skills. He’s not going to develop them at third base.

(b) Giving young players an unearned starting job and then demoting them in May when they struggle seems like a poor development strategy, doesn’t it? I’m pretty sure Pablo has plenty to learn from AAA pitchers.

(d) Crede is someone to target. Injuries are going to keep his price down.

bonus:

(e) Putting Pablo at third gives Sabean carte blanche to pretend he has solved the problem, just as Ortmeier solved the first-base problem and Kevin Frandsen solved the third-base problem this time last year. Next thing you know, it’s May and you’ve got Aurilia and Castillo starting at the corners. Hope is not a plan.

by Evan on Nov 14, 2008 10:42 AM PST up 0 recs

a) Considering many expect Posey to be on the fast track to the majors, I don’t think Sandoval’s long-term future is behind the plate. First base seems most likely if he sticks.
b) It’s not like we’re talking about Bocock here. It’s an open question as to whether Sandoval is ready to hit major league pitching, but the early returns are good.
c) KILL THE INFIDEL!
d) I hate Joe Crede. There’s a reason why injuries will keep his price down – that reason being, he’s pretty much always hurt, and that looks likely to continue for the foreseeable future. Also, he was never very good to begin with. He’s only had one full season when he was anything other than below average.
e) Again, Sandoval is not the same as Ortmeier or Frandsen. Anyone with any sense thought Ortmeier and Frandsen were backups at best. A lot of us think Sandoval can be a lot more than that.

Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly

by jcb9 on Nov 14, 2008 10:52 AM PST up 0 recs

Planning on a player taking the fast track to the majors is foolish, no? If Posey does turn into Insta-Cup-o-Mauer, then Sandoval will be more valuable as a trade chip than as a first baseman. It’s hard to imagine him ever having the bat to be a good first baseman.

I guess sharksrog and I are alone on this, but I think it’s clear that Sandoval is NOT ready to hit major-league pitching. You really think he’s anything like a .345 hitter? If he had had enough ab’s last year, he would have been tied with Freddie Lewis for the fourth-highest BABIP in the majors. He’s got loads of natural ability, but absent a fundamental change in his approach at the plate, it’s hard to see him surpassing Bengie’s line from last year. Which would suck for a third baseman who’s probably not going to be much of a fielder.

Also, putting Sandoval at third encourages Sabean to keep Molina around rather than trading him.

Finally, I too think Sandoval can be a lot more than that. That’s why I want the organization to settle down and focus on helping him develop into the best player he can be. This scheme, on the other hand, is clearly aimed at providing a quick patch so the organization doesn’t have to come up with a real solution at third.

by Evan on Nov 14, 2008 1:13 PM PST up 0 recs

You’re right about a lot of this. I’d prefer Sandoval at catcher above all else. But when trying to figure out the options Sabean appears to be considering, I’d rather have Sandoval at third than at first.

I think Sandoval is a major-league hitter. He really hit well across all levels last year, mostly as a 21-year-old. Maybe it’s a fluke, but I’m willing to let him hit in the bigs to find out.

by Dan from NM on Nov 14, 2008 2:00 PM PST up 0 recs

“Also, putting Sandoval at third encourages Sabean to keep Molina around rather than trading him.”

I’d like to see Molina traded and Sandoval at catcher, but that’s not going to happen. It’s pretty clear that Sabean wants to keep both Molina and Winn. I don’t agree with that, but it appears to be reality.

Never has a poster been more correct in the history of the internet. Ever! - ResDog on yours truly

by jcb9 on Nov 14, 2008 2:20 PM PST up 0 recs

+100 on this. I mean, come on. Would you rather sign any of the retread, utility IF’s in disguise (yes, I’m looking at you Crede!!! You to, Blake!!). Give Pablo a shot, and use Ishiphelps at 1B. Sign a nice backup for both positions (Aurilia would do nicely, but if there’s someone better sign ’em) and see what happens.

by tyrannoman on Nov 14, 2008 11:04 AM PST up 0 recs

Joe Crede

will be a bargain this offseason. At most, he’ll take 5 mil for a year. He plays excellent 2 win defense and at worst will be -.5 wins on offense. I’ll take 1.5 wins for 5 million.

Last year, his Iso power was .212. he’s still got that and while it may take him out of action at some point, it still looks like he could swing without pain.

Mischievously implosive purple pitching staff.

by SloIsLonelyForTheOrange on Nov 14, 2008 1:06 PM PST up 0 recs

And he will play in the field all of about 800 innings. De Facto Platoon player in the NL that can only field one position. 5MM way too much without a viable platoon partner..

Ivan Ochoa - Heir to the legacy of Rob Andrews & Rikkert Faneyte!

Here comes Captain Obvious wearing his Atomic Wedgie!

by daveinexile on Nov 15, 2008 8:56 AM PST up 0 recs

Blake the Mistake

Bonds stands alone.

Proud adopted parent of future big league slugger Thomas Neal

by nostocksjustbonds on Nov 14, 2008 3:37 PM PST up 0 recs

Posturing

My initial reaction to reading that this morning was “Didn’t he just annoint Pablo as the starting firstbasemen a month ago?”

Do you think managment tells players going into the offseason not to believe anything that comes out of their mouth for the next couple months because it is just posturing for free agent negotiations? Or is this just understood by the players and managment just hopes they have thick skin?

by Fresburg on Nov 14, 2008 9:26 AM PST 0 recs

Pablo was only "penciled in" at 1b

http://blogs.mercurynews.com/extrabaggs/2008/09/29/full-transcript-of-brian-sabean-post-year-analysisoffseason-look-ahead/

Looking at the landscape, Sabes very likely came to the conclusion that the 3b FA and trade markets are not very good and that it would be easier to fill other spots and let Pablo take a turn at 3b, which he probably will be able to play decently in the short term. His bat will keep him in the lineup.

Bonds stands alone.

Proud adopted parent of future big league slugger Thomas Neal

by nostocksjustbonds on Nov 14, 2008 9:54 AM PST up 0 recs

Does anyone know if Pablo is playing 3b in Winter ball?

by Fresburg on Nov 14, 2008 10:13 AM PST up 0 recs

based on 2nd hand info, he is.

Bonds stands alone.

Proud adopted parent of future big league slugger Thomas Neal

by nostocksjustbonds on Nov 14, 2008 3:38 PM PST up 0 recs

what?

you two haven’t been chatting on Messenger?

by BigO on Nov 14, 2008 3:43 PM PST up 0 recs

I was going to use telepathy, but he’s not in my regional network, so it costs extra and I can’t really afford it right now.

Bonds stands alone.

Proud adopted parent of future big league slugger Thomas Neal

by nostocksjustbonds on Nov 14, 2008 3:45 PM PST up 0 recs

understandable

by BigO on Nov 14, 2008 3:50 PM PST up 0 recs

I’m still inclined to think that Sabes is posturing here. At the very least, I doubt that this will prevent him from listening on Bengie deals, or if Pittsburgh decided to send over one of their young 3b-men.

by BigO on Nov 14, 2008 12:03 PM PST up 0 recs

Pablito Sandoval

Great news. SF has no 3b and Sandoval has played 3b before for over a season while in the minors. Sandoval has also been playing 3b for his Venezuela Winter League team. Now time to go out and sign Rafael Furcal to play SS.

by wilriv21 on Nov 14, 2008 9:53 AM PST 0 recs

I remember when "play the kids!!" was the war cry.

Now that the team is finally in a position to do that, people decide there is not enough veterany goodness on the roster.

by Lars The Wanderer on Nov 14, 2008 11:08 AM PST 0 recs

Grass is always greener, and all that. You’re on point here, though. As soon as Pablo is slated to get 500 AB’s, people are wary.

by tyrannoman on Nov 14, 2008 11:42 AM PST up 0 recs

Agree. Let the kids play! And Sandoval especially, wherever that has to be position-wise.

Matt Cain: throwing complete game shutouts since 06'. No big deal.

by cain1rstballothof on Nov 14, 2008 7:48 PM PST up 0 recs

Mixed feelings

Personally i’d rather see him try & stick at catcher, he’s got the most value there, Posey’s by no means a sure thing (although obviously a good prospect) & it’ll be harder for him to move back there.

If he’s not going to be a catcher next year, then i don’t mind him at third base. I don’t see him as a long term 3B, but it’s worth ruling out as he has more value there than 1B. Also, as mentioned, there isn’t much available on the 3B market, certainly compared to our options for 1B (both internal & external) I hope we’re still in the market for a 3B, but if we can’t aquire one, Sandoval’s a decent stopgap.

Proud owner of the most boring Username! Alex Hinshaw: Now showing in a bullpen near you!

by GiantFan on Nov 14, 2008 12:41 PM PST 0 recs

Good

I was getting tired of the “Pablo at 1B” horse s—-. I have no illusions about the chances of his glove playing at the hot corner, but they’re far better than his chances of bat playing at the cold corner.

I can only hope that the team manages to move Molina and open up catcher, but I’m not holding my breath.

VAE PVTO DEVS FIO

by Bhaakon on Nov 15, 2008 12:24 AM PST 0 recs

Let the kid play...

I saw Pablo Sandoval in AA Connecticut last year – he can flat out hit, and he is a very deceptive athlete. He appears to be short and stocky -he is listed at 5’11" and 245, but he has very quick hands and feet. The Giants signed him to little fanfare as a16 year old from Venezuela in 2003. He has improved dramatically, and he always had talent. He would not be the first catcher to move to another position early in his career with success – both Dale Murphy and Craig Biggio started out wearing the Tools of Ignorance.

Sandoval did play a few games at third in SF last year, and he did not embarrass himself there. And he can flat out rake. He is better there than anyone else the Giants have, and between Molina and Posey, the Giants are one of the few MLB teams that are not in need of a catcher.

Let the kid play.

by kar120c on Nov 15, 2008 4:33 AM PST 0 recs